Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1902-08-22
THE SITUATION LOCALLY.
PROSPECT OF ELECTION OF DAVENPORT
AND DEMOCRATIC COUNTY TICKET.

Republican Committee Confesses 1t Is Scared
and Sends Out Plaintive Appeal-Landslide
] in Some Towns Towards Clement-In Al
Least 90 Out of %. Democrats or Local OPP
tionists Have Even Chance or More Of Vic
Practically Certain Majority Of Coun'
ty Will Be Against Mccullough II Election
Goes TO legislature Even Republican eau
cuses Nominate License Men and Some
Clement Supporters How County Building
Issue Works and How Republicans Are
"Scuttling' Also on Prohibition.
In this DELIGHTFULLY."- miX-up and con
fusing campaign, such as Vermont
never saw or dreamed of before. Wind
ham county is furnishing its share of
interesting points. At the opening it
was called the banner Mccullough
county" of the state. Today the Re
publicans are scared in every point of
it, and uncertain whether they can
carry anything except Newfane where
Honest John Merrifeld will be unani
mously elected town representative in
appreciation of his position on the
county building issue. OF the other
towns, IS at least. Brattleboro, Gull
ford, Halifax, Whitingham Whining
ton. Marlboro. Dover, Wardsboro, ia
maica. ToWnshend. Brookline, Lon
donderry, Grafton, Rockingham. Put
ney and also Somerset and STRAIT
ton, according to the best advices we
can gather, show fully an even chance
of electing Democrats or local option
lists to the Legislature, and in several
of them. like Brattleboro, it is as near
a certainty as anything can be in pol
itics. Though it is queer year, in
which il is more hazardous than ever
before to venture political proph ecies,
We believe it practically settled already
that decided majority of the coun-
ty's delegation in the Legislature will
be anti-prohibition. Indeed several
regular Republican caucuses, Guilford,
Rockingham, Vernon. Marlboro and
Dummerston, have nominated pro-
nounced local l-optionists for their can
didates, and some of them are also
said 10 he for Clement. OF course this
action has been followed in most cases
by bolts. putting up straightout pro-
hibitionists on nomination papers, and
the spectacle is rather ludicrous. while
their whole campaign howl is against
a "bolter' for Governor. that their
whole effort is to defeat the bolter by
boiling. But II only matches the Re
publican prohibition argument all
along the line. which never fails to
quickly reduce itself to an absurdity
Vernon would also seem to be rea
sonably certain of electing Clement
that element having nom
l., I ~ L. = If tIar
were too late in filing
papers for \. a. Dunklec.
In fact in all Wipdham county there
are not over two towns besides New
fame that are reasonably certain TO
elect Republican, prohibition represen-
tatives. Stratton has held no caucus,
having found by experience that eau
Gus nominees are almost invariably de- !
feated and the voters will have to /
write in the names of the men of their +
choice.
As to the county ticket. Mr.. Daven- /
port is about the only man that can be |
found about here who does not believe /
he will be elected. with the voters all /
lut Judging by the figures before the .
sc break UP, the strength of the parties
5 about 1900 Democratic and 1900 Re
publican. This means that 1880 Re.
publican votes are necessary to elect
aim No doubt there is that number
If Local Option Republicans, and more
90; how near solid they will be for
lim is the question. The next ques-
ion is how the feeling up the West
River Valley on the county building
ssue will operate. There were towns
hat would have given him a nearly
unanimous vote a fortnight ago. and
hey have to thank him and the Demo
ratio county convention for soaring
he Republican leaders out of the
cheme Some good Judges think the
after have not helped themselves by
heir back down; that il is ridiculous
uch an abiect confession: that they
are not face an open stand-up fight
nd were relying on underground ma
ipulation to carry through a job
hat would have cost Brattleboro more :
han it would have brought and would ,
ave seriously wronged upper parts of ;
he county: that the Republicans will {
are worse than as if they bad stood {
p and that the people will improve
be opportunity to administer by their {
otes such lesson as will prevent
evival of the scheme, which is con- !
essed to be only postponed.
Mr.. Davenport's judgment is that if I
e is elected. the whole Democratic c
ounty ticket will he also. and that it l
ught 10 be. While he is going to get '
le votes of some Republicans who |
ever voted for a Democrat before in
heir lives, he believes they will be
srgely offset by antagonisms of various
inds that he has accumulated in the &
ist - years. There is one candidate I
no ought not to worry over election,
Ir. Lawrence for senator. who is in i
u all tickets. !
Among the candidates for town rep {
are many very strong men,
specially among the Democrats. I
Iessrs. Porter and Gale. renominated 5
t Wilmington and Guilford, ranked h
mong the very strongest men in the \
st Legislature. They carried through F
lie tiouse, after a splendid fight. by I
vote of 169 to 40. the valued policy T
i'll. which Porter introduced and Gale T
eered through hostile committee. Y
I'D with a championship in the de- II
ate which the press characterized at
lie time as most interesting and in
ructive,'. the largest and most ami b
ated that has been heard in the il
ouse this session. " and its passage as v
a victory for the Democratic minor Il
'" The bill was only killed by c
lid Republican Senate 1t was Por- H
r. seconded by Brown of Whiting \
i'm. that the county Republican b
,sses correctly credited with knocking y
1t the county building scheme ten n,