Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-01-04
THE CONTESTS
Eiker Of Decatur County Said
to be for Bowen and Gear.
LYMAN Is FOR BOWEN.
Both These Wen Have Been Claimed
by the Cnmmins Side : senator
Gear Will Reach De.
Moines Tonight.

Des Moines, Jan. 1.-Two points in
the campaign for speakership have
been developed and are being very gem
orally accepted as incontrovertible.
The first is that Senator Gear may now
be counted upon positively as the sue
cessful candidate. The second is thai
Mr.. Bowen will receive practically
Gears support and will be chosen
speaker of the house. The Cummins
people freely admit that their only
hope is the election of Mr.. Eaton for
speaker, but they do not even claim
that that would defeat Senator Gear.
While the Gear supporters are positive
at least that the senator will be re-
elected, they are equally positive in
their campaign for Mr.. Bowen for
speaker. The supporters of Mr.. Bow
en- reported two very important access
sions to their forces today. Hon. j. p.
Lyman, OF Poweshiek, who has been
counted in the Cummins column, has
definitely announced that he will sup
port Mr.. Bowen for speaker. DIR. II. L..
Eiker, of Decatur county, whom the
Cummins people have claimed and re-
ported as one of their men has an
nounced that he has reconsidered what
he at one time thought the sentiment
of his county, and now represents what
he knows to be the majority of the re-
publicans of Decatur county and states
that he will support Bowen for speak
er and Senator Gear. The representa-
tons of the Des Moines newspaper syn
dictate have been so misleading that new
members arriving are surprised to find
the situation so entirely contrary to
that which has been published in Des
Moines. One of the local Cummins pa
pers published here, today announced
the names of fourteen men that were
considered doubtful. The Gear people,
have already secured statements from
eleven of the so-called doubtful list
that they will support Gear and Bow
en-. Hon. John Fl. Gear, who was de-
tanned at home one day to attend the
| funeral of an intimate friend of his
| family, will arrive at Des Moines this
evening. buchanan.
! The house republican caucus for
speaker will be held probably Saturday
night. Two years ago it was held FRI
| day night before the converting of the
| Legislature, and four years ago it was
held the Saturday night before. Pre-
vious to that it was held on Monday,
but the new law providing for makes
it necessary TO have the speaker Mons
| mated before that day. The senatori-
al caucus will be held probably early
next week, as precedent has been to
hold it either the first or second day
after the speakership caucus.
DR.. w. w. Hawk, of Jasper county,
| yesterday authorized ]. e. Blythe to
state that he had decided to support
Gear for senator aud Bowen for speak
er. DIR. Hawk has been claimed by
both sides until lately. when he has
been placed in the doubtful list. His
reason for the decision, as told by Mr..
Blythe, was that in his opinion a ma
jority of his constituents favor Gear
for senator, and in voting for Bowen
he expects to aid Gear. The Gear peo-
pie were greatly elated last evening
over the Hawk announcement, claim
ing it as a great victory almost in
Cummin's home.
E. P. Barringer, of Clay-Palo Alto,
arrived in the city yesterday and eN-
| presses himself confident that Gear
and Bowen will be elected. He says
he has been considered on the doubtful
list by some OF the Cummins workers,
but that he is for Gear and Bowen.
x*x
| Gardner Cowles, of kossuth, is an
other Gear man from the northern
part of the state. He was also claim
Cummins doubtful list. Yesterday he
en-, Mr.. Cowles is known to be person.
ally for Dolliver, but because OF Dolli-
ver's failure to run, he will support
Gear.
Senator L. H. Hubbard, and Repre-
sentatives Santee and Barrett, of Wood
| bury. claim six of the seven represent
alive votes of the Eleventh district will
be for Cummins and Eaton. The Gear
claim in this district has always been
four for Gear.
The managers, workers and sympa-
| thizers of both factions yesterday were
| just as emphatic in their claims as
at any preceding time in the fight.
They each appear as confident as ever
| before, and the claims OF each are
| about the same as for the past three
| or four days. Some important changes
are expected within the next few days,
as the doubtful members arrive at the