The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1875-09-11

one of the candidates fcflthe Seuate.
Alter bearing the views Of Colouel
Knight, Colonel. Tanner, General johnson,
and Mr.. Wortbam, the committee agreed
upon the following answer to Colonel
knights request, which answer was commu-
nicated to Colonel knight yesterday:
To Colonel W. G. Knight:
The City Central Committee Of the Con.
servatiye party, convened in extra session to
consider your note Of the 7th instant, beg
leave very respectfully to state that the plan
of primary election adopted by Us required
the election of five candidates for the House
of Delegates, and also the election OF dele
gates to senatorial convention. So far as
this committee was concerned and, 80 far as
1t INTENDED when it adopted the plan, these
delegates were to 90 into convention with.
out instructions.
Our published rules required the commits.
sioners to receive and count the ballots for
senatorial delegates whether they had upon
them the names of the candidates for the
Senate or not; and this rule was adopted
after tickets having your name at their head
had been printed. Its object was 10 prevent
the throwing out of ballots for delegates be-
cause these ballots had candidates names
upon them. the supposition Of the commits.
soners being that all such tickets would
have to be rejected.
We have never asked one of our number
whether be was for johnson, or Knight. or
Tanner, or Worthsm, or Holiday. We have
observed strict impartality as between the
various candidates. As we nO,r know, there
are upon this committee friends of yours
who can testify that all We have here stated
is the exact truth. AS 1t was, therefore,
manifeStly impossible that this committee
should undertake to instruct the delegates as
to whom they should vote for before the
Convention assembled, so it is equally i'm
possible that they should now decide that
these delegates misrepresented their consti-
tuents. The delegates are responsible to the
people, not to us; and the place to challenge
the credentials OF the delegates was in the
Convention itself, which, like every other
such body, was the exclusive judge OF the
election and qualification of its members.
Finally, this committee had nothing to do
with counting the ballots. That duty was
performed by the commissioners of election.
and the result certified to uS. These CON-
missioucrs are gentlemen in whose honesty
and integrity we have every confidence.
Nobody can complain of them. We not only
have firm conviction that they properly
counted the ballots, but we are equally
confident that the gentlemen running
against yourself received a majority of
the votes cast. Yet if this committee had
undertaken 10 count the ballots, then indeed
there would have been murmuriDgs both
loud and deep. Every disappointed aSpi.
rant would have laid the blame upon the
City Central Committee-a committee that
receives nothing for its services, and but for
whose labors this city would now have ne
gro policemen at every stree:-corner, scala
wag justices, and carpet-bagger judges.
This committee, therefore, can say in con-
cluson only that W. P. NJ. KeIlam, W. w.
Crump, W. s. Gilman. j. Fl. Dooley, and
Charles U. Williams are the fairly ly.nominated
candidates of the Conservative party for the
House of Delegates, and Bradley T. johnson,
William E. Tanner, and Charles E. Wortham
like candidates for the Senate. If this CON-
mittee had the will it has not the power to
change this result.
This reply was duly a!tested by the secre.
tary Of the City Committee and conveyed to
Colonel Knight, accompanied by note OF
the usual form.