The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1912-04-30
ROOSEVELT DENOUNCES TAFT.
Replies to Presidents Attack Upon
Him-Says Taft's Statement "Ab-
surd Untruth."

Worcester, Mass, April 26.-Denun-
citation of President Taft was Col.
Roosevelt's reply tonight to the presi-
dents attack upon him yesterday.
Some of Col. Roosevelt's assertions
were:
That President Taft had not given
the people of the country "a square
DEAL" but that owing to quality OF
feebIeness" he had yielded to the
bosses and the great privileged inter
ests."
That one part of the presidents at
tack upon him was the crookedest
kind of a deal" and deliberate mis-
representation"
That the president has not merely
in thought, word and deed been dis
loyal to our past friendship, but has
been disloyal to every canon of ordin-
ary decency and fair dealing such as
should obtain even in dealing with a
mans bitterest opponents
Calls it 'Absurd Untruth."
That the presidents statement re-
garding the influence of federal Office
holders in the campaign was mot on
ly an untruth, but it is an absurd un-
truth
That Mr.. Taft convicted himself of
insincerity when he signed the Payne
Aldrich tariff bill. That in speaking
of Col. Roosevelt's position in regard
to me trust problem, President Taft
lis himself guilty of crooked deal"
Col. Roosevelt took up President
Taft's attack on him point by point,
haying the president in one scathing
sentence after another.
When Col. Roosevelt reached here at
the beginning of his Massachusetts
trip he found the streets thronged. A
band and torchlight procession es-
corted him to Mechanics hall, where
he delivered his main speech. Later
he addressed an overHow meeting.
Col. Roosevelt said in part:
'In this campaign J. regard the is
sue at stake as altogether too import
ant to permit it to be twisted into one
of personalities between President
Taft and myself. But Mr.. Taft's
speeches yesterday contained state
ments that 1 must answer. When he
said that 1 have endeavored to mini
mize the importance of my Coumbus
speech, he says what he must know
is untrue.
"Again when Mr.. Taft in any speech
speaks of me directly or obliquely as
a neuretic or a demagogue, or in sim
liar terms, he had better preserve his
own self-respect by not protesting that
it gives him pain to do so. l have
never alluded to him in terms even
remotely resembling these. 1 have
never quoted his private letters or
private communications. I hae dis
cussed exclusively his public utter
ances. Even where l was obliged to
be seere, l was always parliamentary
and never hypocritical. Nor do l in
tend today to deviate from this stand
ard, although the presidents speech
makes it necessary for me to speak
more plainly on certain subjects than
have yet spoken"
"Crookedest Kind of Deal"
Col. Roosevelt referred to President
Taft's explanation of his statement
that ours is a government of all OF
the people by a representative part of
people"
'For him to try" said Coz. Roose-
cit, ''to escape the consequences of his
statements by saying that he alluded
only to women and children is trifllng
with the intelligence Of the people. To
speak~of such action on his part as
square deal is itself the crookedest
kind of deal. He is trying to dodge
the consequences of his statement by
deliberate misrepresentation of that
statement
Col. Roosevelt then defined the poll
teal boss" and continued:
Declares "BOsses" for Taft.
eff there is any such man among my
supporters, I do not know him."
The bosses, Col. Roosevelt declared
were on the presidents side.
''Mr. Taft said yesterday that he
never in thought or deed had been dis
1ovo1 in bic friendship for me- 1t is