The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1920-05-14
State Preferential Primaries
Fail to Settle Presidential
Nominations.
WOOD HAS MOST DELEGATES
Johnson's Popular Vote the Largest.
Knox, Whose Peace Resolution Is
Up in Senate, Talked of as
Compromise Candidate
Poles Defeat BoIsheviki.
BY EDWARD w. PIcKARD.

The state presidential primaries
have nearly all been held; the fever
ish race for delegates is about over.
And now every one is free to guess
who will be the nominees of the ma
tional conventions, and there is not
much more to base guesses on. than
there was before.
On the Republican side two devel-
opments stand out: Maj. Gen. Leon
ard Wood has captured more instruct
ed delegates than any one else, and
Senator Hiram Johnson has been &C.
corded the largest popular vote. Run
ming fairly strong third in both par
ticulars is Governor LOwden of Illi-
nois. But the deliberate plan of the
party managers has been carried out
and no candidate will go to the Chi
cago convention with anywhere near
enough votes pledged to nominate.
The result in the Coliseum will be
brought about by skillful dickering,
unless the convention can be
stampeded which is improbable.
The two most important primaries
of the past week were in California
and Indiana. In the former Johnson
won a sweeping victory, his majority
over Herbert Hoover, his only COM
petitor, being something like 100000.
Mr.. Hoover expressed himself as sur
prfsed by the showing he made, con-
sidering the inadequacy of his cam
paign arrangements. His supporters
on the coast charged that deal was
made with the Phelan machine in San
Francisco to deliver the Democratic
vote to Johnson.
Indiana's primary law requires that
a candidate must secure a majority
of all votes cast in order to gain COM
plete control of the states delegation.
This General Wood failed to do,
though his plurality over Johnson was
about 6,000. Woods managers said
they would insist that the state con-
yention instruct the solid delegation
for the general, but this aroused bit
ter opposition in the other camps. On
the face of practically complete re
turns the Wood people claimed 20 of
the district delegates and the four
delegateS-at-large. The steel workers
In the Calumet region piled up big
majority for johnson and he also car
ried Evansville, but Wood won in In
dianapolis and other cities. Lowden
who was strong in the rural districts,
got about half as many votes as john
son, and Harding about half as many
as the Illinois governor. The results
In Indiana really were not satisfae-
tory to any one of the candidates, but
they quite suited the political mama
gers of the state, who plan TO have
indiana hold the balance of power in
the convention.
Maryland Republicans turned out
In small numbers and gave Wood the
states preference by vote of about
two to one over johnson.
The Johnson managers felt that the
Michigan state convention did not
give the senator the full fruits of his
victory In the primary. 1t instructed
the delegation to vote for him as long
as he has chance OF winning the
but refused ironclad In
leaving 1t to the delegates
10 decide when to switch to another
OF the big fosr elected,
two are Johnson men and two are
said to favor Wood.
One of the few delegations that
will 60 to the Democratic convention
In San Francisco with instructions as
TO its vote will be that from Ken
lucky. The state convention voted for
for Governor Cox of Ohio.
II would not surprise astute politi-