The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1919-05-16
TROUBLE BREWS
FOR DEMOCRACY
Talk of Harmony Can't Camou-
fIage Serious Situation Caused
by Attempt to Sidetrack
Nugent.
HUDSON AND ESSEX
IN PRETTY BR0IL
After Edwards Accepts Nugent's
Support, Hudson Politicians
Attempt to Throw Essex Boss
Overheard.

Trenton-There is rattlihg of
bones in the Democratic closet. Its
sound is ominous to the ear attuned TO
the significance of political discords
1t Is attracting even more attention
just now than the honey pot from
which two rival candidates slipped only
recently, sweetening their tongues to
the task of mutual adulation and
smacking their lips with an apparent
satisfaction that was beautiful to be-
hold.
Whoever is rafting the skeleton had
better be careful or he will smash the
honey pot, and that would be sweet
mess, indeed.
1t all resolves itself into the fact
that harmony is a very difficult word
to find in the Democratic dictionary.
1t doesn't appear there in the regular
category, and, when you write it in,
the ink. for some peculiar reason. is
very apt to fade. 1t is a harder task
to find 1t than to find out why it isn't
there. So let us take up the inquiry
on the latter basis. Out of a mass of
rumors, let us endeavor to get at the
facts.
1t was only a short time ago that
Senator Edward l. Edwards, candidate
for the Democratic nomination for
governor, announced that he had de-
cided to accept the support" of the
twin bosses of the Democracy, James
r. Nugent and Frank Hague. This
was in line with the plans of the
bosses, and 1t was naturally to be sup
posed that Edwards was sincere. What
happened7
Had II All Under His Thumb.
On the twenty-second of last April
Nugent made preparations to run an
active campaign for Edwards from
headquarters at 772 Broad street,
Newark, where his law office is located
and where the Democracy of New Jer-
sey Is wont to rendezvous when Nu-
gent is on the Job as state boss. News
paper men were informed of his plans
and he said he was going to line up
his TRUSTEES in different parts of the
state. A telephone was installed on
the same day and other arrangements
were made for getting right down to
real work
Three days later it became evident
that something had gone awry. Since
then the dust has settled on the office
paraphernalia, but the air has been
full of rumors 1t is said that the
moment Mr. Nugent started to get
busy in his managerial capacity some
body in Hudson county also started
to get busy, with the result that the
elaborate preparations of the boss
from Essex have since served no more
useful purpose than to remind him of
the old proverb about mice and men.
This is the way Dame Gossip has 1t :.
Edwards Is a Hudson man. If he is
to go across, Hudson wants the credit.
Besides that, there are some ambitious
politicians in Hudson, and they don't
want anything to get away from them
If they can help it. Somehow or other
they have got The idea that they can
run campaign as well as Nugent
can, but even If they can't they don't
want him to be bossing things while
| they themselves are twiddling their
! thumbs or helping him to regain his
| old grip on the party.
Plot to Gust Nugent.
For some time, as 1t now appears,
there has been quiet but concerted
effort to Dust Nugent from the drivers
seat in the Edwards candidacy and
give the whip and reins to Highway
Commissioner George E. Blakeslee.
For the time being, at least, the effort
seems to have been successful
Blakeslee is a Hudson man, with
little or no experience in the devious
political ways of the Nugent Democ-
racy of Essex. And so, as the story
goes, he has selected as one of bis