The Opelousas courier. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1852-1910, 1896-01-25
That District Convention.

The District Convention which was
called by the chairmen of the parisl
committees of st. Landry and Acadia
met at Crowley last Saturday. The
proclamation Ofthese gentlmen declared
that 1t was called "fOr the purpose OF
nominating the candidates of the Dem
ocratlc party for tie offices of District
Judge, District Attorney and two Sen
ators, and for the further purpose OF
determining the mode of selecting a
new Democratic Executive Committee
for said district but when that august
body met it did nothing of the kind. II
Just quietly sat down upon the men who
called 1T together, contemptuously dis
regarded their positive instructions, and
imagining that it had actually laid
violent hands upon the party mach.
merry, deliberately proceeded to attempt
to disband the party in the face of the
enemy-declaring that it, claiming tn
be the duly accredited agent of the
Democratic party, would make no NOM
| nations at all /. What farce!
The pretext given for this singular
action was that the State Convention
had not made the right kind of plat
form-that it had inserted therein two
planks which were distasteful to these
self-constituted arbters of he destinies
of the party. This is manifestly Il mere
subterfnge; for the two accom,n odating
chaIrmen who without the shadow of au
thorlty called them together could
doubtless easily have been persuaded to
call State Convention, which, constitu-
ted as was this District Convention, y
would undoubtedly have framed a plat
loTm 10 meet their requirements.
But, badinage d part, we want to tell
"a N tfGFY II
coming very weary of their antics
From the time when, on that Sabbath
morning nearly two months ago, the
Parish Committee inaugurated the cam
palgn 10y cooly repudiating the solemn
pledges made at Dufio's lake and
slfamelessly attempting to take every
unfair advantage conceivable of their
brother Democrats. up to this very mo-
ment, their plan of action has consisted
OF Il series OF ambushes and ambus-
cades-mlnes sprung acre and surprises
concocted there--and all aimed, not at
the enemies of the Democratic party, but
at its most steadfast adherents. This
very week committee representing
them has been dlckerlng at Washing
ton with the Populist leaders concern
ing the parceling out of the parish and
district offices, the political offices in
eluded mum Der of the mem bers of the
Democratic Parish Committee-five,
we are misunderstanding members of
that dickerlng committee. It is an
open secret, or rather no secret at all,
that these gentlemen, who have been
honored with positions of trust 10y
the Democratic party, are i'll constant
conference with tie Republican lead
ers here, and that ali three OF these
Populists, the Republicans
and men wearing the Democratic lv-
ery-are stralnlng every nerve to regis
ter and drag to the polls the negroes,
who Will not only vote against the sHf-
frage amendment but against the nom
inees of the Shreveport Convention.
Ut course. this menu is TOO much for the
stomachs of the true Democrats who
have heretofore affiliated with them,
and their ranks are constantly dwin-
ding away. By the time that April
rolls around, unless they mend their
ways, scarcely Il corporai's guard will
surround them.
But before they do any further mis-
chief they should be stripped of the !iv-
cry Of the party. Not a single act of
theirs has been dictated by IA de-
sire TO further Or promote it's in-
terests, and they have forfeited
every claim they may have had
to wear its cnlors. The District Com
mittee, at its meeting held at RayHe
last Monday, took this view of the stu
alton, called upon ths State Central
Committee to intervene, and pending
action by that supreme tribunal of the
party, it postponed the district primary
which it had called fer Feb. 1st until
further notice.
The most bitter humiliation that can
hafa III a sniniar "a n ht. tuur,Ja aS l,y |,
superiors Oh the field of battle. It this
should be the awful fate OF these uu-
faithful servants of the parry, they will
have nobody but themselves and their
80 wicked partners and INSCRIPTIONS
to blame.