The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1924-08-21
EDITORIAL
NOT A QUESTION OF TOPS
(By A. r. Gardner)

- race progresses, IL develops more
interesting phases.
In a former article the writer call.
ed attention to the rather unique
situation of two former members
of Governor Hart's official family.
running on the administration but
headed from opposite directions. The
inevitable has happened and E. L.
French, running on the strength of
the administration and Edward Cliff
ford, running on it's weaknesses, have
clashed head-on. AS a result th..
public is being let in on the inner
secrets of the political situation.
At the outset of the campaign, we
were told by Mr.. Clifford that the
state government is hand-picked and
hog-tied by the cement trust. In re-
ply Mr.. French's friends have coun-
tered with the charge that Clifford
is seeking to take the state govern
ment away from the cement trust
and give it to the black-top trust.
They claim that 'toe black-top pat
ented type paving interests, the
greatest and tighest trust in the
world" is financing, not only Mr..
GClifford's campaign, but the cam
paigns of certain dummy" candi-
dates whose business it is to grab
off few votes here and few votes
there, leaving Mr.. Clifford free and
easy going with the backing of or
ganized labor.
\ All of which may be the merest
political bunk but nevertheless it
does emphasize the fact that we have
with us w. H. Paulhamus, the elev-
enth hour entrant, who by his advo-
cacy of the compulsory school bill
makes his bid for the Ku Klux Klan
vote; 'Wee" Coyle who denounces
the Klan and bids for votes on the
other side, and Tom Revelle who
wants the w. C. T. u. votes so that
he may give up the office of U. s.
attorney, where he has something to
do with the enforcement of the dry
law and become governor where he
would have nothing to do with dry en-
forcement and so on through the
list of the lesser contenders. who have
written their own platforms, raised
false issues to becloud those that are
real; dragged in entraneous ques-
tions to obscure those that are per-
tinent, and paraded their own hob
bies to befuddle the voters.
Concerning this phase of the CAM
paign, my only comment is to repeat
what said in my first article: "The
tendency of modern political life is
for the citizen to take the measure
of the candidate not in the terms of
the candidates fitness, but in the
terms Of his own hobbies, prejudices.
and antagonisms and to cast his bal
lot not as an individual but as mem-
Der of some occupational class, sec
tional group, civic league, fraternal
order or religious sect"
Regarding the French Clifford row
I can only repeat my former ques-
ton: "Who's right? Whom are we
to believer" Clifford says the cement
trust controls the highway depart
ment. French replies that the depart
ment will be controlled by the black
top trust if Clifford is elected. Rath-
er than argue with the gentlemen,
let's admit that they are both right
and pursue the only safe and wise
course, by sending to Olympia, gov
ernor who can not be controlled by
either trust.
The big question before the peo-
pie is not whether the highways shall
have white tops or black tops. In
fact it is only an outcropping OF the
bigger and more fundamental ques-
tion of putting into the governors
chair, a man who has true concep-
tion of the duties of the office ana
possesses the ability and courage to
transact the states business or q
sound business basis and free it from
the blighting influences OF speclai
privilege and inside pull. The TACT
that a candidate is for this type OF
that type of highway does not mean
that he is qualified to discharge the
duties of a governor. The quickest
surest, safest way to get the Des'
possible highways at the least pos.
sible cost is to regard the Office Oh
governor, as it should be regarded
as that of the states business man
ager and select a successful business
man to handle the job.
Of the ten republican candldates
Roland H. Hartley is the only one
who measures up to the job when IL
is considered in this light. He owes
his two defeats to the fact that ne
has refused to be controlled Dy tne