The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1868-05-29
ga Word or Two before You go. !"

To the Editors of the Netcs /:
| I have been silent observer of much politl-
Zeal legerdemain in the guise of union ana unanim'
.ty. ANY warming however modest, is denounced as
disunion, and the. old tricksters ply their trade
Emore successfully than ever. Some days ago aoout
two hundred and ffty" individuals met, passed re-
ssouons authorizing, inter ALA, their chairman 10
appoint committee Of fifteen, with power to select
ory men to represent the four thousand Democratic
votes of this city in the Columbia Convention. OF
Ecolrse these forty were. elected by an adjourned
smeetng Of "about three hundred" and claim their
credentials under the great seal of the Charleston
Democracy. It is the manner Of this thing, not
the men. 10 which wo1ld call attention.
"Brutus is an honorable man,
So sre they all all honorable men"
some Of whom, during the late unpleasant diff
Guilty" remembered the uses Of philosophy and
snued the battle from afar, recognizing the saving
truth as well as the poetry Of the line:
s "'Tis distance lends enchantment to the view.o
At both these cut.and.drie5 meetings, cut.and-
dried speeches were dished out to the company.
Confederate. phalanxes, whose indomia6le front
speculation had broken, and battle fags which gen.
tlemen had been content to read about, were con-
scripted DESPITE their honorable scars, to dnnce In
metaphorical confusion to the melancholy tune OF
the old Broad-sreet fiddle. But boweyr this may be,
however the unburied Broad.street carcase mry
aront tie sight and offend the nosrls OF the people
what bona de claim have these gentlemen to repre-
sent the four thousand Democratic votes Of this city
The very meeting that engineered this gratutous
representation declaed, forsootb against the self
constituted Columbia Convention. Have we falleu
upon military politics as well as government Is
the fhtal precedent established that socaled mass
meeting of three hundred men can dominate and
compromise an entire party9 Are not the organized
wards the proper primary assemblies OF the people,
where each voice can be heard and yet in theimpor
tant matter Of representation In the State Democratic
CONVENTION are not these wards utterly and delber-
ately igporeda Why was 1t not LETT TO the eight
to fleet their representatives, as IN
other political affairs? Why? Because the young
men, the working men, the mechanics, the poor men
in other words, the people-hare too much In
fusnce liz these ward meetings, too much hard COM
mon sense, know their power too well, and would
scorn to be manipulated IS In the ''happy days Of
yore." Is the sutocrscy, olgarchy and artstocrscy
or The past to trample US agoin7 We have gbbatted
1t In rons and Its unhallowed ghost cannot endure
the morning star Of Democracy.
Ali Baba had to climb tree to learn the secret OF
the oriental forty; but the open sesame" ct politics
is the disciplined power Of the people In their ward
meetings. There the people can do as they please
with hackneyed politicians. Let these ward meet
ings be calel at once; let them protest against this
partial action, and claim their right to be heard.
mass meeting may DO called to approve the ward
delegations; but II the wards, where alone the I'M
mediate pulse Of the people can be felt and their
aenabe rights be secured, overslau he'd in this
barefsced way. why then, break up the ward clubs,
bind our hands and feet, and welcome the degrada-
ton and ehicanery OF our old poiticalImasters.
Let the poor white man seek his former leTc', with
out cent TO call his own, and shout in utter SUBJ
serviency-
"Great Is Diana Of the Ephesians."
lsigned) AMEMBER OF The SIXTH WARD.