Asheville daily citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1890-1900, 1893-04-25
THE MEETING TO RATIFY
BIG CROWD And PLENTY OF
ENTHU9HASN1.
Adurcsses Made To De"Ocrass
An Ehe Court House ny Judge
M errHmOm, m a. Gudxer, Nh
Leach amd Others.

R1err1nOm, m a. Gudxer. , Nh
Leach amd Others.
The court house was full last evening |
of sho uting Democrats. who had gath |
cred to ratify the choice made in the Pri- !
mary last Saturday |
There were several prominent speakers. |
whose remarks were punctuated with |
cheering from the enthusiastic gat athering. |
The meeting was more than halt
hour late in getting started-but it made |
up lost time when it did get down to
work. Thos. A. Jones, acting chairman OF
the executive committee. called the meet
ing to order. d. M. Luther nominated I.
R.Ransom chairman. Someone must have
misunderstood the question. for when
ayes aud noes were called on he chair
manship one solitary no was heard. The
GRO vd laughed and Mr. Ransom took
his seat. In doing he said the people
had come out in the interest of Democ-
racy. He had nothing personal to say
against the opposition, but the Demo
cratic party organization must re pre-
to let the RsnubIicans sliD in and gain
control of the city.
j. H DHerrllnOsn Speaks.
About this time Jas. H. Merrimon, the
spe aker of the evening, caL1c in through
| a rear door. When the crowd got sight
of him it almost yelled itself hoarse. He
| was called to the stand and began his
speech. the delivery of which
| com plished in a shorter time than was
| expected by his followers. Mr. Merri-
mon said:
''The political situation presents two
questions of vital interest to every Dem
| ocrat: First, Has the Democratic party
of the city ofAsheville become corrupt
| and rotten that there is not left in il
it sufficient number from which to
choose an hone~t mayor and board of
@ S.sodd aeTs tn.re Gms voice pipfd en
| number left, have their voices been 50
| stif1ed as to make it i'm possible to raise
| them for the benefit of the people? II
| these be true it is the duty of the Demo
Icratic party to dissolve. There is n
| third question that resolves itself: il
ocratic party. where Will YOU find them
lTA voice, 'in heaven-"l 1t YOU carno.
surely cannot find them in the set that is
Iconstantly going around picking up the
crumbs. We must draw from the Dem
ocrats. the Republicans or that crowd
| W hich does not deserve to belong to
.IThere was as much sense in all that
shouting at the cStizcns mass meeting
last week there would be in mar
standing outside his burning home
sho uting and waving his hat. while his
family burned within the building. There
arc men in this independent movement
for whom 1 have the highest regard. one
of hom is w. W. Jones: A few cheers
They did not reflect. They are sorry o
it now and 1 believe some of them will
come off the ticket before election day
| 1 told Jones 1 wouldn't vote for him if h.
was the last man which the SUI
shone. l was astonished to see his nam,
splendid organization of the Democratic
party not only IN Asheville, but in Bun
combe county and North Carolina re
mem Der a ratihcatIOn here long age
when Democrats were so disgusted will
the scenes that they hoped thew nigh
be damned forever if they took part i,
l a mo orO
| ticAet and you will see meeting her
that will make every Democrat swear h
Caught again
"But can we not find honest me
in the Democratic party :? We car
There is not a man on the Democrat
| ticket that is not an houest man and car
able, too. L have nothing persons
against any man on the other ticke
but am here to appeal to Democracy
Study well before you vote the othe
OF Democrats go off from their part,
The question for Democrats is, Are yo
We ennnot yead ont ot IN the n's paptv 81
men who go off to the other side, bl
every man who does so will be marke
as Democrat who cannot be relic
upon. 1 ask for no office-am only he
to advocate the principles of Democrac
which are the principles of honesty
They say the Offices of the city a
not political Offices. Why is not Il
Office OF mavOr not much polite
san, and am not ashamed to say it,
am Democrat and am not asham med
| say so. The man who is afraid to s;
so is not fit to be a Democrat. Let
make a partisan race, and make it he
Let the Democrats stand shoulder
shoulder, and die in the last ditch befo
we surrender. Do it with 6rmness a
honesty toward the other side, but
49, | them understand that we are not afra
OF anything they do or say of us.
HI ~. GsudRer.
H. A. Gudger, candidate for Alderman
the First ward, was called next, and w
y. loudly appIauded when he went to
stand. He said that when he thre W hi
self into the fight for the public scho
his friends told him he was digging
political grave. They told him the sa
thing when he stood up for the o-hc
system, and also when he advocated
| paving of the streets of the city.
the predictions had not come true
either instance. When he said in
mass meeting several nights ago that
could accept nomination that did 1
come through the regular Democracy,
did not intend to hurt the feelings of 6
one. He was not a candidate. had
been a candidate. but if the people elec
him he would qualify and serve to
best of his ability Nothing but the
L6s equivocal demand caused him to M
the sacrifice
y M. Leach
]. M Leach ofWaynesville was mott