Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-04-04
FOLK STAGGERED
IOWA DEMOCRATS
The Bourbons Undertook to Ex-
plain the Primary as Undemo-
cratic and Bossism
THEN FOLK TALKED SENSE
Speaker Who Had Preceded the Cover
nor Found Himself in Rather un-
comfortable Hole-Democratic AlIi-
ance With the standpatters Not
Helping Their Prospects.
TBy Ora Williams.1

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, April 4--The democrats
are doing little else than talk of their
great Jeffersonian banquet and the
great speech of the governor of Mis-
souri,. Among members of the legis-
lature there is some difference of
opinion. good many Of them felt
chagrined that Folk, whose reputation
as a reformer cannot be questioned and
whose sincerity is not open to attack
now. should have taken the position he
did in regard to the method of getting
at the expression of opinion Of the peo-
pie. Governor Folk hit the standpatter
democrats right between the eyes and
they are staggering yet. While he is
democrat he made 1t evident that he Is
no bourbon.
How it came that John Reed, most
estmable Des ,Moines lawyer, should
have fallen into the trap of explaining
undemocratic and device Of the
bosses for thwarting the will Of the
people, is not known; for he must have
been aware of Folks position. But
Reed undertook to define the demo-
cratic position on the issue between
primaries and caucuses. Then Folk
talked sense for time and the crowd
went wild with delight.
.'If the gentleman who preceded me
had ever run for governor of Missouri
and had had all the politicians and the
bosses and the pass distributors and
the heelers against him and nobody
but the people for him, he would have
a better appreciation of the virtue OF
THE primary system" said the governor.
And again, "the town meeting is the
delight of the politician. 1t always
goes the way the local boss wants 1t to
go. If there are more present against
the chairman than for him he simply
declares his will and adjourns the
meeting"
And so it happened that Governor
Folk made a stirring address in de-
fense of the primary system in the Sc
lection of delegates and in the naming;
of all candidates for office. He was
not swerved by the scheme to have his
address forestalled by local democrat
who would undertake to state the posi-
ton of the party here in Iowa.
But it leaves those democrats of the
legislature who joined with the stand
patter republicans In scheme to de-
feat all primary legislation in Iowa in
pretty bad shape.
While the republicans are now we'll
along in their campaign for the selec-
ton of state ticket to be voted on in
Iowa this year the democrats say they
have not given the matter any consider
alton whatever. A good many Of them
insist that the right thing to do is TO
wait the decision Of the republican
state convention and then to make
nominations to fit the case. If the Cum
Minis people win out the democrats will
put up a corporation man for governor;
if the Blythe men carry the convention
and dictate the nominations they will
play to catch the votes of the progress
sive republicans they believe can be di-
verted to their cause. An effort to get
the democrats to mention any persons
likely to be nominated on their state
ticket failed. They have given the
matter no thought They have rot
even looked up the matter of nomina-
ton for congress