The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1884-04-03
Statement from Capt

j. II. Riyes, assigning the reas Susf ,r;,;-
did not call together the committe. Ssa WING y.
he was elected chairman in 49, x :,
facts adduced are no doubt desig us4
make up record. So far as this is -
cerned it is a matter that may interest t. r.
directly associated with it, more than / y
general public. As to the committee i.
self we never believed it had legal ex-
istence nor right to call a convention of
the Republicans of Virginia. Its creation
was the outgrowth Of a disruption of the
Republican party, as it was organized and
conducted a gallant campaign in 1885,
After the severance at Lynchburg in 1881,
neither wing of the party could, strictly
and technically speaking, legitimately
claim to represent the regular. Organization
as it had existed, although all that was left
of regularity was with the wing that
Capt. Rives did not cooperate with. We
admit, however. that it was palpable
discourtesy to him for those who composed
his committee not to have recognized his
right to call it together. They, at least,
assumed it to be the Republican Committee,
and to the degree that he defends this
right his complaint is well-founded. And
it is just to state, that the Committee he
represents did good service in 1881, in de-
feating the Bourbon ticket for State Of
fees and electing the Coalition candidates,
while the other Committee, of which. - Mr..
J. w. Cochran was chairman, and Maj.
Dezendorf is now the representative, did
nothing as a committee, when life and
death struggle for questions the Republi-
cans deemed essential was in progress.
The one with the least regularity had the
mass Of the Republican voters to cooper
ate with it, while the other, with the
greater regularity, had no popular follow.
ing. In 1882 these committees maintained
pretty much the same relation to the tick
cts in the field in that year, except that
Maj. Dezendorf's committee encouraged
straightout candidates for Congress, with
out electing any or getting more than a
nominal vote. but substantially giving ma
terial aid to the Bourbons.
Whilewe never had anything to do with
the finances of campaigns and never expect
to have, we are satisfied that all the
moneys collected for campaign purposes
were expended on them. In 1881 and '82
Gen. Malone, according to the statements
we have seen, gave $4,000 of his private
means to meet the urgent demands of the
contests. AS a directing force in those
elections, he no doubt apportioned the
funds to the most needy districts. At
least we so assume for he had more of
reputation and prestige to maintain and
involved in success than any other one
person. With from A, 600 to $4,000 capt.
tation taxes to payin each of those years,
with other necessary expenses, it is rea-
sonable to suppose that every dollar that
was collected was expended legitimately.
and that if an adjustment of accounts
had been made, the Committees would
have found themselves largely in debt to
somebody, if the contributions from Re-
publican friends had been their sole de-
pendence.
That serious mistakes have been made,
not only during the progress of the several
election contests in Virginia, since 1880,
but in the use of the power the several
successes conferred, no faiF. minded man,
acquainted with the facts, will dispute.
That Gen. Malone has made mistakes,
he, himself, no doubt, will admit. He and
his friends would have been either more
or less than human if they had not made
some blunders where conflicting interests
and jealous elements had to be consulted
and conciliated. But it is not fair nor
just to lay every mistake to Gen. Malone.
Indeed, we know that many things which
have been done, which have been charged
to him, he did not approve or indeed,
as to some of them, know anything. It is
the habit of the Bourbon press to magnify
everything into a grievous offense perpe-
trated by Gen. Malone, whether COM
mitted by him or not, and these represen-
tations fall on willing ears sometimes
among those not identified with the Bour-
bon organization, and are contorted into
political crimes, because the truth and the
reason and the motive are not given
to the public. Not day passes that
some vile SANDER is not manufactured, or
some trivial incident or expression magni-
fed into huge offease, and Gen. Malone
held responsible for it, when in fact he
may be as ignorant of it as it is possible
for person to be-. He is hated by the
Bourb0ns because he led the forces which
defeated them, just as he was almost can
onized by them when he organized their
victories. His resources and power as
leader are known to them, and because of
this they fear him, and it is for this reason
that an incessant stream. of abuse and
vituperation pours from the Bourbon
press against him. Others unfriendly to
him are infected by it and stop not to
reason as to the conclusions they draw or
investigate the truth of what may be
charged. Gen. Malone is q very able
man-is an aggressive fighter, and in such
campaigns as he has had to conduct in
Virginia against the Bourbons, it would
have been anomalous indeed, if he had
not disturbed the serenity and crossed the
purposes of some of the s'best people. p
Hence their wrath and their falsehoods.
We have not hesitated to- criticise and
dissent from some of his methods, when we
believed they were in conflict with the OBJ
jects we wished to see accomplished in
Virginia; but notwithstanding this we
have found more to commend than con-
denim, and even when we did. mot approve,
we were disposed to make allowance for
the imperfections of human judgment |
and the utter impossibility Of any man sat-
isfying all the demands Of Earring interests. |
Nor is it fair to judge man pressed with |
responsibilities and assailed by. importu
mites from an irresponsible and possibly |
selfish standpoint. 1t is to- be presumed |
that hewillmeasure the general effect of his
action more accurately, in view of his re-
'ponsibility, than those who haveno one to
account to and who reach their conclu-
'ions from partialities not affecting a
general policy. Power Is a dangerous
hing in a popular government and espe-
,ially in political parties. And if emolu-
nent is attached, it is the one thing that