The Pleasantville press., 1924-10-04
Edges Victory
Impressive As
Vote OF Confidence

Under the head Edges Victory
Impressive as Vote of Confidence" the
following editorial appeared in the in
dependent Newark Evening News of
Sept. "a:
Senator Edges victory over Hamil-
ton F. Kean in the Republican Sena-
torial primary constitutes an impress
i've vote of confidence by his party in
the character of service he has render
ed at Washington.
1T is no secret that the claims made
in behalf of each candidate that he
would carry the state by $4,000 ex-
ceeded the private calculations of
those who were directing the cam
paign. A majority of 10000 is vastly
nearer what either side actually dared
to hope for.
'The more than $4,000 votes by
which Mr.. Edges majority outstrips
that figure makes him preponderously
the choice of his party.
Senator Edge carried eleven out of
the twenty-one counties of the state.
Essex piled up more than $4,000 for
him and Hudson gave him more than
5,000 Both had been reckoned in the
Edge column, but he could have lost
both by considerable majorities and
still have won.
in addition to his qualifications for
the Senatorship and his experience in
Washington, the voters appear to have
been convinced that Mr.. Edge was a
consistent supporter of the President,
despite Mr. Kean's effort to make
them think otherwise.
Not even the fact that the Repub-
lican party in New Jersey is dry on
the showing of the legislative tickets
it has repeatedly put into the field,
could persuade those who voted yes
terday in the Republican boxes that
prohibition was the paramount issue
of the national campaign, which it
most emphatically is not. Nor did the
threat that James K Shields, former
Superintendent of the Anti-Saloon
League of New Jersey, would run as
an Independent candidate in Novem-
Der if Kean were defeated have the
effect of stampeding Republicans to
the Kean banner, in the hope that by
choosing Kean they would narrow the
fight to their party advantage in
November
bitter and unconsidered personalities
INDUCED in by Mr.. Kean in his cam
paign helped to swell the Edge major
ity.
Mayor Donnelly, of Trenton, the
choice of Frank Hague, was unopposed
in the Democratic primary. If DR..
Shields, in the face of the great ma
jority piled up for Senator Edge, per-
sists in his intention to run as an
independent dry, instead of withdraw
ing. as the mere weight of figures
would seem to suggest, there will be a
four-cornered Senatorial fight, Record
running on the LaFollette ticket.
Mr. Edges triumph, which on any
basis of calculation is bitter blow TO
the Anti-Saloon League in the role of
a dictatorial effort to set up a super
government, leaves the candidates OF
both major parties favorable TO modi-
fication of the Volstead act to permit
a higher alcoholic content in drinks
that still will be compatible with the
Eighteenth Amendment.
1.-THE independent candidacy OF
George L. Record, who in the Republi-
can primaries polled more than 10000
votes against Frelinghuysen in 1922, is
this time supporter of LaFollette
and Wheeler By that token, since the
third party is appealing for support
from hand workers in the industrial
districts, he is likely to pull as many
votes from the Democrats as he does
from the Republicans. Behind the
Shields candidacy, if he insists on
making the running, only small frac-
ton of those VINO voted yesterday for
Kean can be expected to line up.
among dry Republicans there can
not fail to be a realization that every
vote cast for Shields will be an aid to
Donnelly, since the real contest is be-
tween the latter and Edge, and that
the only effect it can have will be, by
furnishing Edge, to aid the candidate
of another party. of the Edwards de-
gree of wetness. When DIR. Shields
can offer nothing more practicable
than the hope of reducing by one the
Republican representation in the Sen
ate-a 'strafing' process employed be-
fore by the Anti-Saloon League-what
is there in it to appeal to a man or
woman of strong inclination to Repub-