Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1910-12-02
Oregon Is Ready For Direct Vote
On Presidents.

Oregon, the first state in the
union to adopt the initiative, the
referendum, the recall, the direct
primary and the direct election of
! [. S. senators, has gone ahead
again on the popular Legislation
road.
Oregon has just voted on %
initiative measures. With but ore
or two exceptions the voters Of TIE
entire state voted right; the bad
bills were killed, the good ones
were made laws.
A state that gave Roosevelt a
plurality of $4,000 and Taft 24OOO
in the state election Just past, by
a decisive majority, elected Os-
wald West, democrat for govern
1r against acting Gov. Jay Bow
crman, a republican, recommend
I'd to the voters by a party as
srmbly," The assembly plan was
device created by former U. S.
Sen. ChaS. W. Fulton and the
remnant of the old Oregon land
fraHd ring to destroy the power
Of the direct primary. The "as-
semtly" stripped of all author
ity under the direct primary law
named regular" republican
ticket and relied wholly on party
prejudice of. a republican state to
carry it through.
The only reason Oregon elect
ed West because the voters of
the state demanded the absolute
right to- choose their own candi-
dates at the primaries.
With Vests election, and the
defeat Ot every assmblyman on
the republican ticket, the party
leaders admit that the convention
system has forever died in Ore
gOn.
On top of this Oregon passed
Sen. BOurne'S revolutionary pres
idential preference bill. This will
so far as Oregon is concerned do
away with national party cOnven-
tiOns, and in the next preSiden-
tlal campaign the people of Ore
gOn, will, by direct vote, declare
their choice for president and
that before any of the national
conventions meet, which means
that Oregon will be the most con-
SplcuOuS state in the Union from
the national political standpoint i
the next presidential election.
Oregon will choose its delegat-
eS to the national convention by
direct vote and instruct them to !
vote for the npOnlp'S choice for
president.
Oregon, by a majority, adopted
what is believed to be the most
drastic employers liability law
yet on the statute books of NE
nation. In many districts the
vote was 2 to | for the measure of
the labor unions and against the
psuedO liability law put forward
by the employers association and
big business generally.
Another remarkable measure
passed by the voters is a law
that makes a start toward cutting
the knot of legal redtape that has
tied up the civilizde world tighter
each year for centuries. By a
good majority the voters of Ore
gon decided that a twO-thirds
jury verdict is sufficient in civi
cases.
Local judges almost had apo
plexy when they discovered their
sacred citadel besieged, but a lot
of legal buncOmbe has been wip-
ed out in these parts. Under this
new law the state. constitution is
so amended that county courts,
county clerks, sheriffS and prose
cutting attorneys may be done
away with any time the people
think they can get along with
out these highly ornamental off
cials. Oregon does not have to
elect or pay these officials now
wherever it does not need them.
1t also eliminates a lot of the
technical distractions in litigation
Further, the way is now open for
each county in Oregon to have a
commission form of government
if the voters desire it.
The home rule bill giving towns
and citieSexcluSive control of the
liquor traffic, was passed, as was