The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-09-24
THE REPUBLICAN MAJORITY

The returns made to the Secretary
of State by the members OF the new
Legislature show that there is a good
sized majority of men who prefer 10
call themselves Republicans. This
designation is not applied by any
other person but is given by each
member as the political classification
under which he chooses to appear in
the Legislative Directory.
Charles Ii. Thompson, the Progress
sive committeeman for Vernon, has
made some extravagant claims regard
ing his party's strength in the Gen
eral Assembly, but ii is fair TO pre-
sumo that each member knows quite
as well as Mr.. Thompson to what par
ty he belongs and that these returns
made to the Secretary of State are
correct rather than claims made from
political headquarters.
If Republicanism means anything
to a man it means that he approves
its principles and supports its candi-
dates. A part of the Republican plat
form this year was the pledging OF
support to the party ticket This year
the election of the regularly nomin-
ated party ticket depends upon the
members of the Legislature. To
charge, as some persons are doing,
that men who call themselves Repub-
leans will betray the Republican
ticket is a very serious insinuation.
There is no reason TO believe that
any considerable number of Republi-
cans will go over TO the enemy. The
ticket was fairly nominated in State
Convention. There has been no hint
of fraud in connection with that nom
nation 1t is difficult to see how a
man can call himself Republican
and aid in putting into power Dem
ocrat or Progressive.
The possibility of the election of
other candidates implies a coalition
of Democrats and Progressives. The
Democrats profess to believe that the
prospects of the election of their Pres
idential candidate is excellent If
that belief is well founded then il
would be a poor time for them TO de-
sert the standard of Democracy. II
the Progressives desert Mr.. MetZger
for Mr.. Howe will it aid Mr. Roose-
velt's chances TO have the news go
out his Vermont followers are in al
lance with the Democracy?
One or two newspapers have claim
ed that Mr. Fletcher has been re
pudiated" by Vermonters because he
did not receive a majority of votes.
IL this is true then, all the rest of
the Republican ticket was repudiated.
AS a matter OF fact the results show
very clearly that the falling of of the
Republican vote for the whole ticket
was due TO national political condi-
tions. and to nothing else.
If Mr. Fletcher, who received plu-
rality. was repudiated, then what hap
pened to Mr. Howe and to Mr.. Metz
ger. each of whom received several
thousand fewer votes than Mr.. Flet-
cher? Were they not even more en-
phatically repudiated? And by what
political logic do these papers justify
the election OF candidate who failed
by a considerable margin of even
plurality?
The absurdity of such an argument
is apparent when one remembers that
i'm most States a plurality elects, and
that probably a score of Governors
have been elected during the past few
years who did not have clear major
ity. That a candidate can be both
elected and repudiated will be news
to most of the people of the United
States. The very fact that more peo-
pie wanted the Republican candidates
elected than desired the election of
any other candidates. ought to point
the way very clearly to those who
desire the rule of the people
Il is to be hoped that the true ma
ture of some OF the bitter hostility to
the head of the Republican ticket may
be revealed. 1t should be revealed
in the interest of clean politics and
good ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Jour
nal.