Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1916-01-20
GIVE US THE BEST
editor Fraa sneech nenartment

II
From all present indications The
1 choice, of the membership for execu
! tive secretary will fall upon one o.
two men. These men are the presen
Secretary, Comrade Lanfersiek, arr
/ Carl d. Thompson. It is hardly posi-
i BILE that members who for any reason
oppose both Lanfersiek and Thomp
son can, even by Their onlDined sup
port, elect any of the other candidates
)ver the two leaders. Hence Oul
choice is virtually restricted to the
| two comrades just named, AMI gt
should consider their respective quail
| fieations thoroughly.
1t is common knowledge that affairs
in the national office have, within thu
| JasI two years, become sadly disor
, ganized. A radical change in poll !.
and management is now an imperative
| necessity, if we hope to give a good
account of ourselves this year, when
the greatest opportunities will be be
fore us. 1t is useless waste of time
to harshly criticise the present secre-
tary for failing to maintain that
standard of efficiency which the Gem
bership has right to expect Let US
rather grant that COmrade LanfeIsi4
has done his best with his limitations
Whatever credit is due any comrade
for having done his duty, to the best
of his ability is rightfully his.
But this is not enough. The main
tenance of our national Office repre-
sents too great an expenditure o,
money, time and hard work and sacri
| fee, We cannot afford to leave its
management in the hands of any com
rades merely because he has done his
best. We must ask ourselves the
question-Have we any other mem
Der whose "best" will be better?
At the present time am convinced
that Comrade Thompson is the logical
man for the place. Letters and COM
r1ent appearing in the party press
show that the movement in his favor
g supported by comrades representing
every shade of Onion within the
party. Notable among these is Lewis
7. Duncan, former, member of the
executive committee and one of the
subcommittee who investigated af-
fairs in the National office. In the
| Montana Socialist" of which he is
editor, Comrade Duncan says:
the editor of the Montana
Socialist regrets to say that in his
k,uinion Lanfersiek is not tempera-
mentally the sort Of person suited to
an executive position of such import
nee as that of executive secretary"
Comrade Duncan concludes a very
strong statement with the following
words: "Comrade Thompson, in the
opinion of the writer, is the ablest
member in the party who will under
take the position at the wages It at.
eords.. We should like to- see him
nominated and elected"
Thompson's qualifications have been
proven by his twenty years active SER
vice in the party: in the earlier or
anjzation work of the great Milwau-
kee movement, in the Wisconsin 1egis-
lature, next in the City Clerks office
IN Milwaukee,. and. untileh1s res1gna'
ton as director of the INFORMATION
Department. He has always been an
| :ndefatigable worker and success 1r
averv capacity in which he has been
tried.
In Camrade Thompson. we have an
-,nueual combination Of the power Of
| elouuence, touched with the fire Of
real inspiration, together with the or
| -ani7ine and executive ability SC
necessary to an aggressive and re
snurcafui administration of the Ma
tional office, such as will be needed
Ibis year of all years.
| Let us nut the best qual1ned man
into the place.
Charles Reece Fenimore.
| fEorrner National Committeeman
from Indiana.)