Evening star., 1902-08-21
POLITICS IN OHIO
Coming Extra Session of
Legislature.
TOM JOHNSON HAPPY
TAKES CREDIT FOR CAUSING
REPUBLICANS TROUBLE.
His Ambition to Control in National
Democratic Afairs-Republicans
in Reasonable Harmony.
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

CLEVELAND, Ohio, August 10, 1902.
| An extra session of the legislature is an
annoying thing for any party on. the eve
| of an election. That is the situation which
confronts the Ohio republicans. The leg
islature will meet August % in response to
the call of Governor Nash Its work Will
be to pass a general law for a municipal
code.
Nobody wants political campaign till
well into October. People generally are SO
busy that they would like to keep politics
entirely out of the extra session so that
they would not be bothered with the dis
cussions Their wishes in these matters
will not be realized.
The republicans have a decided majority
in both houses. The responsibility, there
fore, is entirely with them, and it is for
tunate that the majority is large enough
to allow wide latitude of opinion. In the
legislature there is what is known as a
party Of insurgents" Some of them IN
sist that before the session is through they
will be the regulars and will be in control
of the party organization More likely the
different elements will harmonize.
The insurgents cannot afford to join
hands with the democrats, and the regu-
lars cannot afford to be dependent on the
democratic minority for the passage of leg
islative acts. That is the situation which
makes for harmony among the republicans
in the end While there is something OF
an alignment on the lines of state admin
| istration and anti-state administration as
also the Hanna following and the Foraker
following, there is not a distinct breach.
One senator has as much at stake as the
other senator in reaching a common basis
of legislation.
The present trouble arose over the de-
cision of the supreme court declaring the
existing municipal government of Cleve-
Low Ilnyn and = N
gave a hint that if other municipal or
ganic acts were brought before it the
same decision would be rendered. The
court simply put veto on special legisla-
tion of the ripper variety for partisan
purposes by the passage Of special legisla-
tive acts. At the same time 1t pulled the
underpinning out of the existing munich
palities and left nothing open except the
passage of a general municipal code which
would stand the test Of the courts scru-
tiny.
The Nash Code.
Governor Nash some weeks ago called
the special session to meet the emergency.
Since that time the discussion has been
over the new law. The governor Is HIM
self a lawyer of very high standing. With
the aid of members of the State Bar AS
sociation and with the advice and counsel
of the party leaders he has been framing
general law, which will be known as the
| Nash code. In its legal features it is said
| to be comprehensive and clear and certain
| to command support. The difference of
| opinion is over it's political provisions. The
| acute point is whether the police board Of
| the different cities shall be appointed by
| the governor or not. Governor Nash and
| those closely associated with him favor this
plan. Some influential republican leaders
| oppose it.
| Under the present system of special leg
islation the Ohio cities have a great vari-
ETY. of municipal government-good, bad
| and medium. Cincinnati likes the board
system, Cleveland does not. Other mu-
| inequalities are indifferent.
| The National Municipal League in nom
partisan way has been interesting itself in
the subject. 1t is urging municipal home
rule without politics. Active party men
| claim that there can be no municipal rule,
| home or otherwise, that will be free from
| politics. The National League favors the
| general plan of vesting the mayor with
| complete authority in appointments in a
manner which will enable the responsibility
to be brought directly home to him, but
it wants this done on basis Of highly de-
| veloped civil service. The Ohio politicians
| in the cities have not yet become civil
service reformerS.
To a casual observer it looks as thoEg
a compromise which would limit the power
| of the governor in appointing police boards
| would be the outcome. The republicans
are in control in most Of the cities, and
| they do not seem disposed to delegate their
| authority to the state executive without
| putting some limitation on his powers.
| Tom Johnson Happy.
| The happiest man in the state over the
muss is Mayor Tom Johnson. He claims
! that the republicans got into the trouble
through their attempt to overturn his ad-
ministration in Cleveland, and that it was
for the purpose of upsetting him that the
| suit was brought which caused the su-
| preme court to declare the Cleveland mu-
| nicipal organization invalid.
| Mayor Tom takes more credit to himself
| than he is entitled to claim, for the issue
| was bound to come. Yet one of the results
| is to strengthen his position as the boss of
| the Ohio democracy. Locally he Is die
tator and his machine is remorseless one
| In the state at large he is more concilia-
| tory, for his power is not so firmly estat-
| lished. The democratic members Of the
| legislature do not accept unqualifiedly his
| leadership, but most Of them are inclined to
| follow his behests. 1t is quite likely that
| the course of the minority during the spe-
| cial session will be dictated by Mayor john
| son.
The democratic state convention, which
| meets in September, will be controlled by the
mayor. Since John r. Mclean was beaten
| in the state central committee by Johnson
| there is no life in the opposition. Editor
| Mclean may take the jeremiah attitude
| and voice his lamentations over the Grip
| pied buckeye democracy hobbling after
| false gods, but it won't change the stIll-
ton. He will always receive a certain
! amount of respectful attention, because he
owns a very powerful newspaper, and a
following will be at his back, but t won't
| be a robust, rampant crowd Of unterrifie
democrats. The fleshpots are in the o,her
| camp. Mayor Tom is pretty liberal with
| his money in politics whenever ne has a
| personal interest
Editor Mclean might have disputed
Mayor Johnson's growing dictatorship Il
| he had stayed on the ground and fought the
fight to a finish. But though he has able
and loyal lieutenants he cannot direct a
successful campaign from Washington or
| from Bar Harbor There are some very re-
| spectacle democrats, such as Col. Kill
| bourne, the former candidate for governor,
who do not care particularly for Editor
| Mclean, and yet who will not accept Mayor
| johnson as the leader and boss of the
party. They are not aggressive. and when
| they are crowded into a corner and told to
| take their medicine they will be likely to
i do SO.
Will "Swipe'' the Corporations.
! What Mayor johnson is going to do with
his democratic state convention is one of
| the passing conundrums. It is plaything
| with which he may amuse himself about as
he will The public takes little interest in