The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-07-31
READY FOR PRIMARY
CANDIDATES WILLING If 1T WILL
BE FAIR.
WORKING UNDER COVER.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE WILL DE-
eide QUESTION FRIDAY.

There Are Now Seven Avowed Can
didatcs in the Field for Ordinary
and Several More Are on the Edge.
A single Combination, or Move,
May Change the Entire Situation.
That Is why Some Prospective
Candidates Are Holding Bnck-NO
One Believes That Every Candi-
date VIII BE on Hand at the wind
Up, and the Fight Now Is for
PIaces-NO Faction or Party Has
Made an Endorsement, Although
the Administration People May Do
Something on This Line-Cries for
Pure and Honest Election Are
stin Heard.
The call for the meeting of the Coun-
ty Democratic Executive Committee
which was issued by Secretary A. l..
Alexander Monday and published in
the Morning News yesterday, has given
a new and interesting turn to the po-
litical situation and the race for ordi-
nary.
There are seven announced candi-
dates now in the field, w. c. Hart
ridge, ]. S. Collins, w. P. Bailey,
Frank f. Keilbach, Henry McAlpin, r.
F. Harmon and S. ! Lazaron. There
are several other pre- 'pective candi-
dates who are hanging around the out
err edge of the field and only awaiting
favorable opportunity or the sight
OF an opening to enter the race. While
1t Is not probable that all of these can
didates will be in the race until the
end, the majority of them probably
will, unless there are sudden and un-
expected combinations and changes in
the situation. and the fight is certain
to be close and interesting. With so
many candidates il is impossible for the
most acute political observer and
prophet to say what the final result
will be.
Especially is this the case when no
one of the candidates is receiving the
avowed and open support of any po-
litical club or faction in the city. 1t
is as yet a free for-all race, with no
favors shown any of the entries. Sup
porters of the city administration say
that it will yet place candidate in
the field or give it's support to one of
the candidates already announced and
predict that the candidate so favored
viii win out easily, either at the pri-
mary or at the general election. Ac-
cording to these politicians the other
candidates won't have a chance to win
a place when their favorite makes his
appearance on the field.
There's going to be something doing
when the Executive Committee meets
4 Friday. 1t is probable that several
the candidates will appear before 1t,
and that they will then inform the
commit zee what they desire to have
done, and, If a primary is to be held,
just what sort of a primary they want
IL to be.
Mr.. Keilbach said yesterday that he
was not committed to a primary. and
did not want one unless he could be
assured that it would be honest rsir
and impartial to all the candidates. If
the primary was to be like that of last
May, said Mr.. Keilbach, he preferred
to take his chances at general cleo
ton. He said that he would not an
nounce whether or not he favored a
primary until he had had an opportu-
nifty to see what sort of primary was
to be held.
All the other prominent candidates,
with the exception of Capt. McAlpin.
have announced that they want a pri-
mary to settle the question. If one can
be secured that will guarantee fairness
20 all. There does not seem to be
any disposition on the part of any one
of the candidates to seek to deny equal
and exact justice to all the others and
the plan generally favored is to give
lot IL, 10
representation at every box, and to
give no one of them more representa-
ton than has each of the others.
There are other rules which provide
for fair primary elections, and to these
Mr.. Hartridge has been agitatng the
addition of a rule which will prohibit
the use of money by any candidate at
the polls. Mr.. Keilbach favors the ad-
dition of this rule also, and the other
candidates who want a primary have
never said they opposed any plan that
would help to keep the election pure.
A conference of the friends of Mr..
J. S. Collins was held Monday night
at the De Soto and there will be an
other and larger gathering next Mon
day evening. This will be held in the
banquet room of the hotel and at this
conference the plans of Mr.. Collins for
the race win be discussed. In the
meantime the Executive Committee
viii have had it's meeting and q viii
be possible to gather what the views of
that body are on the subject of pri-
mary election.
The other candidates are moving
quietly about among their friends and
putting i'm effective work. They have
got their friends moving too and It
IS difficult for a voter to walk very
far down the street without being be-
sieged by half a dozen advocates OF
the claims of the several candidates
for ordinary of the county. Every one
OF the candidates has claims upon the
consideration and suffrages OF the
voters of the county that appeal to
their friends with n force that leaves
no time to think about the claims OF
the others and these arguments are
used freely.