The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1888-06-21
SPEECH OF C. A. HEERMANS.
DELIVERED AT CHRISTIANSBURG, "
NJ V OQrII 1909

[ DELIVERED AT CHRISTIANSBURG, VA.
MAY 18th, 1888.
FeLloW Republicans Il come before YOU
to-day with a feeling of sadness to rende
/ unto you an account of my stewardship al
$ one OF your representatives in the Peters
burg Convention.
) First, desire to express my gratitude
to you for your confidence and preferment
in the past. TO you owe much for whaI
} l am politically. Coming among you six
, years ago, almost stranger. you selected
; me as your county chairman, and shortly
after made me your candidate for Common
Wealth's Attorney. In that campaign yor
gave me the marvellous vote of 1000 to l0(
votes against one OF Your own SOUS. With
no loss OF confidence for that defeat, you
Continued me four years as your county
chairman with Gen. Mahone's approval
ana at The end Of that time elected me by
24l uiajoritY to the office for which [ had
bee u defeated the four years previous. To
every convention OF our party, from my
arr val IN this county to the present time,
you have delegated me as a representative.
Fol- this confidence | have only to offer
the gratitude of my poor but warm and
att ctlonate heart, and to declare to you
that every trust put in my hands by you,
to the best of my ability. has been faith
fully and honestly executed.
To-day | come to speak to you sadly,
aInestly and honestly, and to declaEe to
you my whole counsel in words so plain
that there can be no misunderstanding
tb, III.
Fist, L am Republican. and there is
MOI power enough in Virginia to drive me
trol4 that party, be it centered ill body
OF men called a convention, or in one man
Called boss" Were there two mules
Shed with steel shoes, with me placed at
the proper distance, they could not kick
me from The party. L am Rtpubllcab
because L believe IN the doctrine Ut protec
ton that is to make old Virginia young
again; that is to develop the hidden treas
ures, that, under Democratic theories,
have laid buried in the bowels OF the earth
while our people were suffering tor the
necessities and comforts of life. am
Republican because | believe in the doc
trlne OF public education and free schools
In practical manner of a Republican
Blair Bill, that was to take our schools
from the dry rot OF Southern Democracy,
and place. them on the progressive plane OF
goa head Republican ism. L am Repub
lIcan because l believe in raising revenue
from foreign imports that not only pro-
tects American labor and American inter-
ests. but will produce sufficient means to
support government and relleVe the pro-
DUCTS of home and farm by taking the tax
| off tobacco-a repeal of the internal reve-
nue. system. Let no Democrat lay the
fiattering JUNCTION to his soul that from
| me or those with whom l co cooperate he is
to get aid or comfort, So helpm me God, so
long as the Democratic party is what 1t is,
and the Republican party is what 1t is,
| shall vote the Republican ticket, be it led
| by Wise or Malone. be it under the pres
ent plan of organization or another, unit
rnle or antiunit rule. Now Mr.. Demo
crat, put that in your pipe and take it
home and smoke it.
Now my fellow Republicans, desire to
give you a history OF party management
and the Petersburg convention. and ask
your patient indulgence while | rehearse
| ally, but to yon, politically. Whatever
wrong is done the Republican party is
wrong to you, no matter in what portion
| of the State. The savior of mankind said
that he who did a wrong to the least OF His
did it unto Him.
Gentlemen, the Republican party is big
ger than any man in it. In Virginia, 1t
has grown out of its swaddlng clothes,
and needs no wet nurse. \ ct no man has
diapered it, bandaged it, dressed 1t and
paped it, until it has not confidence
chairman of a party is its e;cecNt1Ue officer,
not it's zedislqti1e officer. He is its servant,
not it's master. Has our chairman recog-
nized this fundamental law OF Republican
ism? Let me illustrate. When L Was
your county chairman last spring. and hi +.
Haynes and Mr.. Gill were candidates TOT
the nomination for treasurer, suppose L
n3d written secret letter and sent copy
to every precinct officer, telling him that
we should nominate MI. Gill, and III tnaJ
coU municatlon. made odlouS comparisons
Of their past records. Then suppose that
when issued the call for the convention,
| had named Blacksburg, my own home,a
the place, and had required the people to
assem- BILE at their respective precincts, and
without law or warrant, required, not only
the chairman and secretary OF the meeting
but also the precinct chairman to counter
sign the credentials. Then when | found,
in spite of this. Mr.. Haynes was likely to
be- nominated, | removed the precinct
chairman and appointed a Gill mau IN his
stead and required him to hold announcer
meeting, and he, with two or three others,
| would get together and certify hall dozen
Gill men up from Chrlstlansoufg, where
it was known that the precinct was l0 TO
| for HAYNES. Then suppose had. two
nights before the convention, by private
and confidential circular, summoned nearly
eyery prominent Gill man in the county to
meet me at my home in conference, and
when they all came l did all the confer
ring by making 81 hour speech in favor
of Gill, and mapped out the whole plan OF
the convention to accomplish my end,
winding up by denouncing every one VINO
differed with me as diSorganlzers and
kickers against the party! say What
would the Republicans OF this county &c
| ,;t, 7 thing
? Well don't know. But knowing the PEG
ole of montgomery as well as do, should
/ not have stayed in the county after the
J convention long enough to lind out.
should expect the Haynes men to ride me
out on a rail. Now fellow Republicans
this is what your State chairman did
: Four wears ago he railroaded through tine
convention plan of organization that was
never debated or understood by the people
that gave him absolute power IN all Things
Every county chairman IN this state mas
: to have commission signed by Wm
). Malone, else he is not chairman. Every
4 nrecinct committeeman has to have {
commission signed VIM. Malone, else hls
acts are without authority. Not only has
he the right of appointment but he has The
| poWer of removal, and that Without assign
ing any cause. He can remove at will
o Now let me tell you how this convention
was organized under this plan OF Gen
Mahone's. He called it to meet in Peters
:, burg. his own home, the last place IN tn
e State to hold convention, convenlen
u alone to Gen. Malone and his allies. N 6
only did he call tie State convention there
p but he compelled, in defiance OF the Ma
tional call, the District conventions to ais
r meet there. Listen to the National cal
breads calD. Why meet in Petersburg
He feared to trust the people at home
: They might use their own brains,
Now let me tell you the outrages tina
compelled me as a man to repudlaCe III
action. | preferred Blaine to Sherman
,and Harrison to either. l opposed tn
l|unit rule l was opposed to the presen
plan of organization, because it took tn
power from the people and placed II
the hands Of one man. AS Republican
had a right to these views. These WEI
the views expressed by Jno, S. Wise. say
as to candid ties. He published letter
Republican to Republicans 'suggestln
changes The State chairman who shoul
s be our servant. played the role OF mastt
: and at once denounced all who though
with Wise, as .kickers." and attempte
TO make them odious in the eyes OF tt
people. Instead of inviting discussion
his matter instead Of directing b
batteries against the common enemy
) instead of the so called Malone organs Ill
inv their columns with ReDubican do