Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1915-11-11

responence in Massachusetts papers the verdict
affect the vote on the direct primary Vermont next March,
1t wonder this rainbow chasing center did not also SEM
out the statement that the vote on woman suffrage mgnt
also to the repeal Australian secret ballot in Yer
mont for the would be about germane to the subject
the other. .
A little oigarchy inside the Republican party in Yer
mont to act the supposition that it can go on trying
without detection, not realizing that the people fairly
wise already to the way in which undesirable features nave
able provisions heaped the original secret ballot in
the Legislature and that of those who all along posed
friends nominations directly by the people the very
who had the efrontey call for extra session OF
the Legislature with all the attending expense to pass
Now it barely possible that the people of Vermont can
be ugged with in this without damage to our party
but doubt it, We had sounded warming against some
things that being done through the New Haven ma
chine in Vermont previous to 1912 and the ease with which
host of republicans this State became progressves in
that year indicates that party lines rested lightly
upon the members of all political parties as whole as at
the present time.
Congressman James R. Mann the republican leader
the floor of the national House OF wiser
in his generation than of the two by four politicians
of Vermont who think they do almost any outrageous
stunt of e party M @ OF xefR be ne In
tions Congressman Mann says 1--WE have got to do
follows:
there bursts growup and their pretty piping little
Fittings drowned out by bass vOceOne of the few
Sesz the % lungs He of r.
Mann of the few in public life who acts invariably
than taffy If that v1e Voice does not wake the party up
from its dream and make stop its fayorte-son nonsense
Roo favorte about their business it has another lesson
to learn in 1916 like the one it learned in 1912
it, has wak-away' and cannot win with two-spot' Mr.
Mann being nosan he selects the Illinois favorite
description inclusive of the whole of favorite
sons: There boom for Mann himself and he himself
fully says He is not talng for illinois, but for the party
in the nation, whose official leader in the House he is
HE has seen presidents at close range. In ordi
nary times he says wisdom
manshp to be presidents but when the next president is
ton These are not ordinary times What we ought to
do to be trying to find the man who will make the best
the best candidate but the best president happen to be
living in time when that really the right politics. for
chesra of favore shrives away into This
is not the silly Mann of Chicago have got
he means who 'two-spots such names as
Roosevelt and Root adding however, that Roosevelt is
one republican whom Uncle Joe Cannons horse-sense
to have descended wonders whether the Repub
whether the favore have enough civic spirit and de-
sire for party to pack their tehngs and their
silence"
:, That statement is as true of issues of Repub-
cans between and November 1916, will be Judged by
the issues they champion in State and nation. If the
pubcans in different States and in Congress go back upon
people will have every right conclude they be
trustee to carry out future pledges and vote accordngy
promised the people of this State opportunity to make
their nominations direct without the inerpostion of
proxies and personally conducted delegations and controlled
conventions and all that sort of indirect paraphenaa
The issue whether Vermont should have direct nomna-
lions submitted to the voters in referendum in form
calculated to confuse the voters and them from
turning majority in favor yet to the surprise of the
petrators of this political trick majority of the voters
of Vermont passing the issue favored direct nomna
tons.
Instead of obeyng this and the pledge the party
provide direct nominations the majority in the last Leg
sature led to put before the people another refer
endum framed that its details might cumber the broad
principle involved and lead the rejection of the direct
primary at the polls next March.
Manesty if by any trick majority of the voters could
be induced reject this particular the perpetrators
of the trick could claim forever after that the people had
shown they did want direct nominations whereas the
vote would really they did not want of the OBJ
jectionable features in this particular bill.
The result of mo- vote the direct primary referen-
DUN measure March would in all human probability
the posponement of any hope of reform that drec
ton for decade to whereas the adoption of this
would retention of the principle and the emna
ton Objectionable features by succeeding legislators
precisely the with the secret ballot in Vermont
Congressman Mann's warning to republicans that
put best foot forward applies to Vermont well
every other State, and particularly to Vermont
than to of the States which have already complied