The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-04-03
ARE ALN0-T SURE TO WIN
The Water Question Uppermost
in the Municipal Election.
ISSUE CLEARLY DEFINED
The Republicans Failed to Make q Plat
form-Their Candidates Supposed Z
Favor the Purchase of the Plant
at the Company's Figures.

Great Falls, April awhile the pres
ent is an OF year in city politics. and
the result can hardly affect even APP
pointed officials Of the city. 1t is true
at the same time that the election Is
one which interests the people of Great
Falls to an unusual extent. But four
aldermen are to be elected, n from
each ward. The mayor. treasurer. po-
lice magistrate, all hold over for m
other year: the city clerk and h city
attorney are appointive ofices. The
city council is now constituted of four
democrats and four populists. and in
municipal affairs the policy of the W
parties il identical. All were elected on
a fusion ticket, and so far as city at
fairs go the platforms were the same.
The issue on which the existing
Gil was elected and the one on which
the democratic and populist candidates
in the coming election are now standing
il the water question, this long-stand-
ing issue having It's our as far in the
past as 1898. The question then was
city ownership of It's water supply,
either by purchase or erection. The
people of Great Falls have always IA
vored these solutions in the order in
which they are named. adding to the
llioN NllC tiot "a ~ PtSe"
ent water plant can be purchased at a
reasonable price. that course should be
adopted: but IL Ii was impossible for
the council and the water company to
agree on a reasonable basis, then the
city should erect a plant. The council
in this city has worked upon that basis
since 1898, and so far as the democratic
and peoples party is concerned. the
question has become n of erecting an
loH IL nne
appearing to be an impossibility.
The present council advocates this
course. and the democrats and popu-
lists have by their platforms and reso-
lutions adopted at the recent city con-
ventions Endorsed the attitude of the
council so that this issue is clearly de-
fined. A second issue is economy in this
of city money. Under the
fusion administration the current ex-
penses of the city have in two years
been reduced by $14, 200, and the same
phenomenon has been observed in prev
ious democratic administrations. while
IL has been the rule that the republican
administrations in Great Falls have
been e~xtravagant.
The men who have been put up as
representatives of these issues are o. F.
Wadsworth, jr., in the First ward;
r. Woods in the Second, Jacob
in the Third, and John ]. Nc
Donell in the Fourth. OF these, the two
first named are democrats and the re-
two populists.
The republicans failed to announce
any platform at their city convention.
and in the lack of anything Of the sort
IL is taken that their candidates are in
favor of purchasing the existing water
plant at the price named by the COM
pany. 1t is $445, 600. In spite of this
fact many republicans remained away
the primaries, in fact. the repub-
lean primaries were marked by the few
in attendance, and it is positively
known that many of this class of repub-
licans are heartily in sympathy with
the fusion platform, and will vote for
the candidates named by the fusion
The men put up by the re-
publicans would be strong candidates
under other circumstances. The ticket
is as follows.
First ward, ]. A. Collins: Second
ward, s. r.. WILDER; Third ward. A. S.
Fletcher; Fourth ward, H. H.. Matthe-
son.
II one can foretell events in the ap-
election from past expert
ence, the forecast would undoubtedly be
the entire fusion ticket will be
That has been the result of
the past two elections, and there are no
at the present time that
his election will be any different. No
fight can be made on the individual
of the men involved, and the
question is the principal issue.
there is every reason to believe
hat the men who represent the opu
ar side of the question will be elected.