Omaha daily bee., 1889-10-20
The p1srRIor JupaEsHiP.
Fred Nye Presents an Argument in
Favor Of MIR. Davis.

|
is fitted for tho place in the two essentials,
character and ability. Whether MIR. Clark.
son was personally recrcant in permitting
his name to be used in tho bar convention
aftor assuring Mr. Davis of his support is
not material; it is admitted that Mr.. Clark
| son had every moral right TO be candidate
in that convention, and that he was honor
ably chosen. The heart of the matter is in
| these questions:
1. What was the bar meetingl
9. How was Mr.. Davis nominatedi
3. Was Mr.. Davis inconsistent in accepting
the nomination.
4. How is Mr.. Clarkson before the peoplel
8. Shall the selection of the judiciary be
popular or pro fessionali
First The meeting of the bar was called
by petition of number of lawyers with
theavow ed purpose OF recommending can
didate for Judge of this district. The time
was set IN advan ce OF the convention of
| either party. The meeting was attended by
| something over two hundred lawyers, all
but one residents of this city. That one
| was from Sarpy county; the other cou mites
| in the district, Burt and Washington, were
| without representation. AT the me citing
| MIR. Clarkson received n few more votes
| than Mr. Davis who was his chief CON-
petitor.
Second. Mr.. Davis was nominated by re-
| publican convention in which every county
| in the district was represented. 1n that con-
| vcntion Douglas county had majority, six
ty-nino delegates. OF those sixty mine, on the
| informal ballot Mr.. Davis had fifty, major
| ity of the convention Washington and Burt
| cast one ballot for Mir. Jesse Davis, and then
| without further contest withdrew his name
| and voted for the candidate of Douglas
| county. Sarpy county voted once for Mr.
| Clarkson, and then came to Mr.. II. j. Davis
| and his nomination was made unanimous
The integrity of the nomination of Mr.
ar, DAVIS by the convention ,lI,hor Of his
| and that nomination was not only
| honestly made-it was made with earnest
ness enthusiasm and the completest possible
| harmony. The Douglas county members of
that convention were those selected by the
| county convention to represent Douglas
| county in the state convention held previous
| to the judicial convention They were, there
fore, not the creatures of any class, profess
sion or clique. They came direct from the
| people to speak the sentiment of the people.
| Third. The sole objection 10 the cand-
| dacy of Mr.. Davis is in the assertion that,
| having participated in the bar meeting, and
having there been defeated by Mr.. Clarkson,
| he was In honor bound to consider himself
ineligible to nomination. Now, either that
| bar meeting was practically nominating
| convention, or it was asimple meeting of
lawyers to suggest candidate to the party
| conventions. If it were the former, it was
an assumption of power scarcely
parallel in the history of politics; if it
| were the latter, no member was bound by its
| edct to temporary political disfranchisement.
| | have not seen a lawyer bold enough to
| claim that the bar meeting was held with the
| purpose of wrestling the Judiciary of this dis
| trict from the hands Of the people, and yet
| every lawyer who opposes Mr.. Davis as
sumes that the verdict of that meeting was
final. The issue is plain enough-it is be-
| tween the people and the faction of lawyers
| who nominated Mr.. Clarkson.
/ On the fOrpnnAn Of tine Of the rapnh-
| lican convention it became apparent that
that convention would not under any circum-
stances nominate Mr.. Clarkson. Tho
| reasons for this need not be detailed 1t is
enough to say that they were reasons for
| which Mr.. Davis was not responsible, and
which he could not under any circumstances
have changed. The convention was against
| Mr.. Clarkson. He could net have secured
able contingency. 1t became then aquestion
of the best thing to be done for the
| people, the bench and the party, for no
matter how much it may be claimed that
the judiciary Is out of politics, SO long as
| party conventions shall nominate candidates
for Judge, parties will be strengthened by
| good nominations and weakened by bad
| ones. The overthrow of MIR. Clarkson, and
the substitution of q weak man would have
| been disastrous in every way, but it was
found that every republican delegate who
was opposed to Mr.. Clarkson would be glad
| to support Mr.. Davis. II was then plain
choice between nominating Mr. Davis, a man
whose reputation could not be assailed,
whose ability had been demon
whose peculiar fitness for a nigh
judicial position had been repeatedly proven,
whose popularity was self-evident, and who
had been one of the most prominent candi
dates at the meeting of tho Omaha bar; it
| was a choice between him and a man un-
tried, or one who unfortunately had been
| tried too much. The suggestion of the bar
regarding Mr.. Garrison had already been
rcpudated, but it was possible TO select a
| cand idate in consonance with the much
trumpeted motive of the bar, candidate in
every way fitted to fill and dignity and orna-
ment the place That candidate was nomi-
mated by acclamation. He was not the
candidate of himself; he was the candidate
of the people-of the party working for the
people. So chosen, what tie of faith could
bind him TO the verdict of a convention of
lawJ ers called ostenslbly to recommends
| With the reputation of the candidate of that
convention by the body to whom the recon-
| mendatlon had been referred, it would seem
as though all responsibility of Mr.. Davis to
| Mr.. Clarkson came to an end. The action
| of the bar had been discussed and settled-an
irrevocable decision had been rendered.
| Fourth Clarkson is before the people as
the repudiated suggestion of faction of the
| district bar to the party conventions. The
| democratic convention which endorsed him
was participated in by but fifty.three dele
| gates out of an apportionment of eighty
| eight who had been selected, not by the peo-
| pie, but by committee interested primarily
In forcing Clarkson upon the people. Out of
that convention, chosen by clique of law
yers, thirty four voted to endorse Clarkson
and eighteen against. Clarkson is therefore
the exponent OF q suggestion of lawyers
meeting, ignored by republican convention,
and only partially recognized by small ma
iority of democratic convention packed IN
his interest.
Fifth. The lawyers of the United States
necessarily occupy the bench. In congress-
they compose two thirds. The president Is a
| lawyer, and his predecessor was lawyer.
There are three branches of the government
judicial, legislative and executive, and the
lawyers monopolize the first and dominate
the second and the third. That, in a
free country, with prejudice against
class control, is good deal. When
we say to young man desiring to enter
politics that there is practically one door for
him and that admission to the bar, we sur
render more to the legal profession than any
other combination of men would dare to ask.
And now the Douglas county contingent Of
the bar of this district propose that the final
step be taken, and that the power of choice
J be wrested from the people and given TO
; themselves The primary, the conven-
tion of the people, must be re-
buked and 80 destroyed, The people
must be taught that when a self-constituted
convention of lawyers gather together aud