The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1903-09-24
LEON. IOWA. THURSDAY. SEPTEMBER "a. 1903.
THAT "RlNG" TICKET
A Republican Gives His Views of the
Republican County Convention
and Ticket Nominated.

and Ticket Nominated.
EDITOR REPORTER: again crave
your indulgence while we discuss the
political situation in Decatur county.
No one who attended the recent re-
publican convention and who was in
any degree familiar with the state and
county politics, could fail to recognize
the work of the "Leon Ring" in every
have been quite apparent that some
deep politics was going on in the
county. 1t is just beginning to dawn
on the minds of the Ring that Just
enough opposition was offered to the can
didates offered by the Ring to prevent
a shifting to stronger candidates. The
acceptance speech of Capt. Brown was
certainly pathetic when he stated that
he was forced to be candidate. This
statement of his is a verification Of our
statement in a former article that the
inspiration for his candidacy came
from Burlington. 1t is we'll known that
the Captain has long had an ambition to
be a candidate for senator. In order to
present united front it became neces-
sary for the Captain to publicly an
nounce that he was not candidate for
this Office. AS salve to his wounded
feelings, the Ring promised him the
nomination for representative. Thus
his candidacy was brought about. And
his statement that it was not his de-
sire to be a candidate for representa-
tive is undoubtedly true. Fourteen
years ago the republican party present
ed Capt. Brown as it's candidate for
representative. Then as now, railroad
domination of Iowa politics was an
issue in the campaign. Thomas Teale,
whose distinguishing characteristic has
always been that he did his own think
ing and accepted the dictation of no
man. had just completed two terms of
distinguished service in the house.
After the nomination of Capt. Brown,
Mr.. Teale stated openly and above
board that he had been in Des Moines
during the session of the legislature re-
Gently adjourned, lobbying against the
two cent fare bill and other proposed
| legislation which the railroads opposed.
When the verdict of the people was
recorded it was found that the gallant
captain had fallen outside the breast
works and that the people had commits
stoned G. p. Arnold to warm the seat
accredited to Decatur county. Since
that time has anyone noticed any indi-
cation of a change of heart relative to
his railroad afiiliation? We have heard
of none. But rather it is known that
he opposed Governor Cummins two
years ago both in the convention and at
the polls solely because he was obiec-
tionable to j. w. Blythe. In the con-
vention at Cedar Rapids he, along with
other delegates of Decatur county, vot-
ed against making the nomination of
Cummins unanimous, notwithstanding it
had been the custom of republican con-
ventions to do so. During the campaign,
up to the Saturday before the election,
he lost no opportunity to state OCCASION
ally with some profanity, that he would
not vote for Cummins for governor. 1t
is true he now claims he voted for him
but death bed repentance is always
taken with a degree of allowance, es-
peclally where the reason for it is so
obvious in this case. If the people
of Decatur county want to give Messrs.
| Blythe and Hunter representative on
whom they can always depend they
should vote for Capt. Brown If they
prefer that their vote shall be cast in
way to assist the governor in obtain
ing some needed legislation to restrict
the railroads in the matter of mergers
and insurance companies in the interest
OF the people they had better vote
against him. If they want to assist the
Leon Ring in it's manipulation of the
politics OF tho county they should vote
their ticket, which contains the names
OF two men who voted against the
party's nominee for governor two years
ago. The Ring organs plea for
straight voting will hardly be consist
ent with this ticket.
1t has been very amusing to those
opposed to ring Rule" to see the
effort the populist editor of the "Ring
Organ is making to get "good' lately.
His advocacy of the nomination of the
governor for vice-president on the
ticket with Roosevelt smacks of the
counting of support which the Ring for
merly despised.
The manner in which the convention
treated Col. Hepburn must have con-
vinced all fair minded men that even