The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-01-28
A PRIMARY.
The Conference Committee
Makes Unanimous Report
Ensuring the Passage OF the
Bill.
Split Primary Feature Is
Finally Eliminated.
OIL ON THE WATERS.
All Nominations Will Be Made
in August.
Lieutenant Governor Fitzgerald
Makes Suggestion.
Senatorial Nominee Selected by
OIL ON THE WATERS
All Nominations Will Be Made
in August.
Lieutenant Governor Fitzgerald
Makes Suggestion.
Senatorial Nominee Selected by
Plurality in Districts.

The house and senate conference
committees on the primary electlon
have this afternoon finally reached
basis of compromise which clears up
all difficulty and insures the enactment
of a primary election law at the pres
ent special session of the legislature.
The senate yields the "split primary
feature for which it has been contend
ing.
The United States senator will be
nominated at the time of the regular
primary in August. The candidate
who receives the plurality of the vote
in a plurality of the counties of the
state is declared the party nominee,
regardless of whether that county
sends a Republican, Democrat or
Populist to the legislature.
In other words, If there are more
Republican candidates for the legis-
lature instructed for Stubbs than there
are for Long, or Hoch, or Bristow,
Stubbs is the party nominee. and it
makes no difference how many of the
Stubbs counties fail to elect Republi-
can representatives.
This proposition for compromise was
proposed to w. r. Stubbs by Lieutenant
Governor Fitzgerald at the conference
held some days ago. Mr.. Stubs at that
time rejected the proposal. 1t is said
that j. L. Bristow and Cyrus Leland
were opposed to the plan, though Mr..
Stubs himself looked with favor upon
it.
Today, whenSthe senate conferees
withdrew from the committee meeting,
they were again asked by Lieutenant
Governor Fitzgerald to present his plan
to the house confereeS. After some
discussion, Senator Fitzpatrick agreed
to do this, and when it was suggested
in the conference committee, w. r.
Stubbs and Robert Stone were called
before the committee and agreed to
the proposition.
will be accepted by the senate as the
senate has not been especially violent
in opposition to this plan.
This outcome of the fight will be re-
garded as victory for w. R. Stubbs,
who gets nearly everything he has been
fighting for.
When the conference committee
brings in its report late this after
noon or this evening, it will probably
report the Stubbs bill substantially as
passed by the house with the amend
ment which was suggested by Lieu
tenant Governor Fitzgerald.
Some say that the senate conferees,
and especially Senator Fitzpatrick,
cession on behalf of the senate be-
cause they felt that the senate was
likely to break away from the CaId-
well split primary in case another
conference committee should be nee
essary. 1t thus became necessary for
the present conference committee to
reach an agreement, and Senator
Fitzpatrick and w. r. Stubbs were
brought together and induced to ac-
cept the proposition.
Before the Agreement
There was trouble in the legislative
conference committee on the primary
election law.
They had furious disagreement at
the Tuesday night meeting of the
committee, which was so heated that
the meeting dissolved without doing
anything.
Senator F. Dumont Smith accused
the committee of being dilatory, and
marking time when it should make al
report.
Representative S. L. Ryan said: "If
anybody on this committee has been
dilatory 1t is Senator Smith"
Smith remarked that the gentleman
from Brown was lobster or words
to that effect, and the gentleman from
Brown proceeded to read the riot act
to Smith for not attending the meet
tngs of the conference committee.
When 1t was over, the atmosphere was
so full of electricity mat the com
mittee realized it would be useless to
talk business any further.
Another meeting was held this
morning at o'clock This norninp
there was a clash between Senator
Smith and w. A. Morgan. the Demo-
cratic member. Smith wanted Morgan
to join the committee in a unanimous
report. Could Smith get unanimous
report, he would be free to break avyav
from his pledges to the square deal
crowd in the senate Smith told MOI
gan that the Republican members of
the committee were going to get to-
gether and settle it anyway, and he
might as we'll come across. Morgan
absolutely refused, and intimated he
would consider it an honor to disagree
with the other members of the com
nittee. Reports are rnar most of the
morning session was devoted to the
operation of laying down on Nor
gan"
After this mornings session of the
committee, which lasted onlv A short
time, Mr.. Ryan appeared in the house
looking glum and determined and
made the statement to his friends
that he would never consent to a re-
port in favor Of the split primary
This may be the result of Ills row
with Senator Smith Mr.. RYAN said
he was in favor of reporting a dis
agreement as soon as possible.
Soon afterwards, Mr.. Ryan disap-
peared, and it was said that he was
off somewhere with Senator Smith
and Senator Fitzpatrick, trying to