Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1906-10-26

be- a winner Governor Herrick Cry>-
talliZed his sentiments into the ey-
pressed statement that he believed
after breakfast talks would take just
as we'll as after dinner speeches"
And they did. The trial trip Of two
days was 50 highly successful that half
dozen more runs were at once ar
ranged for. Governor Herrick's cam
paiCn was not Il success from his point
Of view. but the wiSeSt politicians ad-
nit the success of the electric ear trims
and rrophesy that the trolley will be
considered rs necessary in campaigns
If the future as literature and orators
\ few spellbn lerS on a we'll scheduled
electric car can reach as many people
in one day as the same party can in a
week when steam trains and horses
are relied upon The trolley has not
this great advantage over the autOmo-
bile. although with the former n longer
schedule may be covered in shorter
time and more people reached.
During his campaign Governor Her
rick made liS speeches Of from five to
nine minutes each. The longer ones
were in halls and shorter ones from
the ear platform. or if n doorstep.
hitchlng block or store porch were
mandy the candidate left his car and
with an inviting sweep of his arms
would bring the waiting crowd within
his hearing
As a candidate for governor the late
President Mckinley set new record
for speechmaking In Ohio. When he
had finished his tour of the state he
was told that he had made eiglty-Six
speeches.
You mean" retorted the campaign
er. that made one speech eighty sx
times"
Governor Herrick almost doubled the
feat, but it would haze been impoSSi-
bic 10 more than have equIled the Me
kinley record without the use Of the
trolley car. and if he We're asked about
it he would reiterate President Nc
Kinley's sentiments and say he had
made the same speech or parts of it
14S times.
1t will not be amss to set forth a
few figures in this story They show
that it is work to campaign state
Governor lIerrick Travelled almost
2.500 miles in his journeyings across
and over the state. About 1000 miles
Of this run was over trolley lines OF
the 1iS speeches close to half were
possible because of interurhan rail-
ways. The thousand miles via trolley
and the sixty-nine attendant speeches
We're made in period of six days.
while the remaining 1900 miles and
seventynine speeches required four
weeks time. On the trolley trip the
governor and his party talked to no
fewer than $4,000 persons, while in the
seventy-nne other speeches he did not
meet more than $4,000 people.
The trolley meetings We're very we'll
advertised. They were arranged in adj
vance so that local papers could make
announcement of the schedules. Small
handbills, carrying the schedule of
trip over an entire line Or system were
printed, and these Were put in the in
terurban cars where those who rode
might read. In some Instances a band
travelled ahead of the party in spe-
cal ear. This would attract people to
the meeting place in advance of the
arr ival of the gubernatorial party.
On the carefully outlined schedules
every speech was designated as Il
stop" For instance. one trip was out
of Cleveland over the Lake Shore cleo
tric railway The schedule called for a
five minute stop" at Rocky River. ten
minutes at Dover Center. forty min
utes in the city of Lorain and SO on
over the line all the way to Toledo un- |
til an entire day had been spent in |
reeling off close to six hours of solid |
speechmaking. The schedules We're |
be held in town or city where it was |
worth while stopping to talk to 800 to !
2,O0U auditors for two hours. And un-
der the old plan only two such meet |
ings could be held in day-one in the
afternoon and one at night.
On these trips extra help was car
ried-that is, stump speakers of state
and national repute were advertised tC
appear with the candidate. 1t was
planned that the governor should talk
half of the time allotted to the stops"
and then while another orator was
pouring hot shot into the ears of the
willing victims the candidate should
shake hands with as many of his con
stituents as was possible before the
car whistle footed the going warning.
This programme was varied sometimes.
The warning whistle caused more
than mere annoyances. With the whis-
ties toot-toot the motorman turned on
the subtle electric fluid. If the speaker
was addressing the interested popuace