The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-08-04

his oath to the enforcement of the
law, but real believer in this policy
of government. The feature of next
Tuesdays primary which gives us con-
Germ Is the possibility of the nomina-
ton OF wet candidate. If this shall
happen. as we hope It will not. and "a
| II should not, It will be due not to the
/ strength of the wet candidate. Mr..
/ West moreland Davis, but to the di-
/ vision OF the dry vote. It is in this
threatened division that the danger
! lies
| Politics have an exciting effect upon
men. Personal attachment and per-
sonal prejudice and personal feeling
run high, Men who are ordinarily
calm and well poised become such in
tense partisans that they are we'll
nigh swept off their feet. They be
come so ardent In their support OF
their favorites and so intense in their
opposition to his opponents that their
usual poise is greatly strained In
many instances strained to the point
Of breaking But in the last hours %
an important campaign like this. every
good citizen should seriously consider
tho principles involved. and how his
vote may be best placed for the good
of the state and of society.
There Is an overwhelming dry SEN
timent In Virginia. United no wet
man would have the slightest oppor-
tunity of success. Seriously divided
the wet candidate may win Are the
dry voters Of Virginia willing. by their
own votes. to choose a wet candidate
for governor? If they are. and Will
permit themselves to he carried away
/ by passion and prejudice, they may
make possible the nomination Of Mr.
Davis. Will they lose their self-con-
troll and permit their passion and
prejudice to carry them to this OK
treme? We hardly believe they will
There were cast In the wet and dry
election In 1914, 15S,237 votes. OF these
94,251 We're dry and G3,Ss6 were wet.
But this represents the total vote of
/ the Democratic. Republican. third
party Prohibition. Socialists and So
cial Labor parties If you Will deduct
from the above figures all parties ex-
cept the Democratic it seems probable
that the vote among the Democrats
! stood about 10000 dry and 5000 wet
very aggressive campaign to corral
( all of the So 600 wet votes in his be-
+ half How well they have succeeded
| will not be known until the vote is
cast on Tuesday. or course he has not
secured all of these votes because
I of these wet voters will vote for Mr..
] Pollard and some for Mr.. Flyson
! But it must be apparent to men eyerT=
where now. as was seen by The Viz
| ginian some time ago, that the great
/ bulk of this vote will be captured by
Mr. Davis who is more acceptable &c
them than the dry men, Messrs. ELY
son and Pollard And his friend:
claim that he will more than offset
such losses as he will sustain amonf
this element by accessions Of dry farm
ers by reason of his special plea foI
the farmer vote and the full dis
trih*tion among them of the South
ern Planter.
Now IL every Democrat goes to th'
polls (Which we well understand VII
not he the case) there remains bu
70 900 dry Democrats to be divided
between Ellyson and Pollard, Al
equal division of this number Will
every Democrat qualified and at TIL
polls. would give the nomination q
Mr. Davis There Will not he. how
ever, an equal division as we are yer,
confident large ma iority of the 70,
200 drys will go to Mr.. Ellyson and {
much smaller number to Mr. Pollard
But If sufficient number supper
Pollard to cause the defeat of Ely
son IT will not help Pollard. DIR,
l Democrats must get together. On
, may see at glance that It is danger
e Gus in this crisis. from one viewpoint
to aid the nomination of Mr.. Davis b.