The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1901-09-12

ness of faction reigns. elimination
and recrimination charges of unfit
ness for office, ring out upon the air,
and the successful candidate, finding
himself nominated, also finds himself
assailed by men of his own party,
and faction runs so high that it pro-
duces the greatest possible discord
and disorder, and in close counties
has very often been fatal to the
ticket, or parts of the ticket.
LEADS TO UNFAIR DISTRIBUTION OF
OFFICES
| But there is another thing: It
leads to unfair distribution CT the
county offices and to all the officers.
| Now you take a state like Ohio and
nominate the governor in this way.
and three or four of the great cities
can combine and nominate anybody
they see fit filling up the entire ticket
in their own way. This is injurious
in the fullest degree in the smaller
arena of a county. The populous
townships will combine and the
strictly rural districts will suffer. |
have known an entire county ticket
to cover not one-fourth of the geo.
graphical face of the county, and |
feel absolutely sure that nobody will
saw that it has resulted in nominal
ing better men or even as good men
as the old system of conventions.
1t has worked far-reaching de-
moralization. The outgr otl of activ-
| ity in the primary eXhausts the ac-
tive workers of the county, and
when the fight with the real enemy
comes we find great many men un-
willing to take a hand and partici-
pate.
The system IF convention nomin-
ations have always worked we'll in
Ohio. The delegates may be chosen
occasionally by corruption, but when
they are together and acting as a
congress they usually work out the
best interest of the party. They
nominate sheriff here, and an aud
itor there, and SO on, making just
and fair distribution of the nomin-
ations, and to larger extent more
impersonal than in the primary
system. | do not believe that there
is any system of nominations that
can be more effective of bad politics
and bad results than the primary
system on a large scale.
FLOATING VOTE GOES TO STRONGEST
PARTY
There is one thing that may be
said in favor of it. In counties with
large majorities for either party, the
party that resorts to primary cleo
tions for county nominations or
district nominations will always
have the floating vote. | think this
may seem strange, but close obser-
walton for many years has pointed
this result out to me beyond con-
tradiction. Why? The corrupt man,
the man who wants to sell his vote,
wants to belong to a party where
nominations are equivalent to an
election. Hence he hunts with the
hare in the spring election and runs
with the hounds in the fall election
Therefore in any counties with heavy
republican majority in Ohio that
have practiced this scheme you can
note decided republican game, and
il counties of heavy democratic ma
jority where this system prevails,
there the democratic vote has
gained. This is SO CONSPICUOUS a
fact that it is, | think, recognize d
everywhere The tradesman of his
vote must be where he can sell it to
good advantage, and that place is in
the county where the nominations
are valuable. Hence the drift of cor
rupt voters is toward the dominant
party. In the close county it is fatal
to political success. and in al the
counties it is system of corruption
and decentralization.
Yours truly,
| G. FL. GRosvENoR.