The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-12-22

were chosen III this way. and they
would be SO chosen to-day, bat for the
/ intervention o. sectional party cOnVen-
tiOnS which pledge the electors to vote
for men instead Of measures, and. by
this means, whittle down the contest to
| the choice of one IF two partisan lead
erS. The wonderful device to secure
and preserve the autonomy of the
| States by requiring that the people
! should vote separately by States for
! electors, and that then the electors
! should vote in their respective States
! by separate colleges, Is made Of none
effect by pie jging the electors in q
| score of States before hand TO vote for
the same man for President Nominat
| mg conventions, representing often
| small part Of the people, controlled often
| by small class nf the people, name
! the President and then the electoral
! system Is but a machine for registering
| their will rather than that Of the peO
| pie. Does any one wonder at political
| corruption Of cur nation with such
sin Of political prostitution lying at our
! door?
| The assumption that the people will
not trust their electors 10 choose them
| y President. IS UnWarranted. Haven't
| they even trusted for eighty years the
! bosses of our national party cOuven-
! tiOnS to name their President for them
and then ratified their choice?
| Have they not trusted the un-wOrn
representatives of theapoils system and
| partisan mOnop) by ballUtinC undnr the
! cOrrupting influence Of those who dis
| tribute the spoilS and speculate in this
mOnOpOly} Cannot they who have
| trusted those who ballot to gather in
|
and unprotected by a single Safeguard
of virtue, now trust the sworn officers
Of the Constitution chosen by them
selves il q constitutional manner and
sitting in forty TWO separate colleges
surrounded by their own home people
who are most interested that tb"y
should do right and, IN the South, at
least, largely freed from the mora:
miasma of mOnopoliStIc influence?
Adherence 10 the spirit Of the con
stItutiOnal method Of choosing electors
might have saved us from the civil
war OF 1851; tOr electors, untramna:ed
by the CastiTon formulas OF party con
VentIOns, might have prevented the
election Of Abraham Lincoln Not the
electoral system, but the prostitution
of i. was what Macauley f1Ctsaw
would wreck this government.
Now again, it is said, we are threat
ened with g split in The "parCy." \
split means it4 dc-tTJctiOn, "A in $50
for now. as then, II ia essentially cast
iron. Now, a% .hen. monopoly, which
IS victOriOu# anyhow, even when the
party" IS united, wOUld perhaps re
i0ico IN q still greater victory IN its
division. IT there vas an alliHn;, Of
the interests II States instead Of Il
fusion in the red hrC cruclblc Uf -uc
tional party politi $, a ~p,jt Of tha
parry could d0nO great harm, because
yhcru WOui& be room enough for some
diyi-i ~ without bursting.
\ large portion Of the people ara now
seeking financial reform. Let them
have their proper representation III the
electoral college. and all Will be we'll
They are Southern peOpie-agrjcult
raj people most generally -und the
very flower Of Cots creation If the
parry system the national nominate =
cuuven ion or anything else stands in
the way Of this their constitutional
RIGHT, leJ them De changed 10 meet the
ends IF Justice and constitutional GOV
ernmrut. The Constitution was born
in the South and o. she South, aud the
South alone loves it III It's true interpra-
tatiOn If in New York, dominated by
no hoadwav. let h-r electoral college
express her peoples sentiment, buJ
don't let her, through fear OF a Spiir,
control the electors il Georgia or in
l0rth Carolina If Sh" dominates the
interests Of twenty three States because
Of the fear Of 4 "epLit . and nOminates
, Wall street mIl, the east iron formula
Of partVI~m h - been adhered to, bat
at what fearful sacrifice. Il was To
prevent Just such n catastrophe that
the electoral sySt"u was devised. It
was intended from Of OLD thatthp college
systems hould faithfully reflect every
great interest of every great State; not
that Of New York alone, and through
New York Wall street. Through the
prostitution Of the electoral college, by
the national party convention, Wall |
street balances she two sections o! the
country a9a4op saw ;and she stands Be |
tween them, controlling their ups and |
downs \ split n the party! She has |
split the country into two sections and |
keeps it split by means Of undivided |
and indivisable parties
VIII the people vote for electors who !
are not pledged to n particular preel
Dental nominee? YES. They would |
always have done it had their leaders
told them to do it. Now they will do
II If their leaders forbid them.
VIII a Democratic President be
elected? A President will soon be |
elected who is in favor Of free silver, |
tree trade aud free men, because only |
such a President represents majority |
OF this nation
The electoral ticket will be stronger |
IN every Southern and Western State |
because 1t Is free from the taint of Wall |
street domination or endorsement.
Local platforms will be made for the |
electors of the several States to stand |
mDln sLlited % th1ir NarNing needs and |