Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1909-09-30
WASHINGTON LETTER

Taft as to his attitude towards the
movement in the Republic
an Party that doubt was removed by
his recent speeches. President Taft is
the friend and defender of Aldrich and
Cannon and is not in sympathy with
the Progressive movement. The cir
under which he assumed
office. in fact some of the conditions
his nomination gave rise to
suspicion that Mr.. Taft was not IN
sympathy with the policies of Presi-
dent Roosevelt. In the course of his
campaign for nomination a secret cir
cular sent out from his headquarters
in Columbus giving assurances to Wall
Street became public This document
practically committed President Taft
to a reversal of Roosevelt policies.
Promptly then Mr.. Taft, who was then
Secretary of War, repudiated the cir
cular and his manager In Columbus
declared that it was issued without
authority by an attachee of the head
quarters and he was disciplined. The
very fact that President Roosevelt was
behind Mr.. Taft's candidacy with a
powerful influence of his administers
ton was sufficient assurance to many
progressive Republicans that Taft
would carry out in good faith the
policies of his predecessor. They be-
lieved this in spite of the fact that
it was known that vast sums of money
were expended by Mr.. Taft's relatives
to bring about his nomination, which
under some circumstances might have
raised suspicion of scandal. When
the President in his inaugural address
solemnly pledged himself to the per-
petuation of the Roosevelt policies his
pledge was accepted in good faith.
The Wall Street interests declared that
this pledge was not to be taken toe
seriously.
President Taft gave disappointment
in some quarters by the way in which
he selected his advisers. He took his
Attorney General from Wall Street,
where he had been the protege of j.
Pierpont Morgan, Thomas F. Ryan anc
other money kings. He called into
consultation Senator Knox, Elihu Root,
Senator Crane and Jonathan Bourne OF
Oregon. Many of the Progressive
Republicans who worked before the
Chicago convention and at the conven-
ton to bring about Mr.. Taft's nomina-
ton, found it impossible after he be-
came President to reach him personally
except by running the gauntlet of the
class of men representing the re
dictionary" element in the Republican
party who were at Chicago during
the Republican National Convention
trying in every way possible to form
some combination by which to defeat
Taft. Just why the President SHOULD
have made these men his advisors al
the very outset of his administras ior
was hard to explain to the average
friend of Mr.. Taft except on the
ground that the President desired to
reunite his party and to show that he
cherished no resentment on account OF
the incident attending his campaign
for nomination. One of the first things
the President did that occasioned sur
prise was his fiat refusal to appoint
VIM. Loeb, Jr. member of his cahi-
net. Mr.. Taft owes as much probably
to Mr.. Loeb for his nomination as he
does to any single individual in the
Republican Party, other than Mr..
Roosevelt himself. But Mr.. Taft took
the ground that he wanted to divorce
his administration from all suspicion
of being an echo of Roosevelt. Mr..
Loeb was given very desirable APP
pointment in the collectorship of Gus
toms at New York but it is not VIII, t
he desired and is not what President
Roosevelt would have wished Mr.. Loeb
to have. Mr.. Roosevelt maintained
that it would not be proper for him to
make a request of President Taft to
appoint anyone to office and he adhered
to it. but he was disappointed when
Loeb was not given place in the cabi-
net. This statemant is made on au-
thority.
Throughout the tariff bill considera-
ton which is the only important legis-
lative policy that has been carried out
under President Taft, he gave nc
assistance or comfort to the Progress.
sive Republicans in the Senate ano
House who were fighting the peoples
battle for lower duties. A word from
him at the right time would have giver
the country an entirely different kline
of law. There were a sufficient mum
Der of Progressive Republicans in the
House who, acting with the Democrats
could have modified the excessive rates
in the same bill and given the country
the kind of revision downward which
it had right to expect as the result
of promises made by the President him
self and by the trainers of the Repub
lican platform. But the President
did not speak. When appealed to by
low tariff Republicans he simply ex
cused himself by saying that be woule
not usurp the functions of the legisla
ture. After the bill had gone to con
ference and report had been agreed
on the President took the stand. He
did the right thing at the wrong time