President Lowell Advises Legislative Committee That People Should Have Pre-Primary Convention--Says Primary Costly

Appearing before a meeting of Legislative Committee on Election Laws in the State House yesterday afternoon, President Lowell spoke favoring a bill to establish a pre-primary convention system, and critizing the present method of nominating candidates for public office.

"We are constantly expecting the public to be able to do things which the public is incapable of doing," President Lowell said. "The people have not the capacity for nominating candidates; they have only the capacity to choose between those who have been nominated. Under the proposed pre-primary system candidates would be selected for the public, because the only thing any large body of men or women can do is say 'yes' or 'no' to measures that are proposed. Under the present system we have forced candidates to nominate themselves. The proposition is a simple one . . . It is that the primary may reject the name and make a substitution, since political machines sometimes nominate improper people."

In his book "Public Opinion and Popular Government," President Lowell discusses the issue at length. "It is evident that collective opinion can be ascertained only by submitting a definite proposition and taking a vote upon it.

"In 1909, the direct primaries in Wisconsin cost $802,659. They intensify a practice which has already begun to prevail under the convention system of conducting an elaborate preliminary canvass for nomination. Perhaps this is inevitable under present conditions, but anything that tends to increase the personal expenses of an election is unfortunate and perhaps the tendency toward self-nomination is not altogether beneficial.

"The evil to be combatted is real, and the effect of selecting members of a state legislature with a view to their choice of United States Senator is good, but it is by no meaus yet proved that the direct primary is the read to the promised land."