Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-09-02
Pssities i~
Pe~~a4tsan.ia
BY the Ex-Committeeman

| ital, lne nome OF the state cnalr-
man, Republicans from Southwest
ern Pennsylvania were gathered to
do honor to the State Republican
candidates and Senator Boies PEN
rose and at Lewisburg and other
/ places meetings of Republicans were
being held which were remarkable
for their party strength and unity.
At the same time Judge Eugene C.
Bonniwell, nominee of the Demo-
Gratis for Governor and creator of
| the third party, was pleading for
abatement of hostilities after having
started his new Fair Play party and
| Offering tosbe good If the clique now
ruling the Democratic state organi-
zation and holding down federal
Jobs. would accept Henry c. Niles,
| OF York. as state chairman. The
offer was not only falling on deaf
ears, but notice was being served in
the form of letters of criticism that
Bonniwell need not expect influential
Democrats to have anything to do
with him, one letter being declared
by the Philadelphia Inquirer to be
notice of a bolt by the Mccormick
! people. And all the time prepara-
| tions were being made at the Demo-
cratic state headquarters to roll out
Bonniwell fiat when the state COM
mittee meets Wednesday to adopt q
platform.
1t is a situation filled with inter-
| est for men who follow politics and
confidence for the Republicans who
are solidly aligned behind William
c. Sproul.
The McAdoo order that railroad
officials and employees must quit
| politics will take half a dozen or
more candidates out of the running
| for legislative seats. They include
Black and Millar, of this city; Glenn
ent and Helt. of Northumb berland;
Kearns, Altoona; Kantner, of Ia
maqua. all candidates for the House
and all Republicans except Black
and Kearns. T. ]. Forbes, Demo-
cratic candidate for Senator in the
Blair Huntington district, must also
get out.
Harry G. seip, reported to have
killed himself at Easton, was North
ampton county Republican chairman
and widely known among Repub-
licans.
From various signs it is not be-
lieved that the third party move
ment is proceeding as smoothly as
hoped by the elements behind Judge
Bonniwell and the GOODNESS with
which his suggestion of a comprom-
Use chairman was received has
started an interesting train of specu-
lation as to what will happen. 1t is
said that IN Philadelphia, Allegheny,
Luzerne, Lackawanna and Berks the
Bonniwell move has simply split the
Dam nd Co
which will react on the Judge in No
vember. The refusal of German to
line up with the parade was also II
disappointment, while the Stranahan
letter, which is suspected of being
put out to gloss over National Chair
man Vance c. Mccormick conduct
in supporting Berry, the keystone
candidate in 1910, was not rehshed.
In Berks, State Committeemap
Ira G. Kutz is said to be for Bonni-
well and his colleague. w. H. Mays.
Democratic county. Maybe Dauphin
may show something interesting.
The Philadelphia Press in an in
| teresting review of the situation.
says: The question of the moment
is: What will the McCormick-Palm er
men do about the Fair Play ticket =?
viii they allow its nominees to be
carried as a Democratic appendix, or
will there be an operation for ap-
| pendicitis? The question will not
long remain in doubt. for the whole
situation probably will be threshed
| out at the meeting of the state COM
| mittee to be held Wednesday at Har-
risburg for The parpose of adopting
party platform. The Bonniwell
people may renew their demand that
the platform be based on Judge Bon
niwelrs declaration, which features
wet plank. The organization mon
! will not consider this. The answer
nl;-y be that if the Judge wants TO
run on q wet platform, he has it in
| the Fair Play party and need no
longer remain a Democrat. If a fight
starts over the platform it may lead
almost anywhere. 1t would not be
altogether surprising TO see an at
temp. made to read the Judge oIt
of the party by a certain element. At
| the present moment il seems most
| likely that the program of the lead
ers is to ignore Judge Bonniwell at
the meeting Wednesday and make up
their platform with hands off, on
the liquor question. They are all
thoroughly convinced that the state
| ticket headed by Judge Bonniweli
cannot WIN, anu, tISIcLOtSt dc pOtl-
ticians, they feel that the best way
they can get out of the mess is to let
things go along quietly and see that
as little excitement as possible is
raised, and as few wounds inflicted
that will require long healing. But.
as already indicated, they may not
be able to hold all their followers to
this safe and sane policy, for Demo
Gratis are proverbially jealous of
! their right to speak out their minds"
Death on Saturday removed two
prominent figures from state politics
Henry Gramsback, Father of the
House," long legislator and the old
est man in years in that branch, and
Frank P. Pritchard, chairman of the
! board of picture censors, lawyer and
political commentator. Mr.. Pritcn-
! ards successor will have to be named
! by the Governor.
Union county's Republican COM
| mittee save Congressman B. +.
Focht a great endorsement at the
meeting of the committee at Lewis
| burg Saturday. The resolutions say,
| in part: las a resident of Union
county. and our neighbor and friend,
we most heartily commend him to
the voters of the Seventeenth District
as one of the best examples of a
self-made man whose unselfishness,
patriotism and helpfulness to his fell
lows endears him, to the great mass
| of people who so well know him and
| cheerfully support his candidacy"
The resolutions also commended Sem
ator Penrose and Representative H.