Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-08-15
DEMOCRACY IN CHAOS
Party in Maryland Is House
Divided Against Itself.
DlSFRANCHlSEMENT ISSUE
State Convention Declares It Is
Paramount Question.
LACK OF LEADER IS SHOWN
German Not a Candidate for Sena-
tor-Wanted Primary to Pass
on Rayner.
Special Correspondence of The Star.

Special Correspondence Of The Star
BALTIMORE. Md, August II. 1909
The democrats have held their state
convention and. in language unmlstaha-
Bile. have made the Acknowledgement
amendment the paramount issue IN the
fall campaign.
The convention again clearly demon
strated that the party lacks genuine
leader fine hand behind the scenes TO
pull the wires and set the maniklns
jumping. 1t is painfully evident that the
old democratic party-the German Rasin
machinc-haS passed out of existence Tor
ever.
And signs are not lacking that the rem
nant of once all-powerful party is
slowly dsintgrating. The present lead
ers-city and state-are suspicious of each
other. are all working for personal gain
In power. and all lacking in that quality
of leadership which makes the compo-
nent parts a useful political machine.
In the old days. when the party had
real leaders such a convention that OF
last Wednesday would have been impos-
sibe The leaders then had differences
of opinion. but their little battles took
place in the room of the boss at the
Hotel Refnert and tine public never
knew-and probably will never know-of
the many bitter clashes that occurred
between the state boss and the city boss
There was tinesse to the game i'll
those days that even the bitterest enc
mics of the ring could not help but
admire. The game as played, last We'd
nesday must have caused the old leaders
of the triumphant democracy to turn i'll
their graves.
Bungling in Convention.
The convention and the conferences
prior thereto were bunging affairs. and
the public knew that the platform was
full of buncombe on the evening the con
vention closed. II was a habit of the old
bosses to keep the buncombe end of plat
forms secret until after the legislature
met. or at least until the polls closed.
The leaders of the party are at odds
today because they realize that their
power is slowly but surely slipping
away from them. and each has dit
ferent scheme TO bring about an oil
garchy in the state. They are unable to
get together because they lack a big
leader who will take the reins and
issue orders.
Hence the party enters upon the fight
this fall-with its supremacy a. stake
divided against itself on the franchise
amendments The county leaders
rcd hot for the StrauS plan, but the
city leaders are lukewarm In fact. the
city leaders would be happy indeed If
that amendment did not have to so on
the official ballot this fall.
4 new factor in the tight against tine
amendment has doomed up in the demo-
cratic association opposed to the dis
Reimbursement amendment. which was
organized through the instrumentality
of Leigh Bonsal. prominent attorney,
who was in the thick of the battle
against the Poe amendment.
Bonsal's View of Situation.
In discussing the action of the demo-
cratic convention. Mr.. Bonsal said to
The Star correspondent today:
The democratic state convention
should not have made the suffrage
amendment the paramount issue of the
campaign. Independent democrats. like
myself oppose it because it is brought
forward by bitter partisans to secure a
party advantage.
1T cannot be shown that Maryland
has suffered under the present suffrage
law. There is absolutely fear of
negro domination because that popula-
ton Is only IS per cent of the Whole.
The suffrage amendment contains
no educational test. 1t makes a heredl-
tary class and it is clearly opposed to
the spirit of the Constitution Of the
United States
Regarding the plan to give Baltimore
increased representation in the leGiS-
lature, Mr.. BonSal said:
The manner in which the plan is
brought forward in the democratic plat
a
few words. positive. uneauivocal state
ment could have been made. even If the
intention was to give simply an in rrease
in the house of delegates. But, inten-
tionally. monstrously long sentence of
80 words is employed TO mix up the
suffrage amendment and the just rep
resentation amendment-two things which
are absolutely distinct.
1t must be clear to any one reading
this sentence that the county democrats
when the suffrage amendment is defeated
next November. the large adverse vote
OF the city contributing thereto. will de-
cline 10 give the increase rather vaguely
suggested in the platform
German Not a Candidate.
Considerable gossip has been caused by
the bitter night of State Senator Cor
man against the Endorsement OF Senator
Rayner by the state convention, in which
the Howard county leader won. The i'm
preston has gone forth that young
German will enter the primaries against
Rayner this fall.
According TO close friend of German.
such Il not the case To The Star cor
respondent this gentleman said today:
The action of Senator German was
perfectly logical. He opposed the in
dorsement OF Rayner simply because
there is law providing for direct pri-
mary for the federal senatorships
Had the convention Endorsed Rayner
II would in effect have barred all as
pirants from the primary. In other
words, such action would have commit
ted the party organization to Rayner
and would have reduced the holding OF
a primary TO d farce pure and simple
No. ! do not think German will be a
candidate for the United States Senate
this time. He is a young man. and can
afford To wait. lie is right in line for
the state leadership and can afford to
bide his time.