Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1872-07-30
trump" CONVENTION.


voted for
''RUMP" CONVENTION.
Pursuant to notices issued by Dr.. Nelson,
Chairman of the County Convention which
met in this place on Monday last, and was dis.
solved by the withdrawal of the delegates
from Charlestown and Summit Point, and four
out of five of those from Middleway, the re-
u,ainder Of that Convention assembled ut DUFF
fields. on Thursday, for the purpose of rro-
ceeding to the nomination of candidates for
those Offices which were omitted at their reg
ulsr session. The number of delegates from
each of the townships and precincts repre-,
sented, was, as far as we can learn, as fol-
lows:
Harper's Ferry, 8
Bolivar, 8
Osburu, Q
Middleway. 1
Duffeld's. l
Potomac, l
Total, IL
Leaving Charlestown township, and Summit
Point precinct totally unrepresented. with but
meagre representation of some of the others
The number of delegates of Jefferson county
in Convention assembled, should be thirty
one; the regular place for holding the Con-
vention is, as it should be, at Cbarestown, the
County-seat; the authority to call Conven>
tion rests solely with the Central Executive
Committee of the county. Yet, 10 the face
of these facts, DR.. Nelson assumes the right
not only to cali a Convention, but to desig-
nate the place Of meeting, and when upon the
assembling Of the Convention, he finds but a
nl;noriyof the delegates of the county present,
with tWo townships entirely unrcpresentea in
stead of pronounciug the Convention illegal
on the ground Of paucity of ATTENDANCE, he
proceeds to the nominstiou of candidates.
1t seems, however, that there was linger-
ing suspicion in the minds of the Chairman
and his coadjutors, that the bogus character
Of the Convention would be so evident to the
people themselves that they would refuse to
abide by the nominations; for we are in
formed that resolution was passed authorize
u
sent members of the delegation to which he
belonged.
Now we contend that the votes cast by au>
thorify of such resolution are entirely null
and void. for it had been decided by the Cen
trail Executive Committee, with whom, alone
rested the power, that the number of votes
represented by each delegate should be tftly j;
and we ask by what authority any one assumes
the ght to increase those votes from fifty to
upwards of two hundred, as in the case of the
Chairman, who in his own person cast the
whole vote of the Middleway delegation
We do not consider the meeting at Dufield's
worthy the name of a County Convention.
We deem it illegal because
LIST 1t was convened without authority
the authority to call Convention resting with
the Central Executive Committee alone;
End. The county was not represented, tuo
townships being entirely without represen-
ta.ives, and many of the others not having
their full number OF delegates.
We, therefore, think its acts null end void
and not worthy passing thought. We have
always held that fraud and trickery were almost
necessarily incidental to Conventions, and adj
vocated the system of Primary Elections as
carried on in Virginia; but at the same time,
we have asserted that, SO long as the Demo-
crasic>Conservative party continued to adopt
Conventions as the means of preserving in>
tact the party organization, it was the duty of
every true Democrat to stand by the nomina>
ton and cast their votes for the nominees of
the Conventions prooidcd a1,eoys there is no
evidence that the nominations were effected
by means of trickery. We do not. therefore,
consider it any mark of inconsistency in us to
call upon the people of Jefferson to refuse to
abide by the acts of the "Rump" Convention as.
sembled at Duffield's, and to refuse to support
as nominees, the candidates pretended to have
been nominated by it. No nominations have
been made by that Convention let the peo>
pie, therefore, look to the individual merits of
the candidates, and cast their votes accord
ingly.
THE NEW CONSTITUTION.
We are pleaSed to notice thar the Couptv