New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-06-18
ROARING CROWD GREFTS
COLONIES FIGHT SPEECH
Convention Eve Rally Of Roosevelt Followers
Used by Third Term Candidate to Out
line His Plans to Win Nomination.
,Rva staff Correspondent of The Tribune.

ch,cago June 17.-Addressing huge,
zud1v enthusiastic audience in the Au-
a,,oriIIn Theatre tonight, Theodore
pooeevelt outlined the plan of campaign
a. he followed by his supporters in the
Cat session of the national convention
.nroo,row. He declared the convention
,,seIf should be the sole judge of the
Qualifications of its members. No dele
zo+e whose seat was contested should be
Viewed 10 vote on the settlement Of
that contest, he maintained.
IN his own words, none of the dele
Gates seated after contests by the ma
.toreI committee have any legal or
.,oraI right TO sit on their own cases
should he within my rights in asking
.so+ those men, honestly elected and
.otrfullv counted out by the national
committee be given the full privileges
- the convention. but I don't ask that.
An ask Is that those fraudulent
creatures seated in their stead be not
rernitted TO pass judgment on the
,rrongdolng Of which they are the
benefciaries."
The appeal the colonel made-and his
sneech was frank appeal for support in
his programme Of obtaining control Of
tho convention by preventing the ma
+,oral committees Taft delegates from
voting on organlzation--was not to his
supporters alone.
s1 ask every honest delegate" said he.
whether ne votes for Mr.. Taft or not,
N vote with us on the temporary chair
nanship and temporary roll on which
these fraudulent delegates have been
seated by the national committee
The proposition advanced by Colonel
Roosevelt is not new in the political
world. II was brought forward when
the Grant third term cause was being
fought j. Sloat Fassett then settled it
bv declaring that If it were to be held
as valid that no contested delegate might
vote on contests, any delegate might
contest the seats of all the others and no
convention would be left Senator Hoar
later ruled the motion out of order.
Cheered by Throng.
To-nights meeting, which gave the
ex-President the opportunity to present
his case to the public on the eve of the
convention, was organized by the Ma
tional Roosevelt Committee. 1t brought
out an audience which filed every one
of the theatres five thousand seats and
cheered every other word the eX-Presi-
dent uttered. II didn't confne its atten-
ton to him either, but cheered and ap-
pIauded Senator Borah Justify when he
declared it was for the public to decide
whether the Republican party shouldrbe
left in the hands of a select few repre-
senting the combined interests Of the
country"
The question is" said the Senator.
Shall we purge the roll Of that conven-
ton Of corruption and fraud?"
The Roosevelt meeting had not been
much advertised. Nevertheless, there
was a great scramble for tickets-a de-
mand which left thousands unsatished.
The doors of the theatre were thrown
open at p. m, an hour before Mr..
Roosevelt was scheduled to appear. At
that time there were hundreds Of per-
sons standing in the streets around the
Congress Hotel and the theatre, which
is just across Congress street. That
thoroughfare for a block was closed by
the police, so that Colonel Roosevelt had
free way after he left the hotel
The colonels coming was heralded by
a cheer from those hundreds in the
streets which was heard inside the thea
tire. a moment later he appeared on the
stage Senator Borah was in the middle