Show LOOK TO ACTIONS OF conventions gatherings of state bodies are especially interesting at this time TARIFF QUESTION UPPERMOST president anxious that republican meetings shall indorse the measure income tax chances roots letter to roosevelt third term itsue issue washington within a short time a good many states that are normally republican or in most of which at least the republicans have more than a fighting chance of victory will hold conventions for or the adoption of platforms and tho the nomination of state of ilcia als ls As president tatt taft showed in his letter to the republican editors in illinois he la Is anxious that his administration as aa a whole shall be in by the conventions and that specific mention shall be made in words of commendation of the tha payne aldrich tariff bill this athla desire of the president to io have the republicans of the different states officially indorse the measure to which he gave his bis own sanction when he signed it and later in his speech at winona minnesota la is likely to be provocative of ti trouble in perhaps a majority of the conventions the indiana state couve convention niton will be hold held soon and there perhaps the question of whether or not to indorse the tariff act Is the most crucial not all pleased with bill it Is not at all a partisan view tor for the facts are too plain to be denied that there Is la in the republican ranks in someplace a decided dissatisfaction with some of the provisions of the tariff bill the administration knows this and all the members ot of the administrations party know it there are several high tariff R anub who formerly were members of congress and whose terms of office ex expired aired last march who have been in washington to tell the president that while it Is possible that they were detested defeated because they were high tariff men it Is nevertheless true that the element of the party even in the states where downward revision principles aro ara popular la Is still strong and that this element would resent at ai the polls any attempt to sidetrack resolutions In dorsing all of the acts of the administration including of course that which led to the signing of the the tariff bill the revision downward republicans especially those from states where the situation la Is such as it la is in indiana say that it the payne aldrich tariff bill Is indorsed endorsed Indor sed in the state conventions vent ions lons thousands upon thousands of republicans either will stay away from the polls or will go there to vote the democratic ticket so it Is that the president preside nf has had both sides of the matter put up to him and he has been forced to determine what to do he apparently thinks that because the tariff billias bill was a republican measure the members of the party even though they do not like the tariff law should smother their dislikes and pe be willing to have the measure indorsed endorsed indor sed as one to which the party has given its adherence the situation in indiana in indiana when some of the republican district dietrict conventions were held tor for the purpose of choosing state corn com mitte emen the administration was given support in resolutions but as far as the tariff was concerned the delegates contented the themselves with commending president tatt taft tor for his earnest efforts to secure a real tariff commission the Demo democrats crais and some of tho the high tariff republicans say that this was simply beating the devil around the stump and that the singling out of the tariff commission efforts jot the president tor for approbation simply resulted in calling sharp attention to the fact that words of praise for tho the main tariff act had been withheld it is impossible yet to teu what the indiana state republican convention will do in the matter of the tariff the democrats say they do not care much whether the hoosier IIo osler republicans indorse the tariff act or not for it if it la Is indorsed endorsed Indor sed the low tariff republicans will be disgruntled and it if it Is not in coreed the disgruntlement will be that of the high tariff republicans the democrats seem to see victory for themselves either way on the other hand band the republicans declare that their party always has had the ability to get together when the danger of 0 being split asunder seemed scorned most imminent and they express the belief that histo history ry will repeat itself in the near future chances chance for income tax south carolina recently ratified the th proposed amendment to the alon of the united states which will allow the imposition of tax on incomes Virg virginia Ints another southern state declined to ratify the provI provision slon representatives la in congress are keeping close watch on the action ot of the various state legislatures there are both friends and foes ot of the income inc ome income tax bro proposition position in congress but oven even among its ita friends there to Is sharp dif difference terence of opinion as to whether such a tax law over ever properly could be enforced because of the proneness of men to hide the facts concerning the amount of their income the proposed amendment to the constitution which will make legal beyond i all buos quos question tion the laying of the tax on incomes has been ratified already by the following states so youth uth carolina kentucky oklahoma illinois and alabama it has been rejected by virginia the legis legislatures latuLes of i the following states are either now fow in session cession or hove have just adjourned and as yet no action has been taken by them on the constitutional amendment rhode island ohio massachusetts now new jersey now new york and maryland why it was waa submitted to states it will be remembered that during the tariff tariff debate early last spring the administration and the republican leaders suggested that the in income come tax amendment to the constitution should i be submitted to the state legislatures tor for action this unquestionably was done in order to discourage income tax debate and the introduction of amendments to the tariff bill of course it is not intended to say that the administration was not sincere in its desires to have income tax legisla tion if it ever should reach a legislative form put on safe constitutional grounds it Is believed that president tatt taft Is in favor of the income tax provided it can be shown that it la Is nee essary in order to rated raise revenue but hla his friends any sa y hla his judicial mind Is in such that he does not want any legislation to go on the statute books unless it Is absolutely certain that it has the constitution back of it As has been said there are many friends and many foes of the income tax amendment proposition in congress most afoot of the friends of the measure come from the west and south while the foes as a rule como come from the east and northeast three fourths fourtha of the state legislatures must ratify the proposed amendment before it can be put into form and be given a place in the constitution of the united states within the next year 2 21 states through their legislatures will have a chance to ratify the amendment the states that have ratified it and those whose legislatures are now in session but have taken no action already have been named the legislatures of the following states will meet and either sanction reject or ignore the amendment within the next year indiana iowa missouri minnesota arkansas louisiana kansas nebraska nevada north caroline michigan georgia colorado oregon north dakota south dakota wyoming washington wisconsin texas i and roosevelt well wall informed it Is a pretty thoroughly established fact that theodore roosevelt has in his possession an exhaustive letter written to him by senator ellhu root of new york and giving in outline an account of the tatt taft administration from the fourth day of last march up to the time that the letter was penned early in february of this year there cannot be the slightest doubt that the new york senator who was mr Roosevel ts secretary of state wrote rt the letter in the hope that it would offset the statements ments of at a number of people who had gone out to meet mr roosevelt to tell him that from their point of view that of progression gres sion the tatt taft administration has been a dire failure in several speeches made recently by democrats of prominence and in one ona or two letters by men of that party ot of almost equal prominence it has haa been held that mr roosevelt himself Is likely to be a big figure in the next national election in these democratic epistles there has been lacking something of specific detail and opinion Is pretty evenly divided as to whether the present minority party hopes that the former president will vill again be a candidate or that the hope Is he will sanction the tatt taft administration and continue to support it through its present term including the time when the present president may be a candidate tor for reelection re election rely on third term issue there are many leading democrats in washington champ dark clark among them who seem to believe that if mr roosevelt should be nominated again for the presidency the feeling against a third term on the part of the american people would bo be sure to defeat him for office the democrats also aiso are maintaining that it if mr roosevelt indorses endorses Indor ses the taft administration and continues to give it sanction and by the force of his sup support brings about the of the pre president Adent for another term the so called progressives Progress ives among the republicans who to some extent already seem to have deserted desur ted mr taft at times finally will desert mr roosevelt and will pay no hoed heed to his bis votes voice or his writings GEORGE CLINTON |