St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1907-02-06
Concerning Lieutenant Governors.

Concerning Lieutenant GOVERNORS.
The state press took considerable
interest in the 'feeler" put out by the
Ludlow Tribune anent the political am
billions of Lieut.-Gov. Prouty and the
best reply to the editorial came from
that able journalist who presides over
the destinies of the ST. Adams Messenger.
We reproduce in full Col. Frank L.
Greene's editorial;
At this stage of the preliminaries to
the contest for governor in 1908, 1t
ought to be possible for newspaper to
offer some well intended objection to the
remarks of the contemporary without
being forthwith suspected of all manner
of Interior political purpose or even
pledged or implied support OF any can
didate The Messenger has espoused the
candidacy of no man for the campaign OF
1908 and it has no intention of doing so
for many a month to come, if it does
then. 1t proposes to maintain posi-
ton of honorable independence and to
await the proper time when all men and
all newspapers ought to do their fair
share, whatever it may be, toward help
ing to select a representative and
thoroughly competent government tor
the next biennial period. We have al
ready had enough of states and combines
and similar machine methods in this
state to last us for years, and we can all
afford to wait now for a little while and
let events shape themselves as far as they
should before the public feels called upon
to take hold and finish the shaping of
them according to its own mind.
In the meantime however, The Messen-
ger is moved to say. frankly, that it
believes that the fact that he is now
Acknowledgements is no reason in and
of itself why George H. Prouty should
not legitimately enter the field as a can
didate for the governorship, ifhe wants
to do so. He has as much right to do it
as Lieut. Zed S. Stanton had in
1904, and as more than one lieutenant
governor has done before him.
The Messenger will say again what it
has said many times in years past, that
it has no patience whatever with the
so-called ''nOn-promOtion rule and
mountain rule" and all similar follies,
Moreover it does not believe that way
down deep in their minds the sensible
voters of this state will ever let such
cheap continuance of the politicians
stand in the way of their electing a man
of their own choice to any office they
want him to have. The "non-promo-
ton rule )" like the mountain rule" is
merely the flimsy device of the politicians
to enable them to more easily divide the
public Offices among themselves. 1t helps
to prevent scramble by giving each his
part and turn. 1t was not designed in
the public interest originally and is not
so invoked to-day, although the public
to chastise any audacious attempt Of
any selfrespecting man to ignore it.
The state of Vermont will be in a sorry
predicament when she so binds herself
by such senseless folderol that good men
and ambitious men in any and all Offices
or in any and all parts of her territory
are not free to offer their talents to the
public service, and take their chances ir
the square deal of clean canvass and
an honest election. There will never BE-
any danger that we have too many gooC
candidates for our public offices, but
there may easily be danger that we 81
needlessly circumscribe the opportunitie
and eligibility of good candidates tina
we work the most mischief to ourselves
Every rule" of this kind that tends t.
narrow down the choice of public offic
to certain few men in favored position
or localities, plays directly into til
power of a machine" Some day II
voters will realize this more than the
appear sometimes to do now.
II George H. Prouty, now lieutenan
governor, wants to be a candidate fC
the higher Office, it is his right.
Charles II. Stearns, once lieutenan
governor, wants to be a candidate Fl
promotion, it is his right If Zed
Stanton, once Acknowledgements wan
to be candidate for the governorshi
it is his right. If any other man tn
ever held the Office of acknowledgement
desires to seek promotion, it is his rigl
Whether the public or The Messene
will support any of them in their p,
fectly laudable and legitimate ambiti
is quite another matter.
If we are starting the campaign
1908 now, we are very i'll advised.
have had politics enough in the past 70
years to give us very proper desire
few brief months of peace If Vermo
paid half the attention to the mater
concerns of her public life that she dc
to the biennial scramble for Office,
would compare more fayorably with !
neighbors in prosperity than she does.