Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1892-10-12
Republican Rally.

The Hon. Y. ID. DOlliver, OF lO"a' anu
Candidate Wisner addressed mixed-Very
mixed-audience at the courthouse We'd
nesday night. The man and brother was
present in considerable numerical strength
and great exuberance of patriotic feeling /;
a few county leaders sat within the bar;
the speakers were hanked on the right by a
select and appreciative gathering of daugh-
ters of Ham; and goodly number of white
Democrats listened attentively, applauded
at the proper places, and enjoyed the whole
thing immensely. Mr.. S. II. Higinbotham
was master of ceremonies Mr.. Dolliver has
commanding presence and good voice and
delivery, and is blessed with an abundant
flow of language, lis eloquent at times and
delights in picturesque word-combinations
and biting sarcasms. He is further quail
fed for Republican campaign work by the
possession of unlimited gall and case
hardened conscience. We were reminded
somewhat of the Arkansas applicant for a
position as public school teacher who said
she was mot much of an arithmeticker but
splendid grammarst." Mr.. Dolliver
probably realized that rhetoric, not 'rith-
metic, was his strong point, and didn't wea-
~ his hearers greatly with statistics. As
serting that fne-spun theories were the
foundation and substance of Democratic
doctrine, and that facts should be the basis
of political opinion and of argument, he
nevertheless ratified on with unblushiug dis
regard of facts and recklessness Of statement
amusing to any fairly well-informed nearer.
He expatiated eloquently upon alleged
prevalent prosperity, ascribing the same in
part to divine providence but largely to Re-
publican legislation. The Force bill issue
was eered at as an expedient to obscure the
real issue-and the speaker hadn't time to
discuss it. His humorous criticisms of the
present Congress, having no foundation in
fact, was highly entertaining to Democrats
as well as Republicans.
There was a merry twinkle in the other
eye of our genial postmaster when he intro
duced the rotund and rubicund Wisner as
"our next representative in Congress" This
being a harmless bit of romance, believed
by no one nor intended to be believed, and
being furthermore the conventional form OF
introduction of a candidate, il is not sup
posed that the rec riding angel made any
addition to the debit side of the postmaster's
account The good-natuved gibes of the
iocular congressional candidate were better
suited to the taste and comprehension of his
dusky partisans than the rhetoric and keen
edged wit of the Iowa campaigner, and re-
peatedly caused uproarious merriment on
the Democratic side of the house. From
that side particularly was great applause
for the man of whom the speaker told, who
had replied to the inquiry if he was going
to vote for him (Wisner) with an emphatic
"NO, sir" And on that side, doubtless
many wondered why another man, whom
Mr.. Wisner had met on the street that day
had sold all his sheep"-the all. beneficial
tariff still remaining on wool, though Mr.
Wilson had voted to remove it,
"What has Mr.. Wilson done in Congress-
asked the speaker, and paused FOR a reply
Nothing" was the response from darkey
who wouldn't know the Congressional Rec.
ord from the book of Genesis, and Candi.
date Wisner went on, satisfied. Senator
Faulkner, he said, had secured United
States court house for Martinsburg, but Mr.
Wilson had obtained none for Charles
Town and no one cared to ask the speak
er if he advocated Senator Faulkner's re-
election, or to remind him that Mr.. Wilson
engineered the Martinsburg court-h house
through the House of Representatives. In
the course of further criticism the false i'm.
preston was giyen-not Intentionally, per.
haps-that Mr.. Wilson opposed the payment
of West Virginia's share of the direct tax
he opposed, as improper, the direct tax
bill, refunding to all the States; not the
payment of West Virginia's portion after
the bill had passed
Mr.. Wisner compimented his opponent:
ability and attanments The effect of hi:
speech was not to remove the impression
that opposition to Hon. w L. Wilson ha;
become a big, expensive joke.