Orangeburg times. [volume] (Orangeburg Court House [S.C.]) 1877-1881, 1878-05-25
Primaries, being open to the people,

! and the difficulty of consummating
heir nefnrious designs.
These dangers, it may be said, so
far as Orangeburg is concerned, are
imaginary. We trust it may be SO,
but still we are impressed with the
wisdom of the maxim: eternal
vigilance is the price of liberty"
Power is constantly going from tie
many to the few.
The opponents Of the primary sys-
tenn seem to proceed upon tho prin.
ciple that the people can't produce
good tickct-that nothing good can
come out Of Nazareth. On this point
beg leave to differ. 1 have always
thought that the people i'll Il general
way were more honest than their
leaders, and in this opinion 1 am
more confirmed since the recent ex-
plcit Of the great Electoral Com
m ission in putting Mr.. Hayes in the
white house.
The primary system will produce
the best ticket, because it will surely
produce the peoples choice.
| said i'll my first communication
that before the war men were nomi.
mated for office Oh system parallel
to the primary system and were
voted for upon their merits alone.
To this Hampton Democrat"
makes answer that "be ore the war
the body polite was imposed of but
one element i'll our State; now it is a
complete conglomeration."
Now | am unable to see the strength
of this objection to the primary sys-
tenn. 1t is not proposed in this sys-
tenn to cong glomeratc, nor to deal
with any other element than the
Democratic element in our County.
1t is only Il means of ascertaining the
wish of The Democratic masses and
then having the true voice or the
party we go forward confidently in the
general election to meet the comm on
enemy.
(. The conventions which l referred to
in my last communication, as becom-
ing fashionable after the war ON the
advent of Radicalisn, were Cou nty
co inventions for nominating County
tickets, and not State National or
Congressional conventions us "IIamp-
ton Democrat" seems to imagine.
Hampton Democrat" says: "I
admit thnt the people should be the
vehicle for candidates to ride into
Office, but sir, contend what is every
budy's wagon is nobody's wagon"
To this we say we want 10 c.rclusirc
1,sag9n. 1t is contrary 10 the trus
spirit of Democracy. This is free
country, and the chances of cho.ing
and being chosen to office slou Id be
open to everybody, which is the OBJ,
ject ofthc primary.
1 said i'll my last in answer to the
fear that there would be too many
elections, that it can be so arranged
that one primary will suffice. Upon
this point Hampton Delnocrat" says
great deal, which l confess l can
1
What l meant was that it might be
arranged, as it was in Lancaster,
either that the candidate receiving
the highest vote should bo the nomi.
nee, or that the primary should be
used only rs the means of ascertain.
ing the true wish Of the people and
afterwards let the convention meet
and select from among the candidates
RECEIVING the highest vote, and thus
make up the ticket in all cases
where majority has not been receiv.
ed by any one candidate.
Hampton Democrat says; "Our
farming tellOw-cltlZens cannot afford
to be running to and fro fl III now
until November next &c.
Nobody wants them to do this. No
more running about is required in the
primary than in the convention sys-
TEN, and in fact less.
In the convention system the far
mer has to 60 out and stay sometim es