New Britain herald., 1915-05-14
BARNES C!ONTRAD|CTS
 COLONIES TESTIMONY
Former Repub icaa Chairman Denies
 Using Word "Ritt Ra1f."

USlag MOIu Klll kdII. l Syracuse, N. Y..a May 14.-Yester- day was William Barnes day in court
 in the trial of his libel suit against
 Theodore Roosevelt. The former chairman of the republican state com
 mittee spent two hours upon the wit
 ness stand in contradicting wholly or 1 in part various parts of the testimony of Colonel Roosevelt and in giving his own version of several incidents {: described by the former president of l the United States.
 l MT. Barnes swore that, he did not lstalk to Colonel Roosevelt about the 1 franchise tax bill priar to it's passage. He denied emphatically that he had asked the then governor of New York ! not to sign the bill With equal emphasis he denied that he had ever l told Colonel Roosevelt that men iden- l tified with big business interests con. tributed to both parties in order to gain protection, and that if it was not given them they would cease to con- tribute: that he had urged that re- appointment of Lou Payn as state su- perintendent of insurance, and that l he had discussed legislative and exec utive matters with Colonel Roosevelt l on many occasions, :, He said he, did none of these, or half dozen. other things the colonel described him as having done. i Considered COIOnel Leader. ". .saa8faa inference that he considered Colonel Roosevelt the leaderrof the republican party in this state from 1906 to 1910. And he said that he visited the White House in 1908 at the request of the president and was urged Ito see August Belmont about the race track bill. He quoted Colonel Roosevelt as saying that the bill must be defeated. This was the bill which failed of pass age because of the vote of State Sem Ator Grattan, who. according to pre-. vious testimony, changed his mind about voting for it after- an alleged talk with MT. Barnes the night before it came up for consid erafion. Y As for the statement accredited to him by Colonel Roosevelt that the people were mot fit to govern them-8 selves MT. Barnes declared he never said it. During the day he painted in words a picture of his political career and gave his ideas about po- Jtical organization.
 Conferred With Roosevelt.
 Tn reply to questions regarding the franchise tax bill MT. Barnes said K:
 My recollection is that I had only one conversation with Colonel Roose- selt from January l., 1899 until after the passage of the franchise tax bill."
 .'Mr. Roosevelt < said MT. Wins, ! testified that you two talked on leg islatiye and other matters. How many times, if ever, did you talk upon such subjects with MT. Roosevelt?'' Twice.
 ..Mr. Roosevelt said he discussed with you issues between Senator Platt and Mr. Roosevelt. Did he?''
 T never knew there was any is- sues between them,s' replied MT. Barnes. >
 Tn reply to further questioning MT.
 Barnes denied that he had talked with Colonel Roosevelt about an- tagonism between Senator Platt and the organization and Colonel Roose- velt, or had discussed the franchise tax bill with the then governor before IL TedCn0u HIS HaHuS. Mr.. EaTnoS said he couldn't say that Colonel
 Roosevelt had not talked to him on
 numerous subjects and that he
 couldn't say that he himself was silent at all times.
 T was in the position of a listener"
 said MT. Barnes.
 Author Of Franchise Tax Editorial.
 MT. Barnes said he did not discuss the franchise tax bill with Colonel Roosevelt until after its passage MT. Barnes acknowledged the authority of an editorial article in the Albany
 Evening Journal, criticising that bill The editorial was read to the jury. Tn it was stated that the franchise tax had caused much dissension Cor | l,orate greed" was mentioned. It was also said the governor made no mis- }. take in calling a special session of the legislature to consider the bill and an amendment.
 Another editorial from the "Jour-
 naP' was handed by MT. Barnes. He said he was not sure he wrote it, but
 that it was certainly written at his suggestion. That editorial also was read to the jury. It was on the l amended franchise tax bill and argued 1 vote of every man Of the legislature. went on: 9 1T never discussed that franchise l tax bill with Governor Roosevelt prior 1 to it's passage. I might have mem l toned 1t in later years as matter of history
 l "Did you ever talk to him about the l effect the franchise tax might have on