Republican farmer., 1918-01-18
COP. CALLED
 INTO SESSION
 ON FEBRUARY F

Members of the Republican Ma tional Committee are preparing to meet in St. Louis Feb. 12. William R. Wilcox has sent out notice of the date and place of the meeting.
 In statement he said yesterday:
 At a meeting of the Executive Committee last year, it was decided to have a meeting of the National Com mittee once year. Inasmuch as at the elections next fall an entire new House of Representatives and one third of the membership of the Sen ate will be chosen, directly or indi- rectly, we believe it is exercising sound judgment for the Republican National Committee to get together for conference and action
 According to the judgment of the Republican party, the statement con- tinues, there never has been time power in Congress. '"The importance of questions to come up at the close of the war, or even before that, can not be overestimated," says the state ment. 'The Democratic party never has shown competence in crisis in dealing with the economic questions of the country"
 A Hughes Roosevelt Whitman combination is forming to prevent the seizure of the Republican na- tional organization by the Penrose- Crane-Smoot "Old Guard'' at the ma tionGl committee meeting in St. Louis on February 12.
 It will oppose the election of John T. King, of Connecticut, or John T. Adams of Iowa, or any other favorite of the reactionary crowd for national chairman. It will insist that Chair man William R. Wilcox shall retain his job unless Will H. Hays, of In diana, or some other progressive can be chosen as WillcoX's successor. Pending the alignment of anti | "Old Guard" forces, Chairman Will | COX will withhold his proposed resig- nation at the risk of the execution of the threat to oust him.
 Wilcox Is Active.
 The foregoing information was in circulation yesterday within a few hours after Chairman Willcox's re- l After a talk with the head of the national committee, an inf1uentia, l leader said:
 "If the Penrose Crane Smoot clique attempts to oust Chairman Wilcox and put in either Penrose's office boy, King, or Adams, it will be 1 resisted by all the elements back o1 Hughes, Roosevelt and Whitman ir the last presidential campaign.
 Chairman Wilcox desires to retire as chairman. He is not disposed l however, to surrender his place to an agent of a self-seeking piraticaI po- l litical group that all but murdered the Republican party in 1912 and car ried only two states of the 48 fo1 Taft
 Chairman Wilcox himself, while declining to discuss in detail the war, fare waged upon him, made answer to this question::
 l 'PenroSe-C -Crane-S e-Smoot leaders al. lege that you oppose a straight Re. publican Congressional ticket thi: fall, and that you are engineering as an appointee under President Will. son, campaign to nomnate and cleo non-partisan patriotic American Congress to back the President?"
 Congress Fight Vital.
 That allegation is not warranted , replied the chairman. "I regard i- as of prime importance to put fortf every effort to secure a majority o. Republicans in the next Senate an( House. At the close of the war the country will face the greatest eco homie question in it's history" h, added:
 Never has it been more importan than it will be next fall to elect a many Republican members of Con gress as we can. At the same tim, every Republican in Congress should stand for national unity and suppor the United States government il bringing about victorious conclusion of the war"
 It is understood that Charles E Hughes, Republican candidate fo President in 1916, and Colonel Roose welt have insisted that Wilcox shal not retire until assured that an anti . "Old Guard" man will be elected na tional chairman. They are lining LII , all national committeeman they cal control.