El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1920-11-01
ISSUES
IN FIGHT IN
NEW MEXICO
By GUTHRIE SMITH.
CONTINUED from page Il

"
head Of his ticket was elected BY 5017.
After he had served seven years on
the supreme bench. he asked the peo-
pie 70 Vindicate lis record by giving
I him another term What happened
4 The people refused TO endorse his
record on the bench by rejecting his
plea By a plurality Of 1852 votes III
must be said on his behalf that he was
then qualified for service on the Eu-
preme bench, ~ he was qualified for
him for this work, for which he was
partly qualified at least. why should
we fear they VIII make him governor,
when he never has developed any
business ability or shown any fitness
for the difficult work.
Judge 1Iechem was appointed 10 the
territorial bench in 1903, when the
several district judges, sitting as a
body, constituted the territorial su-
preme court He was elected district
1911. and reelected in 1913.
The Democrats appeared to get
away with their state convention in a
FOG Of harmony 1t transpired later
been made by the convention The
first that appeared was in adopting
the following plank
That We condemn the practice In this
state Of corporations paying the salaries
eud directing the activities OF deputy
sheriffs. and we advocate legislation max
ing ample provision for each county 20
employ and pay the salaries OF all Off
GERS required for its proper police protec-
No sooner had his bean dissent
mated through the press Ehan there
came a. roar from Democratic Grant
ment Of this pledge into law would
increase the burden Of the Grant
county taxpayers by s5o.0o0 a year.
It did not seem possible to remedy
the situation through revision so
somebody on the general staff obeyed
the command TO sink without trace
The Good Roads Issue.
The roads plank. it was discovered
after The harmony and heat Of the
convention made room FOR critical
analysis, pledged the abolishing Of
the states central road bureau, which
meant. II enacted into law, that New
Mexico would not receive another DOL
lar from the federal government 70
be used in building federal aid roads
IN the state.
Since the federal government and
the state highway commission are en-
Eaged in a road program costing
millions OF dollars, the federal gov
eminent bearing half the cost, il was
realized that such plank would Sc
cure little support FOR the ticker the
government transacts al its business
as to federal aid roads with the state
road bureau, board or commission, and
win not deal with the individual
counties. The emergency staff az gen
eral headquarters revised rhiE plank
SO thar, while il demands aoolishing
OF the state road board, IL also favors
the creating Of a state highway com
which shall operate under a
comprehensive budget system, etc.
The plank which was actually /
by the conventions reads as 4
That We favor the repeal OF the laws /
creating and maintaining the state road I
board. and the inadequate and cumher- ]
and maintenance under which the funds 4
appropriated for such purpose are clesi- I
1ated auc exhausted in salaries ana eL- /
lenses With SO little profit 70 the high /
Ways Of the state and We favor the sub
ltitutiou therefor Of statutes restoring % 4
The several counties the ruaintauzuce q 1
roads within their lIntts under s-ca
statutory regulations which shan insure
good roads ct a fair ana reasonable e1-
1cnse-"
me plank is faulty in another vital I
point. in that, while x demands Apol-
shinE OF the state road board, l1eal-
nE the state highway commission u 4
raVors authorizing the counties 20 go 4
ln with maintenance only omit TINS i
IN mention OF construction which IS
more important now. The platform
vas published in a number Of papers,
1ut the state central commit tee made
10 protest against inaccuracies Now,
ne plank. as adopted by the conven-
ion. is repudiated, and the general
itaffs revision offered as he origi-
laL
when the platform report was read
% the convention by Lucius DIS, OF
ianta Fe. chairman OF the committee
e Las Vegas. sat at the press table.
N the stage. not 15 feet distant 4
,ad a copy Of the platform. and para
-raph By paragraph. line by line, fol-
owed Dills as he read The report
vas adopted without even the offer
q an amendment. The two 1lanl-s
-uoted are given here precisely as
hey were submitted to and adopted
81 the Convention.