Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-05-09
LAUGHING At ABE FUNK.
Political History Recalled in
Which Good Man Was Be
trayed By Friends
DoLLlvER WAS AN ABErTER
Swung Tenth District to Shaw at the
Rehest Of the Hubbard Crowd and
to Preserve His Own Political Hide
- Junior Senator Declared a Weak
opportunist.
opportunist.

Suuior o0uAeVs Os@sSSS W
opportunist.
Especial Washington Correspondence,
Washington, May 9.-Senator DoMi-
yer in his recent speeches in Iowa
appears to have invited some discus
sion as to who discovered che railroad
issue and was first in opening the
fight that led to the enactment of the
rate legislation which is widely ac-
cepted as the great achievement OF
the Roosevelt administration. The
senator is quoted as reaching Tor
large share of the credit, which he
proposes to appropriate to himself.
Perhaps the recounting Of little Iowa
history will help determine this ques-
ton of credit.
Let the matter be taken back to the
state convention at Cedar Rapids IN
1897. At that convention Funk and
for governor Funk had in the prev
ious session of the legislature been the
recognized leader of the senate. There
had been tight over the Temple
amendment; the once-ftlmous sChesh-
ire amendment" plan for taxing rail-
roads had been pressed but could not
be passed; Funk, Gilbsrtson. Garst,
Healy and their friends of the Cum
minis wing had forced into the stat
utes legislation to introduce advanced
ideas on taxation Of interstate prop
critics, which the railroad lobby felt
was very 1nenacing because it threat
ened to establish a principle which
would soon or late be applied to rail-
roads, and would mean increase Of their
taxes.
Turning Down Of Funk.
Funk lived in the northeast corner
Of the Eleventh district and had long
represented in the senate district
whose major part of area and popula-
ton was in the Tenth. His relations
with politicians in the north half OF
the Tenth had been most friendly and
even intimate. Harvey Ingham,
George Roberts. Tom Way and all their
friends were for Funk for governor.
Funk stood to get the Eleventh district
because he lived in it, and the Tenth
because the north end of the Tenth
was for him, regarded him as belonging
to it, and insisted that he must have
Its support. Other Tenth district can
.didates were kept out of the race in
his favor until close to the time TOR
the convention, when an unknown at
Denison, one Shaw, was sprung by
Judge Hubbard and the Dies Moines
Register. Shaw was to be the Tenth
district candidate, and the purpose was
to Funk; with it and the Eleventh
and lot Of scattered support in other
parts of the state Funk would be all
most certain of the nomination.
Hubbard and Blythe were in close
quarters that year. They simply must
win. They took up Parrot and used
him as their apparent choice to fight
Funk, using Shaw to split the Tenth.
The pot was seething terrifically when
the delegates moved on Cedar Rapids
in the hottest week of July for the
convention. Early on the job was
George E. Roberts; he was an ardent
Funk man. George didn't propose to
have any Trojan horse Of the railroads
dragged in to split the Tenth district.
The Tenth must be for Funk.
Shaw Used to 6etray Funk.
Another man who got there early
was Ed Heller, of Sioux City, postmas-
ter and political representative Of Per-
kins. Heller, it had been widely re-
ported, was to be convention manager
for Funk. It turned out that his func-
ton was to 'betray Funk out of the
south end Of the Eleventh, just as
Shaw was to deprive him Of the south
end OF the Tenth; the story of that
betrayal, the most shameless I have
seen in some little observation of
practical politics in Iowa, does not
need be retold here. Everybody in
Iowa who watched politics in those
days, will remember it; and the cir
cumlocutory denials that were offered
later were so completely exploded that
there is no longer anybody left even
of the conspirators who seriously de-
mics the deal.
Shaw was to take half the Tenth
from EunK, 01elZeE was " USu oy
Funk in the Eleventh., manage his
campaign so as to injure instead OF
aid him, and then dump him at the
right moment in favor of Shaw = the
Hubbard candidate. George D. Perkins,
pledged to Funk and owing three or
four congressional nominations to him.
was a party to the deal. He has always
denied it. But the evidence is against
him. Here is one bit of it:
Mr.. Perkins left Sioux City the Sun
day before the convention, on the Mil
waukee e. st. Paul train, for Cedar
Rapids. He walked from his newspa-
per office to the station. and on the
way talked with o. P. McCrea. What
he said was afterwards related to the
writer by McCrea, on whose mind it
made deep impression.
'At that time" said Mr.. McCrea,
"Shaw was not known to be a serious
factor in the game. He had few del
egates in the Tenth. and the Register
was for him. Nobody knew him or sup
posed him of consequence in the situa-
ton. asked Mr.. Perkins what he
thought Of the situation and the pros
pect for Funk. to whom Woodbury.