Los Angeles herald., 1910-08-18
THE TWO MACS

~ ALIFORNIA'S great contest Of
Tuesday will be measured through
out the country chiefly by the re-
suit of the congressional fights. IT
will be explained to the world, of
course, that Hiram johnson and the
ticket he led to such an overwhelming
victory was insurgent, but the country
will not attach the importance to the
state ticket that it will to the outcome
of attacks on the Cannon congressman.
The situation here was largely paral-
leled recently in Kansas and Iowa,
where state officers were also chosen,
but even in the case of Stubs in Kan
sas, who won the nomination for gov
ernor by big majority as the radical
foe of all special privilege. the public
outside of the state showed not much
interest. 1t was the fate of Murdoch
and the others who typifed the ex-
tremes in Washington that the world
was watching. So it probably was with
respect to the California election.
The country will look to the con-
gressional results, and when it finds
full fights made against Cannon stand
patters and representatives of Wall
street, while in three districts the stall
warts were unopposed, it will look upon
the insurgent victory as far less i'm
portant in scope and results than it
really is.
James McLachlan was always a small
man in Washington and little known
outside of the circle that bowed and
scraped on the doormat of the speakers
room, hat in hand. Whatever promin-
ence he had he owed to his position as
a courtier to the car and his willing
ness to do anything without question.
Duncan McKinlay, however, was
member of ability who in making him
self felt in congress also attained fame
through the country. He, too, was
trucker to and tool of Cannon, and his
defeat by William Kent, also widely
known for his Chicago reform work,
will attract widespread attention.
Clifford Pinchots championship of
Kent also added to the national in
terest, especially since Pinchot came
direct from Roosevelt to whale McKin-
lay and show up his connection with
the tariff plunderbund and the railroad
interests. The enthusiastic vote for
McKinlay's retirement in the second
district, like the invitation received by
Calderhead of Kansas from his con-
stituents to go away back and sit
down, will count for a good deal in
demonstrating Californias sympathy
with the progressive movement, be-
cause they were close to the speaker.
AS for the three representatives who
were unopposd in their districts, 1t is
not by any means certain that their
troubles are over. The real campaign
has only just begun, and there is plenty
of time to see that they give an ac-
counting of their stewardship. If there
is not enough virility in the Republi-
there ought to be some live Democrats
of sound principles who are willing to
look out for those districts in Wash
ington for while. The storm is not
going to blow over before November.
1t is something of a wonder that
men like McKinlay and McLachlan can
be 50 easily beaten when it is remem-
bered how the system built up by their
kind is used to entrench them. Both
of them flooded their districts with
Recommendations of them-from Wash
ington, mailed under government frank,
though purely selfish in purpose and
political in nature. This advantage,
which in the aggregate costs the gov
eminent vast sum of money because
the railroads have to be paid for haul
ing it, is an enormous one.
This INSCRIPTIONS use of the mails
which is one Of the chief causes of the
annual deficit of S17,OO0,OO0 in the oper-
alton of the postoffice department, is
an evil that has been made newly con-
spicuous by the campaign just closed
The next congress, which will be Demo-
cratic or insurgent, is likely to put
stop to 1t.