The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1922-07-19
WASHINGTON Y, 81 + n .. g. Juy e e

WAsHrNGToN, d. c.. Juy5 9 - ----
An odd visitor from West Virginia
put in his appearances6in Wash
ington today. He has been lead
ing and an outspoken man IN state
politics for a number Of years. and |
1T seemed to have escaped the
notice Of all who know him until
today that he is odd There IS
suspicion among his capital friends
thatGEthe heat has affected him.
It is based on his wild expressions
to the effect that nobody in West
Virginia knows how the Republf-
can primary is going to turn out,
not even the candidates and their
press-agents who began 70 pro
claim VI aloud and vociferously
claims Of having lead pipe c1nches
before their hats settled on the
resin in the center OF the ring
Huh, he said the boys and tn
girls who vote around these nom
inations have Just begun to wake
up and inquire who's running and
what's he running for. They Will
begin to express themselves along
about next week and then the wise
ones should be able to get som G
kind OF a line on which way the
cyclone is travelling and who Is
liable to be- hit by it. Up to date,
it has been the wind that proceeds
the coming Of the funnel-shaped
cloud, and it has been mostly "a. ran
ned up by the candidates. their
managers, their claim agents, the:
publicity sharks ahead Of the show
and the political writer's for the
press
Gray Silver. who represented the
Martinsburg district in the state
Senate for several terms and was
q power in that body, has not
shrunk any since he came 70
Washington to become the. legs
lative agent OF the Farm ~
Fed ton. He is a powerful fac
tor in legislative affairs here, and
has become Of such significance
and Importance in that respect IS
to attract the notice OF the ai1ony-
nous author of Mirrors Of Wash
ington', in his second volume, Be
hind the Mirrors" That satlr1st
writes Of him
..Mr. Silver is a lobbyist with
the powers Of a dictator. or a dc
tator with the habits Of a LOBBYIST
whichever way you wish to looh
at it. A8former farmer. memb Der OF
the West Virginia Legislat ure. re-
preventative of farm organizations
|at5Washington,h he rules the Senate.
with more power than Mr.. Lodge
has or Mr. Harding has, but al
ways with the gentle touch OF a
general storekeeper spreading the
wrinkles out of a yard Of satin
Silver is a Democrat A general
" believed report among the poll
ticians that he it was who urged
Mrs. Izetta Jewell Brown to try to-
become the first woman United
States senator. $sS5
There is nothing in the registra-
ton statistics compiled In west
Virginia to inspire the Democratic
party lead ers to.-cal the class for
an old home ollification at
the fair grounds So far as they
have. been disclosed, they indicate
that the birth rate has far-and-s3
away exceeded the mortumary
mathematics in III the Grand Old
Party and tina t the reverse Is true
as to the Democratic party with
force and abruptness that IS
nothing short of catastrophous-
Observers have noted this wide
disparity between the voting
strength of the two parties with
a feeling that nothing can defeat
the Republican party in the State
next November except 1t deilber-
it explains clearly, to, the heat and
sweating energy of the G.. O-#sP--#
primary cndidates, for 1t looks
very much like a nomination will
prove to be equivalent to election
With most OF the weighty ar.
guments advanced by the antago-
nists of the primary method . OF
making nominations, the pubic IS
familiar When a new one is de-.
yeIoped, which was the case today
the developer being a late arrival
from West Virginia, it deserves a
place top O. column next to pure
reading matter. His novel &ind1ct-j
ment against the primary is that
it does Just the opposite to devel-
oping that fine grace of modesty
and selfl placement for which the
found ers Of the well known Amer
{ lean race may have been noted
The primary, he charges, makes
for bedlam of braggadoclo and
exhortation to horn-tootlns, not,
to mention an unlawful trespa!s'ss-l
ing upon the advertising methods.
which have long belonged by right
OF discovery and possession to.
Doctor Munyon, Lydia Pinkham
and the Smith boys of the we'll
known cought drop branch Of THAI
great family tree. ~
Fresh from the contest in West
Virginia, this opponent Of the.
primary panacea, cited as an e .'s!
ample IN point that some Of the
aspiring patriots were comparing
themselves to Albert J. Beverldgel
Of Indiana, Gift Pinchot of Penn
sylvania and Brookhart Of Iowa,
among the living great; George
x1T.ebinpton 1T lincoln and ROoSe-
yelt among the great that are
dead. Under the old conventio
method, he said. this couldn't
have happened. They couldn't
have gotten up the nerve facing q
wigwam full of keen and quick X
wVitted delegates, just waiting for
them to make the slip to give