Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-09-24
POLITICS IN COLORADO
Deportation Of Labor Leaders
the Principal Issue.
FIGHT ON GOV. PEABODY
DEMOCRATS CLAIM THAT IT MAY
COST ROOSEVELT THE STATE.
I.xxA
No Interest Felt in Parker, but the
President is Very Popular-Caase
Of the Strike Troubles.
BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS.

The republicans have renominated Gov.
Peabody for another term. If circumstances
were different; IL this was a conventional
campaign; if ordinary conditions prevailed
in the state, Gov. Peabody would not have
had the ghost of a show of reelection OF
even denomination, because he Is person
ally unpopular with the republican leaders
and has alienated many OF his FORMER
friends. People who have business at the
executive chamber complain that his man
ners are offensive; his former neighbors,
who once liked him, declare that he has the
Zig head to degree that is insufferable;
the men who nominated him assert that he
has not kept faith with them; he is charged
with habitual prevarication and neglect to
keep his promises; he has no fixed purpose,
according to popular opinion, and, as one
prominent republican leader expressed it,
has been mixed up with some very squally
propositions since he has been in Office"
Gov. Peabody has been a small banker in
the little town of Canyon City, at the mouth
of the famous Royal Gorge" of the Ar
kansas river. Before his nomination and
election he a modest, popular and
amiable gentleman with many friends
as he had acquaintance and no particular
enemies anywhere. The attempt of the
Western Federation of Miners to secure
control of the mines of Colorado and the
reign Of terror created thereby seem to
have developed a new character In Pea
body, and everybody friendly and unfriend-
ly to him, admits that he has shown extra
ordinary nerve, courage and determination,
which were imperatively needed during the
crisis. If d weak or nervous man had been
In the executive chair civil war and wide
destruction of property would have been
certain. The conservative element in the
republican party, as well as among the
democrats, believe that he exceeded his au-
thority and established dangerous prece-
dents. that he nd
many things that cannot be justified. AS
an illustrf ton they refer to the deportation
OF 100 or more members of the federation
be!-ond the state line.
Deportation of Union Men.
If this had been done by a mob under
excitement or by a vigilance committee, de-
termined to protect their homes and prop
erty from danger, they say, 1t might have
been excusable, but the offending miners
were seized and taken from their hons
by the militia of the state acting under the
governors orders, and conducted over the
boundaries of the state by force when
there were plenty of courts before which
they could have been arraigned; when
there were plenty of jails In which they
plenty of civil officers to make their arrest
The machinery of the police and the courts
was in uninterrupted operation. Martial
law had not been proclaimed
On the other hand, the same men will
admit that this arbitrary act, which they
criticise as irregular and unlawful, was
more effective in securing peace and in
terminating the troubles than any event
that has occurred from the beginning and
many are willing to acknowledge that 1t
was justified under the circumstances.
There was no prospect or hope of peace
and order as long as the deported men re-
manned in the community, and their arrest
and trial by ordinary process would have
provoked public violence. By Selling and
expelling them the cause of the trouble was
removed quiet was instantly restored, and
since then there have been no disturbances.
The Principal Issue.
This is undoubtedly true, and 1t is the
principal issue in the campaign on which
the two parties will appeal to the agricul-
tural element of the population. In the
mining districts every man has decided
how he is going to vote. The friends of
law and order. property owners and others
who have interests at stake are for Pea
body; on the other side are habitual demo-
Gratis, personal enemies Of the governor,
several Of the labor unions and members
of the Federation of Miners.
The federation is a socialistic organiZa-
ton. That Is admitted; and 1t exists for
the purpose of enforcing in the state of
Colorado the radical ideas of Messrs. Meyer
its president, and Haywood, It's secretary.
There is a socialistic candidate for gov
ernor-Judge Overs Of Observation-Disclosures
by the populist party, but the federation
will not waste their votes on him. They
know that they cannot elect a third candi-
date, and will use their entire ticket in sup
port of the democratic ticket in order to
punish and humiliate Peabody.
The farming community of Colorado Is
to decide the question. They are naturally
republicans.
An Exciting Campaign Expected.
Therefore, as you see, very interesting
situation exists here, and the campaign will
be the most exciting ever fought in Colo
RADIO. The democrats are working very
shrewdly, and have good material to work
with. They are trying to brighten the farm
ers concerning the prospect of an enormous
tax to pay for what they call Peabody 8
folly and extravaganza During the labor
troubles, in the absence of an appropria-
ton by the legislature, the governor Dor
rowed money from the mine owners and
the banks to pay the expenses of sustaining
the militia at the mines and putting down
the disturbers. Emergency certificates were
issued to the extent of more than a mil
| lion dollars and they are now outstand-
| ing as preferred claims against the state.
The next legislature must provide means
| to pay them, either by authorizing a loan
or by increasing taxes. There are several
| other local issues in which the governor
| is involved, and the democrats are making
the most of them.
| The danger involved of losing the electoral
! )
! to vote straight. In Colorado all officials
| are chosen at the same election and their
| names all the same ticket. from
| candidates for presidential electors and
| governor to township trustees and road
| supervisors. This makes a very long string
| of names. If the ticket is placed in the
| ballot box without any mark it is counted
| as one in favor of every candidate in the
| list, but If the voter desires to scratch II
he must write words yes or mo- oppo-
| site every name. This takes a long time
| and lot of trouble. and thus scratching
| Is discouraged. Many experienced poltici-
| ans believe that this popularity will be
the salvation of Peabody while, on the
other hand, the democrats think it will de-
| feat Roosevelt
They admit that If he stood alone he
| would darry the state by 10000 majority
| The President Is extremely popular here
with all classes. and especially with the
women, who cast about % per cent of the
vote at ordinary elections and have polle6
as high as 40 per cent of the total Mrs ]
Ellen Foster is organizing a women's cam
paign and is exciting a great deal Of inter
est among them. She and others who have
taken the trouble to make inquiries assert
that every wife and every mother in Colo
RADIO will vote for the reelection of the
President because of their admiration fol
him as a husband and father.