The Harrison times., 1912-04-06


state. He declined to take advice
from people who claimed to be his
friends, and made Rome howl with
the denunciation he gave interests
and former members of the legisIa-
ture. Though he knew it woald
lose him votes, Gov, Donaghey went
into the home of these former Iegis-
Ilators and made his speech there all
the more bitter. He seemed to know
that defeat was staring him in the
face and TO be determined to tell the
people the bare truth while he had
the opportunity. Gov, Donaghey
apparently knew that the opposl-
ton had spread the news which
would dscrcdt the truths he was
telling, but that did not prevent him
! from making the statements lie
simply bowed his head and went
into the fight, determined to 60
down with a fight all his friends
would be proud Of
All this fight was almost a lone
hand. Men who had pro6tcd by the
hand of the Governor stood back
and watched the fray, and when
they saw the hopeless defeat Of the
man who had been their champion,
they quietly began to advise their
friends to support Robinson, and
the landslide was on. This had be-
gun by the time the Donaghey head
quarters were opened, and when Eu-
gene Williams, Of Forest City, took
ahold of the campaign, he saw what
he had to battle against, but like
Gov Donaghcy, he had the nerve to
tackle it. He was fighting for a
friend, and felt that he could afford
to accept defeat for the same
Though he has been defeated, the
reforms inaugurated by George W,
Donaghcy will continue, Other gov
crnors to come will gain the credit
! for them, because they will recognize
the right in these measures and
work to bring them to a successful
termination,
While George W. Donaghcy is step
ping out of Arkansas politics as sud
! denly as he came into it four years
ago, it cannot be said that the state
is going to the bowwows just be-
cause Joe r. Robinson has been
elected Governor-or the same thing
by getting the Democratic nomina-
ton, No finer material could have
been selected out of which to make
a chief executive, While he may diff
fer in many material points with the
administration Of Gov, Donaghey
! if he wants to make a great govern,
or he must continue certain OF the
reforms which have been started,
and it would be hard to find anyone
who would intimate that Zoe j.
Robinson has not the ambition TO
make a great governor OF a great
state,
In all his life Joe 7, Robinson has
been a clean man His vote in Con-
grcss was never the subject Of adj
verse criticism. His record in the
halls of Congress may not be very
long on the introduction fbiIIs nor
in their passage, but no follower OF
good government could hold that
against member Of the greatest
law making body Of the world, In
Producing bills will not make the
statesman-if it did Arkansas has
some pin heads which have served
in the legislature, who today would
be entitled to halOs and endurance
medals, The men in the state legis'
lature who introduced the most
bills, occupied the floor the major
portion of the time and who ap'
peared most often in the public
prints, have never been the big men
of the biennial gathering Of the state
lawmakers, The men who have
gone quietly about in the legislature,
working on a few important bills
which were introduced by another,
are the men who really controlled
. things, and men who know some
! thing about congress say Joe Robin
son has been q power there,
With his oratory, Joe I, Robinson
. swept the state He gathered about
him half dozen young men, who,
! though they appeared in the back
! ground, were the backbone Of the
Robinson organization, They per-
! fected the closest organization over
! the entire state that Arkansas has
ever known, These young men
would have won the race without
the aid Of certain interests which
attached themselves to the Robin
son band wagon and supplied much
of the sineWs Of modern political