Arizona republican., 1914-09-13
Has it been satisfactory to wage wars which will leave no cause for triumph? -Lucanus.
The Non-Partisan Primary

The Bisbee Review and reader, progressive republican, who styles himself moral perjurer,' are engaged in controversy over the Arizona pri mary system It grew of attack by the Re- view upon the system, in which special reference was made to the facility afforded persons enter the primary of party other than their Though the law permitted such crossing of the suit the Review believed that those who availed themselves of that privilege were moral perjurers
 Moral perjurer" takes the view, and the broader that primaries people rather than for political parties; that every good citizen desires election of good officers good officers cannot be elected unless they be nominated In some counties notably in Coehise, party is dominant that a nomination is almost a guaranty of election. It is natural therefore, that members of the minority party should desire that good men be nominated by the majority party,
 We believe. with moral perjurer,' that the pri- mary law in this respect a beneficent one, per haps without the intent of the law makers that it should be We believe it would be more benefi- cent if it the still greater freedom at the primaries. We believe that the primaries should be partisan. Or, the names of all the candidates for nomination should appear the same ballot either under party designations, else they should be arranged in alphabetical order the politics of each candidate be designated. The voter should be allowed to make his selection from all the names the ballot, men to be nominated for each posi- tion
 Under the present law, d voters selection is confined to the names a party ballot. He desires the nomination of one more members of party, but as to other candidates he believes the best found on another party ballot He cannot vote for al! the who in his opinion the best
 It has been charged and it is possible, that have gone into the primary of a party which they did not belong to vote, not for good men, but for weak men, in order that they might be the more easily defeated at the polls. That is bad and despcable use of the primary an abuse of a privi- lege which would not occur under on-partisan system. Under such system voters would for the whose election they desired, and they would vote for them again at the general election
 Such an arrangement would break up party organization but it would break up machines and boss rule. Parties believe be necessary. for without organization there would be chaos We might get along without parties in the county and in the state, but could not do in the nation The county organization is the smallest unit of the national organization and should be main tained
 After the primary, the county and state organ- cations could make up their tickets from the nom- They might not have as wide range Of cholce as they might wish it is better that the choice the organizations should be restricted than that the of the should be restricted, it is now by the party primary system.
 non- partisan primary would bring out much larger number of voters. It may easily happen that q voter may believe that of the candi- dates of another party better qualified than those of his own He does want to enter the primary of opposing party, does he want to vote for the inferior candidates of his party He is divided between good citizenship and party loyalty He compromises by absentng himself from the pri- mary.