THE PRIMARY SYSTEM

The Old Guard is still in the saddle--so the word comes from Chicago--and with it comes the prediction that not Wood, not Johnson, not Lowden will be the choice of the Republican party, but that some other will be selected by the convention. In other words it may not be a candidate who has been discussed in public, who has been put up for the approval of the people, who will be finally chosen, but a man agreed upon by a group of politicians sitting in a room in the Congress Hotel, a group playing off one faction against another to suit their own interests.

What takes place on the floor of the Convention Hall from now on will be mere puppet-play, actuated by the wire-pulling from behind the scenes. Stirring puppet-play it will be; the Old Guard, divided against itself, making what may prove to be its last stand in a presidential nomination; Senator Penrose from his sick bed trying to let his voice be heard once more; Senator Lodge facing the struggle of his career with the half-hearted applause at his speech mocking his efforts; and conflicting groups from every state and section dubbing their favorite sons "dark horses" and trying to ride them through to victory.

And this after forty-eight expensive, meaningless primaries--the most expensive certainly, and perhaps the most meaningless that has ever been held in this country. If the convention results as it now seems likely to, in the nomination of a comparatively unheralded candidate, to what purpose will money have been poured out like water to insure the "popularity" of this or that aspirant?

The cause for the failure of the popular preferential primary is not to be found with the Old Guard. They have always been in the habit of taking things as they come and adapting them to their own ends. The point where the present form of primary fails is in the lack of interest which it arouses among the voters. It would seem, this year of all years, that there were burning issues to draw the attention of the most delinquent citizen, but the figures show that not ten percent of the Republican voters of the country expressed their opinions in the primaries just past. Those who did vote do not seem to have done anything which can in any way affect the result of the election.

It would be infinitely better for all concerned to have a nominating body made up of men of intelligence, foresight and executive ability, not bound by pledges prematurely given, and acting as best they saw fit in the light of changing circumstances, than it is for the party to continue to function through the medium of an assembly of acquiescent figure-heads under the domination of a few clever leaders. May the hand of progress soon ring the curtain down upon the farce of the preferential primary.