Orangeburg times. [volume] (Orangeburg Court House [S.C.]) 1877-1881, 1878-05-11

system, and were elected upon t., ,eir
merit, and not on account of their
olit'cal combinations or supposed
availability.
Since the, war upon he advent Of
| Nadlcallsm, conventions becu me
fashionable. In the Radical party
they imnrGi,,tc" hacamo the vchi-
c!es upon which the shrcwdest and
most corrupt politicians inva iablv
succeeded TO ~ wer. In the Demo-
cratic party o. irsc it was different,
tut still the increasing tendency to
undue influences through stock
delegates and political combinations
suggested a change. This chonge is
recommended by the State Executive
Committee in the primary system,
which refers the matter directly to
the people.
Every county arrangcs its own
plan Of conducting primaries, bat the
general idea is simply this:
On certain day before tho gcne.-
al election the polls are opened at
every precinct from sunrise to sun.
set, during which time every Demo
crat goes to the ballot box and puts
in his own vote for his cl.oice for the
nominees of the party, instead Of
twenty-five men clubbing tngeth er
and sending man to the convention
to 90 their voting for them. The
votes are then counted in such a way
as may be agreed upon, and the can
did'te receiving the majority Of the
votes are declared the nominees of
tie party.
Now for conSi 'cration Of some of
the objections raised a .;ainst the sys-
tenn:
lst. 1t is argued by"A Hampton
Democrat" that it will be "the vehi-
Gle upon which the ofiice.seekers arc
~ liuc MO power.
Now | would like t, know if it
makes any difference with office seek
ers from whence the office comes.
Will the fact that the office they seek
is offered by the convention, inst cad
of the people, mako the number of
oflicc-seekers any smaller, or tl:eir as
"irations and intrigucs less ardent? In
fact is it not prob.blc that the small
lcr yctc to manipulate, us before sal Il i,
and the grca.Cr secrecy and oppor-
;"ttics for wire pulling in conven-
tions, offer Il more cnticing field 70 l.
office seekers than the people through
primaries.
And again, if men will seek office
It would seem that the people, which
is the meaning Of the primary system :
is the proper "vchic'e upon which"
they are to ride into power"
The primary plan will tend more
to harmony also on this score, that
defeated candidates before conyen
tons will croa!i ab,uc stock dele
gates manipulations &c., and become
fit subjects for boiling, but when the
people vote them down in primari cs
they will he compelled to see and adj
NIT that they arc not the penp,e's
choice.
2nd. I is argued that in the prim-
AIRY system the populous sections will
have an advantage over the spar
sedly settled communities.
Now who can fail to see the falllcv
Of this argument? Are not all sec
items represented in the convention
according to population? Therefore
have not the ropuIous sections at
least TIE same relative vote and
therefore the same advantage in the
convention rs they have ou: it, or
at the pr imaries Is not the ratio
the same?
But | assert that the populous sec
tons have even greater chance of
monopolizing the Offices in the con
vention than in the prima ries, from
the simple fact that in the convention
the entire delegation ola populous
section is likely to vote one way, as
the minority is left at home, while ut
the primaries this minority can not so
easily be whipped into line. The
danger thel eiore is not, as expressed,
that the town Of Oraugcburg vii