Middletown transcript., 1896-12-05
THE CONVENTION.

THE CONVENTION.
+ After forty-four years of waiting The
people Of Delaware have again seer
assembled the delegates for another
Constitutional Convention to revise
the Constitution Of '31 under which w
have lived for 65 years. Unfortunately
there are differences among the dele
gates already as there were in 1867
when some OF the strongest men with.
drew and defeated the ratification Of
the constitution when it was submit.
ted to the people. Already threats are
made that the work of this Convention
shall not be ratified by the people. This
is all because Of the election muddle in
Kent county where both the Demo
Gratis and the Union Republicans
claim the election Of their candidates.
Such condition Of affairs is deplorable
at any time but ten fold more so now
since it effects the membership and the
work of SO important body as the
Cor stitutional Convention and since
the political feeling is wrought to so
high pitch. The matter of the Kent
election is In the Courts and it may be
there for weeks and months. By maa-
damus and other legal proceedings first
one and then the other of the political
parties may have the advantage and
yet without definite decision. The Con-
stitutional Convention should act and
being the judge of the election and
qualification Of its members it possibly
did the best thing in compromising the
Kent matter, admitting five Of each
party into the Convention. Without
being upon the ground and yet viewing
the matter dispassionately this looks
like wise conclusion. To have ad-
mitted either delegation to the exclu-
sion of the other would have been to
offend past reconciliation about half
of the people of Kent county where the
delegates meet day after day, and have
invited the utmost opposition to the
work OF the Convention. OF course it
is true that all of one party were elec-
ted or they were defeated, but there is
little of justice in this world among
men-real, true, even justice-and un-
der the existing conditions we believe
the delegates from New Castle and
Sussex counties, of whose election there
is no dorbt, did the best thing in the
compromise. 1t is true the Democrats
get the offices but what are they when
compared with the relief which the peo-
pie hope to receive through the adoption
of a new and modern constitution.
In some respects it would be well if
all persons could see alike, for instance
in the membership and the work of the
Convention, but we cannot. The
"Smyrna Times" usually very con-
servative politically except in its oppo-
sition to what it calls "Higginsism,"
comments upon the work Of the Con-
vention as follows:
Monday night until two or three
O'Clock the next morning was spent in
caucuses by the respective parties, the
final determination of which was to
seat FIVE of the elected Republicans of
Kent, giving the other five seats to the
contesting Democrats. W. Corbit Spru-
ance, E. G. Bradford and Charles F.
Richards of the Higgins Republicans
were the leading spirits in thus hand
ing the control of the convention, in
advance of the decision of the Court
over to the Democrats. The Conven-
tioh thus made up, organized with
John Biggs as president. This arrange
ment it is said, was determined on in
Wilmington. two weeks ago-before
the mandamus case was entered upon.
In response to statement Of J. B. |
Cooper that it was no use to hold an
election if such action was valid, Mr.. |
6pruance replied that it was not neces-
sary for the Convention to Ike the ten |
members from Kent from either set of |
candidates, but could 60 clear outside |
for them. The ten Republican men,
bers-the five seated and five rejected
have agreed to stand together, that is,
they are all members or they are not
members: they had not hing to do with
the conspiracy. 1t starts under a
cloud.'