The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1902-01-27
NEXT CONTEST
Republicans Lining Up for
the State Treasurer
ship Fight.
REEDS WARNING STRENGTH
Wakeley's Passaic Pollution
Bill Generally Condemned
by Essex.

Especial to ssThe Jersey CITY tNews.J s
TRENTON, Jan. 27, 1902-The election
of John f. Dryden as United States Sena-
tor will be completed on Wednesday next
! at noon, when the two houses of the Leg
islature meet in joint session. Each house
will ballot separately on Tuesday at noon,
4 but it viii be very informal affair. It is
! probable that Senator Dryden will go to
| Washington to be sworn In on Thursday
I and thus begin the tsrra which viii rkzva
five years and two months to run. Three
years hence there will be an election for
| the successor to Senator John Kean, and
If all signs are not wrong that fight will
be even hotter than the one which landed
! Mr.. Dryden in office. There will be things
/ to remember from the battle of ,ast
Thursday and men to remember them,
and it is scarcely in the nature OF events
| that that contest will not cut something
of figure in the next. Still, the battle
left no apparent sores. Indeed, the result
was, to all outward appearances. attended
with the best feeling that ever followed a
similar event in the history of the State,
and the defeated candidates were among
the first to press forward and extend
! hearty congratulations to the victor.
| The Republicans of South Jersey are
very proud of the record they made, and
4 they feel that If they had the ground to
| go over again they could have done little
better, although they now realize that
Essex county had the best of things
| from the start. 1t had the evident pur-
pose all the way through of defeating
the Southern tier and of swapping up the
| prize at any cost. 1t had its lines so
well drawn that there seemed no hope
for the weaker end of the State, so that
| it is unusually gratifying to the leaders
from that section to look over the sit
uation now and see how well the contest
was conducted and how Loyalty the vote
of the South Jersey counties stood for
its favorites- Few of those who had the
| campaign of Mr.. Dryden in charge real
lied that such a thing was possible, nor
/ that there would be any considerable
i number of votes from the upper end Of
the State to aid the lower counties in
their effort to hold one of the Senator
ships
The fact that Edward c. Stokes came
within three votes of landing the prize
and that two more votes were in readiness
| to go to him if they had not been choked
| off by the precipitate action OF Senator
/ Cross; that that same vote stood ready to
! stand by David Baird, or Congressman
Gardner, or Barker Gummere was notice
to the North Jersey men that the leaders
of the Southern tier are to be reckoned
with and such another result would be
wholly out of the question 1t would
seem. under all these circumstances. that
South Jersey is factor in the general
makeup of State politics which must in
future. more than in the past, be counted.
1t may, indeed. command such a position
three years hence that it will dictate not
only the nomination of a Gubernatorial
| candidate but say who shall be the next
Senator and what shall be the attitude Of
the State in the next Republican National
convention. And this latter consideration
is of no small moment. The campaigns
for President. for Governor and for United
States Senator come all in heap and If
there isn't some lively jockeying for
place in the intervening time then all
signs fail.
A Democratic caucus will be held either
tonight or tomorrow to decide who shall
receive the minority vote for United
States Senator. 1t is generally understood
| that Congressman Allan L. McDermott
has been practically agreed upon.
4
Saturday that when the Legislature meets
in joint session Wednesday to elect
United States Senator it would also be
its duty under the law to choose a State
Treasurer at the same time.
This contention was based upon pro-
vision in one of the laws that an ad III
| term appointee as Treasurer should serve
only until the next joint session Of the
Legislature.
Whatever may be the purpose Of the
| law the lawmakers themselves are not
! inclined to interpret 1t as making it neces-
sary for them to choose Mr.. Briggs's sue
cessor this week.
They are quite willing to let the fign.
go on for another week or two at least
and it therefore is extremely unlikely thar
any action will be taken Wednesday OF
the Treasurership.
Un.ess the contest for the Treasurership
develops into the same kind of a fight as
that for the United States Senatorshio
the chances of the ad interim appointee,
Frank o. Briggs of this city. seem to be
of the brightest. Indeed, some Of Mr..
Br.ggs's enthusiastic friends claim that ne
has already sufficient votes in the HOUSE
! to insure his election. without counting
| thought he will get. It is conceded thai
Senator Charles A. Reed viii have a ma
| jority of the seventeen Republican votes
| in the upper House, but there are never
theIess several Senators who are counted
| upon as in the Briggs ranks.
Hhe chances of all local opposition TO
Mr. Briggs being withdrawn now seems
! to be of the brightest. and this would
.eave the Mercer delegation free to vote
Cor him without reason or excuse for con-
s,dering any other action. The moral
effect Of the solid support of the Mercer
snemLers would in itself amount to corr
siderable and might go long way toward
insuring the election of Mr.. Briggs
There is a growing disposition on the
part of the Legislators to regard with dis
trust the candidacy of Senator Reed.
The position of State Senator Is a
most delicate and important one and the
efficient discharge of the duties are re-
garded as imperative In maintaining the
reputation of the party in power. the
expenditure of the public funds. whether
wisely or fooiisilly. has always been rc-2
earded as one of the strongest arguments
which could be advanced In political
camrasgn While the expenditures ara
of course prescribed and authorized bx
tbe legislature itself, X has been fhe GUS