The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1882-05-18
the people being always trusty, it


becomes necessary simply to arouse
them to the proper under
standing of their responsibility
to always secure good government.
Particularly is this the case in Texas.
Here the people are deeply inter-
ested in the development of the
state, every Texan being imbued
with a spirit of patriotism that
frowns down all attempts to control,
for private purposes, public conclu-
sions. Hence, our constitution re-
quires frequent appeals to the peo-
pie, because, as was the case with
the so-called popular branch of the
seventeenth legislature, the peo-
ple's representatives are disposed to
forget the wishes of the people,
especially when urged to do so by
powerful and glittering agencies.
So the people may understand
why they should be heard in the pri-
maries. We adhere to party organ
ization because therein there is re-
sponsiblliIy, because the party
nominee, when the people act, can
be the choice of neither cliques nor
combinations. The Democratic
nominee, secured by regular advance
from the mud-sills of society up to
the convention, is in one sense
Observation-Disclosures free
from personal promises from
sale, or from clique duty or
combination obligation. He
is the truly independent candidate
while these little fellows, who take
counsel with themselves or with two
or three others, who are promised
the paying places, are labeled
thought" or "sold." They owe
allegiance to no doctrine; they
make no pledge to follow any
defined principles, to carry
out any favored public pur-
pose; but they do make bond with
all the forces which aid them, no
matter how inharmonious they may
be, to use public places when secured
for private ends. See the wretched
course into which Virginia has
drifted, by the triumph of these
irresponsible persons and forces
the Old Dominion degraded, the
Mother of States before her offspring
in humiliation and woe, TIE home of
statesmen and of patriots made the
abiding place of political tricksters
and traders and thieves, the once
proud commonwealth pointed at
in derision, scorned, because
1t is governed by individuals,
cliques and combinations, knowing
no responsibility. pledged alone to
plunder, to degrade. The Inde-
pendents can not look back down the
line from which they spring,
and show any responsibility to
the people no primaries
speak in their behalf; they are
wholly creations of the basest COM
binations between mongrel political
cranks and creeds, and happily Vir-
ginia is in revolt against their gov
ernment. 1t is easy enough to I'M
derstand how we may have pure
government. The people nev-
er organize against them
selves, and when they may
be induced to speak the country is
safe. Hence the STATESMAN calls
on these Democratic priests to put
on their robes and go into the field,
opening every channel for the people
to redeem themselves. Two
months is short time in
which all necessary work may
be done. A state convention
is to be provided for, and the local
conventions are to act. The fact is,
NudiEllidu 0lultu 0OCS AOI dppCdI "
be jack at all trades, for in this un-
dertaking he gives the people only
two months in which to act, while
he deals out four long, tiresome
months to the candidates. The
convention at Galveston, though,
was necessity, in advance of any
probability of quarantine quarter
ing one thousand delegates indefi-
nitely on the island in the sea, and
now Democrats are forced to work
up to it with rush, not conducive
to the safest conclusions. Because
of this it might be well to
postpone conventions for nomina-
ting district and county officers
to later day than those
which must name delegates to
the state convention. Because
state candidates are to be
drawn into a four months can
vass, is no reason why district and
county candidates should be
required TO submit to similar injus-
tice.