The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1912-05-02

the movement to oust Senator Lori
mer to succeed.
In the letter the president stated
that he had urged different senators
to read the Lorimer record care
fully, and believed 1--WE are going to
line a good many of the regular Re-
publicans on the side of what l
consider decency and honesty in
politics"
Has Not Changed His Attitude.
81 have never given Mr.. Roosevelt
or anyone else the slightest reason
to suppose that l had changed my
attitude" declared the president.
Mr.. Taft charged that Mr.. Roose-
welt was now seeking to take advan-
tage of the supposed feeling among
the farmers of the country against
reciprocity with Canada. He said he
would not object to this but for the
fact that he consulted Colonel Roose-
velt 1O days before he made the
agreement with Canada and that the
latter approved the agreement IN the
most enthusiastic terms Mr.. Taft
quoted a letter from Colonel Roose-
welt dated January IL, 1911, N
which he said:
Dear President: 1t seems to me
that what you propose to do with
Canada Is admirable from every
standpoint. firmly believe in free
trade with Canada for both economic
and political reasons. AS you say,
labor cost ia substantially the same
in the two countries, 20 that you are
amply justified by the platform.
Whether Canada will accept such
reciprocity / do not know, but it Is
greatly to your credit to make the
effort 1t may damage the Republi-
can party for awhile, but it will
surely benefit the party in the end'
especially If you tackle wool, cotton,
ETC.. as you propose.
ever Yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT"
The president added:
"Now, in the exigency of his
contest for the nomination and with
the purpose of accentuating the sup
posed feeling Of the farmers against
me, he recants his approval of the
| agreement on the ground that 1t
would not have been a square deal
for the farmers, circumstance
which he intimates escaped him when
he, in desire to support my admin
istration, had approved the agree
ment. l submit that Mr.. Roosevelt's
course on reciprocity is not in ac-
cord with the square deal"
Acted on Advice Of Roosevelt.
Dealing with Mr.. Roosevelt's
charge that in his administration
Mr.. Taft had deserted the progress
sives and become a reactionary, the
president said that it was on Mr..
Roosevelt's advice that he had his
first needing with Speaker Cannon
to secure promise of the latter's
support in carrying out the pledges
Of the Republican platform.
Mr.. Taft warmly defended the
commerce court, saying it had re.
duced judicial delays from two
years to six months.
Taking up Mr.. Roosevelt's anti
trust record, Mr.. Taft said he had
warmly approved it on the stump for
the former president. He said Mr.
Roosevelt had instituted the pro-
ceedings against the Standard Oil
and the American Tobacco companies
and that they had been carried to a
successful conclusion in the supreme
court under the present administra
tion.
Regarding Mr.. Roosevelts denun
citation of the allie gee ineffectiveness
of the Standard Oil decree, he said
"The decree as finally entered and
enforced was drawn exactly as Mr.
Roosevelt's 'ttorney general, in the
bill which, by direction of Mr.. Roose
welt, he filed against the Standard
Oil company, had asked that it b
drawn"
The president called attention tc
Mr.. Roosevelt's disregard of the
square deal" in charging him with
having abandoned the progressive
cause because he considered 1t ad
visable to confer with the regular Ro
publican leaders in order to sscuPC
necessary legislation,
Nomination Would Cause DIStrust.
In conclusion he dwelt on thu
general business distrust that he wal
certain would follow the nomina
tion of Mr.. Roosevelt. Such a HOmi
nation, he declared, would also be {
violation of our most useful ana
necessary governmental tradition
that no one shall be permitted to hOlt
third presidential term"
Mr.. Taft quoted from Mr.. RoosG
velt's statement in November, 1908
the following:
"The wise custom which limits tn,
president to two terms regards th'
substance and not the form, anC
under no circumstances will / be {
candidate for or accept another nom
nation"
"The promise And his treatment o
IT," declared the president, "oAly
throw an informing light on tn,
value that ought now be attached I,
any promise Of this kind he ma!
make for the future, The importan
fact ls that his declaration was tn,
statement Of q principle essential Il
the welfare Of the republic"
President st Springfield.
President Taft at Springfield n
ferEsd to Colonel Roosevelt by HaM,
repeatedly and said:
Theodore Roosevelt uses th,
maxim Of the seorting world. On,
Of these IL the square deal for AN
n.L ~ ~ros, - A.