The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-01-03
WHO'LL Be SPEAkER2
That Was the Absorbing Top
ic Last Night.
THIRD OF MEMBERS HERE
JUDGE CONNOR'S FRIENDS
CLAIMING OVER 80 VOTES.
OTHERS SAY He CAN NOT GET THEM
Talk of Combination Among the Western
Men. There are Many Candidat ST r
Clerical Places and They are
Working Actively.

CleriCal FiaceS ana ineY are
Working Actively.
The Democratic members of the Sen
ate will meet in the Senate chamber at
S o'clock tonight to nominate candidates
for positions in the Senate.
The Democratic members of the House
of Representatives will meet in the hall
of the House at o'clock tonight to
nominate candidates for positions in the
House.
About one-third of the members of the
Legislature are on the ground. Some of
them came in Sunday, but most of them
by the trains of yesterday afternoon.
The early trains this morning brought
large delegations. The Senators are
coming in more rapidly than the Rep
resentatives and the Democrats more
rapidly than the Republicans and the
candidates for places more rapidly per-
haps than others, since most of them
naturally wish to be on the ground early
TO push their claims.
Naturally the topic of absorbing in
terest yesterday and last night was as
to the Democratic nominee for Speaker
of the House and the indications are that
there will be warm though good ma
tured contest. the West and the East.
rs usual. advancing claims for the posi-
ton. Both sections have strong and
capable men. while the Piedmont is rep
resented by Hon. Lee Overman, of Sal
ishury.
Hardly enough members of the House
We're on hand last night to make it
possible to determine with much accu-
racy the trend of sentiment. The friends
Of Judge Connor are making strong
claims for him and say that the East
is practically solid for him. Last night
they said that he would enter the eau
Gus with over fifty votes assured to him.
As it requires only forty-eight votes TO
nominate this, if true, will assure
Judge Connor's nomination on the first
ballot.
The friends of the other candidates
have different story and stoutly main
tain that Judge Connor can not get
fifty votes nor even f0rty-eight and that
he can not be nominated on the first
ballot by a great deal.
There is. too, good deal of talk of a
combination among the Western men to
beat Judge Connor Putting down the
Hon. Lee s. Overman as from the
Piedmont, there is still left the Hons.
Locke Craig, of Asheville; Frank Ray. of
Macon: and Walter E. Moore, of Jack
son, all of the West, which would divide
the strength of that section and endan-
ger the chances of the West. There is
probability that. taking this view of the
,,+ 1ax,
agree on one man before going into eau
Gus, or may unite after complimentary
vote of members for their preference.
That was the talk last night. / was
reliably informed by friends of one of
the candidates from the West that he
was not at all ambitious of the honor
and was quite willing to withdraw in
favor of another Western man if it
should develop that the Western forces
can thereby be united.
The members from the West say. in
a good-humored way, that since the East
asked the West to come to its rescue
and the West resounded, that the East
ought to be generous and concede the
SpeakershiD. since there is no lack of
good timber in the sunset end Of the
State. The Eastern members say, on
the other hand, that it is the East's
time to fill the chair, and that Judge
Connor is the man TO fill it with. The
friends of the other candidates are not
making specific claims as yet, which
gives color to the talk that the West
will combine on some man.
The Republicans also caucus tonight
though there is naturally not great
deal of interest in the matter, since
it has no places to offer. A member
who is well in touch with his party told
me last night that Mr.. A. Il. Bryan
of Madison county. would be the n0ml
nee OF the Republican caucus for the
Speakership. Mr.. Bryan is n very
young man. being only % years old. but
comes from a rock-rbbed Republican
county and is held in high esteem at
home by men of all parties.
Enough members and candidates We're
present yesterday to make things lively
and at night there was an old-time crush
in the hotel lobbies where members
were busy getting acquainted with their
colleagues and where the candidates were
Z busy getting acquainted with members.
The aspirants for clerkships are numer-
ous, and well off in the way of creden-
tials, and it was quite impossible to find
ont who of them were the fayorites.
They didn't know themselves Today
tiiN sNitu"iioh VIII DtSil w tledI up 1iOst
of the candidates for door-keeper and
assistant door-keeper are old Confederate
soldiers, it having been in the past a
sort of unwritten law that the old vet
Grams get these places. when the Demo
Gratis had the Legislature.
The names of the candidates for the
clerical places TO be filled by House anf
Senate caucuses tonight are given below