New Britain herald., 1916-06-27
New York Moose May Bolt.

New York, June 27.-A statement which in political circles is regarded as foreshadowing a bolt of the New York county progressive committee to Woodrow Wilson was issued from the new progressive county head quarters at 5O3 Fifth avenue last night It was signed by John J. O'Connell, county chairman, and was about the first official action taken by him after setting up separate house. keeping for the county organization, away from what the bolting progress sives generally refer to these days as the Perkins crowd"
 In his statement Chairman O'Con- nell sharply attacks Colonel Theo- dore Roosevelt and warmly defends President Wilson, After stating that the Colonel is intent upon ''com- pleting the ruin of the progressive party by driving it's members, if he can, into the republican party" he rf kes Up the financial panic of 1907 agains the Colonel, and refers to the Wilson currency legislation in an ap- parent attempt to create a contrast not to the advantage of Colonel Roosevelt to whose "evident hatred of our president" MT. O'Connell makes reference in the opening para graph of his statement.
 Some of the ColonePs critics have been so unkind as to say that, per haps, the enactment of that law (the Federal Reserve act) was the cause of the extreme Virulence displayed against MT. Wilson by some of the ColOnel's advisers" says Mr. O'Con- nell.
 to gate to the progressive national con- Tention, either by Colonel Roosevelt or his campaign managers, is charged by MT. O'Connell, who declares that he was assured on their sacred word
 of honor" that the Colonel would head a third ticket even if MT. Hughes
 was nominated
 MT. O'Connell says among other things:
 "The impressions one gets of Colonel Roosevelt's letter to the pro- gressive national committee are it's disingenuOusness, its sophistrv. then it's labored attempt at justification, and, finally, the very evident hatred of our president
 And he totally fails to meet the real cause of anguish of the progress sives who were delegates and alter
  they have now come to the belief that the Colonel never intended to accept their nomination alone; that they were being used as a club to force the republican convention to nominate him. and that if the club was ineffective it could go into the Woodpile for all the Colonel cared.
 "If our crusade for the last four years has forced the other parties to enact many of our most important principles into law, why not continue our organization and our crusade so that the remainder of our principles may be enacted into law?
 There are many progressives who believe that since the defeat of 1912 the Colonel has been anxious to get the progressive party off his shoulders and they would instance his attempts to influence the nomination of MT. Whitman for mayor in 1913, his at tempts to support MT. Whitman for governor early in 1914. and his sub- sequent attempt to hand us MT. Him man of Binghamton. Indeed, the events of convention week at Chi cago, coupled with those earlier facts, lend some plausibility to the charges.
 'I do not believe that the county will go to political or other damna- ton if MT. Wilson should be re-elect- ed. This nation has many times shown it's ability to recuperate from even worse things than those of which the Colonel accuses MT. Wilson. Be- side which, if the Colonel will take the pains to examine the record, he will find that MT. Wilson has to his credit in the four years of his admin istration pretty nearly as much pro- gressive legislation as the Colonel has to his seven years. /
 During the seven years of the Colonel's incum bency of the office, nothing was done toward reforming the archaic banking and currency sys- tenn under which we lived. MT Will | son has to his credit the enactment of law which gives us the kind of banking and currency we require and | which will make 1t impossible to 1 have recurrence of a financial panic | like that of 1907. Some of the | Co1oneTs critics have been so unl1ind | as to say that, perhaps, the enact | ment of that law was the cause of 1 the extreme virulence displayed | against MT. Wilson by some of the | ColonePs advisors.
 "The progressive party will live. It's ideas are right and are indestruct- ible. It is now in straits, but it's loyal adherents have learned the lesson that the fathers of the nation were more than prophetic when they said that this should be a government of laws and not of man. A party founded on hero worship alone has no excuse for enduring; and out of our present travail will surely come an enduring party founded not on the wbin of any one man or group of men, but on the undying and unalter- ala mi cinles of ecnlal iuStice social