The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1896-07-04

in arousing That degree of enthusi-
asm for the ticket which is so neces
sary for party success.
In this campaign every element OF
weakness should be eliminated. A
clean ticket should be nominated,
which in itself will not only inspire
confidence, but make every Demo
crat in the state feel that at least
there is a new deal, and that new
men have been brought to the sur
face, and thereby arouse his enthu-
siastic support for every candidate.
This cannot be done if General
Watts is OF the head of the ticket.
We want to be fair to him, and
give him due credit for everything
he has done for the party. But he
is conspicuous example of the Of
fee holding element that has done
so much to chill the ardor and
dampen the enthusiasm of party
workers. General Watts is not an
extraordinary man nor possessed of
extraordinary ability. There is
probably not a single county in the
state which has not one or more
Democratic workers who will rank
as his peer in fitness and capacity,
and in view of the fact that he has
been continually in office for nearly
twenty years by grace of the Demo
cratic party, the question is being
seriously asked, why should he
again supplant the laudable ambi-
tion of every other Democrat while
holding on to the best office in the
State at the hands of the National
administration?
But this is not the worst feature
of his candidacy. In that official
service and in obtaining all these
various offices, he has aroused an
tagonisms of various kinds. He has
made enemies of rivals and still 9th
er enemies in the execution of the
duties of his positions which weak
en- him as a candidate before the
people; and Notwithstanding the
claim of his friends that by reason
of some supposed service to labor or
CARNATIONS, he is strong in some
quarters, it may well be doubted
whether he is nearly as strong
throughout the whole State as any
other candidate who may be named
The really strong candidate is the
man who can get the democratic
vote. If he cannot do this, he is
weak, for the promises of outside
support invariably fail on the day of
the election. If Gen. Watts has by
demagogic pleas or actions done
something by which he hopes to win
the support of the miners in the Ka-
nawha Valley, it may be depended
upon that in doing that thing, he has
made enemies of equally potential
forces which will neutralize and de-
stroy all advantage he might other
wise obtain from it.
Again, General Watts comes from
kanawha county, and is a product
of that peculiar brand of politi-
clans in that county which
has dominated the Democratic par
ty for personal ACKNOWLEDGMENT
for many years. 1t has, with
out regard to fairness or the
demands of any other section,
not only filled the capitol at Charles
ton with Kanawha county office hold
ers, but has crowded them into al
most every institution of the State,
until 1t is notorious fact that near
ly thirds of the State positions
in West Virginia are held by Kama
whans or their immediate friends |
and henchmen. Every public insti-
tuition is managed and controlled by
them, and yet so powerless has this
been to aid the party in
their hands, that Kanawha county
has become the Republican Gibral-
'er of the State. The singular fea-
lure of this is, that while we are con-
SANITY hearing of the wonderful or
atorical and campaigning abilities of
'hese Kanawha Democrats, and the
air is now full of stories of the great
md magnetic qualities of General
Watts as an organizer, orator and
to lead the party in the
State to certain and absolute victory,
Aanawha county, where all those
Qualities have had full and unre-
strained sway, continues to grow
more and more Republican every
year. 1t is for this reason that we
ire inclined to accept with many
and good deal Of ques-
ion the alleged remarkable aggre.
ration Of talents which is all at once
discovered in General Watts He
las been in public office, as hereto
ore stated, for nearly twenty years,
md yet where have these qualities
IS an orator and organizer been man
tested in any campaign? We have
10 recollection OF having heard that
70 swsyed with his eloquence the
'eople of Wheeling, Parkersburg,
iartinsburg, Morgantown or any