The Bosses and the Back-Numbers
At the Yakima County Republican convention, party insiders steamrolled local challengers, sparking accusations of a 'cut and dried' slate.
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.
When The Herald representative reached the court house on Saturday, the republican county convention was in working order, with Dr. K. K. Heg as chairman and Robert Bruce Milroy as secretary. On the steps, John G. Boyle of Fort Simcoe precinct was forecasting the result: 'It’s all cut and dried,' he said, 'and there is no use for more than the half-dozen Boss Buckleys to stay.' The convention featured thirty-seven members, with several precincts unrepresented. When nominations began, John G. Boyle repeatedly rose to protest that the city was hogging the offices, leaving the 'tiller of the soil' and the 'old soldier' without representation. Boyle mocked the nomination of Myron H. Ellis, a recent arrival from Iowa, saying, 'the mud is not yet dry behind his ears.' Despite Boyle’s protests and his attempt to nominate local candidates, the city-backed slate held firm, successfully electing their candidates for coroner, surveyor, and representative. In the end, the convention failed to adopt a platform, as delegates seemed confused by national issues like free trade, protection, and the 'force bill,' leaving them waiting for the state convention to define their identity.
“The mud is not yet dry behind his ears. It seems that you don’t need the old soldier, nor do you need the tiller of the soil; but you will need them on the 4th of November.”
The tension between 'city' interests and the 'country' outskirts, and the frustration with party elites building back-room 'slates,' remains a defining feature of Yakima Valley political life today. Just as in 1890, the struggle over who gets to represent the region often pits established party machinery against grassroots organizers.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.