Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1880-11-02
Spirit of 5efferson.
Chsrlestown. Jefferson County, West Va.
TUESDAY MORNING. NOVEMBER ?. 1880.
TIE CONSTITUTIONAL AMEND
MENTS.
IFtOm The whselisg Register.l

us tHfoush tne paper as 10 what you know
about its adoption or rejection.
Yours truly, ***
jpest Union, October 90, 1880.
There is no doubt about the adoption Of
both the amendments, by considerable ma
jorities, although the returns of the vote
upon them are yet ineon plets.
When we use the word 'sadoption," We
mean simply to say that the people of the
State are responsible for dcpssitipg more
ballots upon which the words '.For Ratities-
ton" were printed than were east with the
words "For Rejection"
We don't mean to say that they have
"ad0pted" them in the sense of approving,
commencing, and iutellisently endorsing
their spirit and purpose. We believe rather,
that it was mere mechanical endorsement
OF the printer who set up the type and prints
ed the words which saved the voter any
trouble Of determining what should and
should not be Put upon his ticket
The Law prescribed that if he was ia favor
of the amendments, he should put upon his
ticket the words "For Ratification" and if
he was opposed to it he should put upon his
ticket the words "Bvr Rejection"
But the voter did not kRow anything
about the law. 1t was not published in con.
aecsion with the Cons titution, and not one
voter in thousand ever read or heard any
thing about it.
Some of the tickets-in fact, all of the
Republican tickets contained only the
words "For Ratification" If the voter
wanted to vote against rat ifcaten, he did not
know what to write, and there was no room
oD the ticket to write anything.
Moreover, ret one in a hundred knew
that he was voting for n constitutional amend
mcut, and he did not care. The excitement
aud rivalry which personal and political con-
tests brought to ths polls SO absorbed the at
tention of voters that all else wac forgotten.
and there has not been enough interest in
the result upon the amendments to induce
parties to send in the returns
We have regarded these ame nents of
vital Importance TO the people of this State.
The feyiSter endeaVored to impress this fact
upon tho minds of the people. We were
anxious that, whether adopted or reisstsd.
the result should be fair expression of the
will Of the people.
We do not believe that the result does
show any intelligent expression of the will
of the people. We bslieve that it is no more
than mere mechanical endorsement. This
TACT was ahundantly dem onstratsd in Wood
county, whore only the worda "For Ratifica>
ton" were printed on all tickets, beth Demo-
cratic and Republicsn, and in which county
nearly sll the votes were ''For Ratification. -
The future may prove that the people are
satisfied with what they have done. 1t may
prove that they are not. We have only now
to mako the bsst CT it. We shall be sorry
if tho people of the State put themselves in
the attitude of endorsing 4 measure of SC
much Importance when it is not what they
wish. We will be sorry to hear another
vail ge ap over our judicial system, similar
TO that over the county courts
We do net profess to know what tho peo-
| Plc want in this connection. We onIy hope
they have it, But in any event we hope
never to see the farce enacted of su6n.it,ing Q
suOh proposition to the people, 10 the midst
of wild political excitement. And we
hopo further thst the people will have the
patience to wait until the complications the
almost inextricsble difficulties which the
ratification of these ahendments bring upcn
us, shall one by oEe be solved by the slow
aud tortuous coarse of years of distraction
and arrangement.