The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-05-23
Filing of Declaration as Candi-
date for Governor.
Wichita Editor Now in France
With Red Cross.
WILL NOT CIRCULATE PETITIONS
Allen Did Not Want Work To
Interfere With War.
Crops and War Activities Need
Time, Candidate Says.

Henry J. Aliens declaration as a
candidate for the Republican nomina-
ton for governor was filed today with
]. T. Botkin, secretary of state. No
nominating petitions were circulated
in Aliens behalf. Before he returned
to France in early February. Allen re-
quested the late Morton Albaugh and
other men in charge of his campaign
not to interfere with war activities by
circulating petitions for candidates for
political office.
Action by the Allen campaign COM
mittee in filing the Wichita editors
declaration of candidacy for governor
is the final word in the argument con-
corning the return of Allen to Kansas
in advance of the Republican state
wide primaries. Allen will not be
home during the pre-primary cam
paign. In fact there is considerable of
a possibility that he may not be home
for the prediction campaign. He has
made clear his position in letters to
until the American Red Cross society
is satisfied that the work which the
Kansan has in charge is completed.
Then the Wichita editor-candidate will
come home.
Want No Petitions.
Hundreds of Aliens friends in all
sections of Kansas have written to the
state headquarters in Topeka asking
permission to circulate petitions in va
rious localities. Always the reply
went from the Allen headquarters that
no petitions would be circulated. So
today the state committee in charge of
the ALLEN campaign paid the optional
fee in lieu of nominating petitions and
certified to Secretary Botkin the Allen
declaration of his candidacy Allen
signed the formal statement January
23-two weeks in advance of his re-
turn to France for the Red Cross
Harvey H. Motter of Mcpherson.
secretary of the Allen for governor
campaign committee; and Clyde Reed
of Parsons. a member of the campaign
committee, filed the Allen declaration
No attempt was made to circulate
petitions" said Secretary Motter
Loyal Kansans are too busy with war
activities to give their time and at
tention to the petitions of a candi-
date for political office. The men
and women who do things in Kansas
are absorbed in liberty loan, Red Cross,
Z. M. c. A. farm labor or other cam
palgns And everyone who stops to
circulate a petition for a candidate for
office takes just that much time away
from war work. Just now winning
the war means whole lot more to
Kansas and the nation than the COM
ing primaries or election.
He Wanted u Declaration.
Henry must have sensed all of this
before he returned to France. Any
way, he told us that he wanted a de-
claration filed instead of petitions He
didn't want his friends running up
and down the state with petitions
when crops were to be raised and men
sent to the army and funds raised to
look after the thousand and one
needs So that is the reason we filed
the declaration. Henry signed it be-
fore he left. And our friends who
wanted to carry the petitions for
Henry's nomination, were asked in
stead to carry a subscription blank for
the Red Cross or the liberty loan
campaign