Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-09-12
rAFrs VISIT TO MANY STATES
WILL INDICATE STRENGTH OR
WEAKNESS WITH VOTERS.
MAY TURN TIDE AGAINST
DENOMINATION FOR PRESIDENT
Insurgents Profess to See Cold and Un.
dsnnonstrativs Audiences in West
TAFT Warned to Tone Down HE
Hamilton Speech Attacking Progress
rspecial Correspondence.

Especial Correspondence.
Washington. Sept 12.-N seldom
happens that the friends of President
Taft and the insurgent republican
leaders are agreed on anything but
there is one proposition on which they
do not dissent.
This is that President Taft is about
to embark on a trip which is likely TO
tell the story Of the 1912 campaign
Friends Of the president. some OF MS
closest lieu,enants in fact, say frankly
that before this trip is over 1t Will DE
clearly shown whether the president
has such hold on the voters as 10
make his reelection likely. They say
it will be demonstrated whether the
insursent movement is anything more
serious than the names OF NUMBER Oh
progressive leaders. On the other hana'
the insurgent leaders now IN WASH
ington are putting it this way:
This trip Is going to make or oreak
Taft"
May Reveal Presidents Weaknesses.
The insurgent leaders think, or pro-
fess to, that the trip Will reveal thae
the president Is weak politically anu
that 1t may show this so clearly as 10
turn the tide against the renominatlon
Of the president. The lieutenants OF
the president will not admit there Is
any possibility Of heading or re-
nomination but they are quite out
spoken in say ing that pretty correct
Judgments can be formed from the 'e-
suits OF the long rail journey as to
vember can muster the necessary
votes. In this connection, they assert
that many assurances have come 10
the president that he has gained
strength latterly with the country and
they believe this is going to be dem
onstrated In the approaching trip.
The president starts the latter part
OF this week, Friday. Sept. 10. He VIII
60 thru twenty-four states. more than
half the states OF the union. distance
OF $4,000 miles He will go from coas!
to coast and travel for a month ana
a half. Considering the fact he VIII
doubtless get the southern delegations
for the nomination and that he has no
hope Of getting enough electoral votes
from the south to swing the election.
II is fair to say he will cover nearly all
the territory in which the 1872 cam
paiRn Is to be fought out ana IN
which it is to be decided.
TAFT courageousiy Stubborn.
President Taft is not generally given
credit for possessing much poiitlcal
saRacity or ut least for exercising
much. But he can not fail to precelVe
that in a sense he is taking his political
lrfe in his hanls in making this trip.
Some of his friends feel IT would De
better for him not to make It, That
is. they realize that if it should develop
that in a number Of important republi-
can states the president should nave
to face cold, critical, undemonstratlVe,
sullen audiences, he could not recover
from it. the insurgents would be en-
couraged, the democrats would take
heart wonderfully. The president, now
ever. is possessed of much stubborn
courage and is willing and even anxl-
Gus to 20 thru the ordeal. He Is staK-
ing much on It but IL things come his
way on his $4,000 mile journey 1t Will
have to be conceded his enemies nave
misjudged his strength, wrongly guaged
the situation, and that the democratic
chances Of electing president nave
been much minimized.
Will He War on insurgents?
If the presidents Hamilton speech
is to be taken az guide, he is going
to make war on the insurgents in their
own country. Forecasts that he would
do this have brought such storm or
protest from the insurgent regions as
to seemingly make 1t inadvisable FOR
him to talk in the Hamilton strain on
the coming trip and there has been
,,ressure on MIN to tone down his ut
terances. Whether he will do so. can
ONLY be told by the events. The dan
ger for the. president politically in at
lacks on the insurgents is that he Will
so Tar ALLEVIATE lot of progressive
voters as not 20 be able to win them
back to the support of the republican
presidential ticket in 1912.
Will Draw Is President.
The president has one important
consideration in his favor so far as
getting a cordial reception is concern
ed. This is that there has been all
manner OF demand for him to make
stops along his route and at points not
on his route The prestige of the presi-
Dental office will go far to get him
big audiences and to some extent will
STIR up enthusiasm for him that would
not exist for the private citizen. More
over, the president of the United States
can always get a serious. respectful
hearing and, inasmuch as the president
IL going into some regions where there
is said to be hostility to reciprocity,
this will be an advantage. At Lincoln
the other day, Secretary wilson got
put on the grill as to reciprocity. The
president, of course, would not be sub