The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-11-12
PARTY PLANS WARM
FIGHT IN LEGISLATURE.
Commissions Will Be Done
Away With for Sake of DEM
ocrats and Several Laws
Will Be Repealed.
BY Ellis SearIes.

luuldHdDOllc, ANof. -. az ies~s 49,
Old sore in the democratic ranks has
be healed before the day for the
senatorship and it is doubtful If it can
be hearalded before the day for the
election of successor to Senator
James A. Hemenway.
1t is the old feud between John w.
Kern and Stephen b. Fleming of Fort
Wayne. These two democratic lead
ers do not speak. In fact, they have
not spoken to each other for eight
years. And now that Kern is candi-
date for senator, Fleming is out to
beat him. Fleming is not candidate
himself but Edward G. Hoffman. of
Fort Wayne, democratic district COM
mitteeman from the Twelfth district.
Ii his man and Hoffman is candi-
date against Kern.
It is a matter of democratic history
in Indiana that Kern was a strong fac
tor in the defeat of Fleming for state
chairman some years ago. Fleming
was a member~of the state senate in
19O01902 His record on certain leg
Islation that came before that body
was such that he was looked upon by
certain of the party leaders as a cor
poration man pure and simple. Sud
denly Fleming developed desire to
become chairman of the democratic
state committee. He is rich and am
bilious and he made fight for the
chairmanship. He lined up several
r. &nfn II
looked as il he would win. He had
the backing of Thomas Taggart, Sam
uel e. Morss and James Murdoch, the
latter of Lafayette and other strong
party leaders.
kern's Fight on Fleming.
Kern, however, did not believe
Fleming would make a satisfactory
chairman, because of his record in the
senate. Fleming still had another
session of the legislature to serve as
senator and Kern feared that if he
should be elected chairman of the
state committee the democratic party
would be held responsible for the
things he did in the senate during his
first session, so Kern started to pre-
vent Flemings election. Thomas Tag
CART was at that time candidate for
District chairman of the Seventh dis
trict and if elected would have voted
for Fleming, but Kern showed him
the situation so 1t is said, and the re-
suit was that Taggart got out of the
race for district chairman rather than
be forced to vote for or against Flem-
Ing.
Maj G. V. Menzies. Of North Ver-
non, who is now candidate for sena-
tor against Kern, was member OF
the state committee from the first dis
trict at that time. and he stood by
Fleming to the end. But Fleming was
defeated, receiving only three out of
Ehe thirteen votes.
W. HI. O'Brien. of Lawrenceburg,
was elected chairman that year. Ever
since then Fleming has had it in for
Kern. For four years he was also at
swords points with Taggart, but they
buried the hatchet in the campaign of
1906 but left the handle sticking out
10 they could get to it any time.
Kern Expects Fight.
Now that Kern is in the race for
senator, Fleming is against him. Kern
says he expects Fleming to fight him.
II is undoubtedly true that Fleming
has brought Hoffman into the race
and there are also many persons who
believe that he is behind the candi-
aacy of Menzies because Menzies
stood by him for chairman of the
ttate committee.
1t is pointed out here that it will
probably be Fleming's plan to bring
but as many candidates as possible in
Ill parts of the state in order to split
getting majority.
So there is the fight on the senator
Dhip. The longer the scrap lasts the
hotter it will become and the wider
viii grow the breach between the fac.
lions. Everybody recognizes kern's
elaim on the senatorship and the rank
and file of the party throughout the
state is for him, as is shown by the
lact that he is receiving an average
bf one hundred letters a day from
aemocrats pledging their support.
Democratic county committees and
democratic clubs are adopting resolu-
ions favoring Kern and in some
places mass meetings are to be held
n his interest
But on the other hand it is also a
TACT that Fleming is the best organiz-
or in the democratic party in this
state. He is resourceful and as full
81 energy and vigor as an egg is OF
meet. He usually accomplishes what
le sets out to do and now that he is
In the trail Of John Kern it may be