The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1913-09-26
NO, 1T WAS NOT A TRADE

liz i
Senator Miles Poindexter voted for the
democratic tariff. Within week tneIe-
after President Wilson appointed Gay
Allen. OF Seattle. Poindexter's candidate.
district attorney for the western district
of Washington. The democratic organl,
zation of the state, including all tne Ihos.
progressive democrats, backed another ior
that position, but, as the newspaper uis-
patches say. the appointment was sig
nal victory for PoindeXter ,-. .he
1t will be remembered that before tIle
tariff bill came to a vote in the senate,
President Wilson rejected the candioaGy
of Judge stephen J. Chadwick tor t dPs
pointment to the federal bench IN tits
state at the behest of PoindeNter. Az
the time that was accepted as part pay
ment for the senator's vote on the tariiI'
Now that the senator has carried OUT me
part of the agreement in good talth tne
president is making good on ms part
That is the way many. who are lncap-
able of understanding or appreciating the
higher ethical considerations that r uie
the minds and actions of these honorapIe
gentlemen will be inclined to consider
the handing over. by the president: OF
patronage in this state to senator OF an
opposite political faith The Gazette'
which is in a position to view rev, tne i u aS
action with entire equanimity as IL al =
siliates with neither the party or the pres
ident nor the party of the senator uesllos
to set all suspicious on TINS score AT res est
II would be unjust TO men OF sucn eS-
allied ideals Mr.. Wilson ana MT. rom .
dexter. to permit "A vulgar charge OF
barter for mutual profit to go uncnal rai,s
ed. The facts are that Senator Pom
dexter voted for the democratic tariI
bill with the purest motives and Ior tne
most commendable reasons, ana fresiue e,I !
Wilson has made appointments AT the
senators request, both before and since
that vote without reference to or thought
of how the senator was Young, me- s cry
because of his high personal regard lot
the senator and because he knows from
having read the senator s speeches that
Mr. Poindexter is the only honest man III
politics in this state.
True. il is unfortunate, though appar-
emily unavoidable, that the president
found it necessary to make these APP
vote on a measure in which he (the pres
ident) was vitality interested. Under the
circumstances it is difficult to clear away
many people are morbidly suspicious OF
the motives and acts of public men, out
the Gazette. as an altogether disinterest-
ed party. can give emphatic assurance
that neither the vote nor the giving OF
patronage was in any manner the result
Of trade or barter.
IT,. however. the president We're d,,acr re-
there could be no other Interpretation
placed upon the transaction than that
it was the outcome of a previous under
standing and agreement, amounting 70
nothing more nor less than selling py
one party of a vote to the other party Tor
patronage In fact the very first person
tionship such as suggested. would be the
honorable member from this state, Sena-
tor Miles c. Poindexter IT is strange
and inexplcible fact that Senator Poin-
dexter. whose own motives are so pure
and whose every purpose so exalted,
should ever be so ready to impugn the
Ordinarily, a man of honor and of strict
and conscientious adherence to nigh
ideals is loath to charge his fellows with
improper conduct and corrupt incentive.
pnt
otherwise perfect character OF the seha-
tor.
But disregardng the reason behind this
unfortunate giving of votes and of pat
ronage in embarrassing concurrence OF
time the senator must have found 1t
highly agreeable and altogether pleasing
democrats again as his conscience dictat-
ed When Miles Poindexter landed in this
state, not so many years ago. he claimed
allegiance to the democratic party His
home. in those days, was In Walla Walla
county, and he voted for and worked with
the democrats there at that time. He
soon found that the dominant party in
Washington was republican, and II he
hoped to realize his ambition to occupy
public office. that he would have to secure
the support of the voters of that party:
Party ties rested lightly upon him, and
he soon cast off his democratic affilia-
lions and announced his conversion to
an active and shrewd politician, and be-
fore long he secured a nomination for
superior judge on the republican ticket
from one of those hated conventions. be
fore the days Of the direct primary. He
was elected. Not content with the sober
and unspectacular office of Judge, he
soon coveted place IN the halls OF o, con
date on the republican ticket for repre-
sentative in congress from the eastern
district of Washington. Again he was
vice in congress the thoroughly organic
ed and strongly financed opposition to
President Taft soon made it apparent that
the dominate of the republican party
was becoming imperilled, and those who
thought more of office than Of party
principles began to feel the public pulse
their fortunes lay. Poindexter is. an ex-
pert feeler of public pulses. and he soon
decided that the opposition to Taft was
stronger in his district and probably
throughout the state than the hold Of
republicanism. and he. aligned himself
with the new organization. His lust for
ceived the idea Of running for the United
States senate as a so-called progressive.
Again he successfully woed the suffrages
Of the citizens Of his adopted state ar. and
had honored him repeatedly and so sig
nally, and branded himself bull moose.
couple, Of weeks or, so ago an election
flood of light on the weakness Of the bull
moose party and forshadowed its rapid
disintregation. Senator Poindexter was
of that election. He feels that he can
not gracefully return to the republican
party. He probably believes that the
democrats have a fair chance to obtain
the advantage they gained in the last
election and possibly to strengthen their
position with the voters, He was born
a democrat. His natural bent early train
ing and fiial incltnatons are all dem
ocratic. He found his association with
democrats congenal and his vote for
democratic measure, regardless Of what
else it gained for him, pleasant, and 1t
is not at all improbable that Senator
Miles G. Poindexter will see cogent rea-
son OF great force and convincing in
eenuity for returning to the fold that has
all of the strong appeal of consanguinity
He has not yet, but it is a safe bet that
he will In time again announce a change
of heart. or policy. and openly declare
his intentions and take out his papers
as democrat
All of which Is a labored explanation.
il must he admitted. but il proves that
he did not sell his vote on the tariff for
patronage in this state. Does II not?