The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1906-06-29
WILL CONVENTION NOMINATE?

WILL CONVENTION NOMINATE?
The sentiment is growing among re.
publicans that the state central com.
mite made mistake when II includ
ed among the list of officers to be
placed in nomination at the state con.
, vention to be held August %, that of
a candidate for United States senator.
SO firmly is becoming the belief that
the movement is mistake that 1t
seems quite probable that when the
convention meets there will be a
strong sentiment not to nominate, but
to leave the matter for the legislature
to settle, as the law provides 1t shall
do. The committee unquestionably
acted in good faith when the call was
issued, and based the action on the
good results of two years ago, when
the state convention placed Senator
Burkett in nomination, resulting in
his election by the legislature at the
following session, without such great
loss of time as has frequently been
the case in years gone by. But the
situation two years ago and now, is
entirely different. Then there was
but one candidate in the field, and he
was the unanimous choice Of the re-
publicans of the state; now, there are
at least eight candidates in the field
and two OF them are engaging in a
struggle which means life or death
politically to one or both.
With the feeling that will follow in
the wake of a vigorous campaign
ending at the convention, soreness and
indifference will be the result, and it
seems to those people who are more
interested in the success of the re-
publican party at the polls than in
the preferment of any single indivi.
dual, that the whole state and legisla-
tive ticket is likely to be endangered.
This point Is very clearly illustrated
in the contest that is now going on in
Douglas county as to whether Rose
water delegates to the state conven-
tion shall be elected at the coming
primary Mr.. Rosewater has many
warm friends in his home county and
he has equally strong enemies in the
Fontenelle club, who are bending ev-
cry effort to accomplish his defeat
1t is predicted that Mr. Rosewater
will secure the Douglas county dele
strong chance of nomination if the
state convention concludes to follow
the call.
This means that if republican leg
islature Is elected, Mr.. Rosewater will
be given the United States senator
ship. But where the trouble is going
to be is to elect a republican legisla-
ture. In Douglas county the Fonte-
nellie club Is composed of some 1000
republicans, whose initiation consists
in part of an oath that they will fight
Rosewater on any and all movements
that he may advance, and when it
comes to the general election they
have enough members themselves to
defeat the legislative ticket of Doug
las county and to influence the defeat
of republican candidates in number
of close counties throughout the state,
thus throwing the legislature into the
hands of the democrats and making it
impossible for any republican to be
elected to the senate.
This is but sample of the reasons
advanced why the convention should
not nominate. 1t is perhaps the
strongest point in the argument
because today Mr.. Rosewater is the
strongest candidate in the field. But
the same illustration applies to 9TH
er candidates, and with Brown,
Crounse, Curry, Mathews, Warner,
Millard and Kinkaid all in the field
more or less actively engaged against
Rosewater, it is readily seen that to
nominate in the convention is to make
one man an active worker and to
make seven men and all their friends
at least more or less Indifferent, and
the result is likely to be that not only
will the legislative ticket suffer but
the governor and the other state Off
GERS will stand less chance of sue
cess, and it is not believed that this
is year when we should add anything
to the burden of trying to elect the
state and legislative tickets.
BLIND AND UNPENSIONED.
/ The old soldiers of Norfolk, who
fought for their flag in the war of the