The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1915-04-24
COULD NOT MAKE
GOOD CITIZEN
OUT OF BARNES
Roosevelt Says Albany Politician
Has Dual Nature
GAVE HIM UP As BAD JOB
Former President in Five-Hour Battle
OF Wits With Lawyer
Ivins

Syracuse, April 23.-For five hours
today William NJ wins, counsel Tor
William Barnes, raked over the past
of Colonel Theodore Roosevelt and
tried to trap him into admitting that
his actions as reformer, Governor,
President, and publicist were not al
ways dictated by honorable motives,
and that he was not justified in charg
ing Mr.. Barnes with being corrup-
zionist. The Justice William S. An
drews. before whom Mr.. Barness
suit for alleged libel is being tried
adjourned the court until Monday
when MIR. Wins will continue his in
quiries.
Much of the matter which the as
tute cross-examiner brought out is
already familiar to the public, but
new angles and meanings were given
to it all by the spicy comments and
unexpected answers of the Colonel,
who showed himself, as on the prevl-
ons day, well able TO take care OF
himself 1t was a battle between
two master minds, one trained IN the
intricacies of law and the other in
large human affairs, and those priv
ileged to listen to it followed every
word
Back and forth over the many
years of his active career. the law
yer led the witness. but never once
was he able to trip him up. Always
the Colonel had ready answer, and
always he managed to put the best
possible construction upon his mo-
tives and actions The Colonel came
out of the fray blithely and unruf-
fled, and no one seemed to enjoy the
day more than himself.
Two noteworthy events marked The
session. Mr. Ivins complained that
special privilege was being shown to
the witness in making his answers,
and he received q severe rebuke
from the Court Then Air. Roosevelt
gave description Of his enemy, Mr.,
Barnes that is likely TO go down in
political history, He told how he
tried to make good citizen out of
Barnes, and gave it UP as bad job
when he discovered, as he put it, that
Barnes had a DR. Jekyil and Mr..
HYDE nature. and he could do nothing
with him.
Mr. WINS used private letters of
the Colonel to show that he had
been on terms of close intimacy with
Barnes, often calling him Dear Bill.
He read extracts from the ColonePs
biography written in 1918, which con-
tanned a list of bosses with no men,
ton of Barnes. He spread upon the
record the list Of contributors to his
campaign fund in 1904 and tried to
show that corporations had contri-
buted large amounts to his campaign
with the expectation of receiving
special fayors, and that the Colonel
stood for a combination OF big busi-
ness and politics He fought hard
to prove that the Colonel allowed
bosses like Penrose of Pennsylvania
Ward of New York. and Coke OF
Ohio, who were members of the Exc
cutive Committee to bring about his
nomination for the Presidency In
1904 and that the Colonel worked
with them in 1908 to nominate Mr.
Taft. He insisted that the Colonel
forced the nomination of Mr.. Taft
that year and again brought out the
fact that the. Colonel had said he
would never be third-term candi-
date. The Colonels meeting with
the late f. IL Hartman at the White
House and I'VE are practical men
letter was again rehearsed.
On all these matters the Colonel
was so ready to talk that WINS had
to demonstrate with him again and
again, but always the Colonel got be-
fore the jury what he wanted to say.
On several occasions the Colonel
gave such unexpected replies that
Mr., Iyins dropped the subject in
haste.