Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1901-07-24
FORECAST OF THE WEEK
IN THE GOvERXORsHIP CONTEST
As Written by a Des Moines Cores
p0ndent to the Cedar Rapids
Sunday Republican.

1t is the quiet before the storm. Be
ginning with this week the fight will
be on In earnest again and will not
cease until August Z, when the real
struggle will take place. That it will
be struggle no one can doubt. The
Cummins men have ceased to talk
about "acclamation" and "the first bal
lot" They realize that it will be the
real fight of the campaign.
Another thing they are beginning to
realize is that they are not well pre-
pared to meet it as If it had come
earlier. Their strength was at its
height early this month. During the
last two weeks there has been gradu
al revulsioR of feeling which would
seem to be growing greater as time
passes. Just what proportion it will
reach by August is hard to say, but it
is certain that Mr.. Cummins will not
enter the convention with the strength
that he had when the campaign open
ed. Then there was comparatively lit
leprejudice against him. His managers
even boasted that the sections of the
state that had always oppressed him
were coming around and that his nom-
ination wonld be practically unani-
nous. Mr. Cummins himself had SUI
preme confidence that the fight would
be an easy one. The methods that
have been employed by his managers,
however, have destroyed much of the
feeling that was favorable to Cummins.
Fights have been made on local candi-
dates. Mr.. Perkins in the Eleventh
district was practically butchered in
his own district and county. Judge
Church was butchered i'm Greene coun-
ty. Judge Bishop who announced that
he would be candidate for supreme
judge before Mr.. Cummins announced
his candidacy for governor, has been
really slaughtered here before the eyes
of his fellow citizens. The candidacy
is not as dead as the Cummins men
hope. however, and may develop en-
traordinary activity at Cedar Rapids.
An attempt was made to butcher Dave
Brant in The Second district, but it has
failed so far.
Six conventions are to be held this
week and some of them will be hotly
contested The Cummins men claim
part of POttawattamie county. This is
another instance of their attempting
to kill an outside candidate, for it is no
torious that hard fight has been made
against John Herriott in his own dis
trict, but thus far practically without
success. Harrison comes on the same
day and there will be fight there also
in all probability. Floyd is held Fri
day and the county will probably be
for Trewin, although the Cummins
men have been claiming it. Iowa,
Clayton and Lucas will be held Satur-
day. Iowa may divide and the other
two will be against Cummins in all
probability. The first three days of the
next week Van Puren, Fayette and
Benton are to be held. None of them
is likely to be for CuDmins Mills aad
Webster will be held August l. Aug
ust will be a big day for conventions,
eight being called for that day.
Mr.. Cummins will probably enter the
convention with between $50 and 700
delegates, it is thought by politicians
here. He already has between 600 and
$50, and he is assured of few more.
Hartman will probably have It's.
Trewin will have nearly 200. Herriott
will have the Ninth district solid, or
l47 votes, besides scattering vote that
will amount to considerable. Conger
has thirty instructed votes and large
number among the uninstructed that
are known to be favorable to him.
There will be in all probability at least
400 uninstructed votes in the conven-
tion that will be opposed to Cummfns.
This number does not include those
known to favor some other candidate.
1t would seem that Mr.. Cummins will
have difficulty in securing the votes re-
quired to nominate. Where he will
get them is mystery.
The end of the campaign may now
be said to be in sight. All of the coun-
ty conventions have been called. Some
of the districts are through. In others
the fight is still hot, as in the Fourth
and Second. The Cummins men are
also hard at work in the Sixth district,
although they admit that they do not
expect to carry any counties. They
expect, however, to secure some dele
gates from each of the counties where
they have not already been selected,
Persistent efforts are being made to
undermine John Herriott in the Ninth,
but they will undoubtedly prove futile.
II has alway been the policy of that
district to stick by its candidates and
this vaar will ha no aXceptiOp