The San Francisco call., 1910-05-17
ALIEN LAMBS
START ROW in
LEAGUE FOLD
Endorsement Claims of Judicial
Candidates Not in Ranks
Cause DiscOrd
Southern Leaders Want Shaw,
While 0ster Has County
Certificate
By GEORGE A. VAN SMITH

01OANSA@ ~ v nv oAtAA -
The selection Of a candidate for as
sociate justice Of the appellate court in
the second district bids fair to result
I'm a serious ruction in the southern
California fold Of the Lincoln Roosevelt
league
The southern leaguers are distracted
by the charms and claims of two can
didates. Strange as it may seem to the
uninitiated neither Of the judicial
charmers is Lincoln Roosevelt
Lacquer Neither has ever violently op-
posed the machine Both owe the ju-
dicial ermine they now wear TO ma
chine nominations. They are Associate
Justice Victor E. Shaw of San Diego,
who wishes TO succeed himself. and
Superior Judge Frank Oster of San
Bernardino, who wishes to trade his
job for one on a higher bench
shaw has the backing of the machine
and of some Of the biggest of the
leagues bigwigs in the south. Oster
has no machine leaders, but he has
sope anti-machine leaders with him,
and he has secured an Endorsement from
the Lincoln Roosevelt league organiZa-
tion in his own county.
JUDGE OSTER'S STRENGTH
The San BernardinO leaguers and
some Of the Los Angeles anti machin-
lists are strong for Oster. They in
sist that the Endorsement of JEFF
McElvain for denomination to the
state board of equalization is not po-
litical charge against san Bernardino.
on the contrary, they declare that Nc
Elvaine should be charged to Los An
geles county, since he would have been
turned down cold as a machine striker
II ii were not for the fact that he re-
sisted the attempt to make Los An
geles bear her fair share of the burden
of state taxation.
For Oster ii is urged that the machine
turned him down four years ago when
he sought the place TO which Shaw was
nominated and elected It is insisted
that while Oster has not been an anti
nachinist before, he now is one and
is anxious to break up the program
which provides for the job he covets
going to another. According to Os-
ter's friends Shaw is nothing but a
machineman and the league can not
3ndorse machinemen and preserve its
reputation for consistency.
The opposition TO Oster presents an
equally good case and is even more Wig
orOus They say that the league is
formally committed TO the removal OF
the judiciary from politics by keeping
good men on the bench. None contends
that Shaw has not made good. So,
TOO, has Oster on the superior bench.
Shaw's Lacquer friends contend that Os-
ter is not entitled TO their considera-
fion because he did not start the hunt
for the leagues Endorsement until after
he had failed TO land the machines
support.
WHOM DID WILBUR MEANT
They decline to disclose their au-
thority for the charge that Oster first
sought the machines support. but the
charge may be grounded upon a speech
made by Judge Wilbur, the leagues
Los Angeles candidate for associate
Justice OF the supreme bench.
shortly after he had been indorsed
by the league Judge Wilbur made
speech at Los Angeles, in which he
panned Herrin, Walter Parker, all the
lesser lights of the machine and those
members of the judiciary whom he said
truckled TO the machine for their nom
nations. Judge Wilbur told his au-
dience that he knew of one judge who
went to Herrin and asked permission
TO run.
Judge James of Los Angeles, who
also wants place on the supreme
bench, suspected that Wilbur was aim
ing a saucy slap at him. He also sus-
pected that the Los Angeles public
would share his suspicious. He inter
viewed Wilbur. James partisans say
that the interview was spirited. Be
that as it may, Wilbur issued an open
letter declaring that James was not
the prudent jUrist to whom he had re-
ferrej in his speech.
Some other Los Angeles judges with
tender toes wanted certificates of char
acter. There were no more open let
ters, but it was whispered from Los
Angeles TO San Diego and thence north
to san Francisco that Wilbur had re-
ferred TO Oster. If that be true the
leagues candidate for justice of the
supreme court would find it difficult to
support Oster for the appellate bench.
HORSE HAIU & ITS