Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1888-07-13
The County Executive Committee.

The meeting of the Democratic Elk
ecutiye Committee in Charlestownl last
Friday was not distinguished, in our
opinion, by an overwhelming desire
for the good of the party, but rather
by determination on the part of the
politicians to subserve their own pri-
vate prejudices and purposes.
In the first place, it was resolved
that the candidates for the various
county offices should be selected by
the primary election plan. There was
no great objection to this, although
there is a we'll grounded opinion in
the minds of many that while primary
elections are apparently very fair and
equitable, in reality they are just the
reverse; that strong precinct prac-
| ticallv controls the election, and can,
and generally does, deprive the small
er voting precincts of any chance
whatever. Still this was agreed TO
without any dispute.
But the controlling element of the
Committee did not propose TO stop at
this: They determined to boss the
whole county in everything. They
went step farther than ever before,
and applied this same plan to the Sc
lection of delegates. The people of
no voting precinct are to be allowed
TO select their own delegates to any of
the conventions. They are to be dom
mated by the balance of the county.
The Senatorial, Judicial and Congress
sional candidates are to be voted for
all over the county direct, and the
candidate who has the majority con
trolls the entire county and selects his
own delegates. If Shepherdstown,
Harpers Ferry, Kearneysville, Duff
fields and Oak Grove, for instance,
should unanimously desire TO send
delegates to either of the conventions
for Jones, the other precincts i'll the
county, having a majority, could pre-
vent the precincts named from choOs-
ing delegates of their own selection,
and could control the whole county
for Smith, regardless utterly of the
wishes of this most respectable minor
| itv. This is the plan for choking off
| the voters so far as these three offices
are concerned. As to the State dele
cation, we are told that twenty-five
delegates will be placed upon the
| ticket-the number of delegates JEFF
| ferson county is entitled to-and that
we are to vote for them. 1t is not
| known who is TO select these names,
| but we are assured that this duty will
be performed for us by some one-all
that we have to do is to vote for EN-.
! This is indeed an innovation-this cool
way of having some one else select our
representatives, and allowing us the
privilege of voting, with the chances
that even the votes will be nullified by
some precinct in the other end of the
county. We don't know how the old
time Democrats will like this arrange
ment. We don't believe, however,
that they will like being led around
by the nose any more than the young
and manly Democrats who are just
getting interested in politics.
On this question of selecting dele
gates TO the conventions asplit occur
red The two members from Shep-
herdstown, the two from Harper's Fer
ry, one from Middleway, one from
Kearneysville and one from Oak
| Grove entered an earnest protest
against this unfair method. But the
plan had been fixed up beforehand,
and it was showed through regardless.
The determination TO force the unit
rule and choke off opposition was
persisted in. No argument or reason
ing was listened to, for the power to
gag was to be used to its utmost. The
members from the precincts named,
finding that they were not regarded in
the matter at all, quietly left the
meeting, determining in their own
minds that they would never agree to
any such proceedings, and that they
would recommend to their constitu-
ents to ignore the unit rule and send
their own delegates to the conven-
tions, letting the conventions decide
the matter.
The Committee decided to have the
primaries all on the same day, July
21st. We consider this entirely too
early for the primaries for the county
offices, but it was on the bill and had
to be did