The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1904-08-10
THE COUNTY ATToRNEYsH,P.

to candidate for county attorney.
For years this has been the chief bone
Oh contention in the democratic camp
and out OF it have grown many bitter
hatreds. The field is necessarily so
limited that the same factors are pres
ent in each struggle and the memory
OF their victories and defeats adds to
the bitterness.
For many years few men have loom
ed la, ger on the democratic local can
vass than has Shaw Van.
He has q number of elements of
strength: he is a good speaker: a good
mixer: a fair lawyer and can usually be
relied upon to get number of republi-
can votes. We have never heard his
partlsanship questioned, but he has
never been a ring" democrat. Hs
cannot be hitched to post and left
with safety to the rings plans, and for
this reason he is probably the most
cordially hated in his own party of any
man who could be named. This is the
reason why Caswell and Wheeler "go
up in the air. when his name is men
toned and why the Bulletin begs that
having swallowed Parker, this added
cup OF bitterness shall not be passed to
| it.
With the bosses. ever since the de-
feat OF O'Hare, it has been problem
how to defeat Shaw Van. For this
purpose George Richardson was first
selected. He was given to understand
that his former lapse into republicans
ism was to be forgiven and that he was
to have the nomination "hands down. ;"
This was the program until a short
time ago when the ring found that
Shaw Van was making too much in .
roads on the Richardson candidacy. and
that Richardson's republicanism and
his former county treasurership were
counting too heavily against him.
In this emergency, Richardson was
practically dropped out of the running.
He may not know it yet. but he will
soon find it out. Wheeler was applied
to and urged to run. Wheeler has
other plans: it is all arranged that he
shall succeed Frank Faul as county
clerk and his present job is as good as
the attorneyship.
| Maurice O'Connor was considered.
but he is almost as distasteful to the
ring as Shaw Van, scatter much scurry-
ing to and fro-Caswell and Wheeler
as the anointed leaders, manipulators
and managers of Crawford county de-
mocracy, by and with the consent of
Carey, made pilgrimage to Dow City
and persuaded Swasey to announce
himself. He was picked up on the
same principle upon which Parker was
nominated-that he was neither flesh
nor fowl He is an inotfensive nonen-
tity. That is possibly the best and all
that can be said of him. He served
one term as county attorney and was
then.retired -unanimously-b the dem
ocrats themselves. In fact, there has
seldom been an act of the democrats OF
Crawford, unless it was the way in
which they dropped William Flaherty,
that has shown sweeter harmony.
| However, Mr. Swasey is to be the
nominee. Shaw Van is putting up a
good single-handed fight as he always
does, but he cannot win against the
present combination which includes
nearly all the present county officers,
and into which even O'Hare has been
cajoled.
The campaign made by Shaw Van is
assuming such proportions, however.
that the ring is now resorting to bull
doing methods to defeat him. Caswell
says he will not print Shaw VANS name
in the Bulletin even if he is nominated.
Wheeler says he will resign the chair.
manship if Shaw Van is named. Both
of these statements are pure bluff, how
ever. Caswell has shown what he will
do for S. per, and Wheeler's gaze is too
well fixed on the clerkship for anything
to bulge him from the chairmanship.
However. we predict that the power of
the organization will be too great for
Shaw Van, and that Swasey will be the
nominee.