The Detroit times., 1912-04-12
.SyBRAAI WESSEL|US SAYS
PEOPLE OF WAYNE COUNTY
ARE TOBlAMEFOROUTRAGE
Lack Civic Pride Possessed by
men in the Day Of Hazen
Pingree
TAFT CONVENTION RUMP
Action of State Committee IL
legal and Most High
Handed Proceeding
TAFT CONVENTION RUM
From a Staff Correspondent

pTOW StdTT correspondent.
BAY CITY, Mich, April 12--"When
Detroit people awake to the full
measure OF civic pride they possessed
when Hazen s. Pingree was on earth
this sort OF business will be stopped. -
Sybrant Wesselius, the six-foot,
'2OO-pound Roosevelt delegate from
Grand Rapids to the Republican state
convention was referring TO the in
cidents OF the day when ABE"
Ascher, of Detroit's third ward, as
saulted Charles Nichols, the man who
received public praise from Col.
Roosevelt.
1T was shocking and detestable, -
exclaimed Mr.. Wesselius. But he was
disposed TO place the blame for the
riot among the Wayne county dele
gates on the people of Wayne county.
To my way of thinking" he contin-
ued. "one reason for keeping the
Roosevelt delegation from Wayne out
OF the convention was because 1t was
absolutely necessary, to avoid grand
jurp investigation of the methods OF
the Taft people there The caucuses
were held under law and while there
are many evils OF the caucus system
that cannot be reached, / think there
is penalty for bribery, stealing and
stuffing the ballot boxes.
Mr.. Wesselius was chosen as a
deiegate-at-large from the Roosevelt
convention TO the national Republican
convention. This is what he had TO
say about the probability of the
Roosevelt delegation winning out:
"fEha RnnQnuaIt c1
regular convention; that Is they were
In charge OF tn illegal Republican con-
vention. The Taft convention was the
rump convention in this instance. For
20 years to my knowledge, the chair
man OF the state central committee
has always called the convention to
order and contests were always set
tied by the convention after a report
upon the merits by the committee on
credentials. Both OF these laws and
precedents ware ruthlessly and shame.
fsliy violated by the ignoring OF
Chairman Knox, who holds his office
under statutes of this state. The
rules of procedure were also violated
by settling contests In the state CEN
tral committee, which committeemer
are not even members Of the conven-
ton. They did worse than that, even.
The sergeant-atarms refused admis-
sion to delegates from Muskegon, al
though there was no contests in that
city. And then on the roll call some
Taft delegate from Wayne county
voted the Muskegon delegation as
present. They did the same thing to
Leelenaw (voting them present but
refusing admission TO delegates), the
same TO 13 delegates from Ingham, Ia
from Kent. all OF Mason. Otsega and
Eaton. All the delegates excluded
were Roosevelt delegates, most or
them under instructions, so that the
rump convention leaders knew just
how they stood. That was about the
most high-handed proceeding | ever
witnessed in a state convention in all
my years of experience.
There is absolutely no doubt that
when the national committee COM
pares the proceedings OF the two con-
ventions they will see at once that the
convention called by the state chair
man was regular. And II the Roose-
welt delegates are not seated, 1t will
be because the national committee Is
as blind as to the unpopularity OF
Taft in Michigan as is the Taft man
agement in Michigan"
Incidentally, Mr.. Wesselius ex-,
pressed his opinion that Roosevelt
will carry Pennsylvania. Massachu-
setts. Nebraska, and have more than
one-third OF the delegates from Ohio,
the presidents home state.
u a