Jasper County Democrat, Volume 10, Number 49, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 March 1908 — CALL FOR COUNTY CONVENTION [ARTICLE]

CALL FOR COUNTY CONVENTION

Notice is hereby given to the Democratic voters of Jasper County, to meet at their usual voting precincts, on Saturday, March 14,1908, at 10 o’clock a. m , for the purpose of electing delegates to the County Convention to be held in the east court room at Rensselaer, on Saturday, March 21,1908, at 1:30 o’clock p. m., to nominate candidates for the following County offices towit: County Treasurer, County Recorder, County Surveyor, County Sheriff, Commissioner First District, Commissioner Third District. And to elect seven delegates to the State Convention to be held at Indianapolis on Wednesday and Thursday, March 25, and 26, 1908, as follows: Two delegates from Qaoh Commissioner’s district and one delegate at large. You are further notified that delegates will be selected at the County Convention for the various District Conventions, time and place of which will be designated in a later call. The basis of representation to said county convention is one delegates for each ten votes cast for Secretary of State in 1906, as follows: Barkley, East... 4 Delegates “ We5t.......... 5 “ Cai penter, East;... 7 " South 5 “ “ West 6 “ Gillam 4 “ Hanging Grove 2 " Jordan... 6 “ Kankakee 5 “ "Keener 5 _ Marion No 1 7 " " No 2 10 " “ No 3 8 '• No 4 6 " Milroy 3 “ Newton 4 “ Union, North 5 “ “ South 5 “ Walker 5 Wheatfield 7 " N. Littlefield, Chm. B. N. Fendig, Sec.

Up to the end of last week 472 delegates had been elected to the Republican state convention. Watson, the Fairbanks-Goodrich, candidate, claims more than 300 of those so far chosen. If the machine does not slip a cog or two Subsidy Jim will go through easily if the present gait is maintained.

Harriman will probably be one of the delegates from New York to the Republican national convention. He will vote," at first, for Hughes, of his own state. But be has a warm feeling—a sort of fellow feeling—for Fairbanks. Harriman four years ago was a national delegate and voted for Roosevelt.

The woeful plight of their party in the nation is vastly discouraging to the Indiana Republicans. And they have been getting exceedingly ugly about it. Whenever they hold a convention or a a primary election, or a meeting of any sort trouble grows out of it. Even such an ordinary harmless thing as the gathering of the State Lincoln League caused a terrible row that involved a vice president of the United States, two United States senators, four candidates for governor, and some dozens of smaller fry.

The Republicans of Indiana are “solid for Fairbanks.” But Jt is only on the surface. Ask any well-posted member of the party what be thinks about Fairbanks’ prospects, and he laughs. The truth is that the Indiana Republicans don’t expect the vice president to be nominated—and they don’t oare a hoot. If the unexpected should happen and lightning should strike him at Chicago they don’t expect him to be elected—and they don’t care a hoot about that either. As a matter ot fact, they really don’t oare a hoot about anything, The outlook for their party is so gloomy that many of them are ready to believe that the day of dissolution is at hand.

The New York Journal of Commerce, a leading financial publication, says that the Standard Oil company is backing the candidacy of Governor Hughes for the Republican presidential nomination. 80 far as is known Hughes willbe as satisfactory to the theiviug “system” as any of the other Republican candidates.

The Democrats of Marion county have organized for the campaign. They propose to carry the county in the interest of good government —national, state and local. Mr. Fogarty the new chairman, is personally clean and able, and he will receive the undivided support of his party and draw heavily from other sources. In speaking of his election the Indianapolis Star (Rep.) says that it “will solidify a tendency recently in evidence among eligible Republicans to stay off the ticket thia year and save money.” All along the line it looks like poor picking for the Republicans this year.

Instead of trying to do something to relieve the country from the effects of its follies and crimes, each of the different factions of the Republican party is trying to fix the responsibility for present conditions upon some other faction of the party. Congress can hardly be expected to do anything until this momentous question is settled. Therefore congress will do nothing until after the election, when the people have settled the question by turning the whole party out and putting another party in that is confessedly free from blame—not only free from blame, but having real remedies for existing ills.

In his Indianapolis speech Mr, Bryan asserted that beginning with 1896 there had been “a marvelous increase in the production of gold.” A few days later W. D. Bynum, in a communication printed in the Indianapolis Star, attempted to discredit Mr. Byran’s statement. But as a matter of fact Mr. Bynum, whether he intended it or not, gave evidence that established the entire truth of Mr. Bryan’s assertion for he showed that in 1896 we had $500,000,000 in gold, while now (1908) we have $1,500,000,000. This is one billion dollar increase, which is “marvelous” enough for all ordinary purposes.

As indicating the interest that, is being taken in the Democratic state convention, attention may be called to the fact that more that} a dozen candidates for the various offices have already secured rooms at the Grand hotel for their headquarters during the convention. Besides the candidates themselves, quite a number of their friends have also engaged rooms in advance, so as to be early on the ground. Everything points to a great and earnest gathering of representative party men from every corner of the state. The utmost harmony is expected, and a ticket and platform that will meet the fullest approval of the party can be confidently predicted.

Further disclosures of official rottenness in the Marion county court house continues to be made. For thirteen years that county has been at the mercy of a gang of reckless Republican politicians who felt that, with 8,000 negro votes back of them, they were sure of their bold. But in 1906 a Democrat was elected auditor. He took his office the first of last January. And then things began to happen. Orime after crime has been'unearthed and the most disgraceful neglect of the public’s business imagine has been shown. The thieving is astounding. To bead off the rising indignation which seems certain to put the Democrats in power, the soared Republican managers say they will “dean their own house,” They didn’t think about it, however, until a Democrat official had told the people what had been going on.

During the “hard times” period of 1893-94 the Indianapolis Charity Society had a total of 1,825 applications for relief. But from Dec. 21, 1907, to Feb. 22, 1908, a period of sixty days only, the same society according to the Indianapolis Star (Rep.) had 2,333 applications for help from unemployed. These figures prove that this Republican “stringency” is worse than an ordinary panic.

The anti-Roosevelt Republican papers are using a great deal of space talking about “the abuse of the federal patronage” in the interest of Taft. And Mr. Roosevelt “defends himself by showing that federal officeholders are mostly working for Foraker, Fairbanks, Knox and the other Republican candidates. The sum of the whole thing, from their viewpoints, seems to be as to whose ox is being gored, and not as to the palpable and disgraceful violation of the civil service laws> In every state United States officeholders are admittedly neglecting the public’s business, while they are putting in their time working in politics. Here in Indiana the different Republican factions have built their machines around the Fairbanks, Beveridge and Hemenway appointees in the state at large, and each Republican congressman is using his position as rallying points. Not in a generation has there been such a shameless misuse of pratronage as that which exists today.

With the big guns—or at least the alleged big gons—are fighting among themselves, it is no wonder that the innocent Republican bystander, is preparing to take to the woods. The race for the Republican gubernatorial nomination furnishes an illustration. Watson is charged by his three opponents with having the support of the Fairbanks-Goodrich state machine including the state committee, thus having an unfair advantage. Watson in turn assails the other candidates by charging them with setting the labor organizations on him. Q. W. Miller, through Senator Beveridge, his spokesman, insinuates that big sums of money are being used against him. Taylor through his sole friend on the state committee, asserts that the Beve-

ridge-Hemenway, federal officeholders are all neglectiug their official duties and working for Watson and Miller. Prof. Hugh Th. Miller, the fourth candidate, rests under the serious accusation of being supported by Governor Hanly.