The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1920-05-12
INSTRUCTIONS WILL NOT
CONTINUED From Pago one)

with one ballot ON the first ballot they
voted for Ford and then went elsrwhcrc.
Tho statute regulating the primaries
Of the other %iatrS ar" all like this.
They have the widest variation IN 'hclE
binding quality.
In Ohio. for example the delegate -
required Ia sign declaration saying:
L shall. 10 the best Of my judgment and
ability. support" the Presidential candI-
date who carrIrS the State. Thai Is one
Of the most binding Of the statutes. ana
i; doesn't bind very firmly.
In Illinois. thu statute says that the
result If the Presidential primary shall
be considered "A advisory.
TIL" Montana primary statute requires
tho delegate st" the best of his Judg-
mcnt and ability 10 faithfully carry out
the wishes Of his political party as eX-
pressed Ivy its voters in the primary.
In Nebraska. by court decision. the
Presidential primary Is only moran!
binding on delegates.
New Hampshire has the only really
binding law. The delegates from that
state are required to vote for the candi-
date who won tho Presidential primary.
80 long IA he shall be a cahoiuate pV-
fore the convention"
The not Of all these laws and tho
customs that have grown up AROUND
them is that instructions are loose
and variable quantity: and. in tense
nGnt on the CpuN'IN''h 4''O'' ''N'N $3.50
dependable.
am not now saying what II is moral
for a delegate 10 do under circumstances
where he is the Judge Of his own opliSa-
ton and responsibility; am merely ex-
planning that. so far as the primary laws
Hre concerned he is bound III only
viii interpret with Elasticity
n is true that a delegate IL always re-
sponsible in moral way 10 ms c"ms I u
face their criticism. But in practice the
fact IL that these instructions count
strongly only III cases wh"r" lhTT' Hrr
two. and only two, antagonists Pl''eH
against each other, as IN the case ot
Roosevelt and Taft in 1912.
I'nder such circumstances a delegate
would hesitate a long time before leaN-
ing one candidate to go directly 10 ms
opponent. But in a complex SITUATION
like the coming convention. where thcro
will BE- several candidates whose lot
tunes will begin to shift with the seconu
ballot-uudcr these circumstances lnul-
vidual delegates will be apt 10 interpret
their several instructions with great
elasticity.
effect the fortunes Of the various candl-
dates. For example. Johnson Carried the
Michigan presidential primary by
large majority. The thirty delegates
from Michigan are INSTRUCTED 70 Notu
said, these thirty delegates could. II they
wished. satisfy the Michigan statute by
voting for Johnson once and then gong
nm tho second ballot wherever their
hearts carry thCm. either indiHlduall! w
us a group. >,,o,tra,
delegates Is that with just few eN-
captions they are not Johnson men.
Probably five-sixths Of them don wai!,
Johnson 10 he President and do WAN
Johnson and Michigan as ono exanptt,
The same conditions apply in degree 10
all the other candidates and all the otner
states.)
other Reasons VIII Govern ,,o,r
have given enough examples TO snow
what n loose and Indispensable quantity
these constructed" delegates are I
tically speaking, "a soon ms IN" con|"n-
ton really gets under way. LheSe
structfons" are almost n"EllGiple.
The candidate who wins in the con-
ventiou will win through the votes OF
delegates who arc III favor or him ann
who vote for him because or ressohS
other than their primary INSTRUCTIONS.
Tho truth is tho number or deleRate7
who are committed by their hearts as
distinct from being instructed ny ne
nrimar;es ic very small. Wood has 100
";ns,ructcd" delegates. or the $50
think il fair to say. from fairly cNteh,
sivc ACQUAINTANCE. that not more ,na ~
so are really Wood men: are. so TO
sneak. Wood or die" mon: are "1,,H
e. in the sense in which. In the
Isl. convention. delegates were "Roose-
Welt mon" or Taft mon"
For example the sixteen Maryland
delegates are "instructed" for "ood.
But that does not necessarily mean InA'
their hearts are for Wood. The Mary
iand organization merely turned 10
Mood when their State was invaded by
johnson. as device. q symbol to vote
And II Wood has eighty. johnson has
not over ffty and Lowden not more
Xii in all certainly not over zoo dele