The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1896-06-18
NO CHOICE
Given the Few Voters as to What Men
They Wanted For Silver
Delegates.

Delegates.
Editor News Democrat; The most re
liable information as to the result of last
Saturdays primaries shows a great lack
Of interest therein by Democrats. Mr.
Weiss, to whom the returns are SENT ex
hibited his sheet Of the returns on Tues
day, showing that in Alliance, Canton
Massillon and several other points, all the
most important in the county, 277 votes
had been polled. Any one can judge by
this what the expression amounts to.
But there are other points to consider.
Heretofore, delegates to state convention
have never been chosen by primary cleo.
tion. 1t is in truth great folly to at.
tempt 1t. A mass or delegate con.
vention has always been the plan. Things
can here be talked over, views exchanged,
an understanding be reached, and repre-
sentative men selected who can and will
attend the state convention at their own
expense and honestly and faithfully rep.
resent the Democracy of the county. No
proxies should ever be allowed and this Is
the order in the Australian ballot law,
and most excellent feature.
Any one Watching the voting, as the
writer hereof did last Saturday in The
second ward Of Canton, could see the
sense Of choosing delegates in this way.
On the one side, called the silver side,
were list of thirty names, delegates and
alternates, closely printed, not spaced out
as the law requires, so that other names
could be written in by the voter. On the
other half Of the same side were no
names printed, and this was called the
gold side. The gold voter to express him
self, would have had to write in thirty
names. He, however, had full freedom,
while the silver voter, so-called, had not,
no space being given to him.
The deceptive feature in the arrange.
meat which shows the triokery in the
whole farce was the silver head lines !:
"ror the free and unlimited coinage Of
both golu and silver" No ratio is here
expressed no 16 to stated, and voted
for The gold standard men are all for
silver. Oh, yes but not on the legal ratio
of l6 to /. The vital point in the silver
cause was therefore entirely omitted on
this ticket Was it omitted on purpose9
We're the honest Democrats who voted
last Saturday deceievd and tricked againY
Can we no longer have honesty in our
Democratic management
Now, personally, let us say, we have no
objection to the gentlemen voted for as
delegates last Saturday. Indeed, five Of
those on the list were selected at the mass
convention on the 9th. 1t is not likely
they were consulted or knew of their
names being thus used, and the same
may be true of Others. A primary election
to nominate ticket to be supported at
the ensuing election is quite a different
affair from choosing thirty delegates to
a state convention.
On the ticket for last Saturday was an
order to select members of the central
committee. Our condemnation Of their
high-handed doings in the past caused
change in this respect, it seems. This is
something Of an acknowledgment at
least. 1t is to be hoped we shall soon
return to proper ways, and labor unitedly
for the good cause. We must absolutely
purge the Democratic party of the devious
and crooked ways of John Sherman and
the Repr blican party, especially as to the
British financial schemes. In the Ian
guage Of the old National song:
"Let independence be our boast,
Ever mindful what it cost"
A. McGregor.