The Republican journal., 1904-05-26
TIE cUBERNAroR1AI CONTEST.
From an Independent Standpoint.

From an Independent Standpoint.
1t has pleased us not little to stand
by aud watch the struggles that are
going on within the ranks of the Re-
publican hosts. Every candidate who
IS up for the Governors office has
greater or less band of followers and
the way they are booming up their
candidates is caution. In this strug-
gle the newspapers of the State are tax
ing lively hand and some of them,
notably the Lewiston Journal, has
stopped completely over in its enthusi-
asm for the Hon. B. NJ. Fernald of
Poland. In its supplementary edition
that came out last week it devOtes some
eight or more pages to the abuse of Mr..
Cobb of Rockland on the telephone
DEAF and, consequently, to the direct
injury of the prOfesSed candidate, Mr..
Fernald. 1t would almost seem as if
the Lewiston Journal had been long
enough in the field to know that the
abuse of any candidate for office is not
an argument against the man and that
such whoop-e-la campaigning in behalf
of its own candidate is neither dignifed
nor properly becoming a newspaper
that prOclaimS itself staunch defend
ant OF the Republican party. We must
admit that the Kennebec Journal, I'M
der the efficient direction of Congress
man Edwin c: Burleigh, is conducting
its campaign for the Hon. w. T. Cobb
with the same courtesy toward the
public and the same consideration for
its candidate as the Rockland candi-
date himself has shown and is showing
toward the public and toward the
party. The Lewiston Journal has
attempted, as we say, to make political
capital out of the supposed sell out of d
public franchise by Hon. Mr. Cobb. but
it has failed miserably in the attempt.
1t claimed that Mr. Cobb made pledges
to certain of the legislators which were
to the effect that should the company
OF which he was director only, secure
the franchise for the independent tele-
phone company, he would not sell out
to any other company that might be
working in the same field. Mr.. COBB
has come out in an open letter and said
emphatlcally that he never made any
such promises nor can it be proven that
he did. But the Journal does not
respect this denial. 1t overrideS it and
goes on hammering away for Fernald
and against Cobb on the same issue
In respect of Mr.. Cobb's campaign we
have yet failed to discover where he
has made slip in the businesslike
stand he has taken from the beginning
, His stand on all questions of public
policy has been of the sort that merits
the approval of all thinking men. He
,, believes that what he may have to say
on the matter of prohibition, for in
stance, makes little difference: but it
does make difference what the party
says in its platform and he says it must
declare for the strict enforcement of
the prohibitory law. Where does Mr.
Cobb stand? He stands for the party,
for temperance. for everything good
/ and great that will benefit his State.
His position throughout has been con-
sistent. We like to give this praise to
a man, Republican or Democrat, and
when we see Republican papers trying
to injure its own party man we are apt
to speak right out and say what we
believe. We have only to add that at
the present time of writing it looks
like Cobb for Governor, just as we
said last week. The Lewiston Journal
has done signal service to him and an
injury that cannot be repaired to Mr..
Fernald. The little disatfection that
may be felt now for Mr.. Cobb will all
be swept away when the time for hold
ing the convention comes and if the
Rockland man does not carry off the
well earned prize it will be something
considerably out of the ordinary.-Falr-
field Journal.