The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1912-08-14

It large. The fourth Taft delegates
seat was u~ncontested. The three con-.
testants admitted they were not elect
ed by the convention which sent the
Taft delegates or by any other. They
only contended that If the Roosevelt
forces had had a majority they would
have been elected. There were 1856
delegates summoned to the convention
by its call. There were 40 Of these
whose seats were contested. II all of
these had been conceded to Roosevelt
1t would have made the Roosevelt vote
297 votes less than a majority. The
appeal to the committee on credentials
from the decision of the national COM
mittee was abandoned, as 1t ought to
have been.
Michigan.
In Michigan the state convention
had in it about 1900 delegates. There
were only two counties in dispute or
contest. One was Wayne county, in
which Detroit is situated. and the other
was Calhoun county. The evidence
left no doubt that the Taft men car.
ried by a very large majority Wayne
county, but 1t was immaterial whether
this was true or not. because, leaving
put both Wayne county and Calhoun
county, the only counties In contest.
the Taft delegates o~utnumbered by
several hundred the Roosevelt dele
gates. and they had a clear majority
~,rA - AA~ <4An1 -,,~oh>w ~ ~1k4e $hot
should have been in the convention.
The contest was so weak as to hardly
merit recital.
In Texas there were 249 counties, OF
which tour have no county govern
ment. The 245 counties under the call
Of the convention were allowed to have
something over 1000 delegates, repre-
senting them, who were given author
ity to cast 24S votes. OF the 245
ties there were ninety-nine counties in
which the total Republican vote was
but 1000, in fourteen of which there
were nc Republican voters. in twenty.
even Of which there were less than
ten each and in none of which was
there any Republican organization and
In none of which had a primary or con-.
vention been held. 1t was shown that
Colonel Cecil Lyon. to whom had been
assigned as referee the disposition of
the patronage Of the national Repub-
lican administration for ten years in
the state, had been in the habit Of con.
trolling the Republican state conven-
ton by securing from two federal of.
fceholders in each Of these ninety-nine
counties a certificate granting a proxy
to Colonel Lyon or a friend of his to
represent the county as If regularly
conferred by a Republican county or
ganization. The national committee
and the committee on credentials and
the convention after the fullest investi.
cation decided that these ninety-nine
counties in which the Republican vote
was so small and in which there was
no Republican party, no convention, nc
primary, no organization, was not the
proper source for a proxy to give a
vote equal to that to be cast by the
other 146 counties in which there was
4 Republican organization and in
which primaries or conventions were
held. The two committees therefore
held such ninety-nine proxies to be
illegal and not the basis Of proper rep
resentation. The two tribunals who
heard the case decided that they should
deduct the ninety-nine votes from the
total Of 245 and give the representation
to those who controlled the majority
Of the remainder. The remainder was
152 votes, and out Of that the Taft
men had carried eighty-nine counties.
having ninety votes. This gave to the
Taft men a clear majority in the state
convention and with 1t eight delegates
at large.
WARRINGTON.
The contest In Washington turned On
the question whether the Taft dele
gates appointed by the county com.
mittee in King county, in which Seattle
II situate, were duly elected to the
convention or whether a primary.
which was subsequently held and at
which Roosevelt delegates were elect.
ed. was properly called. 10 that its re-
suit was legal. Under the law the
county committee had the power to de-
eide whether it would select the dele
gates directly or should call a primary.
In some counties Of the state one
course was pursued and in other coun-
ties the other. In King county the
committee consisted Of $50 men, the
majority Of whom were for Taft. and
that majority, acting through its exec.
utive committee. selected the Taft dele.
gates to the state convention. Mean
time the city council Of Seattle had re.
districted the city. It before had 25O
precincts. Now substantially the same
territory was divided up into 1871 pre-
cincts. The chairman Of the county
committee was a Roosevelt man. HG
had been given authority by general
resolution to oil vacancies occurring III
the committee. A general meeting OF
the committee had been held after thu
| citv cOuncil had Nirocto6 tho rodfS<rio<