DEMOCRATS SPLIT ON PRIMARY LAW
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What appeared to be an innocent attempt to
have First Division delegates go to the Fairbanks
convention not to endorse or nominate cand dates
for elective office became the storm center of the
recent convention in Petersburg. On one side were
aligned the forces of John W. Troy and his right
hand man Pegues and J. J. Connors, Democratic
National Committeeman and on the other side
were Norman R. Walker and A. H. Ziegler, both
of Ketchikan.
The old guard, which once ruled Territorial
politics with the mailed fists of powerful conven
tion bosses, damned the primary law from every
possible angle and urged the abolition of the
primary law and the return to the convention
system. The younger Democrats lead a forlorn
hope, which they will carry on to the Territorial
convention, to save the law and in no uncer
tain terms declared that abolition of the primary
law would sound the death knell of the Democratic
party in Alaska.
This was the fight in the open. The real issue
was the naming and endorsing of the next
nominee for Delegate to Congress on the Demo
cratic ticket. Through the convention system the
Empire crowd hopes to nominate, and secure en
dorsement of Senator Dimond of Fairbanks. Hop
ing to hold together the Democratic forces, Ziegler
fought against the convention system and declar
ed that he was a candidate for nomination as
Delegate to Congress. For the moment the Empire
crowd won, and cared not what the cost of victory.
It would appear to the casual observer of the
proceedings that, regardless of all effort to secure
harmony and unity, the Democrats have sailed
their ship into the shoals, and against adverse
wends cannot hope to save the party from a wreck.
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DIMOND—ZIEGLER—GRIGSBY
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It is almost a foregone conclusion that Sena
tor Dimond will run for Delegate to Congress.
Grigsby is said to have declared that he must save
the Democratic party from itself.
Dimond, it is expected will carry the Second
Third and Fourth Divisions. But Ziegler will have
ins following for Dimond is not all popularity in
the Westward Divisions. Ziegler will come out on
an anti-trap plank, asking for *the complete
abolishment of the trap system in Alaska. This
will be no small item in the next campaign for the
vote of the First Division nearly equals that of the
combined total of the other three Divisions. Grigs
by will cut into both candidates, and while George
may be scoffed at be even his own party leaders,
he is not dead yet by any means and there might
be a chance for him to slip into the nomination
while the leaders are trying to defeat Ziegler.
/ iegler will defeat Dimond in the First and will
have a following in the other Divisions. It v/ill be
anybodies race with victory to the lucky one.