The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-12-18
TO RING UP CURTAIN
SUCH WILL BE EFFECT OF MEFT-
 ING OF STATE COMMITTEE.
The Political Fight VIII Begin All Along the Line With This Gather ipx of the Committee.

The call of Chairman H. S. D. Mallory
 for a meeting of the State Executive
 Committee on January 3. Is to the State
 campaign of 1906 the same as the bell
 for the stage curtain. The play is
 about to begin.
 What has gone before. has been only
 incidental and preliminary. Two
 months ago, 1t looked as if the State
 was going to have a sooner" campaign.
 but the people refused to enthuse at
 that time over politics. Both candi-
 dates for Governor Lieutenant Govern
 or Cunningham and President B. B.
 Conner of the Railroad Commission ap-
 peared on the verge of making a fail
 campaign ten months in advance of the
 primaries. It is said by the friends or
 Dr. Cunningham that he did not feel
 that the campaign should open up so
 early but that as his opponent MT.
 Conner was continually on the stump he
 would take part. if for nothing else
 than to feel the temper of the people on
 an early campaign. Dr. Cunningham
 formally opened up his campaign and
 delivered several campaign speeches.
 The two gubernatorial candidates
 tried each out in a couple Of joint
 debates and then the joint discussions
 were put aside. Dr. Cunningham took the position that the people were not ready to become enthused or take an active part in a campaign which was pitched at such an early date. So far as speaking was concerned he thought 1t best to postpone such campaign un- til after the holidays. It Is understood. however. that the Lieutenant Governor and his friends have been at work to- wards the formation of a strong and ef- fective organization. They are keeping in close touch with the situation throughout the State, so as to do the most effective work when the fight Is on.
 Mir Conner has continued his speak ing campaign. He has gone from place to place in every section of the State. He has perhaps delivered three times as many speeches as the Lieuten- ant Governor.
 The call for the meeting in January
 as issued by Chairman Mallory speci- l fies that the object of the meeting is to fix a date for the primary election of next year Of course the committee could if 1t saw fit, order convention for the selection of Governor, but there | is not the remotest possibility that such | a thing will be done. Dr. Cunningham and MT. Conner have both expressed themselves as being heartily in favor | of a primary. In fact it Is not belIev- | ed that the small minority on the com mittee which has two or three times made a fight for convention, will be heard from. The committee will no doubt name a subcommittee to draw | up regulations governing the primary l and name a date It Is, however, possf-
 ble that the committee may decide at l the January meeting to fix the date of | the primary without waiting for any | report from a subcommittee.
 The main question to be decided is l whether it shall be a late primary or an l early primary, whether primary
 shall be held in April or one in August ] Heretofore when the State elections l were held in August the primary was held in April. But under the new con- l stitution elections in Alabama were fix
 ed to be held in November. Wherefore | an August primary would have the | same relation to a State election now as an April primary had when under the l old constitution. State elections were 1 held in August.
 l Moreover, the advocates of late | primary have the additional argument l that the registration books are op0led | in July when all the young men who | have come of age have their only op- portunity of qualifying themselves to | take part in the election. In an April | primary these young men would have | no chance to vote.
 The January meeting of the commit | tee will moreover, develop candidates | for other State offices. Rumor has il l that there are a number of prominent Alabamians who are thinking of offer | ing for one State office or another and I who are waiting to see what sort oi | action the committee Is going to take As soon as they get a line on the cam paign it is expected that several oi | them will make formal announcement