The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1907-08-08
MISSISSIPPI
PRIMARY
|IT WAS REMARKABLE IN A NUN
Der OF WAYS
RESULTS ARE SURPRISING
no Combines, Rings, Cliques
or Slates-The Politicians Forecasts
Nulihed-The People Demonstrated
Their Independence of the Bosses


The Times-Democrat referring to the
primary election held recently in Missls-
sippi for the nomination of United
States Senator State and local officials,
says:
Until the committee promulgates its
findings the supporters of the senatorial
aspirants and of the three leading gu
bernatorial candidates will doubtless
maintain their claims of victory for their
respective leaders. 1t may be that re-
counts will be demanded i'll counties
where the vote is particularly close and
where the discovery of error in the re-
turns might possibly change the result.
But there is small prospect of wholesale
charges of fraud and even less apparent
ground for them. The primaries appear,
on the contrary, to have been conducted
with exceptional honesty and fairness.
and it is doubtful if the most extreme
partisan would care to cast any asper-
sions upon the election officers who pre-
sided at the ballot boxes over the State,
The recent primary was remarkable
in number of ways, not the least OF
which was the apparently complete alb
sence of rings. cliques and states. An
analysis of the returns shows beyond
question that the candidates for both
senatorial and State Offices ran upon
their merits and were so voted upon.
The voters evidently exercised their own
Judgment in casting their ballots. There
was no wholesale delivery of counties
or even of precincts by bosses. 1t
was this remarkable independence OF
the Mississippi voters that baffied the
campaign managers and nullihed tore
casts based upon earlier returns. The
prophet who pre- Heated his estimate OF
the vote in a particular county Or pre-
cinct upon the fact that prominent
party leader was known to be support
ing certain candidate found himself
hopelessly at sea when the returns came
in. Every wielder of the suffrage APP
pears to have done his own thinking
Nor does there appear from the returns
to have been any working agreement OF
combination between the candidates for
the higher and the lesser Offices. Every
candidate depended upon himself and his
friends rather than on sthe well-worn
and odous political trades and combina-
tons which hourished under the old
convention system.
1.-TWO other features of the Mississippi
primary are worthy of remark, the first
being the recordbreaking vote polled
According to the estimates in hand
fully o5 per cent of the registered voters
awaited themselves of the suffrage privi-
lege. The election of county officers
may have aided in bringing out the vote
but practically every voter cast his ballot
for the senatorial and State officers, in
dicating that each had taken lively in
terest in the general canvass and was
ready to register his opinions. In most
Of the counties the interest in the State
election overshadowed that in the selec-
ton of local officers, with whom the
voters might have considered tl1emselve:
more vitality concerned.
THE other feature is the distinct cleav-
age between the urban and rural voters
rs shown by the support accorded the
respective senatorial candidates in thu
two sections. Mr. Williams outran hi!
opponent in the towns and cities of Mis-
sissippi, while the voters in the countr,
districts appear to have rolled up ma
jority for Governor Vardaman. In thu
race for Governor this distinction IS les
apparent, but the returns from the sen
atorial contest indicate that the Missis
sippi townsman and the farmer are be
ginning to disagree somewhat upon pc
litical questions and that their differ
ences may in the course of time becom
as sharply accumulated as is the case II
other States.
Bat the most important and crafty
ing feature of the recent election is tn
fact that it has scored another triumph
for the primary system After hotl
contested campaign waged along legiti
mate and honorable lines, remarkabl
free from personalities or bad temper
the largest vote in the States histor
was polled. and the result shows beyon
question that the voters of Mississippi
retain their independence of thought an
action. reach their own conclusions an
vote their own convictions. The benefit
|of the primary system have been admin
|ably demonstrated and the Mississil