The weekly clarion., 1877-10-10

A Question of PoIiticaI Duty.

CoRINTH, Miss Oct. 4th. Is77.
f. BARksDALE, ESQ, Dear Sir 1 " rite
TO you as chairman at the Executive Com
mittee OF the Democratic-C Conservative
party and as such the party adviser. We
have long looked to The CLARION as tile
le der of the hosts opposed u the II -publi-
can party, but now We feel Jhstwe can ap-
peal to you personally a. Chairman OF the
State Committee, for advice and iustruc-
tion.
We had a county convention in this coun-
ty-Alcorn-on the 18th of August last
when nominations were made for all the
county offices.
There is some dissatisfaction felt and ex-
pressed at the nomination OF Sheriff
There are some men who have hereto
fore been good Democrats who are opposing
this nomination. | am not entirely dissat-
fected, but l have doubts as to my duty ia
the premises il all the reports are true
though my inclination Is to vote the entire
ticket. unless the circumstances are such a.
to absolye me from that duty.
There are charges of. fraud against the
convention, and charges that some Of the
nominations were obtained by fraud; that
the convention was manipulated by de
signing men and - N mauag ID by politicians
as TO get the nomination for sheriff of d
man who was not the choice OF the people,
There is more stress laid on the charge
believe than any other that the convention
did not regard the choice of the people.
There were conventions held in all the
five Supervisors Districts, aud delegates
elected hy those District conventions to 20
10 the county convention. At the county
convention there was a full set of delegates
| from all parts of the county.
! In one or two districts there were elcc-
| tions held by voters for their choice for the
| several candidates, aud there the man who
got the nomination for sheriff got a very
small vote, and in the county convention
his vote from those districts was cores
pondingly small, but from other district
where no vote was taken by the people foI
the several candidates, but merely a vote
for delegates, the successful candidate toI
the nomination of Sheriff was very strong
Now the opponents say that in those dis
tricts where no primary election was held
that the nominee was as weak as in those
where a vote was taken, and that thus the
will OF the people was diSrcgarded.
In all the district conventions this year
there We're quite number of persons took
! part who have heretofore held themseive;
alooffrom conventions and have opposed
| conventions, who are called Independents
Some of these heretofore independents
were elected as delegates and took an ac
tive part in the county convention.
| Now there are some men who have here
tofcre been good Democrats who say tha
they have washed their hands of that con
gention because some men were in it tina
they used to call Radicals, they say "tht
convention was not composed Of our sort o
people"
This nominee for Sheriff has always beer
a Democrat and has invariably voted tn,
ticket of the Democratic Conservative par
", but at the election two years ago ht
committed a political sin which some per
sons are not disposed to forgive; that siI
was the erasure of two names from tn
county ticket on personal grounds. Their
was a perso-al disagreement between hin
and the men whose names he erased and OF
that account he made the erasurc, but di,
not vote for their opponents. 1t is wei
man, and is competent and well qualified
He has been a citizen of this county and oil
Tishomingo for more than a quarter of
century, and there is not a spot or a blem
| iSh on his cnaraUtoI.
Now under these circumstances is it on
duty to scratch the name of this nominee
and if it is not our duty to do 50, is it on
privilege to so erase and to vote for the op
position?
Can Democrats consistently vote for
having almost a life struggle, voted agains
some ofOur party nominees?
When we consider that act of his tw
years ago, and consider that men who wer
heretofore Independents were in that Con
ventiOn and and voted for him; voting 70
him probably because they had themselve
been often guilty of the same sin, and in
tending thereby that such an act did DC
condemn a man, is it not our duty now a
Democrats to put the seal of condemnatio
J On all such nominations by defeating hin
at the balct-b0x, and thus show that Con
ventions to be successful must nominate
man who has been always pure politically
and by thus defeating this nominee show t
the world that the Democratic party wi
only stand up TO those who stand up t
: those who stand up to the party in its hou
, of need?
Very truly yours, etc,