The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1889-10-31
Virginia Will Protect Herself.

We publish elsewhere Il double-leaded
article from the Washington
Press of the 23d inst. We do so to show
how many false premises can be com
pressed into short statement, affecting
the contest and conditions now prevail
ing in Virginia.
In the first place, Malone is not a Re
publican. He is ''Mahone. Virginia.
and nothing else. He simply masquer-
AIDES as a Republican for what he can
make out of the party. Were he sincere
in his profession of Republicanism, he
would make the party and its success
paramount to self. and subordinate his
hates, his personal schemes and his inso-
lent tyranny to the good of the party.
Instead of this he makes Malone su-
preme. His plan of organization, under
which all power is vested in him, is au
tocratic. and he uses it as an autocrat.
He seeks to strike down every Republi-
can who dares to differ with him even
in non essential matters, and through his
self perpetuating organization denies
and defies the popular will, makes all
Republicans slaves to his behests, or en-
emies who must be crushed He has
not a thought for the interests of the
party in State or Nation, except to effect
his selfish aims.
Not being Republican himself were
he elected Governor of Virginia. his adj
mnistration would be a personal rule
a NJ ahone administration, with the pow
er he would have, or that he would usurp,
directed to gratifying his personal hates,
executing his selfish plots and persecut-
ing everybody and everything that was
not submissive to his command.
"Mahones election" would not be the
triumph of the Republican party" 1t
would he the greatest calamity that
could befall the Republicans of Vir-
ginia and the Nation 1t would fortify
in position the most dangerous man of
the day, and give him prestige and
power to introduce his methods and his
despotism and corrupt agencies into
national politics. This would be the en-
tering wedge to the disruption of the
party and its final overthrow. A man
who could concoct and secretly circulate
to his confidential friends the infamous
secret circular which he printed and sent
to his county chairmen in 1888, traduc-
/ ing the character and assailing the in
/ tegrity of James Ct. Blaine and seeking
! to pack a solid delegation to the Ma
! tional Convention from Virginia, which
( he could use as a unit to strike Mr..
/ Blaine at critical moment, if it should
occur, is capable of doing anything that
! is insidious and treacherous to accom-
plish his personal ends. In this, he had
no thought of the Republican party or
it's success. His whole mind and pur-
pose were self-Mahone or ruin, and to
further his designs he entered into this
conspiracy to assassinate the greatest
Republican of the age.
His defeat at Chicago was the natural
and logical result of the situation then
existing He had defed and condemned
the National Committee and the highest
law of the party, and when he pre-
sented his case before the convention,
the question was whether Malone,
! Virginia. was the National Republican
party, its law and it's power. or whether
the Republicans of the country, through
authorized delegates and constituted
committees, were the lawful representa-
tives of it, 1t did not require any intel
lectual refining or party devotion to
determine that. 1t disposed of itself
Mahone's pretenses were rejected, and
he had to either eliminate himself from
the party, or obey the highest power of
the party. If ne could then and there
have disrupted the party, to his own adj
vanta &c, he would willingly have done
SO. He would have rejoiced in universal
ruin, if only Malone would be safe.
What he did was compulsory. His power
for mischief, however. was illustrated
even in that canvass. 1t was through
his abuse of power and perversion of
means that defeated Republican candi-
dates in the 4tl and 10th districts, and
gave the electoral vote of Virginia to
all that it was in his power to do to
! bring disaster upon the party, and had
I the election of Harrison and Morton de-
/. pended upon the electoral vote of Vir-
ginia, the Republican party would have
been defeated, although We would have
had Il majority of the popular vote i'll
the State. had his corrupt methods and
selfish purposes not prevailed in his own
district
We know that the result of the cleo
ton in Virginia will be felt in 1892 This
is one of the reasons why we oppose
NJ lhone. We know that if he should be
elected, he will aspire to a larger field OF
operation, and would inject his methods
into the national campaign. His plot is
to carry to the next national convention
a solid delegation from the South, and
with it to control the nomination for
1892. That is his game, and his guber-
, material aspiration is a part of it. He
would aspire to bring the National Con-
vention under his control, or to wreck
the party. He would not scruple to do
the one, if he could not effect the other.
The Press has a mistaken view of the
conditions which exist in Virginia and
the effect of the election for Governor.
The success of Malone would not only
as we believe, be a calamity to the
State, but to the Republican party here
and in the Nation. No party can main
tain public confidence, or deserve to
succeed, which is not based upon sound
principles and administered in the inter
ests of the people. For Malone to have
the power that the chief executive office
of the State would give, it would result
in universal popular execration at the
end of four years. He has never held
power that he has not abused it, and
has never held authority in political
parties or in anything else that he has
not wrecked the interests committed to
his care. His whole history is but a rep
etition of disasters to enterprises and
organizations with which he has been
connected, and of benefit to himself
only. He would SO revolt the popular
consciousness, were he Governor, that
the Republican party would be repu-
dated for all time TO come ia the State