The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1912-02-13
Subscription Si.oo a Year In Advance.
Established June 10.
WASHINGTON NEWS.
BY c. II. Tavenner.

leap.
At least this is the way i
looks to me today, and | have
tried to view the situation, if pos
sible, without prejudice.
I base my prediction on the
theory that Special Privilege, as
represented by Aldrich, Penrose,
Smoot. Lodge, Crane, Guggen-
helm, j. Pierpont Morgan, John
D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carne-
gle, and the tariff trusts, still
dominate the Republican ma
chine. And it must never be
forgotten that the Republican
machine, and not the Republican
voters, rules national Republican
conventions and names presiden-
tial candidates.
The Republican machine, it is
true, is badly damaged, but /
think, however, it is still power
full enough, backed as it is by
the millions of Special Privilege,
to control one more national con-
vention. After that it will go on
the scrap heap, and men freer of
corporate influence will be in con-
troll of the party.
The only deduction that the
readers may draw from the fore
going is that Mr.. Taft is to be
nominated, not because the peo-
pie desire his denomination, but
because the Big Interests desire
his denomination: not because
Mr.. Taft has earned renomina-
ton by representing the interests
of the common people of the
country, but because he has
earned denomination by repre-
senting the interests of Special
Privilege.
There seems to be an increas-
ing talk about Roosevelt, but /
do not think the machine politi-
clans will permit his nomination.
If Roosevelt should be nominal
ted, however, / believe he would
be defeated. 1t was during his
administration that the present
abnormally high cost of living
was piled up, largely because of
the system Of excessive protect
ion in which Mr.. Roosevelt be-
lieves. Roosevelt is an Aldrich-
Smoot-Penrose Republican on the
tariff question, so far as anyone
knows. But if he should come
out on the Progressive side of
the tariff issue, it would only
make him less desirable to the
Republican machine, and his
nomination would be even less
probable than it is now.
Robert M. LaFollette, the one
man mentioned in connection
with the Republican nomination
on whom the people can put
their finger on every public ques-
ton of the day, cannot be nomi-
mated, in my opinion, the reason
being only, that the people can
not vote on presidential nomi-
nees.
Any day, of course, may bring
developments to change the po-
sition of the men on the political
checker board, but the above is
the situation as it appears to
your correspondent at this writ
ing.
Protected Industry.
Sixty-fve percent of the work.
ers in the United States Steel
Corporations plants at Pittsburg
earn less than the actual cost of
subsistence to the average fam
lily according to calculations made
before the Stanley steel trust in
vestigating committee by Louis
d. Brandeis, the peoples law
yer"
THE average wage of Go per
cent of the employees in the
steel plants at Pittsburg, The
said, is II 1-2 cents an hour.
The Associated Charities of that
city, by careful investigation, has
figured it out that the cost OF
bare existence of a family of q
husband and wife and three
children in Pittsburg is $768 g
year. BY working IL hours g
day, 365 days a year, this 65 pei
cent Of the workers, at the enc
of their years labor, will have