Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-05-10
PRESIDENTIAL BLANKS
ON THE PRIMARY BALLOTS
Pennsylvania Republicans Expected
to Go II Blind In the Election
Of Delegates to Chicago

Of Delegates to Chicago
As THE date for the primaries ap-
a proscbcs the Republican voters Of
Pennsylvania may be rardopcd il they
begin TO be curious about how their
delegates TO the Chicago convention are
to vote.
There have been primaries in other
states at which the voters expressed
their preference for Wood. or johnson,
or Harding. or Lowden, or Hoover, or
Poindcxtcr. And in states in which
there was no provision for expressing
! presidential preferences they have voted
for delegates who had pledged them.
selves to attempt TO bring about the
nomination of one candidate or another.
But in Pennsylvania there has been
no arrangement made for printing on
the primary ballot the names of Candi-
dates for the nomination And the
candidates for election as delegates have
! not been saying anything about the
! candidates whom they favor.
The program at present seems to be
to elect the delegates, uncommitted to
any one, and then for the state leaders
! to issue orders how they shall vote
delegation can be swung with most ad
! vantage to themselves.
| As there has been no audible demand
! for anything else, it must be assumed
that this sort Of thing is the sort of
thing that tho Republican voters like.
( Yet some of them are really curious TO
! know how tho delegation will be swung
in Chicago
The neglect to make arrangements to
sound the preferences of the voters is
not due to any defect in the law. The
prescribed form of the primary ballot
provides for tho appearance on it OF
names of candidates for the presidential
! nomination and for the pledge Of dele
gates to support or to oppose the pop
ular choice OF the party for President.
The space for presidential candidates
/ is evidently to be left blank. Many
voters will doubtless write in the name
! of the candidate whom they prefer.
I They will do this not in any expectation
that the state leaders will take that
preference seriously. but merely be-
cause they cannot resist the temptation
to have their say when the opportunity
is offered
The supporters Of the candidates iu
| other states will get what comfort they
may from such preference as will be
! expressed by the self asscrtive citizens
of this state who are not content with
political management in the private
rooms of any leader.
In the meantime. the leaders arc
talking about candidates. Senator
PcnroSP. in what he has called
casual remark" has suggested Srna-
tor Knox as the man who should be
nominated. And Senator Knox, when
he read the casual remark" smiled
knowing smile aud kept mum.
Mr.. Knox has n candidate of his
own. Who he is was revealed by Clin-
ton W. Gilbert. the usually well in-
formed Washington correspondent OF
this newspaper Mr.. Knox is not for
Harding. or Hoover, or Wood, or Poin-
dexter. His candidate, surprising as it
may seem. is Hiram johnson. anti
corporation shoutcr and the man who
is doing his best TO Bryanize the Re.
publican party.
Knox is for johnson. one Immediately
begins to wonder whether Penrosc is
also for Johnson and is planning TO
back a man who stands for everything
that he has opposed in the past. II it
can be assumed that Penrosc can learn
by experience. it could be argued with
considerable plausibility that he is for
Johnson. In 1912 he and the other
Old Guard leaders prevented the nom
ination Of Roosevelt. and Roosevelt car
riod Pennsylvania by an overwhelming
vote. And johnson was on the ticket
with Roosevelt,
We remarked some time ago that
events might shape themselves so that
the most important question before the
Chicago convention would be whether
il would profit by the lesson Of 1912.
They have already so shaped them
selves that tho Old Guard has forgiven
Johnson for uniting with Roosevelt in
defeating Republican President for
re election in 1912 and for preventing
the election of a Republican in 1916.
Johnson is a regular now, and Senator
Knox. one of the Old Guards most
loyal members, is for him for the presi-
dcncy.
But for all that, johnson is the Re
publican Bryan, with all of Bryan's
foibcs and little of his political genius.
He is not a Roosevelt, and it will not
do to recall Bryan's remark that the
Colonel had stolen his whole outfit,
shirt. breechcs and even Il. V. D.'s,
aud was paradinG the country in it,
Yet we are confronted with the pos
siblity-remotc it may be-that the
delegation from this state will be
ordered to vote for johnson in Chicago.
The cxigcncies of politics bring about
strange Interpretations. and political
leaders are like the young woman who
saws that she would not marry John
Doe if he were the last man on earth,
and the next week sends out invitations
for her marriage TO him Women in poll
ties will be guilty of no greater incOn-
sistencics and contradictions than the
| men who have long insisted that politics
was the peculiar affair of men and
not understandable by women.
Johnson's regularity has been ad.
mittrd as suddenly as the young woman
accepted John Doe.
Hoover il not regular because, for
sooth, he favored the election of