Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1901-01-17

uncertain medium of an authority
delegated to one set of men select ed
in one set of caucuses for county
ofhcers, another for assemblymen, an
other for state senators, another for
! congressman, another for state of
fcers, each followed by nominating
conventions; caucuses. and conven-
, lions as WELL a scene of confusion,
wrangling, dispute and disorder.
where weak men are badgered and
corrupt men are bought. | apprehend,
} that very little time will be consumed
on your part upon the objection that
!, under primary election nominations
would not be distributed with
reference to geography or nationality
When primary elections are held upon
the same day, there is no opportunity
for advantage by either party over
the other in this respect, and the
selection of candidates will be made
upon considerations of greater inn
portance to the people than either
the nationality or place of residence
of the candidates.
THE objection has been offered that
cities would be able to control as
against the country in a primary cleo
ton, because of the better opportunity
to poll large vote where the popula-
ton is dense. 1t is scarcely fair to
make this objection as pertaining to
primary elections. 1t would be quite as
easy to poll full vote in he country
in primary election as it is to get out
representative vote to a caucus
under the present system, and it is no
J more OF an objection against primary
elections that the density of popula-
ton in cities offers greater facility for
polling the city vote than it is against
the election of delegates in caucuses.
Neither would there be a stronger
tendency, for any reason, for cities
to unite as against the country with
primary elections than with caucuses.
In practice it has never been found
I, possible to unite cities against the
: country in any political way. Any
attempt to accomplish this would de-
feat itself by arousing and solidifying
the agricultural sections of the state.
: 1T has been further objected that
primary election would afford OBJ
portunity for the presentation of an
unlimited number of candidates, re-
sulting in such division of the vote
that nomination by plurality will be
made by a small majority. This is
one or the defects of nominations by
political conventions. Under the
caucus and convention system we
y | nffnn n 10
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
L ticular office, with view of con-
:, trolling the nomination of that office
d 1t is not unusual, for instance, In a
n gubernatorial contest for the machine
S to encourage many candidates in
S different sections of that state to seek
1 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
convention for the purpose of nomi-
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 1t 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 PRIMARY 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. IL ever. would an occasion pre-
sent itself where this plan would not
decide the nomination by 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
trict schools are inadequate for their
: 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
spending removal to the cities for
| better common school advanta oao.