Omaha daily bee., 1902-09-11
MEMBERS CALL FOR MEETING
County Executive COMMITTEES Will Convene
Friday Afternoon.
DEMOCRATS WANT MERCER NOMINATED
They Figure that Nomination OF the
Nonresident Candidate Will
surely wis Their Bets
on Hitchcock.

on Hitchcock.
Chairman Charles A. CESS has called a
meeting OF the republican county executive
committee for Friday afternoon, Septem-
Der IL, at 2 o'clock. This call has been
Issued as the result OF a request handed to
Mr.. Goss Tuesday night and signed by a
majority Of the members. The request
was for a meeting Thursday afternoon, but
Chairman Goss said that he made. 1t a day
later in order to give the two country mem
bers an opportunity to be present.
The committee is to meet for the purpose
Of checking up and verifying the reglstra-
tion lists, which proved defective at the last
primary election, and to transact such other
business as may be necessary in connection
with the arrangements for the primary
election Of next week.
Political spectators OF the democratic
persuasion are getting ready to make a
great demonstration by Offering all kinds
Of money on the election Of their Candida
for congress, @. M. Hitchcock. Said one
of this class:
1--WE think we have a chance to make easy
money by putting up our coin on Hitchcock
this time. or course we prefer to have the
republicans nominate Mercer, for that would
! give a dead cinch. He couldn't be elected
now even II The Bee, the city administra-
tion and all the other machinery Of the re-
publican party should turn in to help him.
The Bee has shown him up in great shape
and knocked holes in his pretensions that
can never be patched up. What The Bee
has been saying about Mercer cannot be
unsald and now that the eyes Of the people
have been opened to the graft Mercer has
been working they csnnot be closed or
blinded by anything that might be said for
him in the future. That Mercer is owned,
bcdy, toul and breeches, by the railroads
has been proved beyond contradiction. His
hostility to organized labor can no longer
be concealed and the working men are walt
ing to get a chance at him. We figure that
II Mercer is turned Town the Mercer men
would refuse to support any other republican
nominee. They are telling us that already,
and think they mean it. At any rate I'm
willing to put up my money on that chance
when the time comes. The fellows who are
backing Mercer have not been voting repuo-
lican tickets for years, except so far as
members of their gang were on it, and they
won't hesitate to knife the ticket again II
Mercer is not landed"
The Mercer contingent has shown Its
hand in the Sixth ward and n. c. Pratt,
candidate for congress, who lives In that
ward has been given a practical nlustra-
tion of the fact that many political prom
ises can be made without thought Of their
fuIhlInert. when Mt Pratt announced
his candidacy a few months ago one of the
hrst to offer him promise Of support was
John Mcdonald, Broatch's business part
ner, chief of the faction which seeks to
n II ~. wva-1 - Auu nA~t NJ Draft
accepted the proffered aid and until re-
Gently considered that upon his candidacy
at least there was no opposition in his
home ward, all OF the contending interests
being united upon him. From time to
time his personal friends told him that
Mcdonald was trying to give him the
double cross" but he was steadfast in his
trust to the word Of the former sheriff.
The protestationS of good faith on the part
Of Mcdonald were so strong as to deceive
some who were aware of his true char
acter. and many OF them believed that he
would, for once at least, stand up for a
home man without seeing some chance for
personal ACKNOWLEDGMENT in his action.
The belief Of these trusting mortals and
Of the Sixth ward candidate for congress
was rudely shattered this week when 1t
was discovered that Mcdonald had simply
been working a little harder at his usual
practice. and that while protesting loyalty
to Pratt he was assisting Dave MERGERS
campaign. This was discovered Sunday
when Mcdonald and Mercer spent the
greater part Of the day together election
eering. They visited places in the Sixth
ward where It was believed work could be
done for the nonresident candidate and
then went to the Second ward to repair
fences. It is said that since that time Nc
Donald and Mercer have Visited country
precincts for the purpose OF getting the
boys in line" and that the campaign has
been somewhat OF a disappointment.
When the matter was mentioned to Mr.
Pratt he said: 81 refused to believe thai
Mcdonald was trying to throw me until
was convinced OF its truth. He had giver
me every assurance that he was my friend
but now l see that he was deceiving mt
all the time"
Today is the day set for the prima,
ries Of the populist party in this county
but even the chairman Of the pop" com
mittee doesn't know where the polling
places are. The call" which was issueC
several weeks ago. merely named the dal
and let II go at that. Such little details
as the selection of judges and clerks ant
the designation of polling places do no
NNA " mans NNiy hbaNy Oh IA pup ma
chine. The object OF today's primaries
is to elect delegates to a county convep
ton, and the object OF the county conven
. ton, although not officially stated. is L
put the local pops" in line for conference
with the democrats as to the division o
, the spells in case any democrat lands al
ONCE.
Although nobody knows where thes
primaries are to be held there will appea
, from them a sufficient number Of delegate
to make up a county and a congressiona
convention next Saturday. As a matte
, Of fact the delegations will be made u
privately by the several gentlemen VIII
! make IL their business to draw salarie
. from county ofheeS by being members O
the peoples Independent party.
, The democratic judicial convention wi
probably be called for a day early in octo
= Der. This statement was made yesterda
waAEANa- 49, IA u 81 -