The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-03-04
Those Who Are Willing to Haz-
ard a Guess Say So
BUT ADMIT TWILL Be CLOSE
Chief Point Relied on to Back Up the
Statement Is Indication That Most of
New Voters Are Inclined to the
"Wet" Side of the Question.

It has come down to the eve OF one
OF the quietest elections Barre has ever
known, and. the voters will go to the
polls tomorrow without having gone
through the usual prediction agitation.
! This condition is not due to the lack Of
issues and contests, but rather to a
/ change OF methods. The two all-impor-
| tant features of the election will be the
local option vote on the license question
and the election of mayor
On the former matter, there is little
but speculation to 60 by in forming a
deduction as to the probable result, sbut
the general impression seems to be thai
Barre will vote yes by small major
ity. There has been some quiet woEk
toward getting out the vote, but neither
| side is ready TO make any positive asser-
tions as to the outcome. As most people
recall, the margin by which Barre re.
manned in the no-lieense column last
year was two votes, the vote standing
770 to Ill. A tie vote amounts to the
same as no majority, so that it
would have taken two votes TO turn the
city into the license regime.
Such slender margin a year ago leads
most observers of conditions TO refuse
to hazard an opinion this year as to
which way the city viii 60 tomorrow.
However. those wh6 have been following
the meetings of the board OF civil au-
thority during the past two weeks ex
press the opinion that considerable ma
jority of the new voters placed on the
lists incline to the yves" side OF the local
option question For that reason. Barre,
they think. is more likely to vote license
tomorrow than otherwise.
The neighboring city OF Montpelier is
likely to return to the dry column
according to the information which comes
from there to-day There was a dit
ference OF only eleven votes by which
Montpelier voted for license last year,
the vote standing 759 to 74S. 1t il said
that large majority OF the new voters
taken in there are possible "no' voters
this year. while there was some dissatis
faction over the awarding Of licenses last
year, so that the combination of the two.
with other reasons. is apt to swing the
capital city into the no-lieense column.
Barre Towns vote is problematical. Last
year the town went no-license by 30
votes.
Three-cornered Fight for Mayor.
The other feature of absorbing inter
est in the Barre election will be the
choice of mayor to succeed Mayor
Mutch. That official is candidate for |
reelection, having filed nomination pa
pers as the trades union candidate, He |
opposes J.. II. Thurston, at present the |
alderman from the fourth ward, who 1
was the nominee of the citizens caucus |
where he defeated Mayor Muteh two /
weeks ago; and. in addition, there is the I
Socialist candidate. Robert Gordon, to /
be taken into consideration this year, I
making triangular contest and com /
plicatng the situation considerably. /
There are various estimates of the prob /
able Socialist vote this year, some per
sons placing the Socialist vote for may
or at 300. while others assert that the
party will poll 500 votes II is this
as TO the size of the Socialist
vote that makes the mayoralty election
somewhat in doubt.
There are contests for city clerk and
city treasurer, the present official, James
Mackay. who was the citizens nominee,
lHiHH ODlpNtu bN NfIbtit lHililHS. Niio
appears on the official ballot as the So
cialist candidate. For first constable and
for second constable there is no contest,
NJ b. Nichols and Chas. T. Southgate,
the present encumbents, being unop
posed
For assessor for three years, William
Nicol, Socialist, filed papers against the
citizens nominee, Martin Riley, a present
assessor. For assessor for two years
there are three candidates, Henry K
Bush, who filed as an independent can
ldate; John T. Callaghan, the Socialist
candidate, and Frank B. Cate, the citi-
zens' caucus nominee. Likewise, there
are three contests for the one year as
sessor's term, they being; John David
son, Socialist, Augustus NJ. Rossi, citi-
sens', Herbert A. Rugg, independent.
r. S. Currier, John w. Gordon and
Frank G. Howland, the present trustees
If Frenchs Barre library and also the
,itizens' caucus nominees for reelection,
IRE opposed by Alfred Henry, William I
Scott and Fred w. Sutor, all Socialists.
The present auditors, Charles Lundgren. I
]. ]. L. Matthews and J. L. Wallace, the
,itizens caucus nominees, are not op.
yosed for reelection.
A Few Ward Contests. :
In the wards there are some interest /
ng contests, three aldermen and two 8
chool commissioners to be elected. In l
ward two, Harry {. Patterson, citizens
Iominee. and John Nalmquist, Socialist !
re running for tine place of Alderman }
I. NJ. Wiley, who is not a candidate for {
e.electian. In the same ward, School t
Harrison g. Woodruff is Q
candidate for reelection as the eiti- B
ems nominee, and James +. Carroll, a
socialist. is also a candidate.
Ward four promises to be an interest c
no place, there being three nominations e
or alderman to succeed Alderman L. H. |
'hurston. They are David Dawson, So P
ialist. Even Mckenzie, Independent, and d
'eter d. Thorn, the citizens nominee /
or school commissioner in the same +
'ard, Commissioner John Stephen, the
itizens' caucus nominee, is opposed for