The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-11-05
PRESIDENT TAFT
 SOME TRAvELER
 - fi Is Now Nearing the 30O,OO0
 Mile Mark BAILEY'S VOICE WEAK Insurgent Politics in Oregon in State of Chaos-Baltimore Seems to Be Favored for Demo-
 cratic Convention
By RALPH M. wHITEsIDE


 President Taft is certainly some traveller. Not only has he left all presidential rec ords so far behind as to make them ridic-
 ulous by comparison. but it is doubtful if any other man now living who is not a professional traveller has accumulated
 the mileage he has in the past Il years since he became Philippine commissioner.
 Up to date he has travelled since that first trip to the Philippines pretty nearly
 SOOo0O, the exact. mileage is 29S,72s. Be- fore he gets back to Washington the SOo,- GOO mark will have been passed.
 Since he became President he has cov- cred pretty nearly sO,ooo miles.
 Here is the score of this greatest of all American travellers 1901, to Philippines and back to Washington to testify in congressional inquiry, 24,75o miles. 1902
 to Rome. and to Philippines, 2s,145 1903, practically year of rest, as travel was confined to the Philippines. 5000 1901, re- turned to become Secretary of War and took a trip to Panama, 11.724. 1905, visited the Philippines with a party of congress- men, a trip that resulted in the mar riage of Miss Alice Roosevelt and Rep | resentative. Nicholas .Longworth, 3365o.
  Cuban republic, 14,075. 1907, journeyed to Panama and to the Philippines. SS,0oo. 1908, the year he was presidential can didate, 47270. 1909, the first year of his presidency, 21 29o. 1910. the second year of his presidency, 32,2l1. 1911, his record up to November of this year was S,2l3.
 On two of his Philippine trips Pres ident Taft swung around the circle"- that s he came back the longest way. travelling through Siberia and Russia, looking in on Emperor William of Ger many, peeping at the gay sights of Paris and inhaling the fog of London before crossing the Atlantic to his starting point.
 This computation is based on the sim pie steamship and railroad travel, and does not take into consideration the thou sands of miles the President has jour neyed by automobile in side trips at the innumerable four corners of the world he has visited.
 One of the first of the many important 1 duties which will face the President upon his return to Washington will be the l appointment of a successor to Justice | Harlan. There are all sorts of rumors | as to who the lucky man will be, but | as yet this is all guesswork. l
 It is generally believed that Attorney | General Wickersham could have the place | if he desired 1t, but l understand he pre- fers to finish out his term as Attorney General and then return to the practice of the law.
 There is some talk that the President may name another democrat to the bench but this is not taken very seriously.
 Politics in Oregon, so far as it re- lates to the insurgent movement, is in state of chaos, according to Colonel Philip Schuyler Malcolm of Portland. Ore, who attended the supreme council of the Scottish Rite Masons. Colonel Malcolm is a prominent leader in the Oregon republican ranks.
 Tt is difficult even to approximate | where this insurgent movement will i finally lead to- said Colonel Malcolm | The question of the initiative and ref l erendum and recall are as yet academic | ones. We are hardly sufficiently ec- quainted with them in this country to | either approve or reject them.
 President Taft, fully believe, will l not only be renominated, but will be | reelected. The people of Oregon are fully in accord with President Taft's | arbitration reciprocity vicws."
 From the present outlook when the | democratic national committee meets | here January 8, to select the time and place for the national convention, Bal | timore will be chosen. Of course, this l Is not certain, but Baltimore certainly seems to be the favorite right now.
 Aside from fixing the time and place for the convention, there are two or three questions which will come before the national committee which may prove bit troublesome and perplex- ing to settle. At the Denver conven- tion, under pressure from MT. Bryan, the regular adelegations from Philadel- phia was thrown out, and this resulted n Q Iat M. Guffey of Pittsburg, who had been national committeeman for long time and was at once time one of Mr. Bry- ans warmest friends. Former Repre- sentative James M. Kerr was selected l in his place. %
 | A few weeks after the election, Mir Kerr died, and the state committee, which was controlled by Colonel Cuff l fey, reinstated him in his old place as national committeeman. Then followed the fiasco in Penn slyvania, when, last year, at the re- quest of Colonel Guffey, the democrats | nominated State Senator Webster Grim 7