The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1915-05-25
COSTS MUCH MONEY
TO BE A CANDIDATE
SOME OF THEM SPEND THEIR
FIRST YEARS SALARY, EVEN
WHEN ELECTED.

l ~ONSS - Aot vi luOACS W U0 d Cd1
didate for State office in Mississip
pi, even if you are victorious.
In spite of the fact that scores and
scores of your friends just before you
announced, make life unbearable and
sleep impossible, all insisting at once
that you should enter the race for
something-that yoA were the logical
man for the place and to save the par.
ty and the State--it costs the first
years salary to make regular cam
paign in Mississippi.
Political sharks, men who have had
| experience and who have tried their
| hands at running for some office, have
made this discovery. A number OF
candidates for State offices who are
before the people as contestants for
honors in the August primaries. are
attending to one very essential detail
in connection Herewith. Practically
all of the county executive commit
tees are fixing the assessments to be
levied on state candidates for the
privilege of getting their names on
the ticket to be voted While some of
the counties may pass up this detail
and decide to enter the candidates foi
state or state district offices on the
ballot free of cost, the exceptions will
be few, and in most of the so counties
the tax win be not less than one dol
lar. Some of the counties are raising
the rate to two and three dollars. as
understood, though as a general rule
the dollar tax will prevail.
This, however, is comparatively
small item of expense, and if that
were all, one of the most potent obiec-
tons to the nominating primary sys-
tenn would be overcome. But an aver.
age of $50, under the assumption that
the tax per county will be placed at
dollar, added to the other expenses
that confront a candidate for a state
office, with opposition pending, is pill
ing the expense of running for office
up pretty high. In fact, a general |
campaign of the state is liable to cost |
the campaigner sum fully equal to |
the first years salary of the office fol- |
which he is running, if it be what is |
classified as a '"minor" office, with |
salary ranging from $4,000 to $4,000. |
Where there are two or more running |
for the same office, for which only /
one can be elected, the rear rank man
faces a draft on his private resources
which might be classified along with |
other losing investments.
Of course there have been instances
known in recent campaigns in Missis |
5ippi, where the competition was keen
and the candidate or candidates
blessed with considerable private
means, where the cost was run VI
nto several thousand dollars, and ever |
1t that the aspirants have met de |
eat, for all the free circulation OF
unds to meet expenses. In some in I
stances candidates have maintained
campaign bureaus at the
apital, with staff of special stenog
aphers, mailing clerks and office
and incurred heavy printing
nd postage expenses, only to lost
nut in the final showdown on the face |
f the returns. s.s-.s..
The aspirant for ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
there is opposition, as has been the
ase during the past II years, must !
make the same round of campaign |
ravels as any other candidate fol-
tate office, yet he receives OILY
ominal salary of $3.50 for each session
f the Legislature which is held during
is term, with mileage additional In
ne present campaign there are two
m Ain FlnTllTn