Republican Party Brass Launch Re-election Campaign
Prominent local figures gather at the Donnelly Hotel to secure the future of Pierce County’s federal delegation.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The Foster headquarters, which were formally opened yesterday in the Donnelly hotel, were the scene of an informal gathering of Republicans last evening to create sentiment in favor of Senator A. O. Foster and Congressman V. W. Cushman. There were about 75 present, and it was the unanimous opinion that Pierce county must work for one end: the re-election of Foster and Cushman. Charles Bedford, who is at present managing Senator Foster’s campaign, presided over the meeting. He said it was the duty of Pierce county to see that these men are sent back to Washington, 'where they may continue the work they are doing for this state and Pierce county.' Mayor Campbell spoke briefly, saying that the citizens of Pierce county should take up the matter with a determination to win. Judge W. H. Snell made a brief but enthusiastic address: 'It is necessary for us to bury our personal differences,' he said, 'and put our shoulders to the wheel and see that Senator Foster and Congressman Cushman are elected again.' John I. Redman noted that since their election, the waterway had been dredged and a quartermaster’s office established, proving the value of their federal patronage.
“It is necessary for us to bury our personal differences and put our shoulders to the wheel.”
This meeting highlights the transactional nature of local politics in early 20th-century Tacoma, where support for federal representatives was directly tied to securing infrastructure projects like dredging. While the Donnelly Hotel is long gone, the pressure on local leaders to deliver federal dollars to the city remains a core, if sometimes invisible, part of Tacoma's civic life today.
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