Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1882-08-29
HOW A REPUBLICAN, VIEWED 1T.


, The editor of the Philippi Republican,
disinterested spectator at the .Keyser Com
vention, thus speaks of the usurping perma-
nent chairman:
Cofran makes one of the most! sCofranish"
chairmen that you can f nd on top of sod. Get
him fully roused and warmed up and he will
decide anything; there is no trouble about
that; if he wants it put through he gets up
and calls for the ayes and noes, and before
the noes are half done voting, he declares it
carried; he has no trouble in his ruling either.
he has clear straight rule to guide him in .
such matters, and it is so simple that ga way-
faring man though fool need not err there's
in" and it is this. Always rule in favor of
his own side of the question. X =
Dyer who was temporary chairman, still
held the gavel at this point, began to ge.
very sick of his position, and without any a.
doptlon OF the report or any authority of any
kind, sent committee to induct Cofran into
the chair, Cofran pioughed his way through
the soothing, quarreling, wrangling mass,
aud, cane In hand, assumed tho control
Inns exasperated the Lucas men, as we'll it
might, and the Jefferson county delegation
and the Preston regulars threatened to at
once leave the hall. Cofran, however, bell
his voice it for moment startled them into
silence. He than started out in his rulings
and from this time on, the Hoge men had
their way. 1t was even decided that call
Tor division under any circumstances was
out OF order, aud what was more ludicrous
still he declared out of order any and all ref.
erences to the Payne memorandum. Mean
while the other committees, composed prin.
cipally of Hoge men, had been doing their
dirty work for the purpose of carrying out
the job, aud if they had succeeded in getting
in their reports that night there is NO telling
what would have been the result
* * X X
Lucas arose and all became quiet. In a
short speech he proposed that his name
should be withdrawn if Hoge would withdraw
his, and third man could be nominated.
But the Hoge men we're going to put him
through or ''bust" and Hoge, himself, was
as "bullheaded," to use the expression of one
of his friends from this county, as his friends,
SO this action of Lucas accomplished nothing.
x
Here came in another element of discord
and that was the last straw that broke the
camel's back. The Hoge men found that
they were fairly beaten that if the vote of
Preston county was given solid to Lucas as
it ought to have been, and that if the Pres
idential vote was adopted as tho basis of rop-
resentation as is clearly manifest, should have
been done, it being the last vote at general
election, that Lucas would be nominated, set
their tools to work, to wit, the committees on
basis OF representation, and tho one on Gre
dentials, to remedy these very great grave
and serious gaps in their line to the nomiua,
ton. This work these committees did right
iguobly. The committee on basis of repre-.
sentation adopted the vote of Governor as a
basis, thus giving Hoge some five or six ex-
ira votes and slicing some six or eight off of
Lucas counties. But even this was not enough
to bring them through, so the committee on
credentials finished the job by recommending
the admission of everybody from Preston
county, thus dividing the county half for
Hoge and half for Lucas, instead of giving
Lucas solid delegation as he was entitled to
have.
And this not being sufficient they proceed
cd to throw out number of Lucas mon from
the Taylor county delegation.
The Taylor county trouble arose in this
way: AT their regular meeting, delegates
were appointed, and resolution adopted.
that If any ono or moro delegates should find
themselves unable to attend the Convention,
thoy might appoint Democrats to go in their
stead. A number of men could not attend
aud appointed proxies. These proxies woro
found to be Lucas men, and the Hoge men
mado use OF the mere technically, that by law
delegated power cannot be again dclcgat-
ed, ITO throw all these proxies out. When
these two reports came before the Convention
tho climax was reached. Tho Lucas men
had been bulldozed beyond all endurance :;
Cotran even refused to recognize them at all
and IN his usual way was putting the reports
right through aud bringing Hoge to a nom>
ination on the double jump. The Lucas men
couldn't stand it any longer. They rose up
and left tho Hall. Lucas sent word Sec
ond timo to the Hogo mon, that no would
withdraw if Hoge was Withdrawn, and that
his friends would agree upon any good man.
The Hoge men rejected this second offer, and
tho result of the whole thing is that the Cons
vention after a severe labor was delivered of
twins.
Editor Powell of the Fairmont Vest VIr>
ginia", who was at the Koyser convention,
says:
When We went to Keyser VIC wanted
judge Hoge nominated. We thought he
was entitled to it according to long ostab>
lished custom, two terms being tho rule al
most everywhere, and in the event a Demo-
cfat sneuld represent US, we preferred him to
any one else in his party. When We left Key
ser our sympathies were entirely with Mr..
Lucas, for we felt that he had been outraged
by the friends of Mr.. Hoge. We looked at
him (Lucas) and thought that instead of be-
ing made the standard. bearer of a faction he
should have been nominated by his whole
Party-a party he has long and faithfully
served as few others have DONE
The Jefferson delegation was fine body
OF men, it being the largest aud most talented.
1t had the Mark Antony of the convention
IN the person of Hon. James 81. Grove. Mr..