Litchfield enquirer., 1880-02-12
Conventions.


 influence over practical politics, Members of convention are chosen by slender caucnses, very easily packed or influenced hy politi- clans; and the position of delegate, being one of neither honor nor profit, usually goes beg ging and is readily conceded to any partisan ardent or ambitious enough to pay the ex- penses of trip to Hartford or New Haven for the sake of meeting other equally ardent or aspiring politicians.
 It is at this fountain head of government by the people that all our political corruption be- gins. Suppose that man wishes congress ional nomination! His agents go through the country towns organizing delegations in his interest. Often they agree to pay the dele gates convention expenses, or promise local preferment. It is in this way that the appa- rent popularity" of the candidate is manu. factured. As time goes on, rings of caucus manipulators form in each town, acknowledg- ing allegiance to their feudal chief, and ready to pack any nominating convention in his in- terest. This organization, when thoroughly effected in the interest of one or more ambi- | tious politicians, becomes what is usually termed ''the machine" The power of the machine is based upon money and upon the control of offices and appointments.
 The success of the Salisbury plan" in our l own county, congressional district, and state, is good instance of the pervasion. of the convention system to mere personal ends. Till the close of the war, MT. William H. Barnpm, as politician, had little influence beyond Salisbury and few adjoining towns. His 1 first experiment in a wider field resulted in the defeat of the Hon. Geo. w. Peet, then the l Republican candidate for the Senate, in the Seventeenth Senatorial District. The next year he began operations on his own account. The nomination of P. T.. Barnum gave him a capital chance to revolutionize the Fourth District. He won a decisive victory and, from that time, became the fountain of all political power in this part of the state. His agents arranged delegations, dictated nomi- nations, and managed the politics first of the District, then of the State.
 The success of the Salisbury plan" in 1 Connecticut is but sample of like successes through like methods in other States. The Cameron dynasty in Pennsylvania the Conk-
 ling regime in New York, the Blaine .ascen- l dency in Maine, and the rule of the Bonanza Senators of the far Western States, all rest on the same tounnation, the weakness of the ex- isting convention system. The evil ascendant cy of Samuel J. Tllden in the Democratic party is entirely owing to 8 sort of Salisbury plan" made national
 The baneful influence of such politicians az N. D. Sperry, and, of late, Marshall Jewell, in Connecticut politics, is also of the ''ma- chine" order. We refer to this influence now, because the primaries will soon be meet ing to choose delegates to the State Republ- can Convention that is to send delegates to the national convention. We even see it noted in the papers that a solid Grant delegation is ex- pacted from Connecticut. Nor should we be greatly surprised Our State conventions are usually composed of machine men or bit- ter partisans. They seldom represent the sound, moderate Republcanism of the party in Connecticut.
 Indeed, we must consider the convention system, as it now stands, total failure worse still, a fraud. A party copvention chosen on prevalent methods, represents the real feeling of the people less accurately even than do the party members of our legislatures We would much prefer that legislative cau- cuses made all our nominations, as was the fashion of our ancestors, than that candidates should be selected and platforms adopted. by the conspicuously irresponsible conventions | modern politics gets together. How, then, can the evil be remedied? Our own belief has long been that partisan con- | ventions would continue to misrepresent parties and demoralize politics uutil they are legiti- matlzed, and made honorable, by adoption into 1 the regular framework of popular government This can only be done by giving regular pay 1 and mileage to convention delegates. Then the position would be much sought after i; nominating caucuses larger; and conventions would really represent the party instead of the ambitious wire re-pullers who have nearly suc- ceeded in substituting government by the machine for government by the people. We are aware that the objection of expense would be urged against such reform. True it would cost something but, if real government by the people is worth anything, it is worth more than the light expense involved in abolishing the present corrupt, fraudulent, and irresponsi- ble system af poyernment hv tsthe machine D