Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1912-08-08

IL k1S 1850
ing therefrom. The case Of the Taft
majority was so clear that 1t is difficult
to understand why a contest was made
Indiana.
In Indiana the four Taft delegates al
large were elected In a state conven
tion to which Marion county. In which
INDIANAPOLIS Is situate. was entitled to
l2S votes A primary was held In In
dianapolis at which Taft polled 5000
and Roosevelt l.400 votes. This gave
Taft lO6 delegates in the state conven
ton from Marion county. and II they
were properly seated the control Of the
convention by a large majority was
conceded to Taft Attempt was made
to impeach the returns from Marion
county by charges of fraud and repeat.
ing. These charges were OF a general
character, without specification except
as to one ward out of fifteen wards.
and then the impeaching witness ad
mitted he could not claim fraud enough
to change the result In that ward. The
national committee, upon which there
were fifteen anti-Taft men, rejected
the Roosevelt contestants and gave the
nous vote. Senator Borah and Mr.
Frank B Kellogg. both Roosevelt men,
made speeches In explaining the votes
IN which they said that the case turned
wholly on the Marion county primary,
and as there was no evidence to i'm
-~ool 2hn .a.,.It oarfSGn6 tho f{fIa Of
the Taft delegates was clear This is
the convention whose proceedings
called forth such loud charges of theft
and fraud from Mr. Roosevelt.
Kentucky.
In Kentucky a contest was filed
against only three Of the four delegates
at large. The fourth Taft delegates
seat was uncontested. The three con.
t~estants 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 2.35o
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
It would have made the Roosevelt vote
POT 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 tc
have been.
Michigan.
In Michigan the state convention
had In II about 1000 delegates. There
were only two counties in dispute OF
contest. One was Wayne county. IL
which Detroit Is situated, and the othel
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 whethei
this was rue or not, because, leaving
out both Wayne county and Calhoun
county, the only counties In contest
the Taft delegates outnumbered b.
several hundred the Roosevelt dele
gates, and they had a clear majorit.
out Of the total number Of votes tina
should have been In the convention
The contest al SO weak as to hardl.
merit recital.
Texas.
In Texas there were 249 counties, o
which four have no county govern
ment- The 245 counties under the cal
of the convention were allowed to hav'
something over 1000 delegates, repre-
senting them. who were given author
ity to cast 248 votes. or the 245 coun
ties there were ninety-nine counties II
which the total Republican vote wa
but 1000. in fourteen of which Their
were no Republican voters, In twenty
seven Of which there were less thai
ten each and In none of which wa
there any Republican organization an
In none Of which had a primary or con
vention been held. 1t was shown tina
Colonel Cecil Lyon, to whom had bee
assigned as referee the disposition 0
the patronage of the national Reput
lican administration for ten years 4
! the state, had been In the habit Of cor
} trolling the Republican state CONVEX
ton by securing from two federal OF
1ceholders In each Of these ninety-nin
counties a certificate granting a prox
to Colonel Lyon or a friend of his t
represent the county as II regularl
conferred by a Republican county OF
ganization- The national committe
and the committee on credentials an
the convention after the fullest invest
CATION decided that these ninety-nin
counties In which the Republican vot
was 30 small apd In which there wa
no Republican party, no convention, n
primary, no organization. was not tn
proper source for a proxy to give
vote equal to that to be cast by th
other 146 counties In which there wa
. Republican organization and I
which primaries or conventions wer
held The two committees therefor
held such n~inety-nine proxies to b
illegal and not the basis Of proper rel
resentation- The two tribunals VIII
heard the case decided that they shout
deduct the ninety-nine votes from th
total Of 245 and give the representatio
! to those who controlled the majorit
Of the remainder. The remainder WI
l62 votes. and out Of that the Tai
men had carried eighty-nine counties
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