Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-11-07
The REPUBLICAN BREAK
The Trouble Began on Roosevelt s
Accession to the Presidency.
No Revision Of Tari6-Mcl<1nley's
Policy OF TariR Pension
Was Not Cnr-
ried Out.
From the New York SUM


The presidential contest OF 1912. which
closed Yesterdays election, marks
In the estimation of the more thoughtful
members Of the Republican party. the
elimination of years OF factional discord
ana personal bitterness which have had
| rev parallels in the annals of the political
! history OF the country. In the event OF
an overwhelming defeat for the republi-
| cans the disaster can he directly traced
to these long continued family quarrels
and to the prolonged dissensions over
party policies which have involved per-
sonal rivaries Of the most heated char
acter.
| Concerning party policies It may not be
an exaggeration to state that the prn-
| cipal differences have been aroused over
the tariff and the failure to heed the
warning words of President Mckinley at
Buffalo the day before ne was assassin
ated. In speech which was made
doubly famous from the fact that Mr..
mckinley had been known as the High
Priest of Protection the renowned ohio
statesman emphatcally declared on that
occasion that 1t was time to call a halt
and he pointed the way for n revision of
the tariff 1t has been invariably con-
tended that President McKinoy's speech
pointed the way to n revision of the tariff
| by which the general consumer would he
more directly benefited than ne had been
under previous tariff bills, the Mckinley
| bill. the Wilson bill and the Dingley bill.
| The untimcly death OF Mckinley ele-
| waited Nice-President Roosevelt to the
presidents chair. With Roosevelt's ac-
| cession he publicly announced that he
| would Immediately call an extraordinary
| session Of Congress In order to carry out
| the dying words of Mckinley. Constant
| ~ and with emphatic reiteration did
President Roosevelt utter these state
ments. Suddenly, without warning and
without explanation, Roosevelt changed
| lis policy and no extraordinary session
| was called to revise the tariff. II has
been known In the inner circles Of the
Republican National party that Repre-
sentative Joseph G. Cannon. then speak
er of the House of Representatives, was
largely If not principally responsible for
! President Roosevelt's change OF heart on
this question.
| The little band of progressives in the
House Of Representatives and the United
\
less and their activities slowly but surely
! became the effective means for entering
| the first wedge Of disunion and party
disintegration. This was not apparent
| though. in the presidential campaign Of
| 1904. when Roosevelt was triumphantly
elected. 1t has always been insisted,
| though, that Roosevelts tremendous pop
ular and electora, vote that year was due
IN measure to the weakness Of Alton B.
Parlter, the democratic candidate for the
presidency, and the open disloyalty OF
the followers Of William ]. Bryan.
However that may be. with Roosevelt
elected the words of Mckinley at Buffalo
were still left UNDECIDED The progress
sives in the House. headed by Reprascn-
tative Victor Murdoch, and In the United
States Senate. by Senator La Toilette,
continued on their way. They never tired
and they never permitted obs Ia cles to
prevent their onward advance Eventual
| ~ the power of Speaker Cannon was cur
| tai'"d
Meanwhile the letter of the Il te Edward
| ~. Hartman to the late sidney Webster
! threw many republicans almost into con-