The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-10-03
ENORMOUS EXPENDITURES.

The enormous expenditures of money
in behalf of Col Roosevelt 3 candidacy,
both before the National Republican
Convention in Chicago on June 18th
and afterwards, have been the cause
of much speculation and challenge.
Col, Roosevelt has been insistent that
the expenditures of other candidates
should be specified; but he has dill
gently withheld any account of his
own. This is no doubt partly because
he does not know what the expendi~
lures have been, his friends taking
care OF that part of it for him, and
Mr.. Perkins being the treasurer of his
political activities. But the accounts
that come from the Senate Investigat-
ing Committee are rather startling in
their showing Of the amount Of money
that has been spent for Col. Roosevelt
this year, When it comes to the point
of one man, Boss Finn of Pennsyl.
vania, putting up more than 100000
for the Roosevelt campaign, it must
he admitted that the expenditures are
running beyond all precedent so far
as known. 1t has been surmised that
the Hanna expenditures in 1896 for the
nomination and election of President
Mckinley were the greatest ever
known. Perhaps they were up to that
time, but it is a clear case that the
expenditures in behalf Of Roosevelt
this year largely overtop those famous
expenditures by Mr.. Hanna
It is an evil sign for the Republic
when such vast sums rs these can he
obtained for piratical campaign such
as the Roosevelt campaign is this
year. The worst OF it is, however
that there does not seem to be any way
to stop this expenditure; for it has
been voluntary. spontaneous in many
States, and even Col. Roosevelt prob.
ably knew little about the amount Of
money that was being spent in his
cause. When money is raised volun-
tarily and expended in this manner. it
is impossible for the law to control it; /;
for men have as much right to put their
money into political campaign as
into any other venture, and the law
cannot prevent it, neither can it punish
such expenditures in any other way
than by declaring that the person in
whose behalf the money is spent shall
not take the position to which he is
elected. But that would inevitably
work injustice, also, because. in many
cases, as that of Representative Catlih
of st. Louis, in whose behalf consid-
! erable sums were spent by his father
without his knowledge, the candidate is
not really responsible for the money
spent and has no possible evil intent
with regard to it.
| The vast expenditures of money in
| Col Roosevet's behalf means two
things. First, that lie has come to
terms with tho trusts and agreed not
| TO prosecute them if elected. This,
indeed. ne has openly announced when
! he said that the antitrust law was
/ never meant to be enforced, and his
| open programme is that the trusts
| shall not be dissolved, but shall be
taken in hand by the Government, rec
ognized, and regulated. And second,
that a good many pushing politicians
who have not been able to get what
they wanted in the past see in his
movement a fresh chance to get into
4 office, and these men having become
wealthy under the old system of pub
lie contracts, are now using the money
unjustly eItoTted from the public to
advance their own political interests
and their own claims for official posi-
tion. 1t would be eminently desirable