The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-08-26
WOODRUFF SAYS
 GR|SCOM DID II Blame for Committees Ac-
 tiOn Is Shifted <
 ROOTS NAME MENTIONED UoodruR Declares That He Made no
Woodruff Declares That He Made no Fight Against Roosevelt But That Griscom Caused
 the Trouble

New York. August 25.-The conference at Sherry's on the night before the re- publican state committee meeting, in which Theodore Roosevelt was voted down and Vice President Sherman chos- en temporary chairman of the coming re- publican convention, assumed still an- other complexion tonight. Timothy l.. Woodruff, state chairman, in statement given out from republican state headauar- ters, puts the responsibility for the &C., ton of the committee squarely up to Lloyd c. Griscom, president of the re- publican county committee, and flatly de- nied that he had even an intimation of any plan to present the name of Colonel Roosevelt to the committee until MT. Gris- com made the actual nomination.
 MT. Woodruff arrived here today from his summer place in the Adirondacks. He has received copy of President Taft's recent letter to MT. Griscom.
 "The President sent me a copy" ex- plained Mir Woodruff.
 Did the President add any personal comment to you?'' he was asked.
 Now, boys," parried the state chair man, you're going too far"
 In his letter to MT. Griscom the Presi- dent stated that whatever knowledge Mir. Woodruff may have had or may not have had of intention of presenting Mir. Roose- velt's name, the President stated in his letter that there were at least two per sons who had prior knowledge, not only of that intention but of the contrary intention to defeat it, namely the Pres ident himself and Vice President Sher- man, the man selected at Sherrys by Chairman Woodruff and his fellow con- ferees. The President wrote to MT. Gris- com as follows
 "On the afternoon of Monday, August 15 dhe committee met on the 16th) MT. Sherman telephoned me from New York, and for the first time apprised me of the fact that there was a proposal to oppose MT Roosevelt for the temporary chair manship, and that with Mir. Roots name. No name other than MT. Roots was men, toned I protested against the idea of contest on such matter, peremptorily declined to be drawn into a. fight against MT. Roosevelt, and again renewed my urgent advice that there be prompt and full conference with Roosevelt before the committee meeting with view of se- curing harmony and victory for the party
 Woodruf's Statement
 Mr. Woodruff's statement as given out tonight follows:
 Nothing that has transpired since the meeting of the republican state commit tee, nor anything that has been said since then, should mislead anyone as to the conditions or the situation which then existed.
 Tn accordance with the precedent es- tabIished two years ago in the selection of Senator Root as temporary chairman of the state convention I and some of those who have been associated with me in the management of the republican party through the two last political cam paigns met the night before the meeting of the state committee, and after the con- sideration of several names, decided to present to the committee the name of Vice President Sherman as temporary chairman, a selection which we had every reason to believe would be highly satis- factory to the republicans of the state.
 Much to my surprise and entire ly without warning, MT. Griscom, who sat in the committee as proxy and who had been in the state commit tee rooms for nearly an hour before the meeting, without saying word to me about it. moved to substitute the name of MT. Roosevelt for that of MT. Sher- man with full knowledge which every one had had all the morning that a majority of the committee were com mitted to Vice President Sherman's se- lection. What MT. Griscom's motive was in placing Mr. Roosevelt in the posi- tion of being defeated I could not then compreh end, nor is it Imp ortant to dis cuss it now.
 Taft Not Involved
 "President Taft was in no way in volyed in this matter as the members of the state committee acted entirely within their authority in selecting a temporary chairman without as far as know, a single one of them con- sulting with him about it; but, in view of the apparent affront to MT. Roose- welt caused by the action of MT. Gris- com, I felt called upon, as chairman of the committee, to send the follow ing letter to the ex-President:
 August IT, 1910 "Co1. Theodore Roosevelt, Oyster Bay,
 L. l.:
 My Dear Colonel Roosevelt-It can not be possible that 1t Is necessary for me to tell you that the action of the state committee yesterday in which participated was in no sense intended as an act of hostility toward vou or one of reflection upon you.
 q saw Ward and Barnes after tn cir talk with you and they told me what vou and they had said about this whole matter and I hope you know, despite some things to the contrary, which the newspapers contained this morning, that they told you the exact facts. Not one of us supposed that your name would be presented without your noti- fving Ward, the national committee man. or me, the chairman of the state committed, that you wished it done and was never so much surprised in my life when Griscom made the motion which he did. Not word had been said to me before the meeting
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