Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-24


Although those opposed to the renom-
nation of President Taft have spared
neither effort nor money In their conduct
of the preconvention campaign in Ohio.
the Presidents friends and supporters
evince daily increasing satisfaction with
the alignment Of the republican forces in
the Presidents home state. Operating on
the theory that any decided reverses Mr..
Taft might suffer in Ohio could logically
be expected to attract the attention OF
the whole country and produce triple the
effect upon the republicans of other
states now engaged in the selection of
delegates than any similar setback else
where the Roosevelt leaders have been
extremely active since before the former
President announced his willingness to
accept a third term nomination. The
fact that the Ohio primaries do not occur
until May 81 has made it possible for
them to put forth eXtravagant claims
concerning the alleged opposition to the
President at home without the posi-
biIity of these claims being stamped as
false, while still fresh in the public mind
by the selection and instruction of Taft
delegates.
counties of Ohio based upon facts and
not upon conjecture, and prepared on the
ground and not at long range, INDICATE
clearly that President Taft Will nave
large majority Of the delegates. Ihere
are several districts in which the Roose-
Welt forces are putting up bitter tights,
and where local conditions have been such
that the Presidents friends have fought
against heavy odds. But men who nave
studied conditions in the Buckeye state
through a long period of years, even al
lowing these districts as lost, consider II
incontrovertible that President Taft Will
win his own state of Ohio by proper
tionately decisive majority as Col. Roose-
welt will be defeated in his own nome
state of New York.
THE Qualification of the situation IN
Ohio, while extremely gratifying to the
Presidents friends. was not entirely I'M
expected. The apathy which prevailed
some time ago has disappeared, the
voters in every section are weighing the
issues and the men involved in the pre-
convention campaign, the bench and par
are solidly behind the President, the busi-
ness interests of the state. from the little
shopkeeper to the bank president, are
with him. and, aside from their pride in
state and native son and their belief that
Mr.. Taft has been unfairly treated, is the
firm conviction that the achievements OF
the present administration. accomplished
safely and without clamor, entitle him
to renOmina ton.
At the primary held in Indianapolis to
elect delegates at the republican state
convention the vote was as follows: Taft.
6169; Roosevelt. 1,467. President Taft
will get the entire delegation from Marion
county In Terre Haute in the fifth con-
gressional district, delegates to the olS-
trict convention were elected yesterday.
President Taft will have siXty-seven dele
gates and Mr. Roosevelt twenty nine
This insures Mr.. Taft two delegates to
the national convention from the fifth
Indiana district.
Senator Gilbert NJ. Hitchcock of Neb-
raska Yesterday launched broadside at
William ]. Bryan, declaring that Mr.
Bryan's reputation OF the NEBRASKA
Ship which the Nebraska voters would
not tolerate The senator's statement
was in answer to Mr.. Bryan's declara-
ton that if Gov. Harmon should be m
dorsed at the Nebraska primaries ne
Bryan would resign and go to the CON
vention as a private citizen. senator
Hitchcock declares further that. While
Gov. Harmon is his personal preference,
he will stand by any candidate lndorseu
by Nebraska democrats. His statement
follows:
IT regard Mr.. Bryan's statement as an
attempt to repudiate the new Nebraska
direct primary election law. That law
provides that the democrats of the state
shall elect four delegates-at Large and
instruct them whom to vote for as candl-
date for President in the national con-
vention. | expect to abide by that law:
If Champ Clark has the most votes. L
shall vote for him and support MIN vlgor-
ousIy to the end. If Gov. Wilson has the
most votes in the Nebraska primaries 1
shall vote for him and support him to
the end. If Gov. Harmon has the most
votes in the primary l shall vote Tor nip
and support him to the end.
That is the letter and the spirit of the
law. 1t means the rule of the people,
1t permits voters to instruct their repre-
sentative in convention. Mr.. Bryan's
statement is a defiance of the law. He
announces that under no circumstances
will he support Gov. Harmon, even II he
receives the largest vote in the demo-
cratic primaries. He even threatens that
he will not go to the convention as a
delegate if Harmon carries the primaries,
but will then resign and go to the con-
vention as a private citizen to attempt
to defeat Harmon's nomination re
gard that as dictation. 1t is an attempt
to overthrow the primary law; Tor Wmch
Mr.. Bryan and I both worked. 1t Is an
attempt by threat to reassert the Old
doctrine of the party boss.
1T am frank to tell the voters thai
nv personal preference is Gov Harmon
but. If elected as a delegate, l shall
conscientiously and heartily support the
man the democrats of Nebraska prefer
1.-THE assertion made by Mr. Bryan
that Harmon has the support OF wall
street is utterly without proof OF
fOundatlOn, SO lar DIS L WHICH
ever Mr. Bryan is opposed to a man. he
first assumes and then asserts that
Wall street is for that man. Certainly
Wall street has no reason to be fol
Harmon AS governor of Ohio. Harmon
| has shifted 100000 Of taxes a year
| off of the people onto the railroads
which are largely owned by Wall street
| interests"
| The Roosevelt committee last night
gave out the following:
1.-The developments Of this week in thu
selection Of delegates to the republican
national convention give q new demon
stration Of the fact that the sentiment
| in the states upon which the republican
party must rely for victory at the No
| vember election is overwhelmingly
| against the denomination of Mr.. Taft.
'One state and seven congressional dis
| tricts have selected delegates this week
The state was North Dakota, where fol
| the first time In the political history OF
this country the voters themselves ha6
opportunity to give direct expression tt
their preference as to presidential candi-
dates. In the first presidential preference
republicans voted almost unanimously
against Mr.. Taft's candidacy At the cleo
ton in 1908 there was higher percentage
Of republican vote in North Dakota thar