Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-27
UNJUST TO BELL

U HERE is much reason for regret
that the campaign for the gov
h ernorship of California has left
the high plane of its opening days and
descended to one on which personal
raneor is being threshed out. Cross
charges are being hurled picturing the
candidates of the two leading parties
as unworthy of confidence. The stu
alton is silly and discreditable. The
charges are for the most part unfair
and untrue.
This is particularly so with respect
to the attitude of Mr.. johnson toward
his adversary. In a recent speech he
made the charge that Bell was accept
able to the old machine and that Bell
had not in this campaign mentioned
the name of William F. Herrin. This
is so false, as proven by the files of
The Herald or any other paper, that
It must react on its author. Theodore
Bell has not once but many times re-
Gently flayed by name both the South
ern Pacific machine and its boss. He
has been doing it for years.
By making such a charge Mr.. John
son invites scrutiny of the records Of
the two men. Such examination will
not give Theodore Bell the worst of it.
for long before Johnson had taken up
the cause he now espouses Bell was
storming the seemingly impregnable
position of the S. P. and imperiling his
political future by doing 1t. Much of
whatever advantage Hiram Johnson
may enjoy today is the direct result of
the work that Bell did several years
ago in planting the seed of organized
opposition to the greed and corruption
of Herrin's autocracy.
It is probably no exaggeration to say
that in the last four years Theodore
Bell has used the name of the Southern
Pacific and William F. Herrin thou
sand times in speeches, interviews and
signed articles. He has been no less
positive than Hiram johnson in his
hostility and his purpose to kick them
out of California politics if he is given
the power. To say now that Bell is
silent about one or the other and has
become after his years of denunciation
and opposition suddenly acceptable to
Herrin is worse than untrue; it is in
gratitude on the part of one who is in
a large sense a beneficiary of Bells
pioneer work for free California.
Theodore Bell went to San Fran
cisco when it was the stronghold of his
party in the state, and with brave I'M
concern of his own fate fought the cor
rupt elements that had gained the
ascendancy by alliance with the same
clements he is now fighting. He openly
fought William r. Hearst when that
sordid trickster was endeavoring to get
ascendancy in the party; and this,
despite the fact that opposition to
Hearst and his two papers was popu-
larly considered to be fatal. A man
who has shown consistent hostility to
the forces of greed and corruption and
political bravery unmatched within
the memory of living men in California
is not one who in 4 twinkling has
gone over to the enemy's camp, and his
opponents are apt to make votes for
him by trying to so convince the
| people.
Both Hiram johnson and Theodore
Bell started in this campaign with
general confidence in their sincerity.
So far as we know there is no consider
able change in popular opinion. :, 1t is
simply a question with voters which
man most deserves credit for his work
and who is likely to serve the people
better in freeing the state and cleaning
its politics. With the public mind in
this attitude Mr.. Johnson cannot i'm
pugn the sincerity of his opponent with
any hope thereby of gaining support for
himself.