Smyrna times., 1910-08-31
TAFT DID NOT
OPPOSE T. R.
In Letter to GriSC0m Denies
Charge CT Plotting.
HIS COUNSEL TO SHERMAN

Declares He Favored Roosevelt For
Temporary Chairman In New YorH
and Suggested Concessions to In
surgents.
President TAFT not only had no
hand in the trickery at the meeting |
Of the New York Republican state
committee, whereby Billy Ward TIN
Woodruff, Billy Barnes and Jimmy
WadswOrth succeeded in having a m) |
tiOn adopted naming Vice Presiden
Sherman as the temporary chairman
of the Republican state convention in
place of Mr. Roosevelt, but in a lester
which was received by Chairman Gris.
com, Of the Republican county com
mittee, it was made plain that Mr..
Taft insisted that before any choice
was made by the committee, Mr..
Roosevelt should be consulted. Mr..
Roosevelt was not consulted.
Mr. GriscOm after the meeting stated
that Mr.. Taft had told him that he
would do nothing that would seem to
apply antagonism to Mr.. Roosevelt
and Mr.. Griscom states further that
he was sure that the statements mcGe
by Mr.. Woodruff, Mr. Barnes and the
others who led the movement for the
choice of Mr.. Sherman, that their ac-
tiOn had been sanctioned by Mr.. TAFT,
was entirely without foundation. When
Mr.. Woodruff was told what Mr.. Girls
hoI -fn haf in,
sinuated that Mr.. GriscOm ought to be
enrolled as a member of the Ananias
club He said that Mr. Sherman. with
whom he had long talk the night be.
fore. had spoken with Mr.. Taft over
the telephone, as had also Mr.. Ward,
and that both had been assured by the
president that it would be announced
at the meeting that the selection OF
Mr.. Sherman had his approval.
SO far from Mr.. Taft sending any
such message to either of these mcl
he sent a telegram to Mr.. Sherman iu
sisting that before any action was
taken by the committee Mr. Rooseve :
should be consulted with and that il
there was need. reasonable conCes
sions should be made with the pro
gressiyes. bo.h with regard to platform
and candidates.
The letter from President Taft to
Mr.. Griscom does away altogether with
! the wild stories which have been float
| ing around to the effect that there is
a break between Mr.. Taft and Mr..
Roosevelt AS this letter shows. the
| president had nothing to do with the
| turning down OF Roosevelt by the state
committee and that it was in fact lis
hope that there should be harmony at
| the meeting. When the news of the re
suit of the meeting reached the presi
| dent he was told that Mr.. Roosevelt
was inclined to blame him for what oc
| Cured and Mr.. Taft was advised bl
some of his closest friends to come ont
with a statement showing that so fan
from doing anything which might split
the Republican party in this state. he
had on the contrary advised that moth
ing should be done which would tenC
to show that there was even a sem
blance of q possibility of a break be
tween himself and the former presi
dent. Mr. Taft told friends that to d,
so would put him in the light Of tal;
ing an active interest in the party q.
fairs of this state.
Until about Friday or Saturday les
Mr.. Taft intended to stick to this p.l
icy. but in response to suggestion
made to him that if the idea shoul
be allowed to continue that he wa
even indirectly responsible for the re
lection of Mr.. Roosevelt as temporal
chairman of the state convention th
result would be that the Repuj i"a
party would be in an even worse c,I
dition when the campaign opened tia
it is now.
1t was then that Mr.. Taft consente
to make it clear that he had neye
raised so much as a finger to defea
Mr.. Roosevelt for the Temporal
Craftsmanship of the convention, tia
he had always been opposed 10 an
suggestion of a contest at the meetin
of the state committee against NJ
Roosevelt; that he had made this ,,lai
to Mr.. Sherman; that Mr.. Sherman
the presence of Representative Nicl
olas LOngworth had promised him t1i
nothing would be done with regard /
the selection or rejection of Mr. Roos
welt until in the interest of harmon
Mr.. Roosevelt had been consulted NJ
Taft in his letter to Mr.. Griscom state
that Mr.. Sherman agreed to this sti
ulation, but. according to Mr.. Roos
velt and Mr.. Griscom, the promise ws
never carried out.