The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-07-26
since no benefits can possibly be shown
therein
MIR. MoNDELL's REVIEW.

The review by Representative Mon
dell Of Wyoming OF the bearings on
contests before the Republican Ma
tional Committee in Chicago, prior 10
the Republican National convention,
and of the action OF the Credentials
Committee of that convention and of
the convention itself. Of the manner in
which it handled those contests. fully
bears out tho justice. honesty. aud fair
dealing Of the committees and Of the
convention.
At the same time Il lays bare the
fakery. imposture, and thieving plans
OF the Roosevelt programme with re-
spect 20 that convention. The Roose-
welt contests were 90 per cent pure
fakes, with absolutely nothing 10 back
them. no substance in them. and, as
Senator Borah. a prominent Roosevelt
member Of the National Committee
said. "thcy possessed no merit.
As 10 those contests which bad at
least prima facie cause TO be heard,
the committee. as Mr Mondell shows,
decided those cases on precisely the
same rules as like cases had been de
cided four years before. With respect
specifically to the California case. the
admission OF two Roosevelt delegates
from that State was strictly in accord
with Republican usage, and in conso-
nance with the call for the National
convention. Ever since 1880, when the
Republican convention laid down the
rule that il would not enforce the unit
rule, but that delegates from Con
gressional districts were entitled 10
their preference without regard to the
view Of the state at large. or the ma
.jority Of the delegates from any State,
the unit rule has had no stand
ing in Republican National con-
ventions. But California, after the
convention call had been issued,
undertook by statute to enact
the unit rule, in defiance OF Republi-
can usage and in disregard of the
terms of the call for the convention.
1t was easily shown that while the
Roosevelt forces swept the most of
California. in one district there was a
majority for the Taft delegates. Strict
lv in accord, therefore. with usage and
with the rules Of the committee, and OF
all the Republican conventions for
thirty-two years, the delegates from
the district that had declared for Tart
were given the. seats. 1t Is manifest
that If the States can step IN and leg
tsla ,a- g tt,i- lyinI
state may legislatc for itself and there
would be such n conflict in methods of
elccting delegates and in rules for their
admission and for the settlement Of
contested eases. that those organizing
the convention would be at loss TO
know how 20 proceed. With one State
enactinG n unit rule. another enacting
district rule, others perhaps jumbling
the two methods together, some States
cnacting rigorous and onerous statutes,
and. others not legislating at all, the
National convention would be a lum-
BILE.
1t is manifest that those in control
of the National party affairs must pro
ceed upon definite rules, fairly cstab-
lished and proved in practice. That
is precisely what the National Com
mitteo and convention did in Chicago,
and tbos who find faulJ with it must
necessarily find fault with the pro-
cedure OF every National Republican
convention that has ever been held,
and especially with the organization
and methods of the National Republi.
can convention Of 1908, of which
Roosevelt was the big boss and with
which be expressed SO much satisfac-
tion at the time. and even now de
clares TO have been honestly made up
and TO have done honest work. But il
was made up under precisely the same
conditions. under precisely the same
rules and methods. that the convention
Of last June was made up in Chicago.
The only possible difference is that
in the convention OF 1905 Roosevelt s
will was carried out by those methods,
and In the convention of 1912 those
same methods defeated Roosevelt's =
plans. That is absolutely all there is 10
it, and 1t is idle 10 indulge in hair.
splitting or rccrimination