New-York tribune., 1918-05-22
Cropsey Men Wait
His Word to Put
Slate in Field
Livingston Backs Him
Kings Leader Does Not Take
Kindly to Lewis to Head
the Ticket

second anti Whitman slate may be
put in The running Saturday, when Su
preme Court Justice James c. Cropsey,
of Brooklyn, addresses the Credit
Mems Association of Syracuse. All
that the Cropsey men are waiting for
is the word from the justice that he
will be candidate
Jacob A. Livingston, chairman of the
executive committee of the Kings
County Republican Committee, is leader
of the second anti Whitman army Mr..
Livingston does not take kindly to the
candidacy of Attorney General Merton
E. Lewis, his friends said yesterday,
and in talk with some of them re-
Gently Mr.. Livingston said that the
out solidly for Justice Cropsey if he
would only say the word.
IF Justice Cropsey will announce
next Saturday that he will be a can
didate," said prominent Brooklyn
Republican leader yesterday, "he will
have the backing of everybody of
weight in Kings County, from Mr.. Liv-
ingston down. 1t is true that Alfred
f. Vass, the chairman of the Kings
County Republican Committee, has
come out for Governor Whitman, bat
he won't be able to swing the organiza
ton"
The Cropsey- Livingston forces plal
to put an entire ticket in the field. SO
far they have agreed on but two 9th er
places on sle slate, that of Secretary
of State and State Engineer. They
have agreed to name the incumbents,
who are candidates on the Whitman
ticket as we'll, Francis M. Hugo for
Secretary of State and Frank M. Will
Jams for State Engineer.
The Cropsey-Livingston faction is
determined, if in their power, to rele
gate to private life their fellow towns
man, Eugene M. Travis, the State Con-
troller. If they can persuade Thad-
deus C. Sweet, of Oswego. who also
has been named as a possible anti
Whitman candidate for Governor. to
run on their ticket for Controller they
will name him.
They have not made up their mind
as to whether to accept Harold Hin
Attorney General. Mr.. Hinman is chief
aid to Attorney General Lewis, and
recently announced that he would be
a candidate in the Republican pri-
maries for the nomination of Attorney
General.
Mr.. Hinman would be acceptable to
the Livingston-Cropsey forces if Will
liam Barnes, the real boss of Albany
County, and the chief sponsor of At
torney General Lewis, would get his
candidate to withdraw. But Mr.. Lewis
has announced that he is in the race
to stick.
The Office of State Treasurer and
that of Lieutenant Governor are also
being kept open by the Cropsey-Liv-
ingston group. Lieutenant Governor
Schoeneck, of Syracuse, if he could be
induced to desert the Whitman forces,
would be acceptable, but since he has
elected to remain loyal to the Cover
nor he is out of consideration by the
State Treasurer, James L. Wells, of
The Bronx, is likely to announce his
retirement from politics very shortly
to enter the banking business. He at
present is considering an offer to ac-
cept the presidency of Bronx finan-
cisl institution at salary almost
double that which he receives from the
state.
One of Justice Cropsey's friends said
announced his candidacy long ago but
for fear that the upstate triple alliance
Barnes, of Albany; William
I. Ward, of Westchester, and Senator
Elon r. Brown. of Watertown-would
trot out candidate of their own.
"Mr. Cropsey does not want a sure
thing" said his friend. "But he does
not want to be one of two or more
candidates when it means a splitting
up of the Whitman opposition vote"
The Livingston-Crop forces, while |
bitterly opposed to Governor Whitman,
regard Attorney General Lewis as i
weak candidate. Some of them quoted |
William NJ BENEFITS statement that
Mr.. Lewis would not do because of his !
hackers. Others said that the Attor-
ney General made mistake in an
nouncing that he would not make an
active campaign.
GLOW does he expect to get the peo-
pie to vote for him if he is going to
sit in his chair in Albany while Gov
ernor Whitman is out touring the
state" said one of the Livingston Crop
sey men.
~