The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1918-02-16

State House, Annapolis, Feb. Is.
These are exciting days IN the
General AsSembly-days OF deals and
counter-deals, of rumors and coun-
ter-rumors, of plots and counter
plots. over measures of all sorts, and
of great importance TO the people OF
the State.
Leaders, and those aspiring TO
leadership in both parties are busy
playing for position in the future,
and getting ready to take advantage
of the transition period III the al
fairs of both parties, as a result OF
the changed conditions arising from
the war and its effects in political
affairs; for all OF US are at sea as 10
what those effects will be, especially
after the great struggle between the
nations of the earth shall have been
ended, and the world war brought
to a close. That the effect on all
sorts of politics, and all parties, VIII
be great and startling, is certain, and
that the politicians assembled here
are preparing for the coming chan
ges. is evident to all. Hence, the
contest for position and leadership,
for prominence and influence, for
out of this turmoil and strife, no
doubt, new alignments will arise in
both parties, and no one is able 10
foresee or foretell how far these
new alignments may extend, or
whom they will effect, when the dust
and smoke of the battles may have
passed away.
How the annexation question will
be finally settled, is still problem,
although the bill as drawn by Mayor
Preston and the city authorities has
already passed the House of Dele
gates Despite the fact that the
newspapers of Baltimore, without
exception, have been going into hys-
terics over the question for months,
as if there was only one side to the
matter and only one way to look at
it, there remain many honest differ
ences of opinion on the subject. The
Republican leaders, agreeable to the
promise they made for support dur
ing the campaign last fall, forced
the bill through the House, but it is
still in the Senate, and there will be
no haste to jam it through that body
until it has been carefully, thorou-
ghly and impartially considered in
all its bearings and possible results.
The great and far-reaching impor-
lance of the whole matter, is fully
realized by the Senators, regardless
of party, and they do not intend 20
be dragooned into hasty and in.
siderate action. They realize u
Baltimore city is in, and a part o.
the State of Maryland, and that th(
people of the State of Maryland are
Il nd
well-being of Baltimore city, OF
which State the city is only part,
not tn ewhole of the State, and not
th edominant part, although some of
the eminent citizens of Baltimore
lTe under the impression that the
State is only a small part of the city,
and that the city should dominate in
all things.
Some of us, whose memories go
back more than generation, re-
member times in the past when the
conservative citizens of Baltimore
city made public appeals to the coun-
ty members of the General Assembly
to protect them from their own rep
resentatives, and the newspapers,
which now SO strenuously back the
city representative at Annapolis,
were loudest in their appeals to the
counties for help. The great menace
to modern civilization arises in the
cities, and the conservative county
people of Maryland should insist
now and in future in maintaining
their control of the State and its af-
fairs, as they have in the past. The
conservative safety of the country,
depends on the people of the county
districts and the smaller towns and
cities maintaining control, and the
greatest danger to modern civiliza-
ton arises from the vast hordes of
all sorts of people herded together in
the large cities.
Maryland has always ranked as a
safe, carefully governed State,
where peace and prosperity have
reigned. To give up tn econtrol to
the city, would be disastrous, and
the present Senate will stand in the
way of such a revolutionary proceed
ing.
Former Senator Richard S. Dod-
son, of Talbot county, is being urged
as a candidate for the democratic
nomination for Congress in the First
District. Mr.. Dodson made an eX
cellent record while at Annapolis,
both as a member of the House and
in the Senate He is a business man
of capacity, is successful banker,
and a man of the highest integrity.
What he intends to do about the
matter is unknown, but some of his
friends are urging hi INTO be can
didate for the nomination. Exon
gresham Josiah Leeds Kerr is re-
ported to be slated for the Republic
can nomination.
And through all the discussion in
the lobbies and corridors of the
State House, among the representa-
tives of both parties, there is an I'M
in regard to the next
for the governorship.
On the Republican side the names