Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-10-13

on Correspondence.
thought Of Speaker Clark, who was his
principal opponent at the Baltimore conven-
tion and whose nomination was defeated by
Mr.. Bryan. has said several times that the
President can have a second term II he
makes good in his first and that IL he does
not make good the nomination will not be
worth having. Mr.. Bryan thought and said
during the campaign that the one-term "prin-
| ciple' laid down in the Baltimore plat
form meant that it would be effective at
! once; but as the plank only makes the Presi-
| dent Ineligible for reelection after the adop-
| tion of constitutional amendment prescrib-
! ing a single presidential term, even Mr..
| Bryan, who has been a stickler for this
| "principle," is believed to have yielded to
| the popular demand in this case. At any
rate he has spoken many times with high
approval of Mr.. Wilson's conduct of public
affairs, and 1t was said yesterday by one of
his admirers and longtime supporters that
Mr. Bryan would not be a candidate himself.
There is nobody else in sight or in the bushes.
If the Democrats cannot win with Wilson
they cannot win with anybody.
TUST now there is much criticism of the
y primary plan of making nominations for
public office. The system is not what it was
Cracked up to be-" Senator owen, of Okla
homa, will not support Roger Sullivan, who
has been nominated for United States SEN
ator in Illinois by the primary pan and MIR.
Bryan, who is out campaigning for the party,
will skip that State to keep clear from in
dorsinE Sullivan. 1t is said that Sullivan
got his majority in the city of Chicago, and
does not represent the Democratic party in
his State: but it would be hard sailing for
the party in Illinois with Cook County voting
10 Gai5 with
asperity and "A good deal of truth that
the oklahoma Senator is straying from the
reservation in attempting to mix up with the
politics of another State. with Penrose
nominated in Pennsylvania and Sullivan
nominated in Illinois and MARITIME holding
from New Jersey specimen selections
made by this system, there is a growing dis
position to question the primary as the best
means of getting the best men for public
office. Possibly the failure of the primary
in the smaller places will save the country
from the peril of presidential primaries.
nj. G. OSBORN, editor of the New Haven
IN Journal-Courer, when he was here some
months ago, went to Yale University with
Mr. Dimmick and expressed the hope that
he would be nominated for Senator by the
Republicans of Pennsylvania at their pri-
maries because of his high character his
freedom from entangling alliances with the
grafters in the State and his eminent fitness
for the office; but the primaries failed and
for the reason, it is said, that the machine
is stronger than the people. 1t was said
last night by a somewhat careful student of
political affairs that the primary system
does one thing surely-it brings the scum
to the top almost invariably. There are of
course eNcepuons-thore is Underwood, of
Alabama, for example; there is Manning in
South Carolina; but in the main the system
is bad, very bad, as it doubles the EXPENSE
of elections, opens the way for corruption
wherever there is purchasabe electorate.
and makes it impossible for the poor man of
character and ability but without means to
share in the affairs of government"
RANDALL.