Measure Of Primary Reform Possible Without Including The Governorship

With some members of the legislature the inclusion of the governorship in the list of offices which shall come within the scope of any primary election measure which is passed appears to be made the all essential point. The Argus believes the governorship should be included and all other state officials as well, and yet a measure of reform might be obtained which would constitute an acceptable beginning without the inclusion of this office, possibly. A general primary law ought to include the nomination of township, village, city, county, legislative, state and congressional candidates, but so complete a measure seems impossible to obtain at this time. But any measure of primary reform accepted by the believers in the general primary election law should include so much as to insure a fair trial of the plan of direct nominations. No measure should be accepted by the friends of the idea which is doomed to failure before it is tried, for such a law would undoubtedly postpone the plan of direct nominations for several years and fasten upon the state a continuance of the present corrupt caucus and convention for a series of years.

The inclusion of the governorship in the offices nominations for which are to be made directly by the voters is regarded as all essential by many, no doubt, for the reason that this is the office with which there has been the most shameless corruption in the primaries in the past few years. It is the office on the state ticket that the millionaires who buy political honors most desire and for the obtaining of which they have in the last two campaigns poured out their money like water. It should, therefore, by all means be included in a reform law, but it is possible to obtain a considerable degree of reform without including this office, and a genuine half-loaf is better than no bread.

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The story from Washington published in the Hearst papers to the effect that Machen, the former superintendent of the free delivery branch of the postoffice department, was building up a powerful machine through the rural delivery service against the renomination of President Roosevelt is interesting to say the least. This charge may be true and it may not be, but undoubtedly much could be accomplished by an expert and determined lot of practical politicians in creating sentiment through the clientèle of the free rural delivery. The American's Washington correspondent claims that Senator Hanna, chairman of the republican national committee, Perry Heath, a powerful member of the national committee, and even Postmaster General Payne, were all concerned in the building up of this machine against Roosevelt. It is also claimed that for a long time there have been stories about as to the irregularities in the free delivery branch of the postoffice department, but that a visit of Senator Lodge to the department convinced him that a dangerous machine was being constructed against the president and that he as the close friend of Roosevelt, advised him to take action. Then followed the suspension of Machen and the forcing of Senator Hanna into the open by means of the endorsement resolution which is to come before the Ohio republican state convention next week. It is suggested by the same correspondent that before the end of the investigation now going on in the postoffice department, bigger game still will be run to earth.

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Chairman G. J. Diekema of the republican state central committee has sent a letter of protest to the senate and house making a vigorous kick in the name of the republican organization of the state against the betrayal of party pledges involved in an adjournment of the legislature without the enactment of a general primary election law. He tells the legislature that failure to enact such a law would be a betrayal of public confidence.

It would be more satisfactory in some ways if the revenues of the university could be enjoyed in peace, rather than as the result of a biennial tilt in the legislature, but such seems not to be the fortune of the institution. It was thought when a mill tax law had been put on the statute books there would be an end of this fight in the legislature, but such has not proved to be the case. And it may not be altogether unsatisfactory that this is the fact As long as the friends of liberal education have to show their energy and causes for the faith that is in them once in two years, they will have little time to become careless and conclude that the days of strenuousness in university matters are passed. Eternal vigilance, etc.

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A. W. Machen, the former superintendent of the free delivery mail service, has been arrested charged with taking bribes amounting to $22,000. It is charged that he received forty per cent of the amounts charged the government for a patent mail box fastener, known as the Groff fastener. Machen received this money through the contractors. When this evidence was brought out Postmaster General Payne promptly removed Machen. He was already under suspension during investigation. It is now apparent why he wanted the names of all persons receiving their mail on rural delivery routes, that is, a reason is now apparent, but there are probably others that will appear as the investigation progresses. It is suspicioned that he also used these names in getting money, possibly, out of mail order concerns. Such a list would certainly be valuable to such houses.

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As a result of the finesse of that Napoleon of finance, Frank C. Andrews, Frank C. Pingree lost all his iinancial accumulations of thirty years of faithful attention to business. As an officer of the bank wrecked by Andrews Pingree had to put up and he was stripped of all his ptoperty, but he carne through the ordeal with his good name aud character unsullied. And now these have proved to be a valuable asset, for several of his friends, includlng Mr. J. L. Hudson, have purchased his stock and will hold the same in trust for him. There are said to be eight In the syndicate and they will hold this stock for Mr. Pingree until he is able to buy it back. Thus does it appear even in this day of lax moráis in financia! matters, that it pays to be honest and to preserve one's good name. And it pays still more in the satisfaction the individnal has with himself.

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Mr. Cramp, of the Cramp shipbuilding concern, is out in favor of government aid to this interest. Mr. Cramp has experienced financial trouble with his concern it is true and it is to be regretted that this should have happened, but there are thousands of other business concerns which have financial troubles of like nature, but which do not think of asking the people through the government to put up for their losses. If every concern that experiences financial trouble should thereupon be taken under the wing of the government and bolstered up, where would the people who pay the taxes come out? Then, again, when these government aided corporations, once having tasted the advantages of government aid, never get to the point where they are willing to get along without it, no matter what their profits may be. They desire to continue to increase their legitimate profits by filching from the people as long as they will stand for it. They even go to congress and spend no inconsiderable portion of their income to corrupt the people's representatives and thus continue their profits from the government. The thing is all wrong in principle and thus far the opposition of the people has been strong enough to keep congress from entering upon the subsidy steal in connection with the ship-building interests.

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E. Benjamin Andrews, whose silver views during the campaign of 18% were generally supposed to have had much to do with his loss of the presidency of Brown university, now announces that he has received more light on the financial question and that consequently he is no longer a silverite. He is now chancellor of the university of Nebraska, but is no longer disposed to follow the leadership of that other distinguished Nebraskan whose banner is still inscribed with the legend of 16 to 1. Dr. Andrews in his explanation of his belief formerly in the silver doctrine and his change of views now says that when he espoused the silver cause he firmly believed that the gold production had reached its limit and that consequently there was not gold enough to constitute a basic currency on which the business of the world could be done. The large increase in the world's production of gold since that time, he says, has shown him the "great and inexcusable error"' into which he fell. He therefore confesses that he is wiser now than he was in 1896 and he proceeds to let the world know of his emergence into the borader light. In this statement Dr. Andrews offers a strong reason for his change of views on this question, one wholly consistent with his former position. There are others who might advantageously follow his example, were they capable of taking on more breadth and knowledge a a result of experience.

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The efforts being made by President Harper of the Chicago university to get students away from the Michigan university is not as dignified as it might be to say the least. These efforts are hardly up to the standard of what might be expected from a high minded gentleman occupying the place filled by President Harper. Such methods might be considered legitimate in some lines of business, trust lines in particular, but they do not strike the average citizen as becoming in the handling of the business of securing students for a great educational Institution. But Chicago, being a Standard Oil institution, perhaps it should not be wondered at, if such methods are resorted to. Possibly such methods are a part of the life and the teaching of this Rockefeller financed institution. And if such be the methods of handling the business ends of the university, the question naturally arises whether similar ideas do not prevail in the teaching of the institution. From certain view points the Rockefeller business methods are successful. There can be no question about that. But certainly if the same plans are to be the basis of the work in the Chicago university, it should be made known to the people at large. Let the institution be known as the trust university and let all of its business and teaching be handled from the trust point of view.