The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-09-14

was decided that mass meetings were no
longer satisfactory. and resolution was
adopted providing for a district primary
FOX the selection Of legislative candi-
dates for the coming session Of the leg
/ isiature The district primary was held
and the result is well remembered. II
reeked with fraud. violence and corrup-
ton. and so disguestel everybody that
two years later. when il was again nee
essary % choose new committee and Sc
leCt candidates for the legislature no
( body even mentioned district primaries
Instead. the committee decided in favor
Of district mass meetings, which /. as
chairman. ordered. The abOruive results
OF the mass meetings are well known.
The resolution under which the then exec
utive committee was elected was so pc
culiarly constructed that after the fail
ure of the mass meetings the terms Of the
members expired, and / was left as the
sole official authority Of the carty. The
failure or the open air mass meetings left
the party ia chaotic state. Ii was then
that the representatives. Of the two fac
lions agreed upon a general court house
primary for the settlement of all issues
then before the party. / considered the
decision Of the two factions as expressed
by their representative, as the decision
Of the party itself. and, as chairman of
the party. / sanctioned the agreement
and ordered the general primary at the
court house.
as desired. The verdict then and since
has been that il was the fairest and most
complete expression of the views of the
party that was ever obtained in the coun-
~. There was nothing however, in the
agreement which could bind the present
executive committee TO follow the same
course. 1t is precedent, but nothing
more. There being no established rule of
the party binding il TO any particular
Ga-1. -rae~-
to me that IN method which gave most
general satisfaction should receive the
most favorable consideration"
Mr. w @. Cam, who was present said:
1.-THE party has tried theater mass meet
ings, district primaries, district mass
meetings and a court house primary OF
the four, the last is the only one which
was beyond all suspicion of unfairness.
and the result of which could not be
questioned. 1t was the method by which
the present executive committee was
elected TO office. All that we ask now is
that we be given the same opportunity
under the same conditions which will
guarantee the same exemption from any
suspicion of unfairness. If we are beaten
this time as we We're then, we will doff
our hats to the winners and accept the
result in the best spirit we can muster"
The fact that in the selection of places
for holding the primary election in the
districts the subcommittee named the Of
fees OF all the justices for the city dis
tricts with the single exception of JUS
tice Reynolds. was frequently commented
on yesterday To a Morning News reporter
Justice Reynolds handed the following
written statement:
Il thank Mr. Collins very kindly for re-
lieving me of the trouble of having an
election in my office. Had i been in the
interest Of his clique he would certainly
have selected me. Although was the only
one of the unlucky thirteen members of
the executive committee present at the
meeting Tuesday night, who was known
10 be friendly to Mr.. Hartridge, the hon
orable chairman Of the executive commit
tee skipped me in the selection of the
committee to confer with the candidates
on the arrangements of the primary. AL
though we hear so much of commissions
to take the police and fire departments
out of politics and honest reform gener-
ally city officials were present at the
meetings Of the executive committee and
voted on these questions"
Evidently the political racket is going
to be lively one no matter what sort of
a primary is held.