Evening star., 1909-03-14
WAKEFIELD LYING LOW
Leaders Fail to Draw His Fire
on Amendment.
REFUSES TO BE TRAPPED
Believed to Be Biding His Time to
Strike Hard.
CROTHERS' MOVE. NO SURPRISE
Governors Announcement in Favor
Of Disfranchisement Anticipated
by Those on the Inside.
MOVE. NO SURPRISE
Special Correspondence Of The Star.

BALTIMORE, Nd, March 13. 1909.
When Gov. Crothers came out this week
flat-footed for the disfranchisement
amendment his announcement caused lit
tie or no surprise among the regulars.
There has really been no mystery about
the governors attitude toward the Straus
measure. but he merely chose to cast a
veil of secrecy over his plans. In the in
terview published-Which. by the way.
was carefully prepared and submitted to
the big leaders-the governor calls atten-
ton TO the fact that former Gov. War
field in his inaugural address In 1904 ad-
vocated the Acknowledgement of the zig
norant, unretiecting, irresponsible voter.
Just why the governor at this date should
quote his predecessor may seem strange
| to the novitiate in the game of politics,
! but not SO with the close student
The big bosses of the democratic party
have become practically convinced that
| Warfield intends to swat the amendment
| in about the same manner as he did
three years ago. when on the eve of cleo
| ton he came out with a powerful appeal
| to the independent democrats in par
| ticular and the people in general to de-
feat the Poe amendment, and succeeded
in showing under the measure by over
20 900 ma jority. Therefore the democratic
bosses seek to draw fire from Warfield at
| this time to counteract the effect OF any
declaration he may make against the
| amendment. Mr.. Warfeld will not be
caught by any such shallow trick. and
| the bosses will have to wait until the
Eproper time to hear from Mr.. Wartield.
An Issue in 1908.
The elimination Of the colored vote was
the prominent issue in the campaign of
! 1903. when the democrats won substan-
lott fny
state offices and a three-fifths majority
in the senate and house of delegates. This
democratic success was not entirely due
to what they believed was the popularity
of their paramount issue, but to the popu-
| larty of Warfield, the candidate for gov
ernor to his we'll known independent
views and to the lack of those resources
by the republicans SO necessary FOR the
conduct of a successful campaign In
| Maryland, resources which have become
more and more necessary every year
| When the democrats were ready to put
into shape their campaign promises Sen
ator German did not call into confer
| ence in Washington, while framing bill
to submit the proposed suffrage amend
ment the representative party men, IN
| Guiding the retiring governor, John Wal
ter Smith; Isidor Rayner, candidate for
| the United States Senate, and other prom
inent democrats Of the state, who had
| agitated the suffrage question long be-
| fOr6 senator COTlldn Hdu taken II up
Attorney General William Sheppard
Bryan believed it to be his duty as chief
| law officer of the state to draft an
amendment which he thought would meet
the conditions in Maryland With Gov.
| Warfield he submitted his proposition to
Senator German, John P. Poe and Sc
| lect coterie of party leaders in Wash
| ington a the home of the senior senator.
Bryan Plan Turned Down.
The Bryan plan was promptly turned
down. and the amendment prepared by
Mr.. Poe was subsequently approved by
Senator German, who in the meantime
! had submitted it 10 several United States
senator's and lawyers. Some unimpor-
! tant changes were made in the Poe plan.
after which it was sent to Annapolis TO
! be adopted by the three-fifths demo-
/ cratic ma jOrity of the two houses OF the
! general assembly
| The democrats were then in the throeS
! of bitter contest for the United States
| senatorship Isidor Rayner and John Wal
| ter Smith being the candidates. The
! general outline of the amendment was
known by several leaders at Annapolis
but even they were not familiar with its
specific provisions When the time came
| to take up the amendment conference
| Of democratic members of the two houses
| was held. There was warm opposition
to the measure. Senator John Gill-nOw
a representative in Congress from the
fourth Maryland district-and several
members of the city delegation We're pos
tive in their views. There came very
near being ii bolt from the conference
and there was serious talk of a "rllmp''
| caucus to undo what done al the
| conference, which in some way never eX-
planned, was trans formed into caucus.
and which was put out carrying all
| the binding force of a conference