The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-03-12
Vigorous V0ices from the People.
THE BEST MAN AND A FREE CHOICE.

Mr.. Editor As an interested reader Of your
paper, have been gratified with the general
position it has taken on the governorship ques-
ton. | understand your position to be, in
short, that you want the best man that is avail
able, and that you want him put in nomination
in such a way as to reflect the free choice OF
the people. Every citizen who has not inter-
ested motives to serve-certainly every good
citizen-wants the same thing; and therefore
am confident that your position will COM
mand popular support, whatever difficulty
it may meet with in finding expression in
the nominating convention. Our governors
generally have been men who have pretty
we'll filled the standard OF public requirement,
and, though there has been a widely diffused
feeling that the immediate agency in putting
them in nomination has sometimes been
powerful influence or combination that was
not directly representative of the people, still,
as the nominations were in themselves satsfac-
tory, they have been generally acquiesced in.
1t is the evil, however, of any manipulating
agency, in the selection of party candidates,
that the persons who compose it, sooner or
later, lend themselves to personal aims and
interests more limited than those of the general
public, and, relying with false confidence upon
their power, force nominations which look no
further than to the qualification of their own
prepossessions or the serving Of their own in
terests. When this point has been reached,
you have that odious thing, the machine--a
wheel within a wheel in popular government,
practical usurpation by clique of rights
which belong to whole political body-a thing
which sef-respectng citizens abomnate, and
which, sooner or later, makes revolution in a
party, Or failing in that, revolution of parties
Now, sir, | believe that you think-and
whether you do 30 or not, there are great
many voters who do think-that the present
condition of things in Vermont indicates that
| our political management Is drifting toward
that state of things in which 1t may be said
al 81 aobt Ia afoh had A dot
is named for the governorship who, whatever
his popularity in limited political circle, has
given no evidence OF his possession OF qualities
which the people justly look for in the gov
ernor of the state; and at the same time it is evil
| dent that matters are being shaped to make
| him the choice Of the convention, whether there
| is popular demand for him or not. But what
| makes the matter more aggravated is that it
| has been given out, and understood for several
| years, that events were to take just the turn
| that they are taking. The free action of the
voters of this state, In a convention yet to be
| held, has been confidently predicted years in
| advance-not from a sagacious inference from
| the distinguished qualities of the gentleman in
| question that he would be the man of the
| peoples choice, but by the easier method of
| political prophecy, based upon knowledge OF
| the intentions and arguments OF party man
ayers II this does not indicate that we have
| reached the point where the machine is set up,
or attempted to be set up, in our state politics,
then the apprehension of a very considerable
part of the public is very much at fault. We
| do not say that a machine exists because there
| may be an agreement on the part OF men promi-
nent in politics to present the name of fitting
| candidate. But when there is an effort appar-
| rent to bring about the nomination OF one who
| has no conspicuous fitness to recommend him,
and this effort takes the form of political
working" and it has been agreed upon years
| in advance, then we are justified in thinking
| that there is a movement In the party which
aims not at the good of the public, or the good of
| the party, but predominantly at more limited in
| terests-in other words, that the machine ex-
lists Ispeak only for myself when / say, and yet
| doubt not that represent the sentiments OF
many voters that do not propose to have my
vote mortgaged in advance by any such insti-
| tuition as a political machine. As republican,
am willing at any time to support any re-
| spectacle candidate who may not have, TO my
| mind the highest qualifications for the posi-
| ton to which he Is nominated, provided his
| nomination is the result OF the untrammeled
action of convention which fairly represents
| the party for which 1t acts. will vote also
for candidate of conspicuous fitness, such as
the people, II they voted freely, would have
chosen, even though there has been more OF
less OF management-which is useless in such
a case-in bringing the nomination about But
do not propose TO register the edict of any con.
ference or caucus, or other limited body which
imposes upon me the choice of public official
VINO is not 10 my mihu, ana IN the selection ol
| whom |, as u voter, have not had an equal voice
with any other voter. II other people are Of
my way OF thinking, then, back of the consider
alton whether any individual will make T" re-
spectacle" governor, will lie the question
whether he is desired by the people, on the
ground of his respectability, OF Is only put for
ward as good enough for them by those who
assume to control their votes. With this ques
tion settled, 1t will be time enough to consider
candidates ON their merits; and when this II