Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1892-06-03
FRIDAY MORNING. JUNE 3, 1892

FRIDAY MORNING. JUNE 3, 1892
THE NEW VIRGINIA SENATOR.
Gov. Mckinney on Saturday very salts
factorily ended period of anxiety among
the friends Of several distinguished Virgin
ians, by appointing Hon. Eppa Hunton of
Fauquier, to fill the uneXpired term of the
late U. s. Senator Barbour. 1t was a
choice in which the Governor found him
self beset by a number of conditions. The
geographical location of the appointee was
to be considered; he should come from the
Northern portion of the State from which
his predecessor came. The question of his
successor should not lie forestalled with
the legislature which is to elect that sue
cessor; that is to say no young aspirant in
active political life should be given such a
start of other aspirants as this temporary
appointment would give. Regard should
should be had to appointing a imam who was
not unknown to the masses Of the people.
And finally the appointee should be
suitable to the duties of the position,
and one whose services to his State merlted
such recognition. The Governor has hap
PLY met all these conditions. Gen. Hun
ton comes from Mr.. BarbOur'S own Con-
gressional district, indeed MI. Barbour
was his successor us its representative. He
is a man well advanced in years, just enter
ing his SEVENTEEN year. and is not likely to
be a candidate for the next term. He is
familiar with the Legislation now before
congress and can ably take up MI. Bar
bour's work where it was dropped. He has
many of Mr.. Barbour's qualifications for
that work, for while, like him, not brilliant
man, he is one of great ability and will
bring great conscientiousness to the dis
charge of the duty. In debate he will not
be found lacking, as the recollection OF his
tilt with Mr.. Blaine in the House On
one occasion gives us full assurance. There
were many distinguished names mentioned
for the place, some of them of men Of great
personal popularity, but we question 1t the
Governor has not made the wisest choice of
them all as far as gratifying the mass of
the people of the State is concerned and in
strict justice to all interested in the ap-
pointment. He is to be congratulated, and
should there be an extra session of the leg
isIature we trust that body will unanimous
ly testify their approval by electing Gen.
Hunton to fill the remainder of MI. Bar
bour's term, which does not end till March
1895.
Gen. Hunton is not unknown to the Viz
ginia people either in military OF political
life-as soldier OF law maker. He was a
member Of that memorable body, the Vir-
ginia Secession Convention, and when his
State went out, entered the field as Colonel
of the Sth Virginia regiment. He was a
good soldier and at the battle of Gettysburg
where he was wounded, was promoted to
the command of the brigade of the gallant
Garnett who fell there. He was elected to
Congress in 1873, and was appointed on the
which settled the Tilden-Hayes contest.
He was succeeded in Congress by MI. Bar
bour and now, eleven years later, succeeds
Mr.. Barbour in the Senate.
Gen. Hunton's appointment will give
pleasure to every '.old soldier" in Virginia.
for he was the type of soldier that they all
liked. He was never absent from his COM
mand, never had Cuisines" in Richmond,
never applied for promotion, and when it
came had won it by hard fighting. 1t will
give pleasure too to the great conservative
class Of Eirginians, who want a safe man
well tried and well approved in public life
as this brave old Virginian has been.
TEACHING THEMSELVES 4 LESSON
There is always class of people in poll
tics who like the night blooming cereus
are very ornamental when they do bloom,
but bloom seldom. They rarely attend a
primary meeting of their party, and not
recognizing that this absence properly
places upon themselves all the responsible
ty for what occurs at it, are loudest in
denouncing the ward politicians and those
who hold commission under them. A few
weeks ago this class received wholesome
lesson in Staunton, the most striking fea-
ture Of the lesson being that they admins
tered it to themselves. They turned out
Ell masse and went to the PRIMARIES. II
was great night for the boomers of the
rare, night blooming variety. They tum;
bled the ward politicians over right and
left, and the next day were expressing theil
establishment at how easy the thing was to
do. There was nothing astonishing about
it, for when the people choose to turn out
very much larger game than the ward poll
ticians has to fall. We suppose they will
hardly credit the statement, but the ward
politicians they complain about are the
work of their own hands. They are not half
as dangerous OF as powerful as they are
painted, and, as a matter of fact, in nine
cases out of ten have taken control OF the
party machine simply from the force OF
circumstances. They are men interested
in politics, who like to a.tel lo.iti( al
meetings, and going to them and finding a
machine without anybody to run it, have
simply taken charge OF it themselves, and
run it to suit themselves. How else are
they to run it; the men who are not salts
fed with their methods stay at home and
never go to the meetings-how then are the
machine runners to know what the stay at
homes want, Oh what will suit them ? The
truth is the machine managers would often
give good deal if they did know what the
other sort do want, and what candidates Oh
methods would most likely catch their
votes. But the stay -at-homes are queer
sort and do not make known what they
want until the work is done, and then they
make it known only in querulous complaints
of what it is too late to remedy.
We should be glad to feel certain that
the recent discovery OF the stay-at-homes