Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-03-18
That District Election
[ [From the National Republican. 7

There could be no better evidence
OF the desire of President Wilson
and his associates in Democratic
party leadership to put it over on
the people than the pretense which
| has been made, in this country and
abroad, that the election in the But
Ter -Westmoreland, Pennsylvania.
congressional district, possessed
significance as evidence of sentiment
in this country as to the Lord Cecil
wilson plan for a league of nations.
President Wilson sent n wireless
message of congratulation to the
successful Democratic candidate,
elected in a district normally Re-
publican, with an expression of
gratlhcation that he had been elect
ed on the Lord Cecil Wilson plan for
league of nations issue. A state
ment was given out for publication
here and abroad that this was an
indication of the trend of public
opinion on this issue. Democratic
National Chairman Cummings join
ed in the chorus with a pronuncia-
mento, and the Congressman-e elect,
JoFn IL. Wilson, who very we'll knew
that the causes of his election We're
other than the one claimed, added
his sanction to the theory that a
great battle had taken place in his
district on the Cecil-Wilson league
of nations issue, and that the Gov
enant" had triumphed.
The National Republican has in
vestigated this alleged triumph for
the Cecil-Wilson plan, and finds that
the claim that this issue cut any
figure in the result is an unadulter-
ated fake.
Nor is the statement that the
Republicans nominated a coal oper-
ator against whom his opponent, a
corporation lawyer, raised the issue
of employed against employer in
true Democratic demagogue fashion,
the real eXplanation,-thou that
happened.
The Republican defeat was due,
as people of the district know, to
contention between the Republicans
of the two big counties which COM
prise the district. In 1903 there was
a conference at Pittsburgh at which
delegates from the Republican COM
mittees of Westmoreland and Butler
counties signed an agreement that
the Republicans of the two counties
were to take turns in selecting the
candidates for Congress. 1t was
agreed that Westmoreland county
was to name the candidate for two
terms, and then Butler was to come
in for two terms, then Westmore-
land was to have three terms, But
Ter three terms and so on. The But
Ter county Republicans claim they
kept the agreement, but that when
their turn came the Westmoreland
Republicans, having a majority of
the delegates. refused to abide by it
and nominated Westmoreland
county man. The result was that
in the election each county backed
its own man under the sway of local
prejudice. famed by the cry of in
Justice. The Republican candidate
carried his county, while the Demo-
cratic candidate carried his Repub-
lican county by a sufficient majority
TO wipe that lead out and 403 votes
in addition.
Charles T.. Herr. editor of the
Butler County Record writes: The
proposed league of nations, as every
body in this district knows, was not
an issue in the campaign" The
question was mentioned only once,
and that obscurely in a newspaper
advertisement by the Democratic
candidate. the Republican candidate
saying nothing on the subject. There
were no speeches and the election
attracted little attention except
among those who were. angry or
apathetic over the strife between
the Republicans of the two counties.
The fact that there was an election
to be held seems not to have been
reported either to the Republican
national or congressional commit
tees. The Republican majority in
the House is SO large that there was
no national object in making
fight and the assumption was by
those outside the district that no
campaign was necessary. Members
of the House have no vote on the
peace treaty. and the idea that the
Lord Cecil Wilson plan for a league
of nations was an issue did not oc-
cur to anybody before the election
was held, and was not mentioned by
any political header or newspaper.
The theory that the result possesses
significance, publicly proclaimed. is
clear evidence of desire to deceive
the people of this country and of
Europe. 1t was only evidence that
even n covenant of countries would
not preserve political peace.