Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1916-01-20
THE NATIONAL COMMITTEE

Il
, w. Y. Morgan: The meeting of
the Republican national committee,
which attended, as a good start for
the Republican party was real
success. In order to make good
J reading news some of the papers
which / read on the way home made
rather ridiculous departures from
the narrow way of facts. That is the
trouble with "the narrow way in
most anything. 1t lacks the pictur-
esque feature and the attractive
landscape along the broad high
way, and therefore is not travelled
by the news gatherer oftener than
is necessary.
One set of newspapers had story
that "the old crowd controlled the
committee" AS the committee was
selected by the convention of 1912,
after Col. Roosevelt took his grip
and left, and every member neces-
sarily and properly was for Taft for
president, the nominee of the party,
Of course "the old crowd controlled"
Every committeeman of the ga
present was a "standpatter." The
correspondent might just as we'll
have added that the Dutch took
Holland.
The political Importance Of the
meeting was the state of mind dis
played. Remember the committee
was solidly 'standpat" Present as
spectators were men like Senator
Borah, Medill Mccormick and Hen
ry Allen, dozens of them, some al !
ready arriving back in the Republi-
can fold, and some still inclined to
stay outside the fold a little longer
until they could see the quality of
the feed which might be put in the
manager. These "standpat' com
mitteemen and these Progressive"
leaders talked together with the
idea of getting together. Not a mo-
ton prevailed in the committee
which was not known to have the
sanction of the Progressives on the
outside, from Roosevelt down. The
wandering boys of 1912 were assur-
ed that they were wanted in the
old homestead, and while there was
no promise of killing a calf, there
was the positive assurance that the
pork should be divided regardless
Of what happened In the long ago
OF 1912. Chicago was selected be-
cause of the good hotels-and then
the Progressives preferred Chicago.
The southern representative In the
national committee was reduced as
had been agreed to a year ago,
along the lines of the Progressive
demands. The decision to hold the
Republican convention ahead of the
Democrats was also agreed to by the
former Bull Moosers. Primaries were
recognized, as above the national
None of these were prin-
ciples, merely party procedure, but
when the two wings of the party 4
get to Tapping in unison over I
proposed program it means that b
they are going to keep on harmon Il
Iously, or at least try to do so. d
During the committee meeting. [
here was only one unpleasant note. {
some chump from California was o
making a speech for San Francisco X
Is the convention place, and as he g
vas addressing a ''standpat" COM
nittee he tried to help his cause by >
slur at Roosevelt. Not a hand
tapped, and that committee of Taft
men scowled at the blunderer, and
frisco got few votes outside of its o.
neighbors and that cast a.
y Mr.. Barnes of New York. There p'
we're very few men in the room who al
you'd be for Roosevelt under any 81
but they resented OF
he introduction of trouble or words 81
hat would cause discomfort to any m
ne. tn
A meeting such as / describe has
cry few interesting features. When 81
GU cannot get fight by any means
ne situation becomes decidedly UNI
Interesting. The two factions of the
epublican party which gloriously Al
cked each other in the year of our tri
ord 1912, have not found the re- to
Its of that kind Of success either a
ratifying or nourishing. Taft beat tn
and Roosevelt beat Taft, Ma
I'd the trenches were filled with wa
e dead and dying of the Republi- pc
N and Progressive tickets. Every de
owe of the national committee, res
cry observation of the visiting TIL
was to the effect that the
more such victories" were che
lnted by any one and that a real