The Columbus journal. (Columbus, Neb.) 1874-1911, 1908-11-18


Without the votes of the optionist.
the breweries would have been on the
losing side and Sheldon would have
been elected. The railways did moi
cut much of q figure in the contest, u
railway men usually vote their senti
ments regardless of what the officials
Of the company desire.
When the Republican convention
met at Lincoln q platform was adopted
On that platform the candidates went
before the people and asked for 70
election. The platform was silent on
the question of county option. II
was not considered . party issue. But
the absence of q county option plank
in the platform left some extremely
sore spots in different parts Of the state,
and the radical press that regarded
county option Is of more importance
than the election of TAFT and the Re
publican state ticket, opened . cam
paign against candidates for the legis-
lature who would not pledge them
selves to obey the demands Of Elmer
Thomas, the Rev. Carnes and other
members and agitators Of the Anti
Saloon League. The Albion News,
Osceola Record and Columbus Tri-
bune were the most radical Of the
prohibition press in demanding county
option and insisting that it was the
issue of the campaign in Nebraska.
1t was not until after the campaign
for county option had opened that the
breweries entered the contest and de-
cided to throw their influence to Shall
lenberger. Previous to this there was
a rumor that Governor Sheldon had
promised that he would sign . county
option bill, although it is said he
never made . public statement to that
effect, as he did not consider the ques-
ton an issue in the campaign. The
action of the Governor in refusing to
be coerced aroused the ire of the
Thomas and Carnes clique in the Anti.
Saloon League and a circular endors-
ing Shallenberger was sent out from
Omaha, and the county optionists
obeyed the demands of the chief agita-
tors and went to the polls and slaugh-
tered the best Governor the state ever
had.
In Boone county, which is usually
Republican, Shallenberger received .
majority of 121 over Sheldon, but the
county option candidate for the legis-
lature received majority Of 404 votes
over his opponent.
In Polk county, where the county
option candidate for State Senator on
the Republican ticket received a
majority Of 3S3, Shallenberger, with
the assistance of the optionists, had
majority of 159 over Sheldon.
In York county, another stronghold
of the county optionists, Sheldon was
slaughtered by prohibition votes.
The prohibitionists have always
been the foe of the Republican party.
Wherever the Republican party has
taken up and endorsed or fought for
the radical ideas of those opposed to
the liquor traffic the party has got the
worst of it. After adopting . prohi-
bition law in Kansas, the prohibition
lists assisted the Democrats in electing
Click governor of the state. In Iowa,
the prohibitionists drove Cummins
into temporary obscurity twenty-four
years ago and prevailed upon the Re-
publican party to endorse . prohibi-
ton law. At the next state election
Iowa elected Boise, . Democrat, gov
ernor, and reelected him two years
later. In 1888, in North and South
Dakota, the Republicans endorsed
prohibition, and later the administra-
ton in both states changed and the
Democrats came into power. At the
late election the endorsement of radi-
cal ideas by the republicans of Indiana
and Ohio, resulted in the election of
Democratic governor and legislature
in the former state, and the defeat of
the Republican candidate for COVER.
nor in the latter state.
If Republicans hope to be success
full two years hence they must get
together together and work
together. If the party allows the rad.
ical element to control and dictate its
policies and platforms it cannot hope
to succeed.
Convert to New Greed,
At . dinner recently given in honor
Of Augustus Thomas, the playwright,
Mr. ThOmaS 6iacnaao6 hia voronf a.