Omaha daily bee., 1906-03-02
HAMILTON COUNTY IS AWAKE
Republicans There Determined to Shake Off
Railroad Domination.
TRUSTED MEN ONLY TO Be CHOSEN
Delegation to Next state Convention
VIII BE UnimpeRchabIe and VIII
BE TO Represent People and
not Corporations.
tFrom a stan Correspondent }

PTom stan correspondent
AURORA, Neb., March 1.-(Special )-Po-
litical primaries and conventions in Hamil-
ton county are as little subject to railroad
manipulation as in any county in this sec
ton of the state which normally is rife with
railroad Vaccinations and Hamilton county
certainly is far less subject to such manip-
ulation than most of the counties The
margin between the parties is narrow. but
conventions and elections are really in the
hands of the people. They are alert and
exacting. 1t is the testimony of all that
the people never before were so alert and
exacting as they are today.
county Official republican, who is
an old resident and perfectly familiar with
the people and with conditions, says that he
never saw the people so unanimously or so
earnestly agreed as they now are in the
dominant purpose to do away with corpora
ton interference with governmental affairs.
II don't mean" he explained, merely the
national regulation of railroads. Our people
are for that OF course almost to a man.
They are heartily and enthusiastically for
President Roosevelt, and for putting a
strong hand on interstate transportation.
That goes without saying. and me of all
parties here are with the president.
But this is now not the thing which
his mind. What our people want and are
going to demand this year is actual, ines
capable control of Nebraska railroads. You
may drive north. south. east and west
through this country. and this is the one
thing you will find our people agreed in
and you will find it the uppermost topic in
everybody's mind.
Railroad Domineeriug UnbearabIc.
now for two years II was expected that
they would pay up, at least when the fed
eral court decided against them. The peo-
pie know that assessment of the railroads
is even now low and Inadequate and they
are only aggravated and incensed when the
corporations go on and doggedly fight every
inch of the way to the supreme court. 1t
only reveals and enforces the necessity of
conclusively subiugating the railroad cor
porations to the rule of the people. That
is the way our people are talking-and they
mean what II ~ say.
mo, Hamilton county republicans are not
going TO be deceived and manipulated. They
are going to know exactly where their can
didates for Office and delegates to the state
convention stand. They will not be baked
by any quantity of free passes. Things are
different from what they were ten or ff-
teen years ago. Every delegate to the state
convention will be a republican of known
reliability and independent of railroad in
fiuence, and all the delegates will be on
hand. 1t may be different in many coun-
ties where the old tricks and devices of the
corporation steerers still count. but there
isn't ghost Of a show for their success
here
Brown for senator.
~.
tor is noticeable here. Other senatorial
candidates are dismissed by a process of
elimination. But Brown sentiment is con-
ditioned solely upon his identification with
the popular resolution to reduce railroad
corporations to subordination to the public
interest His connection With the railroad
tax cases and with the grain cases have
directed attention toward him.
Talks with a score of republicans with
out exception here show that what is
wanted is the restoration of the state gov
eminent in all departments and functions
to the people. They are determined that
the corporations shall take their chances
along with Others under equal laws framed
and administered without favor in the in
terest of the whole people. The man who
United States senator, az governor, as
railroad commissioner. as member of the
legislature really stands for this policy will
get the support of Hamilton county repub-
leans in convention and in election. And
they are going to be exceedingly rigorous
in testing aspirants for II cir support.
This is the frame of mind in which re-
publicans stand today. There has been
little or no effort in an organized way The
conventions have seemed distant. The
masses have felt that there was time
enough to attend to details. The very
ur animity OF this county may perhaps