Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-06-22
NEED Of PRIMARY JAM.
Results in the Campaign to
Date Make An Interest
ing Study
MANY INSTRUCTED DELEGATES
State Never Saw a Campaign Before
Where There Were So Few Delegates
Sent to the Convention Uninstructed
Contests Come From Counties With
Caucus System.
Special to Tin1es-Republican.

Special to Times publican.
| Des Moines, June 22.-All the coun-
ties of the state in which the primary
is used have acted in the republican
campaign and of these nine have gone
| for Perkins and twenty three for
Cummins. OF the nine that have gone
for Perkins, one was Montgomery
county, where the Blythe managers re-
fused to count the votes on governor
in one entire precinct, the delegates be-
ing thus instructed, voted for Perkins,
tho the county was really carried for
Cummins. Another of the nine coun-
| ties that went for Perkins where there
was a primary vote was Pottawat-
tamie county, where the red ballot was
used and railroad bosses stood about
| the polls to see that nothing but red
| ballots We're cast by the railroad en-
ployes. With fair primary both of
these counties would have gone for
| Cummns. A study of the individual
counties that have gone for the differ
ent candidates is causing politicians
and legislators ito give some thought
to the primary election idea and is dis
closing some reasons for enacting a
statewide primary election law, that
are recognized now by practically ev-
erybody, which were not recognized by
a large element in the legislature be-
fore.
Iowa never saw a party campaign II.
| which there We're so many instructed
| delegates as in the campaign now
| drawing to a close and of the thirty
three counties that have held primary
elections registering the vote OF the
people of the county, there has been
| but one county in which contesting
| delegates have been selected, and that
| is Delaware county, and the contestinS
delegates there will not come to tbs
4 state convention, the sole and only
reason for the contest being that Cum
Minis got the most votes. OF the other
counties, Perkins as we'll as Cummins,
everybody is perfectly satisfied that
the will of the majority has been regis
| tered with the exception OF Pottawat-
TAME and Montgomery, in one of which
abuses We're fragrant, but would not
be experienced with a, state primary
with penalties attached for violation.
and in the other, Montgomery, therI
was simply a direct refusal by a
| Blythe henchman to count the Cum
Minis votes.
1
| ton of the one from Delaware which
is no longer contest, come from coun-
ties where the caucus system is in
vogue. These are Jefferson, Wapello,
Des Moines, Jasper, Chickasaw and
Scott In each of the six counties the
contest grows directly out Of the
abuses Of the caucus and convention
| system in which a minority Of Blythe
| henchmen have tried to steal the whole
county convention. Not being allow
ed to do so they have bolted and nam
| ed another ticket. In Wapello county
an attempt was made to throw out
one of the Cunlmins wards just be-
cause by leaving the ward in Cummins
had a majority. In Jasper after the
convention was over and the Blythe
people discovered that they were
whipped, they went off by themselves
and selected delegation. While
Chickasaw Is placed in the contested
column it is in reality only protested,
no contesting delegation having been
selected The protest is made by the
Cummins men because delegates refus-
ed to vote the instructions of the pre-
cinct caucus, an abuse that would new
er be faced in legalized primary.
The counties that have held pri-
mary elections and have gone for
Cummins are: Audubon, Boone, Bue-
ma Vista, Butler, Calhoun, Clay, Della
ware, Dickinson, Emmett, Franklin,
| Guthrie, Hamilton, Hancock, Hardin,
Humboldt, Marshall, Polk, Poweshiek,
Sac, Story, Winn ebago, Worth, Wright
-twenty-three
Those with primaries that have gone
for Perkins are: Adair, Cass, Clarke,
Louisa, Madison, Montgomery, Page.
Pottawattamie, and Ringgold-nine.
One county that. divided its vote ev-
emily, was Lucas.
OF the counties that have acted un-
der the caucus and convention system
in this campaign Cummins carried ~,
Perkins 20, Rathbun 4 divided between
Perkins and Curamins, 2; uninstruct-
ed, 5.
The map of the state, showing the
comparative results of the campaign as
to counties that act under the pri-
mary and those that act under the
caucus and convention system readily
shows why the progressives are for
the primary and will make another
fight for it at the. session of the legis-
lature next winter. With every show
of reason the progressives claim that
with a legalized statewide primary
election law providing for a vote on
all offices in the gift Of the state and
for penalties for corruptionists and il
legal voting they would have carried
Monona, Osceola, Des Moines and Per-
kins home county-Woodbury They
would Furthermore have carried Du-
buque county in a way in which it
could not have been bought and would
have had Chickasaw so that the will
of the majority could not have been
defeated by two delegates selling out.