The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1912-05-02

other; Walter F. Brown of Ohio, who
didn't get men of his picking placed
on the Ohio Federal bench; Gov
ernor Stubs of Kansas whose
veracity the president had drawn
into question after he had caught
him with the goods, and others of
equally august and patriotic motive
and purpose.
1t was trial balloon that was sent
into the air by this noble band of
patriots. The public looked at it
and laughed. Roosevelt still stood by
his former declarations.
The Seven Little Governors.
Then came the incident of the sew
en- war governors. Their statement,
carefully vised by Roosevelt and ap-
proved by him in advance, while yet
determined that there should be no
candidacy for third term, was given
to the public. And then, in February,
yielding to the public clamor rep
resented by the seven war gov
ernors, the Perkinses and the Nc
Hargs and the Pinchots and the Gar
fields, Roosevelt announced that 81
will accept the nomination for presi-
| dent if it is rendered me-" But yet
under no circumstances, would he be
a Candidate" for it. Hadn't he said
he wouldn't?
He had said so to the people. Pub
licly. And he had said so to the
representatives of Senator La Fol
lette, privately. And what he said
privately was just as sacredly re.
garded as what he said publicly Sen
ator La Toilette had broken the
| ground and carried the banner of op-
position to President Taft. The end
| justifying the means, Roosevelt had
used him as an instrument of wrath
He had encouraged his candidacy and
virtually promised to put himself be-
hind it, and when La Toilette reached
out for the red apple he had knocked
| from the tree, Roosevelt brushed him
aside and appropriated it for himself
What's little thing like a private
1
amount to ANYTHING?
Awaited Imperative Demand.
| Mr. Roosevelt at once made his
| position clear" He was not a can
didate for the presidential! nomina-
cept it If it were rendered to him
And he demanded that public pri-
maries should be held everywhere to
determine the sentiment of the peo-
| pie. Why not? With untold wealth
behind him, with enough funds in
New York alone to justify the ex-
! penditure of 81 head for each of the
$4,000 votes cast for him-$2 head
more than the execrated Senator
Stephenson spent in Wisconsin-with
hired agents everywhere to corrupt
| and bulldoze and intimidate, why not
soap-box primaries everywhere? Di-
rector Mckinley of the Taft bureau
| pointed out the danger. He spoke of
the unwillingness of the American
people to Change the rules while the
game is in progress" And Roosevelt
was shocked by the figure of speech,
1t had exposed the entire conception
Of the campaign on the part of the
Taft managers. They considered it
a game" How shocking! How flip
pant! And then, throwing caution to
the winds, he himself declared that
he was in the fight to win. He
threw his that into the ring" In
Illinois he "slugged them over the
ropes" and in Pennsylvania he
would make them take the count. "
Nothing shocking or fippant about
that. OF course not. That was be-
cause Roosevelt, and not the other
fellow, had said it.
Still Not a Candidate.
Still he was not candidate.
Merely stimulating the public senti-
ment that was to result in the "ten.
der" Of the nomination. Merely co.
operating with the politicians whom
Taft had put out, or whom Taft
wouldn't put in, and with the money
barons and trust magnates, whom
Roosevelt denounced but failed to
regulate; whom Taft had regulated
but refrained from denouncing. Nc
wonder that money in lavish stream
began to flow into the Roosevelt cam
paign Golfers. He was again dealing
as in the days of Hartman, with
practical men" What change
from the man who made that patriotic
declaration in November, 1904, and
the man who criss-crOssed the coun
try, begging for votes in a cart-tai
campaign! Going into the Southern
states to convince instructed Taft
delegates that it wouldn't be immora
to support Roosevelt!
But the depths had not yet beer
sounded. One must follow the cam
paign as it was waged to gauge i
dispassionately. "The great funda
: mental issue now before the Republi
can party and before our people cal
be stated briefly" was the argument
: "It is Are the American people A
to govern themselves, to rule them
selves, to control themselves? be
lieve they are. Ny opponents d.
not"
The American people are livinj
under the same form of government
E that they have had for 125 years.
}, they are not governing themselve
: now, they have never governed then
: selves. Is it true? Certainly not
I. Does Mr.. Roosevelt believe it to b
t true? Certainly not! Is any sue
: issue before the American people tC
s day? Certainly not!
Roosevelt DisbeIieVes Himself.
But to bolster it up, to bring nor