Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1908-01-10
BOLT FROM JUPITER
THE PARTY THAT ADVOCATES.

The Oresonian Shows What the Effect o.
the Primary Law Has Been-It Washe.
Its Hands OF Results-The Party in Ore.
son Has Virtually Quit Business-It Ha.
Desencrated into Absolute Ring and Ma
chine Rule and Cheap Personal Control.
Greg, man. Jan. I'd.
There is no Republican party or.
sanizatlOn in Oregon, and no person,
or group OF persons, can have the
courage Tor temerity) to attempt one.
10 do SO would be to make ring"
or machine" either of which is ex.
ceedingly odious. and each more obi
GUS than the other.
The primary law has abolished
parties in Oregon, and especially the
majority party. 1t does not leave il
even a party of factions, which might
indeed effect something, since some
KIND OF party allegiance would still
be acknowledged. 1t makes politics a
personal scramble, a contest of indi.
vlduals, who stand for nothing at all
except the desire OF the individual to
get the Office. What's the use of yot-
ing for the man unless you know he
stands for principles and purposes
Iorce and effect? And how are you to
force and effect? And how are you to
do anything except by acting with a
party! Is each man, or small grOup.
to act separate and disconnected
part? That is the necessary conse-
quence of the primary law.
The party with which the Oregonian
has acted these fifty years has abdi-
Gated. 1t has quit business 1t has no
rallying point. The primary law has
cut from under 1t every possibility of
organization. 1t has not platform, and
can make none. 1t has no central point
or organization. around which men
may rally. A few men vote for an
individual for nomination. He may
have fifteen or twenty per cent of the
vote. The other eighty per cent have
not wanted him, and have voted for
others or haven't voted at all. He will
not be elected. The primary law has
abolished the representative system.
Men f1ttest for the duties of official
place Will not enter into this scram-
Die. Self-appointed candidates, whom
the people do not want, will obtain
the so-called nominations You know
then what will follow. We have all
seen 1t. The candidates are beaten be-
cause they represent nobody but them.
selves and few personal adherents.
The OregOnidn excuses itself from
leading a fOrlorn hope. in the name of
party. in this game. Since others do
not consider themselves bound to SUD-
port candidates so nominated, 1t will
not. 1t has had enough of that kind of
thing.
There can be no party without party
organization. And there can be no or.
ganization that does not rely on the
representative system. Under present
conditions a so-called Republican nomi.
nation. pretending to represent the
party that has borne that name, Is a
palpable fiction. 1t will be the same
also. after while, In the Democratic
party. Neither party will have any
means OF knowing what It is contend.
Ing for, and will fall wholly into the
hands OF cheap pretenders. No man
who respects himself will nominate
himself and push for office. The Ore
gOnidn begs to excuse itself from any
further attempt to establish principles
and purposes through the methods Gre
ated by the primary law. 1t would ad-
wise no man to seek a so-called nomi-
nation under this method or system.
For the system Is not representative,
and there are no party principles or
party obligations, in such a scramble.
When you have destroyed party and
abandoned what party stands for, moth.
Ing Is left but cheap personal contest
among self-nominated men. Mighty
few will find inspiration in that. The
Oreg0ntdn has been slow to admit or
to accept the abdication of the Republi-
can party of Oregon. but has been com.
PEELED to do so. 1t struggled a long
time. and after repeated discourage
ments. for 1t thought the Republican
party ought to hold together, even In
spite of the primary law. But that
became a lost hope: and-the rest is
silence.