The Progressive West Virginian. [volume] (Williamson, W. Va.) 1911-1913, 1912-06-13
HOW THEY LOOK
At the Result OF the Republican lPri-
mary in West Virginia at
Washington.
GEO. w. SUMMERS.

party in West Virginia, which had
apparently fallen into the hands OF
| the Dawson faction of the party BY
an overwhelming vote the Roosevelt
Dawson faction was placed in con-
troll of the party at the Huntington
Convention, May 16 Mr.. Dawson
stepped gracefully into the. saddle
selected his own state committee,
and started out to control the Re-
publican party in West Virginia; to
name the candidates for the yario rs
Offices and to commit the party to
the recall of judges and other doc
| trines of Theodore Roosevelt.
But the RANK and file of the Re-
publican party in West Virginia de-
be their leader and in order to de-
| feat him they chose what they SEEM
| ed to consider the lesser evil and
threw the control Of the party back
| into the hands of the same Did
gang of bosses who have been dicta-
ting to the Republican party in West
Virginia for many years.
For awhile it looked as though
1.-The West Virginia Republicans had
grown tired of the bossism Of Nathan
B. Scott and the same old gang OF
which he Vas the head and had
turned to the former boss, ". W. o.
Dawson, for change But, as soon
| as Mr. Dawson came into temporary
Ccntro; h7s1ndertook method, which
outraged the people and the result
was that when the statewide pri-
mary election was held on June 4th
Nj Dawson ANA his crowd Mere NJ
terly repudiated and the same old
bl nch which mas controlled lie AZ
l. fairs of the paTtYs Tor many years
was reinstated to power Mr. Daw-
son wrote an open letter declaring
G.. W. Dillon . lie his choice TO-
Governor, but DR. Iattield whe mad
been induced to become a candidate
a; conferences in Washington At
which State Chairman Highland,
former Senator Davis Elkins, il =.
Ogden and oIhc.' anti-laMs1n lie
PAL licans we1sa chosen, received IN
overwhelming vote and won the nom
nation with ease. Even in the mat
ter of the new state committee Mr..
Dawson was badly beaten. While in
full control of the Huntington Con-
vention. Mr.. Dawson put through a
resolution increasing the member
ship of the state committee by six
teen and naming sixteen Dawson fol-
lowers for the places. The old
state committee held that these adj
ditional members must be voted for
at the primary election on June Atm,
and also put up some other candl-
dates. The result of the primary
election is that out of the 80 mem
bers Of the new committee the anti
Dawson crowd will have about 25,
assuring the recollection Of Virgil Z.
Highland, as Chairman Of the state
committee and depriving Mr.. Daw-
son of any control whatever over the
committee.
While the, Dawson and Roosevelt
faction captured the delegates to
the Chicago Convention from West
Virginia and announced Gov. Glass
cock as a candidate for Vice-Presi-
dent, their influence seems to have
stopped there The action of the
Republican National Committee in
deciding the contests over delegates
10 the National Convention indicates
very clearly that President Taft will
be nominated at the Chicago Con-
yention which will convene on the
18th With the State committee in
H the hands of Taft men and with Taft
as the regular Republican nominee,
and with friends of Taft and the
old Taft machine nominated for
state offices in West Virginia, the
Roosevelt-Dawson faction seem to
have sunk again to their former
depths leaving the state again en-
tirely in the control of the Taft
crowd and the old Taft machine. II
I was the. revolt against this old ma
chise which defeated Senator Scott
and sent four democrats to the
f House Of Representatives from Yves,
Virginia and two Democrats to
Senate. The revolution against the
old machine proved to be merely an
4 unsuccessful rebellion and the tenn
porary overthrow Of the old machine
amounted to nothing for it has come
back with even greater strength than
lit had before
While it was made apparent thai
the Republicans of West Virginia
preferred Theodore Roosevelt foi
President, and by an overwhelming
vote sent solid Roosevelt delega-
ton to Chicago it is now apparent
that President Taft will be renomi-
mated in the Chicago Convention
that Gov. Glasscock will have nc
chance whatyer for the nomination
for Vice-President and that the ole
stand-pat crowd will have control Of
the Republican party in West Virgin.
la for four years more In other
words the machine has run the
steam roller over the people of Wes'
Virginia; has turned down theil
choice for President; has taker
away all power from their new state
committee and has perpetuated itsel
in that control, from which the Re
publicanss of the state made a deter
! mined and for a time apparent,
successful effort to dislodge 1t.
In strong contrast to the Republi
can situation in the state Ia fhe cor,