Middletown transcript., 1874-07-25
NOMINATION BY BALLOT.
Letter from Samuel Townsend.


Mr. EDITOR You invited persons TO discuss
the ballot system in your paper. sent you Il
on the subject. Mr.. Dean also
sent you one. So far as | am concerned, my OBJ
ect was solely to harmonic, unite and strength
en- what is called the Democratic " hte Mans
party of this county and State SO that we could
interest the white Democratic masses to elect all
our candidates and being no candidate for any
office myself, it should be presumed had right
to give my views under the general invitation
given by you and | did so. In your last issue,
over the signature of w. there is a malicious
sla2der against me. | stated that on the 4th
day of June, 1888, at the Democratic county
meeting, held at Chrisiana we adopted the bal
lot plan for nominating candidates for shorthand
coroner, and that that was before the Wings did
it. For proof see old files of Del. Gazette In
1910 we nominated the Legislative and Levy
court tickets by delegates at Bear tavern We
were beaten that Fall. In lS42 we again romi-
mated our Legislative and Levy court candidates
at the Bear tavern. We elected our ticket tina,
Fall. In 1874 we changed holding county meet
ings to Delaware City; nominated on same plan
Were beaten. In 1876, beat. In l94S, beat
In 1850 we nominated by ballot, and elected the
Legislative ticket In 1852 it was mean TO try to
play off on David Caulk, for he has far better
name than great many persons who have been
sent TO the Legislature, but, then, Temperance
men woald court Democratic nominations, and
then hold meetings and get up tickets, and cut
and prescribe men who were voting for those
very Temperance men. The files of the old Ga
zette and Del. Journal will prove what | state
After we finally adopted nominating our candi-
dates for Levy Court and Legislature by ballot
the rings, cliqnes, and packers, as stated in
former communication, set themselves 10 work to
break down nominations by ballot and get back
to delegates. | opposed them, and this W states
a fasehood when he says that ever for one mo-
ment favored giving up the ballot for delegates
Every politician living in those times and the
files of the Gazatte and other papers, will bear
me out; and here reterate that if the Republi-
cans can, and do admit their negro partsans to
take part in the Republican nominations for
Legislature and Levy Court it is q cowardly,
dirty tyranny in the party that opposes these Re-
publicans, and who pretend to have the especial
interest of the poor white man at heart, to debar
him of the right to help nominate the Legislative
and Levy Court candidates that he is called on
to vote for, and when point out this daring
hypocrisy | am personally slandered. Now,
shall ask some important questions, and give my
opinions plainly. ask, first, when these rules
were first introduced, was it not to the Demo-
cratic party? And did the Democratic party re-
cognize the minority candidate for any office as
the proper candidate to vote for Therefore,
when the Democratic organization in Delaware
stepped on the Breckenridge platform and voted
for Breckinrdge they stepped out of the true
Jackson Democratic party, and out of the rules of
the party, and when their leader, John Breck-
inridge, left Congress, spurned the constitution
and the Union, took up arms to destroy the con-
stitution, the Union and its old flag, such fel-
lows as this W. had not red blood enough in
their hearts to stain a white cambrc handker-
chief. As to livers, if they had any, they resem-
bed bonny clabber cheese, for these men stood
off in Delaware like poor men ut frolic and let
their Presidential candidate and valiant leader,
md his il.arn frt dc E,,I, all
ded and alone. J. G. Breckinrdge's private
opinion of his Delaware friends in those trying
times cannot be very fattering. Now recollect
thus was in 1862. A little over eight years
afterward the Republican party enfranchised the
negroes This act, in New Castle county, drove
as many white men out of the Republican party
to the Democratic party, as the Republican party
gained by the negro vote, and fair dealing with
these white mel who came 10 us would seem to
have dictated the liberalization of the defunct
Democratic party by making new organiza-
ton, or White Mans party, and nominations by
ballot But no, the rings, wire-workers and
packers were afraid they would loss their posi-
tons, and therefore hung on to their old
tyranny.
As stated, these self-same Democrats of this
county, who are such great friends of said Rnles
departed from them in 1860 to follow John G.
Breckenridge, and in 1872 went on the further
extreme to follow old Horace Greeley the negro
cquaiity propagandist. Therefore, strictly
speaking, the Democratic party last campaign,
in New Castle county, was not Democratic
White Mans party, but Democratic Niger
Equality party, and therefore, of course, cannot
lay any claim TO the old Democratic rules Nor,
either, the O'Conorites, as they split from the
Greeleys. After Greeley's speech on the 18th of
October, 1872 determined 10 not vote for him,
and therefore had tickets printed with the Elec-
tors left off; but previously at ratification
meeting, at Dover, | expressly stated that on no
occasion, nor for the success Of any party would
go for the first aud second resolutions of the
Cincinnati platform. This year the Democratic
county meeting Yves not called at the time
1t should have been, fthey intend to follow the
old rules for on the very day the meeting was
held, by the very first rule, the sheriff and coro-
ner should have been nominated, and as the
Democratic niger equality Greeleyites and
y O'Conorites had broken the party to pieces,
proposed, on the 9th of Jnne, to let by-gones be
by-gones, and organize new, living Democratic
White Mans party on our old former Jacksonian
plan Of nominating by ballot, therefore interest
ing every white man, rich and poor alike, to
help select candidates for whenever the white
masses cannot be trusted, farewell, Liberty and
for my plain advice, although stating am no
candidate for Office nor would receive an office