Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-11-14
'Psest;ce st
Ps~~AteOo~io
BY the Ex- Committeeman

george w. Williams, of Wellsboro,
one OF the members of. tho lower
branch of the Legislature from Tioga
county for several years and a former
senator, is commencing to be mem
toned as a possible candidate for
Speaker of the next House. Mr..
Williams is a prominent dry" mem
Der ana was sponsor for the local
optlon bill in the session of 1915.
Representative Aaron b. Hess, of
Lancaster, is also being groomed and
so is Representative William T. RAM
sey, floor leader and chairman of the
rules committee in the last House.
Both OF these men are eastern men,
bers and of considerable experience.
The western end of the state has
not been heard from, but the name
of Representative John w. Wicker
man, the dry" leader last session, is
talked of.
The belief is that since the Re-
publican leaders have determined to
have no contest that an upstate man
VII be selected.
Senator Edwin II. Ware was the
man who let it be known that there
would be no contest over the speak
ership and that the desires of the
new Governor would be accepted
by everyone. This news, which was
discounted at the Capitol the day
after election by some of the wise
ones, is given considerable promi-
nence in the Philadelphia newspa-
pers and there is a general sense of
relief expressed.
Senator Clarence J. Buckman,
of. Bucks, will be elected president
pro tenn and the man to be decided
upon at a party council will be
speaker, which means that the new
Governor is going to have a legis-
lative program and that it will
go through" said a well-versed man
to-day. You will find that the ses-
sion will be short as it was in
Stuart's time"
1t is interesting to note that
Senator Ware also declared to the
Public Ledger yesterday that he fa-
vored short session.
People at the State Capitol in
innate that the biggest thing that
looms up in arranging the program
for the coming Legislature, now that
De no hight over the organization of
the two houses except what the
Democrats may make in formal
way, is when the prohibition amend
ment shall be laid before the Cen
eral Assembly. Some of the dry"
leaders are urging that it be made
the business for the first day or two.
The Legislature will meet the first
tuesday of January and the prac-
uce has been to organize and after
routine matters to listen to the mes
sage OF the Governor and then ad-
Journ for two weeks to allow the
committees 10 be made up. The plan
OF the "dryS" is said to be to have
a two-day session the first week
and act on the prohibition amend
ment. This problem is going to
De the largest to handle in the list.
ELECTION contests by two Repub-
hcan candidates for Congress who
were defeated were promised yester-
day by upstate political leaders who
conferred in Philadelphia, says the
North American John r. Farr,
OF Scranton, who was defeated by
Patrick McLane for Congress in the
Lackawanna county district, came
here from Washington. lie talked
with politicians, including Senator
ware, and intimated that he would
contest the election of McLane, a
Democrat Friends of Farr claim
that he was counted out in several
precincts of Lackawanna county.
McLane's plurality was only 259.
Election of John j. Casey, of
Wilkes-Barre, in the Lackawanna
county district, likely will be con-
tested by Edmund N. Carpenter, Re-
publican, who was defeated by only
a few votes.
Congressman Edgar r. Keiss, of
the Wiliiamsport district, who was
here yesterday on his way to Wash
ington, was given congratulations by
his friends at the Capitol upon
breaking the record of the district
in getting four consecutive terms.
People here expect him to be the
chairman of the printing committee,
of which he is the senior Republican
member Congressman Keiss, who
will be recalled as an active legis-
lator some ten years ago, was the
man who settled questions about how
long the session of 1909 should be
by presenting a resolution fixing
April 10 as the date of adjournment
on the day the session met. And
the session adjourned on April 15 to
the great relief of everyone and with
n fine record of work accomplished
The Congressman had beaten the
records of Elias Deemer and William
b. Wilson, each of whom had three
terms. He defeated Wilson, now Sec
retary of Labor, when he aspired to
fourth term and the Wilson major
ity on his third election of 1900
has been turned upside down by Mr.
Keiss, who came near beating all the
tickets at the recent election.
Congressman, b. K. Focht, OF
Lewisburg, who was here a day OIL
so ago, has\been congratulated upor
the manner in which he swept up his
district in the face of a tremendous
fight made by partisans of National
Democratic Chairman Vance c. Nc
Cormick, who, unable to get any
Democrat to run in his own district
concentrated on Focht. who carried
almost every county in consequence
According to the Pittsburgh
Gazette Times Mayor Babcock is sale
to have "in mind Pittsburgh's duty
in connection with state road i'm
provement in giving notice of his in.
tention to submit to the people 9
| $1O.00O,000 bond issue proposition
within few months. Details OF
his pm remain to be disclosed"
The anthracite regions seem tc
be once more the center of politica
storms. The chances are that the,
will furnish contests for the mex
| Congress to settle.
Badge of Honor For POSteritL
TFron, the Grand Ranids prass1