Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 12.djvu/243

 POLITICAL PARTIES IN OREGON 235 waiting to draw the issue at a more propitious time. The Argus deprecated their action but made the best of it, asserting that every Republican agreed that thereafter the Republican ticket must be adhered to in full every year until victory should be achieved. 1 The inevitable result was a more or less complete coalition between the Republicans and the National Democrats. The Argus of June 5 made the statement that in Clackamas and Yamhill counties the National Democratic candidates repudi- ated their own platform, accepting that of the Republicans. In a few counties, the Republican organization was kept intact and the three tickets were voted upon. As far as observable, in those counties where the "hards" lost, it was the "softs" which won. Washington county, which elected a Republican ticket, was an exception. Republican organization had for the time largely disintegrated in the face of the general desire to help overthrow Bush and the Salem Clique. The election was a victory of organization over disorgan- ization, the "hards" winning by very comfortable margins. But while Grover was elected Congressman by a majority of 1,669 and Whiteaker Governor by 1,138, Bush was victor over his nearest competitor, James O'Meara, by a bare 400 votes. The combined opposition secured the election of eleven members of the state legislature. The strongholds of the Op- position proved to be in Benton, Multnomah, Douglas and Yamhill counties. Following the election, Adams made some very plain state- ments in a leader "To the Republicans of Oregon." 2 Begin- ning with, "You now see that this election, like all that have preceded it, has been a perfect failure," he pointed out that the Republican party, instead of having consolidated itself by a thorough organization in every county, had lost ground. This, by listening to the counsels of "old pitchers in" who had long been "beating the Clique" whenever they saw a good opening to slip themselves into office between two factions. i Argus, May 22.