The Caledonian-record. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1920-current, 1921-07-15
VERMONT GAINS
in DELEGATES TO
NAT'LC0NVENTI0N
Col. Kinsley of Rutland
Helps the State Get
10 Delegates
Washington Correspondence

To Vermont's member of the Re-
publican National Committee, Col.
Earle S. Kinsley, of Rutland,
leaders of the party here in WASH
ington are disposed to attribute no
small share OF the success attend
ant upon the task of preparing and
putting through the new plan for
apportioning delegates to the ma
tional convention under which it
is expected materially to strength
en- the party in the South.
In company with those ciher
commdlwealths whose electoral
vote was cast for President Hard
ing, Vermont, under the new rule,
gains two delegates at large, Civ
ING the state a total of ten by the
plan of representation of states in
the convention just adopted.
This comes about in this wise:
Under the new apportionment pan
each state has at least four dele
gates in the national convention.
Then, each state whose cleo, oral
vote was cast for Harding in 1920
gets two more, as a sort of re-
ward of political merit, making a
total of six delegates-at-large for
each Republican state. In addition
each Congressional district which
satisfied cer.ain conditions as set
forth in the new rule (all of which
were met by Nermont's tdo dis
tricts) is entitled to one delegate.
Thus far that gives Vermont eight
delegates. Further, however, each
Congressi nal district whose vote
exceeded 10000 Republican bal
lots, has an award of an additional
delegate. At the last election the
Green Mountain Safes First
District rolled up a total of 32,950
for Harding, and the Second Dis
trict gave him 35,262, so that each
district comes within the favored
class for an additional delegate,
giving Vermont ten in all.
Thus is the states time-honored
rock ribbed Republican rewarded
in the general process Of increas-
ing the strength in the party
str ingholds and distributing the
representation more in conformity
with that strength, which of course
lies CHIEFLY in the North.
This plan of representation in
the convention was the fruit of the
Iabors Of subcommittee of sew
EN- National Committeeman, of
which Col. kinsley was what |
might be styled charter member,
for he was one of the first to be
named for this committe by Chair
man HAYES. His colleagues were
c. Bascom Slemp, of
who manages 20 maintain !,
alive thriving Republican organ
Zation in one district cf the Old
Dominion State; and National
Committeeman r. B. Howell, of
Omaha, Neb.; Joseph B. Kealing,
If indianapolis, Ind; R. X. Hynic-
"a, Of Cincinnati, o.; Ralph F..
Williams of Portland, Oregon;
md David Mulvane, of Topeka,
Kan.
Several days before the National
Committee was to meet in body
n Washington the member of this
sub committee arrived and went
nto executive session for the pur- I
pose Of formul2tinc the new rules
If representation Thereafter for
.wo days and as many nights they
)au led with the problem. The
committee we'll understood the
lrastic nature of their proposed
recommendation. Yet it was felt
like by members from both North
md South that abuses THAI had
.rept in with respect to the selec-
ion of delegates in some of the
Southern states must be eradicated
f ever he Republican party was
o build up a healthy organization
n that part of the country.
Naturally there was some oppo-
ition to the adoption of rcgula-
ittls calculated to cut down the
epreser alton from some Of the
Southern commemorative. The
eaturcs of the new rule likely TOT
operate to that end in particular
we're the requirements that a Con-
,ress.onal district, in orGer to have
delegate in the Republican ma
ional convention, must (a) have
Republican district organization,
must (b) have cast minimum of
800 Republican votes for an cleo
or in the last preceding presiden-
ial election, and must (c) nave
un a candidate for Congress at
Re last preceding Congressional
lection.
These features were the rocks
pon which for a lime it is said
he committee threatened to split,
nd members of the national body
t large who claim to know declare
h. as a harmonizer of differences
obody had anything on the ma
onal committeeman from Yer
lont. In fact, the retiring ma
onal chairman, Postmaster Gen
raj VIII H. Hays, is said to have
Xpressed his personal satisfaction
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