Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1901-01-17

didates located in such parts of the
state as to divide the vote of the can
didate most obnoxious to the machine,
each candidate claiming local sup
port because of residence, for the pur-
pose of gathering up delegations that |
may be transferred in convention to
the candidate selected by the ma
chine. Nor is this pretense confined |
to encouraging candidates for one par
ticular Office, with a view of con-
trolling the nomination of that Office.
1t is not unusual, for instance, in q |
gubernatorial contest for the machine |
to encourage many candidates in |
different sections of that state to seek |
nomination for the other places on |
the state ticket, not for the purpose OF
nominating them for such offices. but
to secure control of the delegations
from counties or congressional dis
tricts, which are to be used in the
mating the candidate chosen by the
machine for the head of the ticket.
This sometimes goes to the extent
of bringing out many candidates for
the same office, rewarding such candi-
dates for having gathered up their
delegations for this purpose by ap-
pointment to some Office within the
control Of the machine. Indeed, so
many phases of this practice are pos
sible under the caucus and conven-
| ton system, one would scarcely eX-
pect its advocates to venture it as an
argument against primary elections.
IF upon trial it should be found
desirable, of if, in your judgemnt, it
should be deemed wise at the outset.
it might be provided that the voter at
the priminary election shall indicate
upon his ballot his first and second
choice Of the candidates presented
for each office; and that if no candi-
date has a majority over all candi-
dates of first choice, then the candi-
date having the largest number of
first and second choice votes shall be
accorded the nomination. Rare in
deed, if ever, would an occasion pre-
sent itself where this plan would not
decide the nomination by a majority
of the votes. The principle has been
applied in several states with such a
degree of success that the matter is
no longer an experiment.
District Schools.
when the educators of the state
agree on the proposition that the dis.
l | +1.inT 70 fO, l,oir
work, and are steadily losing in use
fulness and depreciating in popular
favor; when this judgment is con.
firmed by a decreasing attendance
upon the district school and CORE
l spending removal to the cities for
better common school advantages
when the best auth )r,ties give as
surance that for every hundred
pupils now attending district schoo
only one pupil reaches high school,
then it must indeed be time to pause
p. in praise Of our colleges and city
schools long enough to emphasize tht
necessity of more generous support
and Of more successful supervision
for the too long neglected country
schools. The valuable results o.
, education in farm work are shown il
the awakened interest and prcgressiv;
methods which have come from The
: university dairy school and agricultur
al college. | beneye that this brancI
L of educational work should be broad
: ened in scope by adding elementar!
L training in agricu tural knowledge t.
the course Of study in district schools
2 Plainly our educational system is get
ting out of balance and requires read
: justing. A committee with authorit,
from the State Teachers association
I is under instructions TO ask from thu
: Legislature encouragement for count,
/ training schools to better qualif,
D teachers for district schools, and 70
J, the extension Of the existing system
4 Of state aid to high schools, in ordel
I to reach and improve the weak graded
: schools in the country, and establish
e others where they are SO much need
: ed. | believe that legislative actor
4 to meet this emergency in the life 0
= district schools cannot be too strongly
} recommended.
University of Wisconsin.
| 'The reports of the board of uniVer
? sity regents and of the president 81
: the university convey to you detailed
r information respecting the growth
: and needs of this institution Tbs
: value to the state from it's continued
: development, and it's reputation
!, throughout the country, are so wei
}. established and so generally appreci
| ated that it's friends and supporter
J., can have no cause of apprehension fol
the future. It's growth in influence
and usefulness within the last decade
5 has exceeded the anticipations anC
l hopes of its most sanguine promoters
. State provision for the increasing ex
l penses inseparable from growth has
7 been generous and prompt. The new
: burdens have been carried by the PEG
pie Without complaint. If the advo
: Gates of university expansion will
keep in minG their obligation to the
state, which can be done without less
, enlng the zeal for the cause in which
they have enlisted, l am sure that they
viii meet with few obstacles in legis-
lative action or in public sentiment.
The plea sometimes made that
: state universities cannot afford to
compete with institutions of learning
} lavishly endowed by multi-millionaires
} is not valid. II is not necessary to en-.
: