The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1912-04-25
PRESIDENT PREFERENCE o. PRI-
MARY SHOW WEAKNESS
OF OPPOSITION
TAFT is Repudiated
Roosevelt is as Good as Nominated
and Taft Is out of the Running is
the Opinion OF Even Strong Par
tisans of the President.

t1al preference primaries of Nebpaska q
and Oregon on April 10Th, practically
clinches his nomination by the Repub-
lican National Convention at Chicago
Six great Republican States ha &c
now expressed themselves by presl-
Dental preference primary anc cv2rt
one has gone overwhelmingly against
Mr.. Taft. These states, in order in
which they have voted, are North Da-
kota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Pennsylva-
mia, Nebraska and Oregon. They ag-
| gregate 1876 delegates to the National
Convention. Of these, Mr.. Taft has
carried 2 from the Illinois districts
controlled by the notorious Senator
Lorimer, and 6 from districts in the
city of Philadelphia where the almost
equally notorious Penrose machine is
dominant. In terms of delegates, the
Taft candidacy has been repudiated
by these six Northern States "a 1-2
to l. From these six great Republi-
can States, Colonel Roosevelt has 1852
Instructed, uncontested delegates. Col.
Roosevelt leads MI Taft nearly 20
to I. in terms Of delegates
| These six Republican States cast an
aggregate of SO votes in the electoral
college. Without them, no Republican
candidate can hope to b elected.
There can be no mistaking the char
acter of their warning to the Repub-
i NJ hat TcPt
safe man to name as it's candidate
for the presidency this year. Equally
certain is their demand for the nomi-
nation of Colonel Roosevelt.
From every corner of the United
States comes the same refrain: "Col-
onel Roosevelt is as good as nominat-
ed; Taft is out of the running" This
chorus is sounded not alone by Pro-
gressive newspapers, but by heretofore
dyed-tl-Wood Reactionary organs; il
| Is the view expressed-even publicly
by men known as strong partisans
| of, the President few examples,
taken at random from papers received
since the landslide for Roosevelt IN
| Illinois, and the avalanche in Penn
/ syfVan1a VIII suffice 70 Show the gen
J cral trend of opinion.
For instance, the Topeka (Kansas
! Capital, under the caption Taft Sup
porters' Hope About Gone" says that
the Roosevelt landslide in Pennsyl-
yania put Mr.. Taft practically out ct
the running as serious candidate for
denomination was the general i'm
preston even among strong Taft sup-
porters." 1t then quotes Charles Ses-
sions, secretary Of the State of Kan
sas, thus:
In the language Of Uncle Joe it's
no use to lie among ourselves. The
result in Pennsylvania hurts badly. ]
must confess that it stunned me, as Il
10 doubt did other supporters of Pres.
dent Taft. 1t was like a bolt from a
lear sky. 1t is an enigma to me why
my considerable number of people
especially Republicans, have turned
against the President, but the returns
from Illinois and Pennsylvania indi-
i"ate that they have l guess Teddy's
line Of talk sounds good to them"
Says the Kansas City Times PRO
gressive) in leading editorial
Pennsylvania plus Illinois. in connec.
ton with Wisconsin, north Dakota
Kansas and Missouri, mean just one
outcome-Rooseveft-~ acclamation.
Barnes of New York saw the land
slide coming when he prevented Tat
instructions for the New York dele
cations
The president is out Of the ruu-
ming. Everybody know that. A party
leader who is overwhelmed in states
that he carried four years ago by two
thousand, as he did in Illinois. and
/. three hundred thousand as he did
! Pennsylvania, IS politically dead.
Southern delegates, obtained by
strong-arm methods, never yet nomi-
{ mated Republican candidate. TIC
{ great Northern States are the determ-
lining factor. They are for Roosevelt
= Taft will be backed off the boards
before the Chicago convention. His
managers may bluff bit about COM
promise candidate. Then they will
stampede.
. "The Republican nomination is s:s-