Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (June 12, 1908)
i 'Sun ,r,4iffil' wmmtt iimn umw mR 8 The Commoner. .VOLUME 8, NUMBER 22 aoui i" u.iiia, CURR8NT GOPICS Vf JlMaSug."' u,r"Wi ) "RSrrgMTjEjnn f$i)f jr f'fl!JlK ifl 'lii"' -5Cv-TnHj .CK l3BSffiQCSs&-w 5' j&s&rn$J& w te rc-3 aair x2ha 'TXrlfJ ,w?ii. j-riftaiJrnVf"l.,l'-J---- v--j lyrrjfr ja. hit-- i- ft 111 II (R H' SSfJ-' .!' 4 , ii- ALTHOUGH OREGON, in tlio olcction hold Juno 2, chose a republican legislature, peo plo of that Htato by n majority of one thousand registered their decree that the legislature should olect a democrat, Governor George ID. Chamber lain, to tho United States senato to succeed tho present senator, Charles W. Fulton, republican. Although Governor Chamberlain's victory was pronounced, an Associated Press dispatch from Portland says: "Already thoro is talk of de fections and it is not impossible that in tho seven months intervening between now and the dato of tho next session of tho legislature some plan may bo (fovisod to defeat Chamberiain and send a republican to tho United States senate." O REPUBLICAN primaries were held in Iowa June 2. A bitter contest was had betweon tho supporters of Senator Allison and tho sup porters of Governor Cummins. Doth of these leadors being candidates for tho senatorial nom-" ination, Senator Allison was successful, receiv ing about 12,000 majority. B. F. Carroll was nominated for governor, and Georgo Clark for lieutonant governor. Notable victories through out tho state for congressional honors are re ported as follows: J. P. Connor over Frank P. Woods in the Tenth; E. H. Hubbard over W. D. Boies in tho Eleventh; Ellsworth Reminger ovor Speaker Nato Kendall in tho Sixth; Charles E. Pickott over B. E. Sweet in tho Third, and reports from the Fifth indicate that James Good has a majority over Senator Trowin, although both claim to have a majority in the district. I. Smith was not in the running against W. P. Hepburn in the Eighth district. ' 3 A " .4 QjECRETARY TAFT delivered a speech on O Memorial day at tho tomb of the 'late Gonoral Ulysses S. Grant. On that occasion Secretary Taft said: "It is true that Grant re ceived an education at West Point, but certainly nothing was developed, there In him to indicate his fitness or ability to meet great responsibili ties. He did Well in the Mexican war, as did other lieutenants. He manifested as regimental quartermaster energy and familiarity with his duties. But in 1854 he resigned from tho army because ho had to. Ho had yielded to tho weak ness of a taste for strong drink, and rather than bo court-martialed ho loft the army. Ho re turned from Vancouver, on the Pacific coast, to his family in St. Louis without money, without .property a disheartened man. He accepted from his father-in-law a loan of seventy-five JrQ?,cf Jan upon which he constructed a house for his family to live in, and there he carried on farming operations. His chief business seemed to be that of selling wood, of cutting it and piling it in the back yards oMhe we 11-to-do people of St. Louis. After bix years of this life ho gave up farming because of ill-health and went nto the real estate ousiness for a year He failed in this. His associate dissolved the P?1,1"01' Then at laBt hIs father offered him $600 as a dork in his leather store at Ga lena, 111. and then ho moved from St. Louis. During these seven years, though everything looked dark, ho overcame in a great measure his weakness for strong drink. But ho was so constituted that it seemed impossible for him to earn a livelihood when he had given hostages childTenT Ul SlmPe f a Wife and w-r;j - , O ' ' a . qEORETAJlY TAFT'S speech at the Grant O 'tomb brought down a storm of criticism and Mr. Taft's political enemies in the ronub Mean party have had much to say of hta 2d mittedly unfortunate blunder ThevLtn ? I that Mr. Taft read his b from hte maSS script and that, therefore, they have th hSK to say that the insult was deliberate and the v point out also that tho speech was delfverod !n the presence of General Frederick Sent Grant a son. and mnmhava f i.t -..,.. ?5 .uxan Mr. Tatt Is groatly grlovoa T ".faus , o ", X I uureui" am very much dis tressed that anything I have said should bo construed to be an attack upon General Grant's memory. I yield to no man in my admiration for General Grant, in my high estimate of his remarkable qualities and character and of the great debt that tho nation owes him. In my memorial address I attributed his resignation from tho army in 1854 to his weakness for strong drink, because from Mr. Garland's life of General Grant and tho evidence he cites and from other histories I supposed it was undoubt edly true. I referred to the matter only be cause it seemed to me that it was one of the great victories of his life that he subsequently overcame the weakness. Tho wonder of his life was that, with all the discouragements that ho encountered before the civil war, including this, he became tlio nation's chief instrument in suppressing the rebellion. I venture to say that no impartial man can read my Memorial day address and say I do not give to General Grant a placo in history as high as that given him by any of his historians or his admirers. The lives of our great men belong to the coun try. If facts are told showing that they had weaknesses which they overcame, the force of their successful example is greater to lift the youth of the country up to emulate them than if they were painted as perfect without tempta tion and without weaknesses." SENATOR FORAKER was among the first to register his criticism and in reply to an inquiry from a New York paper ho said: "For obvious reasons I do not car to criticise what Secretary Taft thought it appropriate to say at General Grant's tomb beyond the single remark that while General Grant may have had some weaknesses it is evident that Secretary Taft has his weakness also." FORMER SENATOR Chandler had this to say: "I was not aware of the facts stated by Secretary Taft and am anxious to disbelieve them. If they are true, I regret that the Sec retary rejoiced to revive them and give them world-wide publicity at the tomb of the match less general whose victories in arms saved the American union from dismemberment and gave freedom and the ballot to four million (now ten million) of colored citizens of the United States," , PRESIDENT. ROOSEVELT had a narrow es cape from a serious accident June 3 while horseback riding in Rock Creek Park, near Washington City. An Associated Press dis patch tells tho story in this way: "Mrs. Roose velt was with tho president. Rumors of the affair which gained currency last night were de nied at the White House at the time, as neither tho president nor Mrs. Roosevelt spoke of tho affair upon their return. The rumors came from tho occupantB of several carriages who saw the accident. The president was riding a now horse, a young animal. The party rode down through a cut in a bank, forded a creek and woro ascending the bank on the other side The president's horse reared. The president leaned forward in the saddle and throw the reins down in loops so as to avoid pulling the horso backward. On reaching the top of the bank tho horso reared a second time and the president leaned forward again, but the animal stood straight on its hind legs and went over back ward into tho creek with the president. Feel lng that ho was going backward, the nreqlw slipped from the saddle and as luck would have it, fell into tho creek close besYde the hoVse which landed on its back. The horse fell on the downstream sido of tho president who ml. izing that ho would be in danger from th mal's feet should the horse S Cards him got out of the way as rapidly as poslible Th horso. however, turned over f rSm the president and got up. Ho was captured ut once, the presi dent remounted and rodo for an hour and a half before returning to tho Whlto House The fall from the horse's back to the stream bed was a distance of more than ten feet. The stream was about two feet deep with an ex ceedingly rocky bed. Neither the president nor horso received the slightest injury. President Roosevelt's two regular riding horses were out of commission yesterday, both being indisposed. The president's orderly wished to try out the new horse, but the president took it upon him self to do this. The president was dressed in khaki and the fact that ho got thoroughly wet did not become apparent to those who saw him after the accident. Several carriages which had crossed the ford just ahead of the president stopped and the occupants were alarmed at what was happening. The experience with its many serious possibilities has not dulled the presi dent's pleasure in riding, and he takes consid erable gratification in the test of horsemanship as both times the animal reared he instinctively threw himself forward so that his head was di rectly beside that of the rearing animal and the reins being thrown loose had no tension whatever to pull the horse backward." EEFERRING TO the late General. Stephen D. Lee the St. Louis Republic says: "A cloud is cast upon Memorial day and upon' the coming reunion of confederate veterans to be S?' Vn 5ranSham, Ala., by the death of Stephen Dill Lee, formerly a lieutenant general ?T ., derate army, and commander of the United Confederate Veterans. General Lee, dis- y- at a11' related to the Virginia' soldiers of that name, was a gallant fighter in the con federate service, and was much beloved by his surviving comrades as well as by tho people of Mississippi, his adopted state. By leading in a different causet that of national reconciliation and the obliteration of civil war sectionalism, btephen Lee won the esteem of the entire coun try and the warm personal friendship of many 2 ?? e, gainst whom hd fought. The service he did In this latter cause is consecrated by h s death, following a stroke which overtook him while affiliating with a body of Iowa and Wisconsin veterans of the union army who were visiting in Vicksburg. Thus, in his death, as in his life, he does memorable service to his country. As the veterans of both armies pass irom the scene the memory of none will be mdre revered than that of Stephen D. Lee." THE MANNER In which Senator Gore was tricked in the filibuster on the currency bill Is told by the Washington correspondent for the Birmingham (Ala.) Age-Herald in this way: After a record-breaking one-man filibuster the senate this afternoon by a vote of 43 to 22 adopted the conference report on the Aldrich Vreeland political emergency currency bill, which, with the president's approval, makes the measure law. Right to its culmination a species of legislative trickery marked the consideration of .the measure after an unparalleled long speech record. Senator LaFollette at 7:30 this morning yielded the floor to Senator Stone, who becoming exhausted after seven hours of con stant speaking yielded in turn to Senator Gore, the blind Oklahoman. About 4:30 Senator Gore resumed his seat. The same instant ho did so Senator Aldrich interjected: 'I call for a vote on the adoption of the conference re port. Immediately the vice president arose and simultaneously with that the well-posted clerk began the roll call. 'Mr. Aldrich,' he read. Sen ator Heyburn and several senators were already on their feet, but they were too late. Aldrich had triumphed. Tho senate rules permit of no ,fr1rVptlon af ter a ro11 cal1 has begun. Senator Aldrich with his motion, the putting of the motion by the presiding officer and tho com mencing of the reading by tho clerk came within less time than it takes to tell it. In tho mean lime LaFollette and Stone, wearied by their long speeches, were out of the senato chamber. Both arrived while the roll call was to progress and were surprised and grievously disappointed over the turn of, affairs. Heyburn, a republican, pro tested bitterly to tho presiding officer that he was on his feet to ask recognition. The chair ruled that roll call had commenced and could not be Interrupted. In a final effort to delay the -1 W; ivAM'ii.A.jid. v;': A4W(i.W,'