Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-05-02
ROOSEVELT ADS"
Their Pervcrsion of Facts Astonishing
to Behold.

In the newspaper advertisements nut
forth by Mr. Roosevelt's Massachusetts
managers. the statement has been mazda
that the President believes in rover,.
mcnt of the people by the bosses-hv
Lorimer and crane The Springfield Re-
publican Is moved by this characteristic
Roosevelt pervcrsion of truth to remark
that "if IN the remaining DAYS of the
campaign there Is so much as n renec-
ton from the Roosevelt committee. Of
which Mr.. Hale Is head. of the charre
identifying President Taft and Senator
Lorimer. we shall have all exact measure
of the political morality and honesty of
progressive reform" The Mr.. Hale here
referred to Is Matthew Hale, a Boston
reformer of the noblest prctensions which
are sorely hcied by afxing his name to
the Roosevelt advertisements
But these advertisements are full OF
lies One of them describes the Dolljyor-
Hepburn railroad act as Zone of the most
beneticent achievements of Roosevclts
administration" and states that this
measure was denounced by the men
now COMPOSING the Taft machine as I'M
constitutional 1t was hGgrant1y nm
constitutional in the form in which Mr.
Roosevelt urEed and fought for It's adop-
ton. 1t was only after the constitutional
lawyers of the Senate had ironed out
the Roosevelt. wrinkles ana cruG!ties that
it was made fl: Cor enactment. Yet the
Roosevelt eevertieors say that the COL
oners "victory was found to he com
plete and sweeping" when the bnl passed
On the contrary, the colonel was driven
from his position and beaten. decisively
beaten. as to provisions of the measure
upon which he insisted. But we do not
suppose that the persons to whom the se
appeals for support are made would be
in the slightest degree affected by any
exposure of campaign mendacities. They
want the colonel and they will listen to
nothing that anybody can say about the
colonel. save IN lis praise
In an advertisement published recently
there is a dreadful slip. Il says that tho
corrupt politicians and their hirelings
raised the cry Of unconstitutionality
against Roosevelts recommendation to
prohibit corporations from contributing
to campaign funds" The French have a
saying that you must not speak of rope
in the house OF man who has been
hanged The revelations of the Harri-
man correspondence showing how a
great sum OF money coming from cor
poration sources was spent in the cam
paign of 1904 could hardly have escaped
Mr. IIale's attention. 1t IS better not II
talk about corporation contributions in
appealing for Rooscvelts support. \
great sum of money IS being spent for
the colonel now. This advertising in
Massachusetts. II is estimated. Will cost
not less than $50 40. The expenditure in
the coloncl's primary campaign in Wis
city amounted to nearly s. for .rory
vote cast for him. If this money d,.,s
not come directly from corporations, It
at least comes from corporation sources.
That is we'll known
The supreme audacty of the Roosevc t
advertising In Massachusetts is this
Remember that every man whose
name Is on the voting list may vote
at this presidential primary. No ma /
should fail In that duty"
This means that enrolment Is not d
prerequisite. 1t is therefore about tho
boldest appeal for rotten primaries that
could possibly be made. Mr.. Mckinley
of the Taft bureau openly charges tina.
bid for the votes of democrats. social
lists and prohibitionists to defeat Pr.
dent Taft. who Is asking for republican
votes for his denomination" The boss
and the machine are pretty bad But a
primary without enrolment a priml g
open to voters of any and all classes. Is.
as a means of thwarting the party's VIII
and perverting its action, worse than any
machine.
The most effective argument by the
Presidents advisers in urging him to use
the means at his command for eXposn,
the insncerity of Mr. Roosevelt was this
that it IS y duty he owes to the Re
publican party. since if Roosevelt Is per
mitted to triumph, the party Will be
handed over to a mob of populists and
progressives. who have nothing in com
mon with republicanism. The immoral
ity and shameless dishonesty of the
Roosevelt campaign makes 1t doubly 4
duty to prosecute the fight with all posi-
bic energy.