Omaha daily bee., 1902-04-22
tom BLACKBURN PERPLEXED
Doesn't Know When and How TO Call
Congressional Nomination.
SAVAGE AND hartley IN THE QUESTION
Sfr. Breen Refuses 20 Allow Mercer's
man 90 withdraw His Name
John l.. webster Talks of
Political Honesty.

Afr. MERGERS engineer is perplexed and
good reason has he for being so. In addi-
tion to his inability to scare other candi-
dates OF the congressional track be is up
10 the trouble OF choosing the conditions
upon which to seek a denomination for his
chief. Realizing that the opposition TO
Mercer is not to be dispelled. Blackburn Is
Just now trying to figure out the best way
in which to meet II, and the problem mas
80 far remained unsolved.
AS chairman and whole thing OF the
congressional committee, Blackburn may
call for a congressional nomination when
ever he p~leases. How and when TO exercise
this power is the most perplexing puzzle
he has ever had in hand. II he chooses to
have the county convention which VIII
name the delegates to the next state con-
yention select the men who are to make
the congressional nomination, an embar-
raising situation will confront him, for
then Il will be necessary for him to take
sides In the gubernatorial contest. 1t hap
pens that among bis followers are a mum
der OF friends Of Savage and BARLEY and
they win insist upon having the governors
car coupled to the Mercer train as It runs
through Douglas county. II Engineer
Blackburn protests against such an ar
ranRement he will have to take the other
end of the argument and array his forces
against Savage and BARLEY, which is
scarcely a possible thing for him to do, as
perhaps a majority Of said forces are In
line with the governor and his pardon. II
q majority Of the republicans Of the county
we're In the same line, then the question
would be an easy one for Blackburn, but
from present appearances such is not the
fact. A troublesome item to Mr.. Black
burn Ia that a majority Of the Mercer
forces In thisc county just at this time forms
only a small minority of the republicans,
but Blackburn figures that he cannot even
take a chance on antagonizing a remnant.
So II Mercer is to go in for an early con-
gressional nomination he must either stick
to or oppose his Savage-Bartley friends,
for it Is possible for Blackburn to straddle
the situation only by his eyebrows, and an
eyebrow straddle won't do.
II Blackburn decides to avoid the compll-
cations Of the early gubernatorial fight by
q determination to take his medicine In
the fall, his embarrassment will be none
the less. His only chance in the fall will
be by forming combinations with candi-
dates for county Offices and the legislature,
and this will be dihicult work-perhaps i'm
possible. Judging from the manouvers Of
Blackburn at this time, he is endeavoring
to avoid the troubles that would come to
Mercer in the fall by pulling off the con-
gressionsl nomination In the near future,
and the great obstacle in his path is the
Savage-Bartley proposition.
II he decides to avoid both the state and
county complications, then comes the third
and last proposition-to make the congress
sional nomination Independently. And
Blackburn knows that in a square fight, in
volving only the congressional nomination.
MERGERS chance would be slim.
That part OF the scheme of Blackburn in
his effort to secure a denomination for his
nonresident candidate for congress is to
misrepresent the opposition is shown in the
talk he is making about town since the an
nouncement OF the candidacy of John P.
Breen. OF course his talk is only twaddle
and will have no effect. but 1t is significant
in showing the anxiety of the congressional
boss to create an impression that the OPP
position TO Mercer is not substantial.
In the presence Of a Bee reporter and a
we'll known republican OF the Seventh ward
yesterday Blackburn had the temerity to
deny that Mr.. Breen was a candidate for
the congressional nomination.
81 had a talk with Breen,'' said Black
burn. and he told me that the announce
ment Of his candidacy in The Bee was un-
authorlsed-that he had merely been joking
with the reporter. He is not a candidate"
But perhaps Mr.. Breen himself is better
authority than Blackburn on this subject,
aud for hat reason the reporter called on
him again yesterday morning and said:
"Mr. Blackburn says that you told him
you were merely joking when you gave II
out that you were 4 candidate for con-
gress."
81 never told Blackburn anything Of the
kind replied Mr.. Breen with emphasis.
'He came TO me and asked IL the newspa-
per report OF my candidacy was correct and
I told him that it wasi that l had decided
to accede to the importantly OF many
friends and announce myself as a candi-
date"
'In politics, as In business, a man Is in
honor bound to keep his promises. and
when he fails TO observe an agreement
made with other parties he ~forfeIts what
ever reputation for integrity he may have