The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-07-08
JoHNsToN,s LEADERS REyoIc-

In Sundays Atlanta Constitution was a srecial from Montgomery containing an interview with Mir. Hugh Wilson of ope- lika. This special introduces Mr. Wilson with the following statement:
 Hugh Wilson of The opelika Industrial News. who edited The ke-Herald when 1t was spokesman for former Governor Johnston. who Is now an appointee of the ex-Governor. and who has kept in the lead of that faction of the party all the while, was asked for his opinion as to the respect for q primary.
 The same matter appeared also in The Birmingham Age-Herald, and there over the signature of Mir. Chappell Cory, also recognized as a Johnston leader.
 Mir. Wilson's opinion is that the State Committee will not order a State primary. He also thinks that the failure to order a primary would be pretty tough on the members of the administration" inas- much as they have declared themselves in favor of primary. But Mir. Wilson's opinions as to what the Committee Is go- ing to do and the effect of it's decision upon the administration are not so im- portant as his views of what will be done by the political element he Is said to lead" Here is what he says on that line:
 think the people will promptly appeal from the machine to the Democratic par | ty, which Is the great body of Democrat ic voters who live in Alabama. l think | a State primary will be had just the same and that 80 per cent of the Democratic voters of the State will take part in 1t, and that a full ticket will be nominated in that primary for every office from gov error down. United States Senator will also be selected in that primary The ticket thus nominated will be overwhelm- ingiy elected. I see no reason to suppose the people in my section should be diff ferent from those elsewhere and seven- eighths of them have deliberately made up their minds that this is good time and a good year to test the question as to whether they or the machine control the situation. The machine seems to have lost sight of the fact that when the new constitution was proclaimed the cracker of the party whip was cut off.
 Of course by ''the people" MT. Wilson means the Johnston element, which he claims in the usual Johnstonian style to be composed of eighty per cent of the
 
 people of the State.
 The notice, therefore. Is clear and distinct that the Johnston crowd proposes to bolt the action of the State Committee, which stands for the Party organization, if that action is not satisfactory. The determination to put out an independent ticket in it's own way is manifest. And yet Mir. Wilson is one of the leaders who, in 1896. and con- stanly since, has denounced The Adver- tiser and every other ant.-Chicago plat form Democrat as Republicans because they could not stomach that deliverance. But that is q mere side issue. ? The one main fact that The Advertiser desires to emphasize Is that the Johnston leadership has planned an independent movement in this State. and has based all it's plans on the belief that the State Committee will refuse a primary. That is the pertinent fact. The agitation in months past has. in the opinion of The Advertiser, been for two purposes: first, to stir up popular prejudice; and, sec ond, to prevent the State Committee from ordering the primary because Johnston
 apparently wanted it. With this view clearly in mind, it Is easy to see how
 the Johnston leadership is rejoicing at the
 prospect 1t entertains of the action of the State Committee.
 However. he laughs best who laughs last. The Advertiser believes that the true Democracy of this State will laugh lest. 1t will ret fall into the Johnston trap. It will order a Democratic pri- mary. and give every white Democrat an equal voice in the Party's nomina- tions. Such a course will knock the John stcn scheme of discord and division into | a cooked hat.