Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1900-03-09
CANTON. SOUTH DAKOTA. FRIDAY. MARCH 9, 10
THE HURON RATIFICATION.

A correspondent of the Huron Her.
aid, over the signature "A Lincoln Re-
publican" tells of the republican state
boss meeting at Huron as follows:
The republican (D state central COM
mittee failed to meet on Tuesday ev-
euing but was largely represented by
proxy, K. G.. Phillips, he of the de.
feated condidacy for governor, warm
with party zeal of the Simon Pure gang
brand, was present, not as u delegate
but as a proxy and voted six countries
at the tune of the G.. O. P. machine.
There we're more proxies than dele
gates; even John I4ongstaff. he who
says, ito hell with the old soldiers, :"
being ably represented by Hurons Ba-
chanalian Postmaster, G. NJ Cooper,
who was present in charge of the, city
marshall and actually kept sober until
the close of the meeting. ~. =
The gang army was we'll organized.
Gen. Lord Roberts Cooper on the left.
Khartoun Kitchiner Phillips in the
center and Kelly-Kenny Tomlinson on
the right, held the front line of the ad-
vance, while all the honest men lay in
the mud below and were used as a pom
toon for the Grand Guys who beat
Butler himself in crossing their Tuge-
la until the river dried up-which the
Grand Guys never did. Tomlinson said
the republican party should. like Cae-
sar's wife, be above suspicion; which is
exceedingly new and original observa-
tion, to ask where Mrs. Caesars repn-
tation would have been if Tomlinson
had been in evidence and if'the party,
could stand it any better. Tonllinson
wanted only one convention for fear
the politicians would run it, and Coop
or, the postmaster, seconded the mo-
tion. Loucks apologized for voting
with the gang but as he had consulted
some leading politicians, and they
thought it best. he voted for Tomlin-
son and Cooper, ct al, and so they all
headed off the politicians together.
Meantime Maj. Picker objected that
committee could not make a radical
change of policy, like reducing the
number of conventions, without two
thirds vote. Whereupon, Hard Luck
Loucks asked for the rule quoted and
Picker replied that be was not quot
ing, but oply seeking information from
such life hong republicans and party
leaders as Chairman Herried and Mr..
Loucks. Thereupon the house fell over
itself in applause, but Herried declared
Picker out Of order. Cooper and his
co-generals pulled hard on the wires
and the one convention vote prevailed
by vote of 26 to Is. Victorious thus
far, the several Bullers crossed the
Tugela once more, as Tomlinson mod
estly asked that the one only conven-
tion be held in Sioux Falls, at date
later than the pop article and Cooper,
the postmaster of Huron, knowing he
would be very thirsty and having re.
solved to be there, seconded the mo-
tion. Another reason for the second
being that he Is great friend of HUI
ron and doesn't want her to see her
postmaster when he is not master of |
Picker merely said: "Why
Sioux Falls?" Somebody answered
Because there is brewery there"
and Picker subsidized Postmaster
Cooper's purpose was manifest The
motion was then made that the ma
tional committeeman be chosen by del
egates to the national convention, in
stead of those 10 the state convention
a most rare and excellent scheme and
full of pa,riotism-if not of the Post
master Cooper brand of beer. But by
some unexplained spasm the proxies
revolted and the machine slipped that
cog At last there was a call for q |
speech from Hard Luck Loucks, the
father Of South Dakota populism, who
is and always has been a republican
and who is republican now-for
shekels. Coyly as a lingering maid,
lining up for her first kiss from he
chitter, he rose to the occasion and |
forth his hand, was about to
begin. when somebody moved to ad-
journ and the audience fed like bugs
from poison pistol-about the only
decent thing they did ~
Musing thereon as I plodded home
ward, wondered if God made such
nen as Loucks, Tomlinson, Phillips
Ind Cooper The Postmaster of Huron
# he did they must have got spoiled in
he drying. How Beadle county repub-
icanism can suffer itself to be so mis-
represented and abused would puzzle
he devil to explain. 1t is not sur
,rising that a prominent state officer
aid that if Beadle county ever expects
,nything she must get Cooper off her
leck, with more to the same effect.
vonder how long Congressman Burke
nd Gamble and Kittredge and others
f their ilk think they can ignore the
ank and file Of the party and how long 1
hey think the party machine can be {
rusted to a schemer whose privileges
ave been shamelessly sold to him as a \
ench-man of the gang. {
Truly. it is grand thing to be q re- ,