Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1870-11-26

pended in the exercise Of this gloriou
privilege. You say you have no choic,
but to accept the wrong 60 long Is boil
parties practice it. Commence the re
formation with your own party, and posi-
lively refuse to support nominations oh
tained BY bargain and corruption. B,
supporting nominations hich you know
to have been obtained corrupt means
you offer premium to fraud, no matter
what the alternative may be.
The writer Of this served as a delegate
in Democratic Conventious-county, State
aud National-almost consecutively fol
thirty.6ve years, and during that time he
never went into convention pledged to OF
instructed for any candidate; never was q
party to any bargain or understanding by
which he voted for one candidate to gain q
vote for another, and made it az iuvariable
rule to vote for no candidate who personally
sought = nomination, and when candidate
himself never to seek to influence tho vote
Of q delegate 10 his own behalf. Acting
upon this rule, he never had occasion to
object to convention of which he was mem.
Der on account Of uufairness OF corruption.
If all Democrats will adopt and adhere to
the same rule the party will have no occa.
sion to use corruption fund or nominate
candidates with no other ability than the
ability to pay.
The Democracy Of Oregon, with ma.
jority Of not le. than two thousand in the
State with the line drawn solely on party
principles, were represented in Convention
by delegates large number Of whom
only represented single candidate, with
isstIvctions to trade on all others to get
votes for their own, aud secret combiua-
tons were formed by which the nomina.
lions were controlled entirely by bargain
and sale, including the adoption of plat.
form which every candidate found it neces.
sary to repudiate in spirit and intent be.
fore the people. The gentlemen who
engaged in this most disreputable plot to
secure nominations by violating every
principle Of Democracy, were men Of UNI.
impeached personal character and un-
doubted capacity for the positions they
sought, and would have been satisfactory
to the voters had their nominations been
secured by fair means. Their error was
adopting tho heather maxim, call is fair
in politics." or the equally objectional one,
the end justified the means;" and that
this error was not fatal to the party in the
election, was not owing to their own good
management, but to the folly of their party
opponents. The honest instincts of the
masses Of the Democratic party revolted
at the open and notorious corruption which
prevailed in the Convention, and the ticket
was hopelessly beaten on the issues then
pending, had not Ben Holiday entered
the 6eld a dictator of the Republican
party, proclaimins through his agents the
intention to buy up the voters and control
the legislation Of the State. 1t was then
thought better to endure an evil that was
remediable than accept 40 alternative that
carried with it State degradation. This,
and this alone, saved the Democratic party
from huuiliating defeat, caused by the
isordinate ambition Of . few leades. We
hope the party nay profit by the lesson |.
the future. Where virtue and intelligence
prevail, the republican system Of govern
Deot is the best ever devised BY man !;
where these faii, il il the worst.
Masonic BALL.-The ball to be given
BY the "brotAess Of the nystic tie" at
Port Tovnsesd, on the 9Th Of December,
Is expected to Be the graudess affair Of the
kind which has ever been had upon Puget
Sound. The most ample srrasgeneats
have been made, under the very best man
sge.est, not 70 dissPPoint public expscss-
ton 10 this respect A large and coovs-
siest haIl win be prepared Tor the occasion !;
the steamer Asds has been gagged %
lssvs Olyupan he nsr,isg Of the 18th,
and Port Tow,sssd % return, On the morn
Ing Of the 18Th, Tor the aecounodasioa Of
the guests ftOa The tosns 90 the rouae.