The San Francisco call., 1910-02-13
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1
SSs@s3s~sS:~:as not afford to maintain create
9 ! the expensive personal organi-
q 3 cation which he deems neces-
3 ! sary to success. Doubtless Sen
! ator Flint knows what he is
e%4+++.*++444s about and has correctly sized up
the situation
This means that the political situation in Cali
fornia has been completely changed by the direct
primary. In the old comfortable days OF the
convention svstenl-comfortabe for the machine
it was a comparatively simple matter to make
campaign for senator if you had the backing OF
the organization.
A STILL HUNT
remember in the early part OF 1894, when |.
was running a newspaper in southern California
county seat, Billy Hamilton slipped into town
under cover of night. He kept away from me,
because doubtless he knew | understood what he
was after. In few hours he had primed his
man. or thought he had to vote for Perkins for
senator. 1t simply question OF picking his
man and passing out the orders. In those days
and down to the time of the Santa Cruz conven-
ton the discipline of the machine very nearly
perfect 1t happened, however, that in the
instance under notice Billy Hamilton nearly
slipped up, because the he picked was rascal
and CRATER who had not the decency to stay
bought. and after he got to Sacramento it needed
some sharp cracking of the whip to hold him i'll
line But, in fine, they made him swallow his
medicine, and they have taken care not to run
anv risks with him since.
PAID IN SALARIES
l don't mean that this man was paid any money
on behalf of Perkins that any bribes passed.
They may have contributed something to the
candidates campaign expenses, but it was not
much, and he was expected to be content with
his pay as an assemblyman and whatever he could
make on the outside. The organization had been
brought to such perfection that its tools paid
of the public treasury in salaries and whatever
else they could make in the way of honest graft
whenever allegiance to the machine was not
required Of them. The only expenditure required
of the organization a certain amount OF money
to finance the campaign. The burden was divided
and one hand was made to wash the other.
After Billy Hamilton appointed deputy
collector of the port George Hatton took up the
work for Perkins and later for Flint. Little more
was required than to the men and pass out
the orders
CAMPAIGNING FOR A YEAR
Now it is quite different. You may have
observed that this year every candidate is making
his own personal campaign. Frank Jordan, run
ming for secretary of state, boasts that he has
already shaken hands on it with $4,000 voters all
over California. Charley Curry, running for gov
ernor, is doing the same thing with persevering
industry. Other are following their example.
1t means that under the direct primary orders
don't 90 The organization is for the present
absolutely at sea and founderng. 1t is quite
likely that in time the professional politicians will
find means to systematic and control the direct
primary because it is not possible to devise
machinery that the ingenuity of man not ut
mately defeat or neutralze, but up to date they
have not discovered the means
A RISING SPIRIT OF INSURGENCY
This is why Frank Flint is not taking any
chances. He knows that the result is quite
tain without a ruinous expenditure of money, and
even then he might easily fail, because there is
an angry spirit of insurgency in the air and the
people bitterly their long servitude to the
Southern Pacific machine.
Under the direct primary there will always be
two campaigns and the first will be the more
arduous and more expensive. With the conven-
ton system it comparatively plain sailing
after you got your nomination. Party spirit and
moderate campaign assessment did the rest. If
your party top, in nine cases out of ten
you
All that is changed Charley Curry started cam
paigning nearly year before the primary. Frank
Jordan began about the same time. Charley
Belshaw was at it nearly as early as anybody No
doubt the exactons of this preliminary cam
paign had much to do with leading Governor