The manœuvring for position between the parties in 1908 which resulted in the voluntary acceptance by each of high standards of publicity is too fresh in the public mind to require rehearsal here. For the first time in the history of presidential elections some definite information was made available regarding campaign finances. The Republican National Committee reported contributions of $1,035,368.27. This sum, however, does not include $620,150 collected in the several states by the finance committees of the Republican National Committee and turned over by them to their respective state committees. The Democratic National Committee reported contributions amounting to $620,644.77. The list of contributors to the Republican National Fund contained 12,330 names.[76] The Democratic National Committee filed a “list of over 25,000 names representing over 100,000 contributors who contributed through newspapers, clubs, solicitors, and other organisations, whose names are on file in the office of the chairman of the Democratic National Committee at Buffalo.”[77] On many points, unfortunately, the two reports, while definite to a degree hitherto unknown, are not strictly comparable. Some species of “uniform accounting” applicable to this subject is manifestly necessary before any detailed investigation can be undertaken. One big fact stands out with sufficient clearness, however, namely that the national campaign of 1908 was waged at a money cost far below that of the three preceding campaigns. Basing his estimate upon what is said to have been spent in 1896, 1900, and 1904, Mr. F. A. Ogg placed the total cost of a presidential election to both parties, including the state and local contests occurring at the same time, at $15,000,000.[78] One-third to one-half of this enormous sum, in his opinion, must be attributed to the presidential campaign proper. Compared with this estimate of from five to seven and a half millions the relatively modest total of something more than two and a quarter millions shown by the figures of 1908 must be counted a strong argument in favour of publicity.