The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1920-10-18
Arco Editor
Defines Position
Continued from page two

| Continued from page two
even at that it is no worse than
ninety-nine out of every 100 voting
by guess and without knowing
what they are doing.
The editor of this little sheet goes
to most of the political gatherings.
the Lincoln day banquets, and other
things that bring men together who
are instrumental in conducting the
| state government and the county
governments and meets with large
numbers of men as compared with
| the average voter. We usually go
| early, stay thruout the convention
and go home after all the others have
| gone. We have sat around and stood
around and milled around at such
| gatherings for week at time max
ing it our business to study men and
politics and the science of govern
| ment, and with our residence Of
more than third of century in the
state and half Of that in the news
| paper business with rather excep-
tional opportunities to learn to know
the men of the state, the editor Of
this little sheet feels himself quite
incompetent to go into the booth
and mark a ticket to nominate men
| for state offices. There is an utter
lack of knowledge of many of the
M nd dot no q
decision. There are comparatively
few men in the state who have these
unusual opportunities to know the
men of the state land only COM
paratively few of those, men use up
their opportunities in that respect.
Therefore the mass of the people of
the state have less opportunities to
become acquaintd with people who
are candidates for state offices and
because of their other lack of op-
portunity and knowledge Of the sub
| iect we repeat what we said before,
that people never vote intelligently
in making nominations for state Of
| fees by means of the direct primary.
We are opposed to it's use for the
reason stated above and not because
we are stand-patter or reaction
airy or because we think the people
are ignoramuses or because we are
in favor of gang rule or boss rule or
corrupt rule or of manipulating the
state government so that favored
few can make some money which
we do not think they do, but we are
in favor of it because we believe
that it brings the best results and
the cleanest strongest government.
Now the average agitator and po-
litical plunger believes that every
man has some Interior motive;
some secret and selfish motive for all
the things he does. There is no way
of convincing the man who holds
such views. The man who is sue
cessful in business and makes
enough money out of his business,
conducted in an honorable way, to
meet his requirements; the man who
takes some of the money made n
that way to put into politics for the
good it will do in keeping the gov
eminent clean and strong, such men
will always be misunderstood be-
cause they are pictured by the agita-
tors as making money out Of politics
when as a matter of fact they put
money into it to keep it as clean as
they can.
Editor Bottolfsen says he is in
favor of enacting the law for the
referendum and recall We wish
that he would explain just why he is
in favor Of that and what it would
accomplish In detail If it were en-
acted into law for use in Idaho. We
shall be interested in learning some
thing on that subject. And we wish
also that he would explain why he
is a candidate on the Republican
ticket and opposing the things
adopted in the Republican state plat
form and himself using his news
paper to spread the doctrines named
above, which the Republicans ex-
pressly oppose. Does Mr.. Bottolf-
sen propose to sit with the Republic
cans and attend the Republican eau
cuses or will he caucus and vote with
the Democrats and nonpartisans
even while he is tabulated as Re-
publican and making the party bear
the odium Of his acts!
Finally, will Editor Bottolfsen ex-
plain whether he became a candidate
on the Republican ticket at the in
stance and on the encouragement
of Republicans or Democrats or nom
partisans. Each party organization
wants to know, and the Republican
party organization is entitled to
know If he stays on their ticket.
-
A plot to assassinate General OBJ
RECON is alleged to have been dis
covered, which goes to show that
Mexicans are moving normally