Arizona republican., 1912-04-26
TAFT STRIKES BACK AT H|S FORMER CHIEF Denounces Roosevelt in Speeches Delivered in
 Various Cities
 Yesterday SAYS DUTY IS
 UNPLEASANT ONE President Declares Policies of His Predecessor
 Must Be Over
 thrown
SAYS DUTY IS
 UNPLEASANT ONE
1 [ASSOciQted Press DiSbatchl

LASSOcldted Press DlSbdtChl BOSTON, April 25.-President Taft donned his fighting clothes to- night, abandoned his policy of sil- ence under the attacks that Roose- welt has made upon him, and his ad- minstration and for the first time since Roosevelt announced his can didacy, he launched into bitter de- nunciation of the former president 1 From the time that Taft entered 1 Massachusetts and made his first speech at Springfield, shortly after noon, until late tonight he hammer ed away at Roosevelt The presi dent made close to a dozen speeches. some of them of good length In all l he made clear he was unalterably 1 opposed to Roosevelt; that he saw l disaster in third term in the White | House for any man. that he did not 1 believe Roosevelt had given him a square deal" He spoke to large crowds in all the cities where he stopped. He delivered speeches at 1 towns and villages where people 1 Hooked around his private car. ! The president spoke at Springfield and Palmer; twice in Worcester. at 1 Natick, South Birmingham and sev- i eral other smaller towns.
 i In the beginning he seemed to ut 1 ter his attack on Roosevelt with re- l luctance This Wrenches my soul ] he said once. As the day wore on 1 however. he made speech after 1 speech in which he denounced Roose- welt again and again President Taft i grew more aggressive in manner, emphasizing his words with gestures l and apparently laid aside any feel 1 ing of regret that he may have felt i at this evidence of long friendship | with his former chief being broken. His principal Boston address was delivered in the arena to large crowd but before retiring to his pri- Vate car he spoke briefly to an
 "oVerflow" meeting in symphony hall. His speech in the arena was deliver
 ed from manuscript prepared during the last few days in Washington It had been carefully gone over by
 members of his cabinet and contain
 cd detailed answers to many of ROOseVelts charges.
 Taft's speech at the arena bristled
 with counter charges against his pre-
 decessOr. He declared Roosevelt had
 Wilfully misrepresented him. falsely distorted some of his public utter ances. failed to live up to his policy
 of the square deal. and had violated la solemn promise to the American peO-
 pie not to be a candidate for q third term.
 That promise and his treatment of it." said President Taft. "only throw an informing light on the value that
 ought now to be attached to any promise of this kind he may make for the future"
 Declaring that Roosevelt ought not
 to be selected as the candidate of any ! party" President Taft said the for
 mer president might now be paving
 the way, if successful in the present
 campaign. to remain chief executive
 of the nation for as many terms as his , natural life would permit.
 If he is necessary now to the gov | ernment. why not later?" the presi- dent asked MT. Taft continued: 7 Can one who so lightly regards constitutional principles, and especial
 ly the independence of the judiciary,
 one who is so naturally impatient of
 legal restraints and due legal pro
 cedure, and who has so misunderstood : what liberty regulated by law is, safe Iy be intrusted with successive presi-
 dential terms? I say this sOrrOWfully but I say it with a full conviction ol it's truth"
 | MT. Taft referred to some of ROOSe- velts charges against him as a loose I and vague indictment of one who does | not know and who depends only upOr T second hand information for his state = ment"
 n The president said that his speech tonight was one of the most painful e duties of his life; that it was il : response to an obligation he owed tho q republican party, which had selected h him as it's candidate, and to tho f American people, who had elected hin
 president.
 Tt grows," he said, "out of phas'
 of national politics and national Ef'
 that I believe to be unprecedented il 6 our history. So unusual is tn
 exigency that the ordinary rules O
 | propriety that limit and restrict tn . president in his public addresses mus n be laid aside and the cold. naked trutl must be stated in such way that i O shall serve as a warning to the peo
 pie of the United States
 Q President Taft said RoOsevelts Co I lumbus speech, which has been ac "a cepted as his platform sent a thri1 - of alarm through all the members Q
 (Continued on Page. 3l.