Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-05-04
THE BEVERIDGE-NEW
CONTEST.

SOAvAA0A
: MORE than usual interest will
w be taken by democrats in the
nation over the returns from the
republican primary senatorial con-
test in Indiana last Tuesday. When
this editorial appears in print
doubtless the news columns OF The
Tribune will carry figures indicat-
ing the result of the contest be-
tween Albert J. Beverage and
Harry S. New. At the time this is
written the returns available are
rather meager and indicate that the
two candidates are running neck
and neck.
The result is particularly inter-
esting to democrats because the Is
sues raised between the two men
have made this primary election
practically a referendum vote OF
the republican party members IN
Indiana on approval or d~isapproval
of the Harding administration. Elk
Senator Beveridge. who Is a can-
didate for the republican nomina-
ton for senator, has been CRITICS.
ing the Harding administration in
his campaign for the nomination,
and Senator Harry S. New, the
present incumbent, who seeks a re-
nomination, has been defending the
administration and critcising its
critics. The whole force of the
administration at Washington has
been put back Of the New cam
paign. The president has written
personal letters to prominent re-
publicans in Indiana asking them to
r~enoninate Senator New. These
have in many cases been given to
the public. For these reasons the
republican primary contest in 1ndi-
ana on the senatoriship has come
to take on the aspect of an indorse-
ment or condemnation of the re-
publican administration at Wash
ington.
We do not know just what the
provisions of the Indiana primary
law are, and what safeguards it
may carry against democrats par
ticipating in the republican pri-
mary. If the Indiana law Is like
the Montana law we think it safe
to assume that a good many demo-
Gratis may be voting in the repub-
lican primary, and if that is a fact
we would assume that they are vot-
ing with the Beverage men and
against Senator New. But in the
absence of any information on that
point we must assume that only re-
publicans are voting in the repub-
lican primary, and that the demo-
Gratis are voting in their W pri-
mary where they also have a live
" contest for the senatorial nomi-
nation with several candidates in
the field.
Proceeding on that theory, the
vote in the republican primary so
far as it is reported at this writing
would seem to indicate that about
half the republican voters of Indi-
ana are d~ispleased with the repub-
lican national administration and
its record, and are disposed to re-
buke it by sending to Washington a
critic of the administration and re-
firing a defender of the same.
Of course such a conclusion must
be Of great encouragement to the
democrats Of Indiana and of the
nation. They take party politics
rather seriously in Indiana. 1t
would be a rash deduction to make
if democrats believed that repub-
licans who voted in their primary
against Senator New, the admins
tration candidate. would vote
against him and in favor of the
democratic candidate at the cleo
ton in case Senator New was re-
nominated. Many Of the Bever-
idge votes in the primary would
never be cast for a democrat N
der any circumstances, we are pre-
pared to believe. But as indicating
a wide dissatisfaction with the
present administration among re-
publicans the vote for Beverage in
the republican primaries of Indi-
ana is most significant. Added to
the fact that in the recent special
congressional election in the Thir-
ty-seventh New York district, the
republican majority was cut down
from 10000 two years ago to 5000,
it certainly gives some justifica-
<;or "a +hs confidence felt in dem