The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-12-12
POLITICAL GOSSIP
Il. w. Turner Is Not Taking
Care Of His Boom.
Says He Is Neither Republican
Nor Democrat.
VOTE WITH NO PARTY.
Will Support Candidates That
Best Suit Him.
Doodle Disclosures Cause PeO-
pie to Stop and Think.

AltnOugn ne already has a well de-
veloped boom for the Democratic nomi-
nation for congress in the Sixth district,
r. W. Turner of Mankato asserts that
he has no desire to make the race and
that he is neither a Democrat or a
Republican, but is simply an independ-
ent voter who proposes to vote for the
candidates whom he thinks are best re-
gardless of what ticket they may be on
Last year Turner was the leading
candidate for the fusion congressional
nomination in the Sixth district, but
some of the Populists combined against
| him because he has in the past sup
ported Hepublicans-for instance, he
made an open fight for Judge Pickler
four years ago, and he has always been
rather independent in his political ac-
| tions. AS a. result he was defeated in
| the Beloit convention last year. Now
he is being urged to make the race for
! the fusion nomination again next year.
| I have no desire to run for congress, .
| said Mr.. Turner in discussing the mat
| ter Il am one of a rapidly growing
class of Independent voters who pro-
poses to vote for the best man regard
less Of what ticket he is on. I would
| just as lief vote the Republican ticket
as the Democratic, or the Democratic
ticket as the Republican.
THE recent Doodle disclosures all
over the country have had a tendency
| to make the average voter stop and
think what is the cause of them, and
| he cannot help seeing that the real
cause is rank partisanship, the fact that
men vote for party no matter what sort
of candidate his party has up. These
disclosures of corruption are going to
result in largely increasing the number
of independent voters in the country.
| The bOodling is not confined to any one
party. but it is in all of them. so one
party will not be hurt or benefited
more than another.
Il think. a large number of independ-
ent voters will be a good thing. The
fact that there is a large class which
will vote only for the best men will
cause the party leaders to be careful
about what kind of men are nominated"
There is a suspicion gaining ground
in the state that the Hoch boom for
governor came originally from under
ground sources and that it was for the
purpose of forcing the friends of Gov
ernor Bailey to make peace with the
Burton crowd and bring them to
whoop it up for the denomination OF
! the entire state ticket. Some of the
state treasurer, may have decided oppo
sition, and it would come, of course,
from an element which would support
| Governor Bailey. 1t is rumored that in
order to make this opposition powerless
| and compel Bailey and his close friends
| to line up for the denomination of the
entire state ticket from top to bottom,
the Hoch boom was secretly started,
but done in such a way that 1t could
not be traced to it's real source. Then
it could be discredited by it's authors
and they could demand that Bailey and
his crowd support them in return for
their aid in squelching the Hoch boom.
None of the state officers are anxious
for fight. Governor Bailey would like
| the courtesy of denomination accord
ed him without fight on the ground
that he has conducted the affairs OF
the state in a business-like way. Treas
urer Kelly is not anxious for fight
because he realizes that in fight with
the Bailey forces the chances would
be very decidedly against him. Aditor
Wells does not want fight because
he has not lined up very strong with
either faction and he is fearful both
might desert him if they could gain an
advantage by so doing, although this
might prove a source of strength to
him. The other state officers would like
to be renominated without a fight, be-
cause it is impossible to tell just What
would happen.
The Holton Recorder puts it this
way: There are good grounds for
suspicion that the boom for Ed Hoch
for governor was conceived and put in
motion by Kelly and some of the other
state officers who feared they might be
purpose of soaring the machine into
an agreement to renominate all the
state officers Hoch of course did not
understand the scheme, and now that
his boom is about to get away from the
schemers and he is seriously consider
ing becoming a candidate, the plotters
are getting scared and seem to be
hedging as fast as possible. They rea-
lize that if Hoch should try and fail
their names would be Dennis in very
large letters"
Governor Riddle, of the Minneapolis
-s.-4-
dorses Ed Howe for congress Mr.. Howe
state his position on wireless teleg-
raphy.
The Seventh district is not used to
having a contest for a job going on
without having a candidate or two of
its own, and it accordingly feels out of
place in standing off to one side and
watching the contest for the vacant
place on the supreme bench. w. 7.
Morgan says the Seventh district is
sort of coat holder for the other dis
tricts in the scrap.
E w Hoeh issues the following let
ter to his friends in the Marion Record
this week:
It have been overwhelmed, for a
month or more, with letters from every
part of Kansas urging me to become a
candidate fol governor 1t has been
impossible for me to answer all these
letters or any considerable part of
them-a seeming discourtesy that an
noys me greatly. I want all these
friends to know that their kindness is
deeply appreciated, and that from the
bottom of my heart thank them for
these evidences of good will. To be
thought worthy of an honor like this
by so many of the best people of the
office itself. This card is simply to
acknowledge in a general way my ap-
probation of these countless express
sions of friendship. to throw myself on
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