The Cairo bulletin., 1912-03-21
ROOSEVELT RAPS
TAFT IN FIRST
CAMPAIGN TALK
--~--~-~~~~-~~-~
Ex-prcsident Declares Incumbent
Does not Believe People can
Rule Themselves
THOUSANDS CROWD BIG HALL
Many Unable 10 get Into Building
Speech Answers Presidents
Recent Effort

New YORK, March 2o.-In the
first speech of his campaign for the
presidential nomination, Col Roose-
Il tonight contrasted his position
viii that taken by President Taft.
The real issue, he said, was whether
the American people should govern
themselves. His speech was deliver
ed before o crowd that filled Car
, negia hall. SO many persons wished
! to hear him that an overflow meet
ing was held in smaller hall in the
same building
The streets in front of the hall
/ contained a crowd of thousands, who
were unable to gain admission to the
: hall TO either meeting. Col. Roose-
| welt was received with marked en-
! thusiasm. President Tafts recent
/ speech at Toledo was referred TO sew
/ eral times by the Colonel, who de-
voted large part of his remarks to
2 reply. He asserted that the Presi-
dents position was that we have
, in this countrys special class OF per-
CONS other than the people, who are
above the people, who cannot be
reached by the people. but who gov
I ern them and ought TO govern
them,
"rhis doctrine, to me- is dread
/ full doctrine" he said, for its effect
, is, and can only be, 10 make the
courts the field of privileges against
/ popular rights"
"Tha great fundamental issue now
before the Republican party and
/ before our people can be stated
briefly. 1t is, Are the American
! people fit to govern themselves, to
| rule themselves, to control them
selves? | believe they are. My OPP
ponents do not said Col. Roosevelt.
Believes in People.
81 believe in the right Of the
people to rule. believe that the
majority of the plain people of the
United States will. day in and day
out. make fewer mistakes in govern
, ing themselves than any smaller,
class or body of men, no matter
what their training, will make in
! trying to govern them.
81 have scant patience with this
| talk Of the tyranny of the majority.
/ Whenever there Is tyranny of the
majority, | shall protest against it
with all my heart and soul. But we
are today suffering from the tyran-
nv of minorities. 1t is small
minority that is grabbing our coal
deposits. our water powers, and our
harbor fronts. A small minority is
battening on the sale of adulterated
foods and drugs. 1t is a small mi
nority that lies behind monopolies
and trusts. 1t is a small minority
that stands behind the present law
of master and servant the sweat
shops, and the whole calendar of
social and industrial injustice, 1t Is
small minority that Is today using
our convention system to defeat the
will of a majority of the people in
4 hA III, NF Al Boa, fn thn i
cago convention The only tyran-
nies from which men, women and
children are suffering in real life
are the tyrannies of minorities.
People Can Rule Selves.
= mo sane man who has been
familiar with the government of
this country for the last twenty
years will complain that we have
had too much of the rule of the ma
jority, The trouble has been a far
different one-that, at many times
. and in many localities, there have
held public office in the States and
in the Nation men who have, in
fact, served not the whole people,
but some special class or special in
terest.
"To further the rule of the ma
iority," continued the speaker, "the
Progressives Of the Republican par
ty in certain states have formulated
certain proposals for change In the
form Of the State government