Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 115, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 May 1920 — CAPITOL CENTER OF ATTENTION [ARTICLE]

CAPITOL CENTER OF ATTENTION

STATE CONVENTION DRAWS ATTENTION OF INDIANA VOTERS TtHS WEEK. Indianapolis, May 12.—The republican state convention convened at 10 o’clock this Wednesday morning at Tomlinson hall and indications are that the two-day’s session will be one of the most interesting ever held by Indiana republicans. Chief interest centers in the decision as to instructions regarding the delegates to the national convention. Although Maj. Gen. Leonard Wood received a plurality at the statewide primary election last week, he led Senator Hiram W. Johnson of California by less than 6,000 votes, while Governor Frank O. Lowden, of Illinois, and Senator Warren G. Harding, of Ohio, each polled a large number of votes. The state law requires a majority Vote to make instructions binding on the delegates. A spirited contest is expected, because Senator Johnson had a plurality in four of the thirteen districts of the state ana a majority in one of these districts. Indiana has 26 delegates and four delegates at large, all with one vote each, to the national convention.

The prolonged fight over the state organization ended abruptly Tuesday night when opposition to the re-election of Mr. Wasmuth was said to have been withdrawn at a “harmony” meeting of leading republicans of the statOj The end came following the failure of the sixth district to elect a chairman, a tie vote resulting there between Walter F. Bossert, of Liberty, favoring- Mr. Wasmuth, and Walter Bridges, of Greenfield, a sup-porter-of Senator James E. Watson. Those attending the conference were Senators New and Watson, National Chairman Hays, Warren T. MlcCray, nominee for governor; Henry W. Marshall, of Lafayette; Mr. Wasmuth, John Owens, of Noblesville: Representative Will R. Wood of the tenth district, and Lawrence Lyons, chairman of the tenth. The keynote speech will be made by United States Senator James E. Watson, temporary chairman. Addresses will be made also, by United States Senator Harry _S. _New, permanent chairman; Governor JasP. Goodrich’; Will H. Hays, national chairman, and Mrs. John Glover South, of Kentucky, chairman of the women’s national republican execu--1 tive committee. State delegates will meet by districts in the evening to name presidential electors, convention committees and delegates and alternates to the national convention. Thursday the convention will hear reports of committees and rat-

ify who was unopposed in the primary to succeed himself, and Warren T. McCray, of Kentland, who received a majority of the votes cast for the gubernatorial preference. Nomination of candidates for state offices will follow. There are several contests, including five aspirants for the nomination for lieutenant governor. The Indiana big four” also will be named. Governor Goodrich, Senators Watson and New and Chairman Wasmuth are most prominently mentioned for the places on the delegation. General Wood’s Indiana campaign managers threw down the— gauntlet today to state republican leaders, who favored an uninstructed delegation to the national convention. A statement issued from Wood headquarters here directly challenges the election of Senators New and Watson, Governor Goodrich and Chairman Wasmuth as delegates at large and insist the Indiana delegation to vote for Cen. Wood for the presidential nomination.