The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1933-07-06
TAFT LAUNCHES PLAN TO
AVERT G. 0. P. PRIMARY
Would Pick Republican Guber-
material Nominee by Convention
of Party Leaders
LAYS PRIMARY PLANS

Groundwork for an intra-party
campaign against primary for the
selection of the Republican 1884 Gu
bernatorial nominee is being laid by
Galen L. TAFT, chairman of the Re-
publican State Central Committee.
Scarcely twenty-four hours after
he was relieved of his duties as Col
lector of Internal Revenue for the
Baltimore District of Columbia area
having relinquished the post Satur-
day to the Democrats party chair
man-Mr. TAFT plunged into the pre-
liminaries of next Statewide election.
For Selection By Convention
He sent to all members of his COM
mittee, which now is the only remain
ing vestige of an official party ma
chine in the State, copies of recently
drafted statement holding forth high
hopes for Republican success in the
next Governorship contest and-be-
tween the lines-warning that the
nominee had best be selected by a
convention, or-in effect, dictated by
the leaders.
Mr.. TAFT also sent copies of the
statement to leading Republicans
throughout the State, and since he is
party chairman and closely allied poll
tically with Senator Goldsborough,
titular head of Maryland Republican,
ism, his warning-although only i'm
plied-might be regarded as signifi-
cant.
It can and has been taken by Re-
publicans who received copies as an
indication of the considered attitude
of leaders in the old organization with
respect to the ambitions of numerous
prospective candidates who have been
discussed and the likelihood that, if
allowed to proceed unrestrained, they
may lead to a primary.
Regarded AS Crucial Test
Regarding as they do-the next
ObdlCWluC ClCSClOl oo q NJ uNA1I CCoG al
the party's history in Maryland, poll
teal observers see plainly in Mr..
Tait's communication that he and his
associates believe the convention sys-
tenn would best fit the present Re-
publican situation and that the partys
sole aim in the pre-campaign maneuv-
ers should be the minimizing of the
damaging effects of primary.
Mr.. Tait's epistle cites what, in his
opinion, are the bases for two kinds
of primaries. One, he says, is brought
about by maneuvering for purely fac
tional purposes by ''trouble makers"
This he condemns as silly and sense
less and purposely damaging to party
prospects.
The other type of primaries, he
says, is that which decides the con-
f1icting ambitions of individuals which
do not deepen into permanent party
schisms.
Advises Proceeding Slowly
He points out that the last person
to enter primary deserves as much
consideration as the first, indicating
that he and others high in party coun-
ellis believe the Republicans should
take things a bit slowly, since the
elections are nearly year and half
away. By doing so, he infers, the
field of all entrants can be canvassed
before the leaders settle their support
on any one candidate and, given the
opportunity, they believe they can
eliminate all but their choice before a
primary.
'We Republicans-leaders and
workers-would decry and frown up
on a primary meant to promote fac
tionalism and damage the party orga-
nization," Mr.. TAFT says in his COM
munication, the greater part of which
is made up of excerpts from speech
he made on the direct primary law.
att would be silly to listen to mere
trouble makers in the year OF
promises for Republicans of Mary
land, which 1884 bids fair to be-"