Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-09-23

intricate one, great diversity Of opinion
prevailed, and finally the Assembly
succeeded In passing what was known
A. the Barbour bill, which those men,
bsrs who favored the rights of the
creditors opposed. The vote in the
House was II to 40, 8 large number Of
Democrats voting in the majority, al.
Though it was not then regarded A. 4
party question. The adoption of this
act at this time would have settled tho
question and have prevented ii from get
ting into politics, when the Governor
who had received the nomination in
THE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION
by the withdrawal Of General Malone,
name, after several unsuccessful ballots
and the concentration Of has friends
upon Colonel Holiday, vetoed the bill
and prevented any settlement at that
session. On the next session. nearly
tie whole time having been spent IN
vain endeavors to come to some harmo.
NOUS settlement, seven days before The
adjournment q bill for asettlemcnt. then
known as the McCulloch settlement
which the creditors agreed to as com.
promise, by q vote in the House of -
to so, and in the Senate Of % to 9. wa,
passed. There was great diversity o.,
opinion as to how the bill would WORK
and how it would have operated of
course no man can now know. Gene.
raj Malone then saw his opporm.
nifty. In the next election of N.
members Of the Assembly, in lN-1
he opposed the settlement. H.,
friends, the opponents of the bill
represented themselves as true Demo.
Gratis, although they were then char,el
to have secret intention to form
party and go over to the Republicans
The people at the polls refused to ratfy
the settlement, and Mahone's psrty
carried the Legislature upon the ground
that they were Democrats, and only dif.
fered as 10 the manner of a settlement
and upon their favoring a free ballot
and fair count, which nobody ever
was opposed to; and they also carried
the next Legislature and elected the
present Governor. But in the fall of
1888, the people having observed the
gradual transition from true Democrats
INTO the Readjuster party, the Admin
istration party, the Liberal party. the
Coalition party. and finally into the
stalwart wing of the Bloody. Shirt Re-
publican party, overthrow them. The
settlement introduced by Riddleberger.
the satellite of the Boss. was an
proved by the people at the polls by
decided vote. and as the ground princi-
pie of the Democratic party is to carry
out the will of the people fairly ex.
pressed, they adopted this settlement
OF The question at their Lynchburg Con-
yentiOn, and in their last General As
sembly have done everything to carry
It into successful operation, as shown
by the writer in preceding papers on
this subject.
As to the charge Of squandering mo-
ney and accumulating debt, let the re
cord be again heard. The Democrats
General Assembly, by an act passed
18th March, 1878,
REDUCED THE SALARIES
of all the officers of the State at the
general rate of 20 per cent, abolished
a good many offices and consolidated
others, lowered the pay of the General
A Assembly from So to 81 per day, and
put an end forever to constructive mile
age.
by an act passed March II, 1873. the
same Assembly recodifed the entire
criminal law Of the State and reduced in
every manner the criminal expenses of
the Commonwealth. which had been one
of its heaviest burdens. The appro-
piiation bills show that instead of an
s95I,757, as they had done
in ISIS, for expenses before the reduc-
ton, after these bills were put into ope-
ration it was only necessary to appro-
pirate zoos, PIP, showing that by these
two acts Of the same Democratic Lee
sislature $3.50, SIS was saved to the tax
payers of the Commonwealth.
We repel the foul charge in the plat
form that we carried the last Lcgisla-
tuIe by fraud, violence, and terrorism.
and only say that any party which puts
forth candidates for high position who
have denounced our citizens as assas-
sins, thieves, and ballot-box suffers,
and who have stood by and heard our
mother Commonwealth stigmatized by
The paid attorney of the bondholder, as
a repudiator and a rogue without offer.
ng a word of reply, deserves to he
by the voice OF an indig.
lant people.
The rest Of the charges they make
against the Democrats being accusa-
lions against our last General Assem-
bly,, which we consider we have already
shown to be dispro'ed by the record, il
only remains by the record to show that
The Republican party is not entitled t.
The credit for the benefits it claims in
the platform and address to have rem.
lered to the people Of Virginia.
WILLIAM POPE DABNEY.