The National Election of 1912 in Nebraska
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University of Nebraska at Omaha DigitalCommons@UNO Student Work 5-1-1940 The national election of 1912 in Nebraska C L. Hartman University of Nebraska at Omaha Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/studentwork Recommended Citation Hartman, C L., "The national election of 1912 in Nebraska" (1940). Student Work. 482. https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/studentwork/482 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UNO. It has been accepted for inclusion in Student Work by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UNO. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE NATIONAL ELECTION OF 1912 IN NEBRASKA A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the Department of History and Government Municipal University of Omaha In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts By C. L. Hartman May, 1940 UMI Number: EP73120 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI EP73120 Published by ProQuest LLC (2015). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chanter I~. INTRODUCTION.............................. 1 II. THE PRIMARIES ................................ 6 Progressive Sentiment Party Organization Political Issues III. THE NATIONAL CONVENTIONS................ 27 Republican Democratic Progressive IV. CAMPAIGN AND ELECTION .......................... 59 Republican Party Schism State Party Conventions Nebraska Supreme Court Rulings Campaign Leaders Election Results V. CONCLUSION ..... ........ 89 VI. APPENDIX .................................. 96 A. Congressional Districts in Nebraska 1912 96 B. Court Decisions, Nebraska Supreme Court. 98 1. Morrissey vs. W a i t ................ 98 2. State vs. W a i t ................ 100 C. Delegatee to National party Conventions and their Votes ................... 102 1. Democratic........................ 102 2. Republican ....... 107 0. Progressive.................... 110 D. Election Returns, Primary, April 19, 1912 112 1. Democratic.................... 112 2. Peonies Independent............ 114 li. 3. prohibition .................... 115 4. Republican. 116 5. Socialist............................ 119 E. Election Returns, November 5, 1912. 121 F. Morgan, Ryan, Belmont Resolution......... 125 A Story by Harry N. Waller ............. 125 0. Platforms Nebraska Parties, 1912. .... 130 1. Democratic........................... 130 2. Popul i st............................. 134 3. Progressive Medical "Bull Moosers" Convention, ."u .j 31, 1912 ...... 135 4. Progressive P: uical "Bull Moosers" Convention, September 3, 1912 .... 139 5. Prohibition................... .. 142 6. Republican "Bolters". ........ 143 ?. Republican "Bull Moose" Branch. 144 8. Socialist........................... 147 H. presidential Poll, Nebraska.. ............ 149 1. Primary Law, Nebraska, 1905, 1907, 1911 Excerpts ........... ..... 150 1. Referring to National Convention Delegates.............. 150 2. Referring to Morrissey vs. Wait Supreme Court Decision............... 151 3. Referring to State vs. 'bait Supreme Court Decision............... 152 J. Ross, R. G. Letter, Filing for Presi dential Candidate....................... 154 K. State Centre,! Committees. ........ 155 1. Democratic ................ 155 2. Populist ..... 156 3. Prohibition.......................... 156 4. Republican "Bolters"................. 156 5. Republican "Bull Moose" Branch. , 157 6. Republican 1908-1912, Before the Republican Division, 1912 ...... 158 L. State Party Executive Committees. .... 159 1. Progressive Radical "Bull Moosers" Convention, July 31, 1912...... 159 2. Progressive Radical "Bull Moosers" Convention, September 3, 1912 .... 15S M. Illustrations and M a p s ................... 160 1. County Distribution of Party Vote, 1896-1920 ............................ 150 iii 2* County Vote, primaries 1912 and 1914 . 161 3. Distribution*of Party Vote, 1900-1920 . 165 4. Congressional Districts, 1912, Map . 166 5. County Vote, 1908, Map ........ 167 6. County Vote, 1912, Map !.!....! 168 7. County Vote, 1916, Map ........ 169 VII. BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................... 170 iv CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Before 1912, "the Nebraska delegates to the national party conventions were chosen by state conventions, dominated 1 by the local bosses. The presidential preference primary law now effective for the first time, provided for popular choice of delegates, and left the politicians guessing, as to the character of those delegations. There were indications in October, 1911, that the Nebraska republicans favored William Howard Taft and Robert M. La Follette. The democratic situa tion was far more complex. The followers of William Jennings Bryan were divided about equally between Woodrow Wilson and Champ Clark, while Bryan was friendly to both. Democratic organization leaders, particularly in Omaha, were antagonis tic to Bryan, and favored the nominaition of Governor Judson Harmon of Ohio.'" Bryan, three times the democratic candidate for president, declared in an address at Kansas City early in October, 1911, that he was not a candidate for the president of the United States.° Bryan’s general purpose ^Appendix I, p. 150 2 Angus McSween, “Outside Looks in Nebraska Politics,11 reprinted by The Lincoln Daily Star, October 13, 1911, from Philadelphia North American (ca. 0ctober 10, 1911). 5The Lincoln Daily Star, October 3, 1911. 1 was to advocate progressive policies designed to bring about the nomination of a progressive candidate.4 The split in the democratic party of Nebraska was evident in Bryan's speech at Norfolk in March, 1912. Here the great orator made the following statement concerning Nebraska's democratic senator, Gilbert M. Hitchcock: I found fifteen years ago he was fighting me. I have worked for twenty years to make a democrat out of the World Herald editor, only to find him to be a backslider.n Hitchcock's support of the wet group at the democrat ic state convention at Grand Island in 1910 had defeated Bryan, and now the two leaders were battling; for control of the state organization. Omaha was the headquarters for the wet group, and Hitchcock, with his World Herald, the center rj of influence.0 Lack of unity among the Nebraska, republicans was revealed by the pre-convention statements of their leaders, that there was no chance of Taft's re-election, even if he 7 were nominated, and they stated he v/ouid not carry Nebraska. The cold reception Taft had received on his trip to Nebraska in the fall of 1911 showed plainly that the state was not 4MeSween, op. cit. ^Morning torId Herald, Omaha, Maron 28, 1912. UA. M. Sheldon, Nebraska, The Land and the People, (Chicago, New York: The Lewis publishing Comoany, 1951) , Vol. I, p. 872. 7The Lincoln Daily Star, December 19, 1911. 5 in sympathy with his record.8 In May, 1911, the Nebraska progressive republican league instructed Franklin A. Shotv;ell of Omaha, the league secretary, to write Colonel Roosevelt, asking his permission to start a movement to bring about his nomination for a third term. Roosevelt answered Shotwell in a straight-forward manner: 11 Any such movement, as that you suggest, would very deeply embarrass me, and I must insist that you, and any other friends I have, shall do all in their 9 power to prevent any such movement.” On December 21, 1911, secretary of state Addison Wait received a petition from Omaha proposing Theodore Roosevelt as the republican presidential candidate. The list of signers was headed by John 0. Yeiser, a political lieutenant^ of Victor Rosewater, republican national committeeman from Nebraska. Rosewater, who was editor of the Omaha Bee, was in V/ashington at the time. He issued the statement that Yeiser was formerly a populist, and that Nebraska was a "sure enough Taft state.” He added that the regular republicans 11 had carried the state by 10,000 in the November election. Nebraska1s republican governor, Chester H. Aldrich, declared himself for La Follette, October 2, 1911, in a letter to Ross Hammond, internal collector of revenue at o Morning World Herald, Editorial, October 5, 1911. -The Omaha Daily Bee, Morning, March 5, 1912. ~^The Lincoln Daily Star, December 21, 1911. 11Morning World Herald, December 23, 1911. 4 Fremont, Nebraska; MI am for Senator La Follette for president of the United States, and I donft care who knows *1 o |j L jO A Roosevelt national committee was seL up in Chicago, January 51, 1912. After a visit to Roosevelt, the committee president, Alexander H. Revell, called a meeting for February 10, at Chicago. Aldrich was one of the eight governors to attend this meeting. A resolution was adopted, calling on 15 Roosevelt to run for president. George W. Norris of MeCook, republican congressman from the fifth Nebraska district, displayed his progressive ness in leading the insurgent republicans and democrats in the national house to a victory over ,,Cannonismu in March, 1910. Norris was vice-president of the national republican 14 progressive league. The sudden physical breakdown