Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 40, Number 85, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 July 1908 — TAFT’S FIRST FIST FIGHT. [ARTICLE]

TAFT’S FIRST FIST FIGHT.

It was in the fall of 1880, just twen-ty-eight years ago next November, that William Howard Taft had the first fist fight of his manhood. And the man he fought *as thrashed well, as he deserved to be. Our candidate for president has forgotten all about it long ago, but the tale is worth telling now. He was twenty-three years old then, and that month he cast his first presidential vote for James Abram Garfield. That year Mr. Taft’s famous father, Alfonso Taft, was the Republican candidate for governor of Ohio. A man named Rose had been running a little dirty, blackmailing campaign paper In Cincinnati. He constantly slandered the elderly Taft throughout the campaign. The son’s ire was roused. He was an attorney with a devoted reverence for the law as a medium for redress, but this was a case where he considered personal physical chastisement of his father’s base the better and more effective way. Hu was young and his blood was red. He went down to Rose’s office and there he gave the scoundrel a tho ough bea’ lng. He kept at the good work until Rose, cowed and sore, cried for mercy. Husky Bill Taft presented his terms"lf you’ll agree to leave town, I'll let hp. I'll come down here again tc night and if you are still here this L only a start.’’ When Taft returned Rose had gone. He had taken an early evening train and his paper never appeared again.