The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1912-10-30
BULL MOOSE SPEAKING
At HARTFORD SATURDAY
Was a Tame Affair and a Dis.
appointment to Nearly
All present.

Last Saturday was supposed to
be big day for the Bull Moosers
of Ohio county. as it was the time
set for Hon. Mat j. Holt to speak
and it was intended to be a great
affair. The festivities were to be-
gin at one o'clock. At noon, how
ever, there were few country men
in town, but when the speaker be-
gan the court room was about
two-thirds full. Mr.. Holt was m
troduced by Mr.. +. NJ. Woodward,
who really made better speech
than the principal speaker.
Mr.. Holt spoke for little over
an hour, but his speech was a
rather tame effort. He used a num-
Der of anecdotes or jokes to liven
up his audience. He poured it into
the Taft fellows rather heavy and
said it was a bad mistake when
Taft was elected President. This
remark, however. was not applaud
ed. He reviled the Presidents re-
ligion (Universalist) and used
language along this line which
would have been considered highly
incendiary if uttered by a Demo-
crat four years ago.
Mr.. Holt also had a little pack
age for Gov. Wilson, but he said
nothing abusive or very severe of
Democracy's candidate for Presi-
dent. He seemed to realize that
Gov. Wilson is too clean a man with
too good a record to be attacked.
The worst he said about the Gov
ernor was that a college president
Is not fit to be President of the
United States, evidently forgetting
that Mr.. Wilson is making the best
Governor New Jersey ever had
and has shown the highest order of
official and executive ability. Mr..
Holt evidently had a set speech,
but he seemed to get his notes con-
fused.
1t was announced at the start
that there would be two speeches,
and at the conclusion of Mr.. Hollis
speech, Mr.. Ed Bassett, of Leitch-
field, who Is a candidate for Con-
gress in this district on the Bull
Moose ticket, was introduced. Mr..
Bassett is a banker and also has
stock in the Gait House, Louisville
Originally, 1t is said, he was
Democrat, then he turned Republic
an, and now he has Joined the bolt
ing crowd. Personally he is said to
be a very sociable and good bust
ness man.
But Mr.. Bassett's speech was
frost" Scarcely had he begun
speaking, when the audience began
to get up and file out in silent
droves, and at the conclusion there
was mere handful of people left,
fully two-thirds of the crowd hav-
ing gone. Mr.. Bassett seemed to
have rather lengthy memorized
talk which he delivered in dull
monotone. He also had some notes
which he had difficulty in finding
and connecting with his recitation. |
The fading crowd did not stop him |
and he grimly continued to the end |
He likewise landed" on the Taft |
crowd and hit the Democrats such |
telling blows that We hardly know |
whether they will recover from the |
fierce attack or not.
1t Was very noticeable that Meth
err one OF the speakers appealed for
the negro vote or said anything at
all along this line, although there
was a good sized bunch of darkies
present. The speakers seemed to
be following the example OF Col.
Roosevelt, who has intimated in his
speeches that the Northern negro is
all right, but the Southern negro
has no right to the ballot.
Altogether the speaking fell fiat,
and there was nothing about it to
enthuse any voter. In fact it SEEM
ed to be a bitter disappointment to
most of the crowd. q