The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1907-01-13
THE WEEK IN POLITICS

True to predictions, the railroad
commission was recognized Tues
day by the selection of r. Hudson
Burr as chairman Newton A Bitch
succeeds Jefferson B. Browne as a
member Of the commission. and Royal
c. Dunn. Of Madison, secretary, and
Charles G. Puleston, of Monticello,
Stenographer, were reelected by the
new commission. Mr.. Dunn Is the
popular editor of the Madison Recor-
der and has been the secretary of the
commission since 1902.
The position of convict inspector to
succeed Mr.. Bitch has not yet been
filed, but the governor is expected to
hand down the appointment any day.
1t is needless to say that when this
new Office is appointed there will be
many disappointed politicians over
the state, as it is known there are a
score Of candidates for the job.
MaIIory's Announcement
II is possible that some people in
the state believed that Senator Nal
lory would not be a candidate to sue
coed himself, but those close to the
senator have never doubted but that
he would be ready to enter the fight
when the time came. There has been
much speculation as to this man, or
that man running in case Mallory did
not try for reelection, and it has
furnished some amusement for the
state press, but there has never been
any question about the senator's in
tentionS in the matter with those who
stood close to him. Senator Mallory
has made an enviable record in the
senate and he will be a hard man to
beat.
That there will be opposition to his
election there is little doubt, and it
is going to be lively campaign Con-
gresham Sparkman has virtually de-
clared himself q candidate and the
opposition to Mallory will undoubted-
ly center on the Tampa man. Frank
Adams has been spoken of in connec-
ton with this race. and no doubt
Adams would like to get into the
fight, but he cannot afford to run
against Sparkman, and Frank Adams
is too shrewd a politician to go into
a losing fight. With the race between
Sparkman, Adams and Mallory, the
latter would be nominated in the first
primary, for the reason that the vote
of the two former gentlemen would
be divided. Sparkman would likely
get the biggest part Of the anti-Mal-
lory vote but hardly enough, with
Adams in the race, to prevent Nal
lory's election.
Boards Aspirations.
1t has been rumored that John
Beard, Of Pensacola, will enter the
senatorial race, and it is possible he
may do so. Mr.. Beard viii go to Tai
lahassee next April with the inten-
ton of securing the necessary legisla-
ton to disfranchise the negro in Flor
ida, and he hopes to make enough
campaign thunder out of this to blow
him into the senate. His idea is to
have Florida disfranchise the negro,
and then have the law tested in the
federal supreme court If that court
were to hold it valid, the decision
would have the effect of declaring I'M
constitutional the fifteenth amend
ment to the constitution of the United
States, and there is no question but
what the case would attract the atten-
ton of the whole nation. If Mr..
Beard can do all this, and he believes
he can, it will make him a national
Inquire, but just what effect this will
have on his senatorial chances re-
mains to be seen. From the introduc-
ton of his proposed amendment to
the constitution, in the Florida Iegis-
lature, to the date of the decision of
the federal supreme court on the con-
of the amendment, will
cover long period of time, and a
thousand obstacles in the path of his
hopes will have to be overcome to
carry the question safely from the
Florida senate to the court at Wash
ington.
Lamar's Announcement.
A few days before the announce
ment of Senator Mallory that he would
be a candidate for reelection Con-
grSsman Lamar was interviewed by
the Tallahassee Sun and stated en-
phatically that he would not be cam
didate against Mallory. He thought
Mallory would be in the race and he
could not afford to fight him for two
reasons; first, because he was NAL
lory's friends; and second, because in
a three-cornered fight between him.