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Show LINCOLN A REPUBLICAN Taft Praises Emancipator Emancipa-tor and Attacks the Progressives Philadelphia. Feb. 12. President Taft, five mpmbrs of his cabinet, two governors and a score of distinguished distinguish-ed men were guests tonight at the 50th anniversary dinner of the Union League club at a banquet given in honor of Abraham Lincoln. The President first speaker on the i program, praised Lincoln declared bluntly that if he were alive today he would be joined in line with the Republican party, and said that he hoped to see that element of the party which deserted the standard last fall swing back into line again to insut the continuation for SO years more of the policies of that party. The President made no reference in bis speech to conditions in Mexico,! although hundreds of the diners expected ex-pected him to do so. He was expected expect-ed to leave here shortly after midnight, mid-night, but changed his plans eo tha' he could drop in for an hour at the home of E. T Stotesbury H planned to leave for Washington early tomorrow tomor-row Tribute to Lincoln. The President began hi speech w ith a tribute to Lincoln He finished with an attack on the Progressives, but hoped, he said, that looking with keen eyes upon the efforts of the incoming in-coming administration, they would find th'ir way back into the Republican Repub-lican fold and line up once again with the 'grand old party." What or the future of tbe Republican Repub-lican party' asked the President. ' havv had a division and we have had a beating. We are a great, strong people and we can stand a great deal. It may be that this defeat will benefit us this time One of the characteristics of the Republican party Is that it has shown in the last 50 years an ability abil-ity to get together and organize and carry into effect the great principles for which It stands. Therefore all we ought to do is to make the decla-ialion decla-ialion that our basic principles cannot can-not be surrendered liberty regulated regulat-ed by law those restrictions imposed by the people on themselves cannot be overcome by the nostrums of dem-agoues dem-agoues Those principles we cannot depart from. Lincoln's Attitude. "Would Lincoln be with us If ho werf alive0" "Well or course he would ' "Why?" "Because Lincoln under stood free popular government as few men have j understood It. Because ho understood j the constitution and loved it as few men have loved It He understood; practical government better than any man who ever lived 1 differ from, those who claim him as a trade mark' for the claims thev make differ rad-Ically rad-Ically from what we know his ideas! were." , , j "Shall we re-enact the role of the, dog In the manger in Aesop's rabies" We have a government of strength, of performanc e of power and force Shall we throw that away and take a step backward?" "I hope not " |