The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-07-27
Republicans Not Sure ST., 900
Limit to Contributions
Will Be Satisfactory
Is IMPRACTICAL t.y a.
FOR SHORT CAMPAIGN


BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Especial Despatch to The Reformer
Copyright 1920
CHICAGO, July 27.-Campaign finances
of both the Republican and the Demo
CRATES parties are in none too good con-
dition. Each side is handicapped by a.
peculiar set of circumstances entirely
apart from the supposed restraints which
the senate investigating committee was
expected to apply this year to excessive
spending.
The Republicans are embarrassed be-
cause in a moment of indlscretion they
committed themselves TO $1,000 as the
limit of the contributions, something
that not only prominent Republicans but
unlocking Democrats say is wholly inn
practical for a short campaign. The
Democrats are affected by no such limits
and can take any sums they please, but
Wilbur Marsh, Democratic national
treasurer. who was here today, de
clared the Democrats would reserve the
IL
| from sources not deemed sufficiently dis
interested. The Democrats, however, are
in had shane because the San Francisco
lconvention took at least $500 apiece for
! travel and hotel expenses from the lndl-
| yiduaI delegates and also delayed the or
| oanization of the Democratic campaign
| committee so that while the Republl-
cans have been at work for several weeks,
/ the Democrats haven't even begun. Col
| lecting money for a deficit after tie cleo
| ton result is once known is an almost
/ impossible task.
| The theory behind the Republican APP
proach to the question of finance Is en-
itireIy different from that being adopted
/, bv the Democrats The Republicans are
/ depending upon large subscriptions mp TO
| 81 600. and they must raise at least
s5.Og0OOO. 1t IS much harder forget 5000
/ persons to contribute 81 900 apiece than
lit is to get $4,000 persons to give 500
each. for the first must be accomplished
! nv individual canvas and soliciting while
the second might be collected through a
mail organization if there were time TO
build one. 1t isn't that 5000 Republi
cans can't be found to give ~ ,OO0 each,
but all contributions must be made pub
lie and the art of giving money to cam
paigns is not highly developed except in
a small circle in both Republican and
Democratic parties
The best system vet devised is the one
/, the Democrats established just after the
close of the 1916 campaign, when they
found themselves confronted with a
deficit. Wilbur Marsh of Iowa.. tEens-
urer. and w. ID. Jameson, also of Iowa
director of finance, organized a regular
financial factory which did nothing but
write chain letters asking for small sub
| seriptions Five men would be asked tC
give small sums, for instance, and each
requested to send in the names of five
other persons who might be interested
in contributing equal amounts. In that
way the Democrats have acquired a mail
ing list of about 100000 names. They col
lected in this way nearly S2,000,000 II
the two years following the last presi
Dental election, and they consider the
advantages two-fold. First, the money
comes from so many contributors thai
there is no chance for any individual K
have disproportionatte hold on the sue
cessful candidate when he takes office
4 and, second, the increased number o
subscribers means an almost equivalent
number of volunteer workers on election
day.
The Republicans have mistakenly edu
Gated organizers in some of the populou
states to pay their workers and it i
= difficult to switch from a paid to vol
unteer basis In few places where TIL
, Democratic state organizations have ac
4 quired powerful influence the SAM
system of paying workers obtains, bu
4 generally speaking neither political part,
81 off 70 htIxr ba IF oY,1
4 workers on election day without subject
i ing themselves to endorsements.
So there are Republicans who wisl
their party had adopted the policy o
4 asking for small subscriptions and a
the same time had placed no limit o
81 900, for the Democrats get both tn
N small and the large subscriptions ii
some quarters here it is predicted tina
\ by the time October arrives, the Repub1i
i cans will have to confess that the 81 ,00
Il limit isn't getting results and that gen
\ eral appeal for funds of any size, larg
4 or small. with the right to reject contri
buttons from sources not considered dis
Interested will have to be made.
OF course, federal laws are very veal
with respect to campaign finances AM
there are plenty of ways of certifying
that only $5,000,000 has been spent by
national party when a total of five ant
six times that sum may have been ex
pended by state committees who do no
have to make their contributions publi
or even certify to them. 1t is fair esti
mate that the national campaign com
mittees of the Democrats and the Repub
licans respectively will run up bills of al
least $6,000,000 each before they can ge
through with the present campaign. Blu
/ in the effort to elect senators, represent
tatiyes, governors and state officials mil
lions will be spent lin the interest of tn,
Il party" within the state which need never
be revealed in certificate of nationa
campaign expenses. b ~!sastles
Both the Republicans and the Demo