Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-02-09
Mr.. Hughes and Mr.. Taft

have allowed the appropriate party
committees to nominate candidates
who should have the preferred place
on the ballot. If the list was agree
able to the rank and file of the party
1t went on the ticket unopposed. But
II there was opposition. then the di-
rect primary was invoked, the voters
| deciding between the organization slate
and its rival. Here was recognition of
party responsibility as well as of the
need Tor keeping party leadership re-
Sponsive to party feeling.
Hughes was renominated for gov
ernor, not because the politicians want
ed him on their hands again, but be-
cause they didn't dare do anything
else. The courage, the independence
and the ability which he had shown
from his entrance into the Office had
only confirmed and strengthened the
admiration which he had won through
out the Nation in the insurance in
veStigation.
This brings us to 1908-ap important
year in the careers of both Hughes and
Taft. After serving as first civil gov
ernor Of the Philippines, Taft, in 1904,
became Secretary of War in the cabinet
of President Roosevelt
Gradually he became something much
more-nothing less than Roosevelt's
choice as his successor in the White
House. But Taft had never held an
elective Office. 1t was true that he came
from Ohio, the modern mother of Pres
identS; but what of this man Hughes
who had proved that he could carry
New York? Why did not Roosevelt
choose him?
The explanation appears to be that
when Hughes was having his struggle
with the politicians at Albany, RooSe-
welt offered to aid him by the use of
actuated by his enthusiastically high
principles, refused to accept assistance
which would have meant, as he saw it.,
surrender to the very sort of thing he
was flghting-the use of public offices
as pawnS in the political game.
Roosevelt apparently did not relish
the rebuff; perhaps he thought the
Hughes position showed lack Of prac-
ticality in the New York governor.
Anyway, he engineered the nomination
OF Tart, whose ambition was not the
presidency, but the Supreme Court.
Paths Cross in 1908.
So the paths of the two men who
had set out to be lawyers and who
had been pitched into politics crossed
in 1908. In the rivalry between the
supporters Of the two for the presiden-
tial nomination the friends of the
Ohian were victorious, but one of the
features of the campaign which followed
was the development Of the supposedly
stern and unsmiling New Yorker into
the chief spellbinder of the contest
The Hughes speeches were among the
most powerful explosives on the Taft
side of the battle
Two years later as he was nearing
the end of his second term as gov
ernor, Hughes resigned in order to &C
cept appointment from TAFT as an as
Sociate justice Of the Supreme Court
doubtless with a sigh of relief at leav-
ing politics behind him, as he fancied
forever.
Forever" turned out to be less than
six years.
Taft's administration was made nota-
BILE by contest between old guard and
insurgent Republicans over the tariff
revision. The contest was won by the
old guard when Taft gave his approval
to the Payne-Aldrich bill. but it left
the party hopelessly divided and led
to organized opposition to Taft's re-
nomination. This opposition finally
crystallized around the man who had
made him President.
When the Republican national con-
vention refused seats to the bulk of the
contesting Roosevelt delegation and
then renominated Taft, the Roosevelt
supporters determined to go to the
length Of putting separate ticket IN
the field. Thus the campaign of 1912
was three-ring affair and the division
among the Republicans gave the Demo
Gratis, under Woodrow Wilson, sweep
! ing triumph.
| And thus, as 1t had been Taft-and
Roosavelt-who had stood in Hughes
way in 1908. so it was Taft-and Roose-
velt-who, by splitting the Republican
party in 1912, prepared the situation
for him in 1915. This time the Repub-
licar nomination came to him. and il
came, of course, utterly unsought.
Picked for Presidency.
The country was treated to the novel
spectacle of justice of the Supreme
Court being nominated for presi-
dency and being asked, on behalf OF
the nominating convention, whether ne
would be so gracious as to accept the
honor. Hughes did not keep the dele
gates in suspense.
He resigned from the Supreme Court
| in brief letter to President Wilson
his opponent-to-be, who accepted the
resignation with equal brevity. The
election in November was the closest
since the Hayes-Tilden race in 1875
Complete returns from California, Civ
ing that State to Wilson, reelected hin
by majority of % electoral votes.
Taft had returned to private life fol-
lowing his defeat in the presidential
election of 1912. Hughes also was nov
in private life again. CharacteriStically
Taft had not resumed law practice, but
had gone into teaching, becoming Kent
professor of law at Yale. And char.
acteristically, Hughes did resume Law
practice. Four years went by and Their
both men were called back into public
service. President Harding made Taft
chief justice of the Supreme Court anC
Hughes Secretary of State. Having
steps to speed up the action of the
court. Changes in procedure were
adopted so that, without adding to the
work of the justices, the calendar was