The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-12-05
POLITICS AND
SOME GOSSIP.
VIII Be Fifteen Places on State
Ticket Next Year.
The Three Railroad Commits
si0ners to Be Elected.
POLLOCK'S SUCCESSOR.
One Will Be Chosen at the
State Election.
Bailey's AppOintee Will Hold
Place Till Then.
POLLOCK'S SUCCESSOR

There will be fifteen places on the
state ticket to be filed next year. This
is one more than last year, when the
number was greater than eyer before.
Then there were five supreme court
judges to elect, because it was the
first election after the constitution had
been changed, raising the number of
supreme court judges from three to
seven. The four new ones had to be
elected as We'll as one for the term
which expired last year. making five in
all.
This year there should regularly be
only two judges to elect, but the ap-
pointment of Judge Pollock to the fed
eral branch creates a vacancy which
will also have to be filled by election
next year. Then there are three rail-
road commissioners to be elected next
year, which makes the total places on
the state ticket one more than a year
ago.
If E. w. Hoch becomes a candidate
for governor, as it is now expected that
he will, it is not at all improbable that
it will open the way for a fight all the
way down the line. And if so, the an
nouncement of his candidacy will un-
doubtedly be followed by the announce
mentS of candidates for other offices on
the state ticket not long after.
If Hoch is not a candidate it is pos
sible that there will be a fight only over
the nominations for the three railroad
commissioners, and George w. Wheat
/ ley, one of the present commissioners,
may even get through without a fight.
! OF course State Treasurer Kelly will
have opposition in his home county.
and from over the state.
There is & possibility of a contest for
the vacancy on the supreme bench
which Governor Bailey is now studying
to fill by appointment. The appointee's
commission will be good only until after
I oIA4 %1nr,r
off. The man who is appointed will, of
course, be candidate for the nominal
ton. but if the appointment should not
happen to be popular over the state
there would doubtless be candidates for
| the place. Some of the friends of Judge
]. s. West are already talking of him,
/ in case he does not get the appointment.
The general Endorsement which he has
received over the state has been some
thing of a surprise to some of the poll
! tieians, and some of them are just say
ing that he will be "a strong candidate"
next year Judge West might not of
course stand for such a fight, but he
would undoubtedly have a boom on his
hands if he would father it.
A. D. Walker, of Holton, and J. c. o.
1 Morse, of Hutchinson, two members of
the railroad board who represent the
extreme opposite factions, will have
fights on their hands whether there is
opposition to the other state officers or
not. George w. WheatIey, the newest
sition between the factions, although
he was named through a deal brought
about by the Burton members of the
! executive council.
The IA positions on the state ticket,
not counting the extra supreme judge
not yet appointed, would give an aver
age of two to each. congressional dis
trict. Now they are divided as follows:
F'irst-Governor Bailey and Railroad
! Commissioner Walker with a sure fight
coming on Walker
Second-Justice Smith, Treasurer KEEL
ly and Congressman.at- Scott
Third-Auditor Wells and Railroad
Commissioner Wheatley-
Fourth-Justice Cunningham.
F'ifth-Attorney General Coleman
Sixth-Lieutenant Governor Hanna
and Secretary of State Burrow.
| Seventh-Superinten of Public In
struction Dayhoff, Superintendent of
Insurance Luling, and Railroad Com
| missioner Morse.
Besides these the Fifth district has
two justices who will hold on two years
more and the Seventh two justices who
will hold over for four years more.
The friends of Congressman Curtis
are anXiouSly distributing the story
that the fight on Curtis in the First
district is to be dropped ''at the com
mand of the president" Tips have been
given to the newspaper correspondents
and reporters in Topeka, but secrecy
story. The story that is turned loose
is that President Roosevelt is SO friend
ly towards Mr.. Curtis that, inaSmuch
as he could not appoint Mr.. Curtis
judge, he desired the fight on him to
stop, and that the enemies of Curtis
agreed to stop the fight in considera-
ton of the appointment of Pollock to
the federal bench
Mr.. Curtis oppnents decidedly deny
the story. It may be that it will be
used as an offset to the Horton agree
ment story on Curtis if the fight on him
is kept up, as it undoubtedly will be.
The faith which the Curtis Burton
organs themselves have in the story is
shown by the fact that they will not
give it as a positive assertion. A Bur
ton organ publishes it this morning
with the following provisos: ''It is sta
ted" "it is stated" 'it is claimed it
is reported" sit is said" ''it is claim
ed" sit is now said,'' ''it is declared, -
sit is claimed"
The Chanute Sun, commenting on Cy-
rus LeIand's statement that he would
not have the Office of pension commits
sioner and that all he wants is to be
Representative from Doniphan county,
says that the thing the First district
ought to do is to send Leland to con-
gress from the First district and keep
him there
Jerry Simpson has declared for Parker
] for Democratic candidate for president
I Emnoria Gazette: According to the
Kansas City Journal. which is disposed
to be fair, two men are responsible fol
/ the million dollar increase in Kansas
for half million, and Cy Leland fol
1 the other half. The reelection of Le-
land is checked up to Doniphan county
The denomination and election Of Kelly