The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1916-10-04
RESPECTS TO PAUL sTILLMAN.

Paul Stillmaii, editor Of the Jefferson
Bee, in his paper a short time since
suggested the withdrawal of Mr. Hard
| ing as candidate for governor! This
evidently was done to help out the Des
; Moines crowd which is making war on
Mr.. Harding. In answer to the sug.
gestion e. r. Zeller, of pintcrset,
Iowa, farmer, educator, Methodist
preacher and former member Of the
general assembly. pays his respects to
Paul Stillman in a letter addressed
to him Of date September goth, :
We copy the letter. which u TX, speaks
I for itself. ss sss5; x III
55TaissNNinterset, Ia, Sept. "a, I'atii
E sStillman;$ You doubtless have not
Forgotten how we all united in the
EThtrty.fourth and made you speaker
|Without a contest; how eight or less
al us broke the dead lock and helped
you elect your favorfte to the United
States senate-all for the good OF the
Fg. o.-p. Then again you have not for.
gotten how your crowd bolted the
party nomination for president in 1912
and helped make a democratic presi.
dent. with some fifty prohibition
lists met in the Slavery hotel in 1914
day of tho state convention, and pulled
every string to get a prohibition plank
in the platform, but your crowd con.
trOlled the resolutions committee and
reported that the party was opposed TO
any change in the mulct law, on
this proposition elected Cummins and
Clarke.
During the session of the legisla.
ture which followed your. crowd fell
over one another to do just what they
had pledged the people they would not
do. All these things we have borne
for the good of the party. Again, a
primary law which was passed largely,
if not exclusively, by prOgressives, and
for which you take most of the credit
has been in operation for eight or ten
years; by means of this law most OF
the state. and national Offices have
been filled by prOsressiyes.
This year four good men contested
for the Office of governor and Mr..
Harding was nominated by the largest
plurality of any candidate since the
law went into effect. | did not vote
for him at the primary, but it occurs
to me that il the primary law or the
republican party are of any further
use to the country this boiling must
stop. 1t is not for you or me to say
a man properly nominated should re-
sign. 1
''If the Des Moines Register or the
Jefferson Bee are to dictate who is to
be the candidate for governor, what
further use Is there for primary law
or republican party? These prOpO.
sitions are true and relevant without
considering the respective merits OF
Harding or Meredith. In connection
with that we consider this: What is
there in the. character and, record OF
Mr.. Harding that causes such oppOsl
ton, SO violent and positive? You
know him and | know him. He al.
ways did what he agreed to do when
in the legislature and l believe he Will
do what he now agrees to do.
"As to the personal conduct when at
Des MOines, it was more circumspect
than mine, and apprehend than
yours. never saw him loafing around
the capitol, hotel Hobbies or at the the.
alter; when | wanted to see him !
lOUkCu LUZ JllHl az lOOiA " LII AAAo
family or at his seat in the capitol,
and always found him. His votes on
all temperance legislation were in
harmony with the republican platform;
he did not keep his cellar full of beer
wine and Scotch whiskey and, though
living in Sioux City, never signed a
saloon petition. He did not election
eer nor vote for the wet candidate for
governor in 1914. If Meredith's candi
date for governor had been elected in
1914 We would still have the saloon In
Iowa.
"To say I was surprised and indig'
nant in reading your late editorial
calling on Harding to resign, is put.
ting it mildly; was disguised; also
grieved and Inundated. If you do not
know it, will tell you that what gave
Harding his nomination was the FACT
that the farmers rallied around him
as fOrlorn hope in their fight against
the taxeaters of Des Moines. Our
county. which has always given from
500 to 1000 for prohibition, gave Hard
ing 200; you will hear from them
again in a few weeks. You can con
slider this an/onen letter or a closed
one; you can publish it, or answer it
or ignore it. Be it as it may. ! want
ed you to know what a surprise you
have been to some of your old admir-
"E. r. zeller."