New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-03-14
WHITMAN WILLING
TO RUN FOR MAYOR
With Police Reorganization I'M
minent. He Is Logical Man,
Say Friends.
uIDGESHIP TAMMANY LURE
T;oer. Aware of His Strength
as Foe, Would Sidetrack
Him to Supreme
Court Bench.

charles : Whitman Is willing To run
10 Navor on an anti-Tammany ticket.
A., is NOT seeking the nomination. as his
-, interest at the present moment Is
.osc.rtine the trail of graft in the
Police Department.
pu, some Of the District Attorney
,,iends who talked 10 him Yesterday sald
49,. NO could not we'll afford to refuse
vsvoraltv nomination if his fellow CIT
ms decided that ne was the man to
l. tho race lie took the attitude that
, Good citizen NE could not dodge any
Syty that his fellow citizens offered him.
soaking To his friends. Mr.. Whitman
.,, bis time and attention had been 50
,,crosscd With the work hc is doinS as
ni.,ri.t Attorney tnat ne had discouraged
.ario.is rcrsons who had wanted 10 tax
8, him, about running for Mayor this fall.
lie has conferred with no one on the
subject
Xo clearer indication that the District
Attorney has no political ambition. hut
;e sinply actuated ny his desire TO serve
r,o p,bU. could Ice bad than Ivy his state
,,,opt to his friends that if il be thought
t.s, for him 10 rcn for the supreme Court
bench hc would accept a nomination for
chat nla.,. or if Fl were determined that
he could best serve ina the place ne now
,olds he would accept denomination for
1istr,ct Attorney.
However his friends argued with him
chat fine work he had done i'm disclosing
the rottenne~s in tho Police Department
had fitted him 10 be the next Mayor above
any other man. They pointed OFT To him
that the great problem az tho next adj
ministration would he the reorganization
n the Police Department.
The him for an cicht-ycar term for tho
Police Commissioner will probably be
rassed The first great act of the next
Nsvor VIII he the appointment Of man
IN fU that important place That viii be
TIE hecnnin= of reorganization of the
tho biggest tasks ever undertaken by a
Mayor Who is Fett"r ftted for such
work than the District Attorney. his
friends argue
Tammany Hall appreciates the strength
of the District Attorney as . candidate
. for Mayor It fears him That was
shown recently when he received an IN
timation from Tammany sources that
Tsmmauv would he glad to indOrse his
nomination by the Republicans as a can
didatc for the supreme Court bench, thus
assuring his election. The District Attor-
news friends. however. are not likely 10
let him be sidetracked from the Mayoralty
nomination by such a suggestion.
Hearst Thought to Favor Him.
There arc daily evidences that William
Randolph Hearst stands ready to offer his
support to NJ Whitman as candidate
for Mayor. Only yesterday Assistant Dis
trict Attorney William y. De Ford, for
many years an active worker with Mr..
Hearst. indicated that he might be
candidate for the District Attorneyship.
He believes that he has a good chance 10
get the nomination which would seem
10 indicate that ne anticipates that Mr..
Hearst. his political leader will back the
Whitman movement for the Mayoralty.
Although Colonel Roosevelt vehemently
denied Yesterday that he had Indicated
mis- preference for Mr. Whitman as the
anti-Tammany candidate for Mayor. il ~
true that many Of the local Progressive
leaders are in favor Of him. Indeed, some
Of them went so far some time ago as 10
advise that the Progressives nominate
Mr. Whitman early in the summer. and
leave it TO the Republicans TO follow on
and take him or turn him down-if they
dared
Friends Of Mr. Whitman are watching
with considerable interest the attitude OF
Msyor Gaynor in the coming campaign.
j. is known that some Of the Mayors
friends have been busy for some time
getting up an Independent committee FOR
the oytcnsihle purpose Of renominating
him on am independent ticket.
The Whitman supporters cannot con-
ceive that the Mayor would he willing TO
run ON n third ticket nor do they think
10 believes he can get tho regular anti
Tammany forces 70 place him AZ the head
o. their ticket They do suspect how
ever. that his movement may be in the
interest OF Borough President McAneny'
and that at the proper time the Mayor
will offer 10 turn over his support 10 the
cifizene' movement IL they agree 20 nOmi-