The morning journal-courier., 1908-01-04
Flatly Refuses to be Bound by the Call for the Republi- can State Con.
 vention.
COMMITTEE OvERSTEPPED
Senator Declares 1t Has Presented Certain Requirements Not Authorized by the
 Statute.

SlHclHndIl, O., Jan. o.--A IdC TeIuSdi to be bound by the conditions of the call made last night at Columbus for the republican state convention which is to name a state ticket and select delegates-at-large to the national con- vention, is the conclusion reached by United States Senator ]. B. Foraker and announced in statement given to the press tonight.
 Primaries for selection of delegates to the convention were provided for in the official call issued last night by the state convention committee by vote of IA to '.
 The method provided is sharply crit ieized by Senator Foraker. The state ment in part follows:
 T am not sure that understand the call, although I have read it several times. If I do, 1t is another case of asking for bread and getting a stone. My idea in requesting primaries was to have the election of delegates brought home to the people so that In each ward, for instance. we could select our immediate representatives. This call makes all that impossible.
 In addition It prescribes require ments not authorized by the statute and not within the power of the state convention committee. Some of the re- Quirements are in direct conflict with the statute Some of them are very burdensome. One, in particular, is the requirement that before there can be a Taft ticket and a Foraker ticket there must be petition signed by twenty times the number of the can didates for delegates and alternates. That would mean in this county about four thousand signers or petitioners.
 The unreasonableness of the re- requirement., that there shall be four thousand petitioners to authorize a ticket is shown not only by the fact that the law makes no such require- ment, but that in cases where the law authorized county and city officers to be nominated by petition, only 300 names are necessary to nominate any county officer, and, only fifty names are necessary to nominate any munic- ipal ofi1cer.
 "I6 in the contemplation of the law, fifty signers are enough to ou- thorize placing mans name on the ticket for mayor of Cincinnati or Cleveland, certainly it is beyond any thing contemplated by the law that four thousand signers should be nec- essary to nominate lot of delegates and alternates merely to attend the state conevntions. Such condition is unnecessary as we'll as burdensome. It should be enough for each party to select his own ticket and then let the people vote their preferences.
 The counties are not bound to fol- low the order of the state convention committee, but whether they will do so or not, am not advised. So far as am personally concerned, I shall make no effort to comply with such uncalled for, illegal and arbitrary conditions"
 Akron, O., Jan. 3.--'I am for For aker, first, last and all the time," United States Senator Dick said to- day, land the report that I desire to climb into someone else's bandwagon Is false"
 Thus the junior senator from Ohio described his attitude toward Senator Foraker, incident to the recent action. of the republican state central com mittee, which concluded by the Fora ker forces to have been decidedly In fa- y(f of Secretary Taft, in his candi- 5dacy for the republican presidential nomination.
 Senator Dick said he was not pleased with the action of the committee in de- claring for early primaries and a March convention. "I think the time set for the primaries and the convention Is entirely too early" said Senator Dick All of the candidates of the call are arbitary and hard to comply with. This is especially true of the feature which provides for the nomin- ation of delegates by petition. Every one should be given an opportunity to vote for delegates. No provision is made in the call for candidates for state offices
 ity to vote for any candidates except for Mir. Foraksr and Mir Taft. The voters will have no way of expressing a desire in the matter"
 Senator Dick said he would announce in few days whether or not he would be a candidate for delegate at large to the state convention.