The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-09
LAST DAYS OF CONTEST
SENATORIAL CANDIDATES PUTTING
ON FINISHING STROKES.
Both branches of the Legislature viii
Meet Again This Aft
ernOOn.

| Gus tomorrow night. To-day and tomorrow
| will be devoted TO the hardest kind of work
| by the senatorial candidates and their friends,
and the turn into the last stretch is rounded
with each one of the five confident he will
! be the first under the wire The caucus
| will be held at $50 tomorrow evening, and
that win mark the beginning of the end
| of one of the most remarkable senatorial
struggles in the history of the State.
The politicians who were in the city seemed
to be relgiously inclined yesterday and
nearly all of them went to church in the
| morning. 1t was the most unanimous act of
the contest thus far. Representative Ste
vens had unique experience and could not
| keep his mind off the struggle The first
| hymn sung in the church he attended had as
closing line for each verse, There is moth
ing new in the world to-day" When the
! line was reached for the first time Mr..
Stevens turned to one of the friends who
| accompanied him and remarked: 1.-THE fell
! low who wrote that was a blamed fool or
else he never went through a senatorial
| fight" The soemnity of the occasion was
somewhat disturbed. Senator gilbert was
| somewhat disturbed in his worship also, as
it was communion Sunday where he attend
ed, and the service was not as rapid as he
might have wished. He was of the opinion
| that not enough assisted, and figured the
cash loss of time to all there at the rate
| of $l.2o a day by reason of the insufficient
| number of servers, and found it reached
| large sum.
The indications of a senatorial contest
were chiefly from without the city. Repre-
sentative Ross, of Delaware county, re-
ceived a petition, signed by 100 soldiers that
| he should vote for Major Steele. He also
| received another petition, which was large
| ly signed, asking that he should not vote for
Mr.. Hanly, but not naming any other man
| who should receive his vote. Mr.. Ross has
| publicly declared for Mr.. Hanly. A lengthy
| petition from the glass workers and tin-plate
men of NIuncie, Hartford City and Orestes
was brought here by Mr.. Lewis, tin-plate
| worker, and will be presented to the Della
ware county representatives. This petition
| was strongly in favor of Major Steele and
urged that he be supported by the Delaware
| county representatives. A large delegation
| of workers from these trades will be here
| to-day and tomorrow to urge the represent
! atives from Delaware to support Major
| Steele.
| From West Middleton, Howard county
| came further support for Major Steele in the
subjoined resolutions. They were adopted by
| II. G. Coulter Post, No. 1Sl, G. A. r., and in
| the letter accompanying them Commander
| G.. II. Francis and Quartermaster j. b.
Sims stated that they received the votes of
| all the members except ''one Nicholson Re-
publican and one Bryan Democrat The
| resolutions were as follows:
Resolved, in view of the approaching
nomination and election of a United States
senator That this post unanimously indorse
MAJ. George w. Steele for the position. This
| acton IS taken in recognition and approval
| of Major Steele's long public service in
! winch ne has always SHOWN himself most
jealous Yea and effective servant Of the people.
we especially commend Major Steele'S clean,
! direct and cOmmon-SenSe methods and his
! habit of doing what he sets out to do, and
| at this stage of national growth we would
| urge the Importance of having in the SEN
ate man of his knowledge OF military af-
! fairs. Furthermore, it is the sense OF this
| post that rather tired of oratory
! as applied to legislative procedure and would
! enjoy for a season the quiet that is con-
| ducive to the proper consideration of new
| and momentous questions"
TAYLOR AS A POLITICIAN.
| Senator Gilbert took 1t easy nearly all day
yesterday, but last evening in the Denison
the remark was casually made to him that
the main objection offered to his candidate
was that he was not politician, and it
| provoked a spirited retort. THAT is not
| So said the senator. In any creditable
! sense of the word Judge Taylor is first
| class politician. OF course, it depends on
what you mean. If it is to understand pub
| lie questions and discuss them intelligently
and strongly he can do it, as his opponents
| all admit. If it is to attract good men to
him 2 nd make friends, the crowds that have
! been around this hotel for a week speak
! ing for him testify on that point. If it is to
! attract votes and strengthen the party, his
/ record covers that ground. He has been a
! candidate before the people four times The
first time was in 1866 when as a young man
| he ran for clerk of Allen county against
! William Fleming, one of the most astute
| politicians which the Democratic party has
produced in Indiana. Old Allen was good
| at that time for anywhere from $500 to 1900
| Democratic majority. Mr. Fleming was
elected by less than l,OOo-I think not much
! over 5OO The next time was in 1870, when
| he ran for the Legislature from Allen coun-
| ~ and was elected by majority of between
200 and 300-the only Republican who ever
| sat in that body from Allen county The
| next time was in 1874, when he ran for Con-
| gress in Democratic district laid out by a
| republican Legislature to corral all the
| Democratic votes in that part of the State.
| 1t included Allen, Adams Wells. Blackford
Iay ana. l pelleve, Huntington and Whitley.
me normal Democratic majority was about
| 5000 The candidate was Holman Hamilton
! backed by the energetic support of William
| Fleming. Hamilton was elected by some
| thing over 1850. Jay county, which had
| been, as 1T is now a county of very narrow
| and uncertain majorities gave Judge Taylor
| majority Of nearly 1000. The fourth time
| was in 1880, when he ran for Congress in the
| present Twelfth district, which then had a
| normal Democratic majority of about $500.
! Judge Taylor was defeated by only about
| loo. l can safely challenge the production
| IN the state OF Indiana OF "A better record
! of personal popularity. More than that, his
| work has been productive of permanent
good. 1t has contributed more, in my opin-
| ion, to that steady reduction of Democratic
| maJoritieS which has been going on in the
! Twelfth district for a number of years past
| than the work of any other one person. We
| have had no help there from commercial or
industrial conditions-no gas industries to
| develop interests favorable to Republican
| policies l resent the charge that Judge
| Taylor Is not good politician"
MR.. STEVENS'S RIIIS
| Representative Jesse Stevens of Wayne
county, is somewhat disguised over Iegis-
| lation as he has found it so far. Said he
last evening: This thing is ridiculous to
me- The Legislature adjourned until to-
morrow afternoon to give the members a
chance to so home. This thing is costing
the State large sum of money. and if we
were here on a pleasure trip it would be
different and we might adjourn to go home
and take our time, but as / look at it we are
here for a purpose and the State pays us for
it. and we ought to stay here and attend to
business. There is any amount of legisla-
ton needed that could be looked after in the
time that we spent over the appointment of
a page the other day. We needed that page
but there was a buncombe game by the
Democrats that took up much time. There
are some things that, as a farmer, | do
know of that ought 10 have some legsla-
tiOn. There is the question of bitches The
large township bitches cost money. and the
law now provides that they shall be in
charge OF the township trustee. These