The Topeka state journal., 1902-03-21
HOT FIGHT ON BELTS.
Convention Called to Nominate
Independent Republican.

1t is likely that there will be a three
cornered fight in the Thirty-ninth rep
resentative district in Shawnee county.
with J. B. Belts one Republican
candidate, ]. NJ. Hoover as another on
some sort of an independent RepuD-
lican ticket, and John J. Schenck as the
Democratic nominee.
The Republican forces in the district,
which is all of Shawnee county north
of the Kansas river, are split over the
question of who shall run the repre-
sentative campaign and primaries. For
several years the Republican county
central committee has had charge of
the affairs in the district since the dis
trict committee went out of business
several years ago. When the central
committee made arrangements to con-
duct the recent primaries the represen-
tative districts were looked after. A
faint objection was made by some
members from the north side of the
river, on the ground that the district
affairs should be managed by a district
committee. As there was no district
committee in existence the county CEN
trail committee took charge. Belts was
the only candidate before the primaries
and he was nominated
Now the Republicans north of the
river have called a mass meeting for
March 20 to arrange for a convention
or for primaries to nominate a candi-
date on the Republican ticket. The
plan is to take no notice of Belts and
not to consider his nomination as reg
ular or binding. The First commits
sioner district is the same as the rep
resentative district, but as there is no
fight on HaineS, the present commits
sioner by those in the district who
are calling the mass meeting it is ex-
pected that he will be endorsed and the
action of the central committee so far
as commissioner is concerned, will be
accepted.
The fight on Belts is being made by
the prohibitionistS of the district They
say that Belts points the prohibitionistS
to his record in the house of representa-
tives where he voted for the Hurrel law
and that he calls the attention of the
liberal element to his record in the city
council where he favored that element.
When A. L. Brooke was a candidate
he was approached by the prohibition
lists and he said that when he was elect
ed he would vote in the house as the
ma jority of his constituents wished him
sent him the longest petition. That was
satisfactory to the prohibition element.
1t is said now that if Belts will appear
before the mass meeting and make the
same promise that the naming of a dis
trict committee will be called off and
that the whole affair will. be left in the
hands of the central committee.
The Republicans fear that if Belts re-
mains candidate and another Repub-
Iican candidate is brought out on an
other ticket that there will be such
split in the party vote that a Den ocrat
would win. As vet the nominations
made at the last primary have not been
filed with County Clerk Wright The
Republican county central committee
will meet tomorrow afternoon at the old
court house. A new primary for COM
missioner in the district has been called
by the old central committee and an ef-
fort may be made to allow the represen-
tative district committee to have charge
of commissioner primary.