Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1877-08-17
Local.
THE AUGUSTA DELEGATES AT HOME

SPEECHES DELIVERED BY STRANGERS o.
THE WING -PATRloTIsM OF TIL
DANIEL MEN-ACCOUNT OF THE CON
VENTION BY THE LEADER OF THE HOI
LIDAY FORCES,
&C., &C., sc.
The opening of the gubernatorial cam
paign in Virginia may be said to have beel
mad by the Staunton Artillery, unde
Capt. A. Ell. FultZ, who made the first de
monstration on the nomination Of Holli
day. Directly the news came Friday even
ing, which was on the street in the shap
of an extra VIND1CAToR, in just two minu
ties after it's reception by telegraph, ant
only six minutes after it was made in Rich
mond, the sergeants of the company wer'
summoning the men, and after dark sa
Lutte of thirty-four guns was fired. Th'
Stonewall Brigade Band, whose old com
mander IS on the ticket for Lit Governor
joined in the demonstration and filled the
night air with sweet strains.
RETURN OF THE AUGUSTA DELEGATION
On Saturday afternoon the delegation
from Augusta returned, and at the depot
a large crowd was gathered, and there were
loud cries for Hanger and Echols. These
gentlemen introduced some delegates from
other counties, who were in the cars with
them.
Hon. Henry Edmonds, member of the
House from Halifax, who had been a
Daniel delegate. said that his standard
bearer had gone down in the fight with all
his wounds in front (cheersl, but the Con-
vention had given the flag to man no less
brave and no less beloved in the hearts Of
the people Cheers. -Four years ago, when
the State was threatened by the black
hordes of Radicalism, and we looked to you,
of the Valley, for help, you told us to keep
cool, and you would not fail us, and you
kept your word; and now, when you shall
call on us in November, with Frederick
W. M. Holiday at your head, we shall
come to you with $4,000 majority (cheers).
Ex-senator VIM. A. Anderson, of Rock
bridge, who was also a Daniel delegate,
said he had been one of the four hundred
men who stood by Daniel to the last, but
they had never had any fight to make with
the advocates of Holiday. They had stood
together on every public question, and
they would stand together in November
(cheers), and give the sleeveless hero of the
Valley the largest majority ever given in
Virginia (cheers).
Mr.. j. W. Davidson, of Rockbridge,
commenced some interesting remarks, but
they were cut short short by the cars NOV
ing off, when all the visiting speakers had
to get aboard. The crowd then adjourned
to the Court House to hear report from
Gen. Echols, the leader of the Holiday
forces in the Convention.
Gen. Echols said it had been intimated
to him that it would be agreeable to our
people to hear just now in the flush of our
victory some account of the Convention
from those who participated in it, and he
too had felt like coming home and among
his friends and neighbors to rejoice over
this victory of the Valley of Virginia and
to give them some reflections on its lessons.
He had risen from a sick bed to go to
Richmond and found the most excited and
seething crowd ever gotten together III
Virginia. Political questions had been
lost sight of and it had become apparently
a personal contest between Malone and
Daniel, those two great men, for they were
great men and commanded all the energy
of their followers. The ambition Of each
follower was that his leader should be high
est on the first ballot. and their fierce anX-
iety was so great that it was feared for
half day that this immense body Of Vir-
ginians would break up in a mob, and had
it not been for Marshall Hanger, (applause)
and the power and skill with which he con-
trolled it it would have been broken up,
(applause), and his action has raised him
ten times higher in Virginia than ever be-
fore, (applause). Both the gavel and the
entreaties of the temporary chairman were
disregarded.
The first point disputed was whether
the nomination or the platform should
come first. Gen. Mahone's friends were
organized, and differed by men of ability,
and Daniels forces were filled with enthu-
siasm for their leader-Virginia's hope in
the future, (aprlause). He, the speaker
had been appointed leader of the Holiday
forces on the floor. We went into the
first ballot with intense anxiety. though
we knew that our man would not lead. At
the close of the ballot when it was an
nounced that Malone lead about seventy
votes. the excitement was intense and tie
scene indescriable--th theatre packed from
pit through gallery after gallery up to the
roof, and the platform extending a half
block in extent, were filled with scream
ing, shouting men. At the end Of this
ballot each party thought they would Sc
cure the nomination by votes from the
lower candidates. But the Holiday men
stood there with 23S votes like a stone
wall. (applause). They appealed te
the history Of one hundred years
and demanded it as their right (applause)
The speaker here described the succeeding
ballots up to the 5th, when the Holiday
men asked leave to retire for consultation
The motion to grant the leave was second
ed by a Malone leader, and the Daniel mel
cried out that there was a combination
On getting to their consulting room liar
mony HalD the Holiday men determined
to make no combination, but to die
right there in their tracks (applause)
Il there was going to be any combination
it must be done by somebody else, not b.
us. It was critical situation: on thu
next ballot Holiday, under the rnle, woult
be dropped as the lowest candidate, bu
Mahone's and Daniels friends both knew
that Holidays phalnx was all that stoos
between them and death. [ felt certail
that one of them would he mithd ra WIN