Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-03-26
PeeH;cA i~
Pe~~oqeSa~io
BY the Ex-Committeeman

among Democratic county leaders
throughout the state that Acting
State Chairman Joseph f. Gufy has
won over National Chairman Vance
! c. Mccormick and that the Pitts
burgh utility magnate will announce
| his candidacy for Democratic guber-
material nomination honors within
! few days with the blessing of the
national administration. But what
| is interesting every leader is how
! Guffey managed to get the national
| chairman, who has strong ideas
about the prohibition amendment
! in line for him. Guffey has never
! made any declaration for or against
the amendment and the general idea
is that he would prefer to sidestep it
in order to reap whatever advantages
may accrue to Democrats because of
! division among Republicans on that
| subject.
Mccormick has reiterated his re-
! fusal to be a candidate for governor,
much to the disappointment of some
| leaders and at the same time comes
| to have demolished the booms OF
eX-State Treasurer William II. Berry
| and United States District Attorney
| E. Lowry Humes. 1t was the belief
! among Democrats that Mccormick |
would designate some one as his
| choice. Instead of that he hasi
| apparently gone along on Guffey, |
who is suspected of having been the |
real choice of National Congressman
| A. Mitchell Palmer and his pals |
all along.
Guffey's announcement will be !
awaited with interest inasmuch as
the men who are really in the race !
for Republican gubernatorial hon |
ors, are out fiat-footed for the |
amendment.
Speaking of this latest Demo- /
cratic development the Philadelphia |
Ledger says: "A crisis has been
reached in the Democratic guberna-
torial situation, and as a result 1T is
expected that the candidacy of Jo-
seph +. GuffeY, of Pittsburgh, will
be announced by the middle of the
week. In this connection it was
learned yesterday that unexpected
opposition to Collector of the Port
Berry had developed and that Rob
ert S. Bright. who had been urged
to seek the nomination, persistently
refused to do so. 1t is understood
that the Democratic leaders regard
Mr. Guffey as their strongest posi-
bility. 1t was said yesterday the
President declared Mr.. Mccormick
was an absolute necessity in his pres
ent post"
Governor Brumbaugh and state
administration leaders conferred for
an hour or more at the Executive
Mansion with Commissioner O'Neil
last night on the situation created
by the announcements of Sproul and
Beidleman, but refused to make any
statements. The report got abroad
that a state slate was being made
up. but this was denied. O'Neil men
were rather inclined to be insistent
that O'Neil was candidate for gov
ernor and not going to have lot
of booms tagged on him.
The Philadelphia Press takes
the Ledger to account to-day for
doubling Senator Sprouts prohibi
ton declaration, saying that its
statement about a sudden CONVEX
sion" if true would mean nothing
against Senator Sproul." The Phila-
delphia and Pittsburgh papers gen.
orally regard the Beidleman declara-
ton to run for second place as a
war notice on the Wares and Scott
which will involve the state admin
istration.
In the course of events Com
missioner O'Neil will make a state
ment on the Sproul declaration and
to Indiana couAty to-day and to
Johnstown tomorrow. I'm on my
way and things are looking fine"
was his comment 1t remains to be
seen what the commissioner will
have to say about the Beidleman
candidacy. If he attacks it there
will be a general assumption that
he will line up with Scott, but the
commissioner was not saying any
thing about that to-day.
The Philadelphia Inquirer calls
attention to the endorsements given
to Senator Sproul by three former
governors. After referring to the
strong endorsement given by ex-
Governor Stuart, the Inquirer says:
LAS prothonotary of the Supreme
Court, former Governor Stone inva-
riably refrains from taking any part
in politics, but he makes no secret !
of his personal interest in the cam
vass in Senator Sprouts behalf "I
am heartily in favor of the nomina-
tion of Senator Sproul," said former
Governor Tener. 81 had an oppor-
tunity when l was in Harrisburg
to watch his intelligent and con-
scientious work in the Legislature /
and believe he is just the man to
meet the extraordinary conditions |
with which the next Governor will |
inevitably be confronted" It is !
planned to have Tener and Stuart |
speak from the same platform at an |
early Sproul rally"
The Philadelphia North Amer !
ican to-day says that it is likely that !
the Republican city committee of !
Philadelphia will be called together |
this week to endorse a slate of |
candidates for state offices"
The Pittsburgh Gazette Times |
intimates that Ex-Mayor William A. |
Magee, may conclude to run for the |
state senate in the district represent |
ed by his brother, the late Senator
| Charles ]. Magee. The Leslie peo-
pie will run Representative w. w. |
Mearkle, and the Magee people have !
been talking of Peter ]. Donahoe. |
who backed Magee in the mayor
atty fight. The Gazette-Times says
1T is within the range of possibili- |
ties that when the final day for fill |
| ing nomination papers at Harris
burg arrives, it will be found that
Mr.. Donahoe will not put in a paper
and Mr.. Magee will appear as the
candidate. The Magee family has
controlled this senatorial seat for
more than 40 years. and will un-
doubtedly fight to keep the record
unbroken. Mr.. Magee being with
out public office just now, and hav-
ing once held the seat. his candidacy
| would not be q surprise"