The San Francisco call., 1896-03-08
APPOINTMENTS OPPOSED.
Alameda County Republicans
Want an Open Primary
Election.
THIRD DISTRICT AFFAIRS
Ine Congressional Committee Leaves
the Selection of Delegates to
County Committees.

A meeting of the Congressional COM
mittee OF the Third District was the
principal feature of yesterdays develop
ments in Republican affairs.
This committee met in the afternoon in
the Market-street Office of Senator Guy C.
Earl of Alameda County in this City, and
after lengthy discussion decided to leave
with the various county com mittees of the
district the matter of the selection of dele
gates to the State convention. giving the
county committees discretion to either
appoint delegates or to order primary
elections. April 25 was fixed as the date
1or the selection of delegates, either by
appointment or by election.
The Third District comprises the coun-
ties OF Alameda, Contra Costa, Colusa,
Yolo, Lake and Solano. All the members
OF the committee, with one exception,
were present, either in person or by proxv,
and E. K. Taylor and Guy C. Earl of Ala
media County, who were elected, respect
lYely, chairman ami secretary of the COM
mlttee week ago last Saturday, were
present in their official capacities.
&. w. Morrow's motion that the meet-
Ing be made executive was defeated and
Eli Denison, ROD w. Church, Miles
Doody and other Oaklanders stayed in
side and watched the proceedings with
interest.
The only matter before the committee
was the question as to how the delegates
10 the State Convention were to be chosen,
the committee having absolute power and
discretion IN the matter. After a short
discussion a resolution was adopted pro-
Yldlng that the Congressional committee
should be guided by the wishes of the
county committees. Chairman Taylor
asked the views OF the mem bers present
regarding open primaries and selection by
appointment and T.. l.. 1ngler OF Alame eda
began the discussion by expressing the
opinion that the majority OF the Republl-
cans in his county wished TO avoid the ex-
pense of a primary election.
Senator Earl followed Ingler with Wig
orous speech IN opposition TO the appoint
ments by county committees and in favor
OF primary elections He declared that the
Republicans OF Alameda County were
largely in favor OF the old and usual way
OF selecting the delegates by election. In
support of his argument Mr.. Earl read
from document left in his office at noon
to-day insisting that primaries should be
held to select the delegates. Itwas signed
by long list of prominent and we'll
known Republican citizens of Oakland,
including such names as c. G. Dodge, R. T.
Victor Metcalf, E. z. Vandercook, Jacob
Greenhood, W. ]. Palmanteer, G. B. Dan
iels, f. c. Jordan, S. 6. Nye, f. a. Leach
and others.
c. S. Long OF Alameda County favored
the primary me ethod on principle, and said
that probably majority OF the Republi-
cans OF his county would express the same
view, but he urged the consideration OF the
question of expense.
w. w. Morrison said that the people he
represented were almost unanimously in
favor OF an open primary election, and
Taylor OF Alameda also spoke strongly in
favor of Che primary. The views ex-
pressed by all the rest of the mem bers of
the committee present were in a similar
strain.
At the close OF the discussion it was
unanimously resolved that the mode OF Sc
lection OF delegates should be left to the
committeeman of the various counties. The
date OF the primaries, IN case they are
ordered by the County Committee, was
fixed for April 25. If they are named by
the committees without primaries they All
to be selected on that date.
There was to have been a meeting of the
Congressional committee of the Fifth Dis
trict yesterday afternoon, according to a
call issued by Chairman Cornwall the
other dav, but this meeting had been gen.
orally understood to be postponed in view
OF the action taken by the executive COM
mittee of the State Central Com mittee day
before yeste rday in the interest of har-
mony. Chairman Cornwall had officially
announced the postponement of the meet
ing, bat notices to that effect had failed to
reach S. f. Aver of Santa Clara and George
c. Ross of Redwood City, the secretary of
the committee. Hence these TWO gentle
men were on hand at the rooms OF the Re-
publican State Central Com mittee on Cali
fornia street yesterday afternoon. The
only other mem Der OF the committee pres
ent was Dawson of San Francisco. Upon
learning the situation these three members
held brief Injecting, and decided to ad-
iourn the meeting of the committee until
next Thursday afternoon in Redwood City.
IL is more than possible that between now
and then some further and different ar
rangements for the meeting will be ef-
fected.
Next Thursday is the day the executive
committee of the State Central Committee
is TO meet again, and the action of the
Fifth District committee will probably
depend largely on what ls done by the
higher committee. Hence the affairs of
the Fifth District involved will probably
remain in statu quo until after next
Thursday.
The tangle in the Fourth District will in |
all likelihood similarly remain in the con-
dition it is now in until after next Thurs |
day, in accordance with the understand |
ing that ali interests shall avoid further
definite action in view of the possibility OF
harmonizing the situation. The regular
Fourth District committee elected on
Thursday evening by majority OF the
State central committeeman of that dis
tr1ct has not met for organization, and
probably will not do so until after Thurs
day.