The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1897-12-17
An Open Letter,

GAINESVILLE, FLA, Dec. 10, 1897.
Hon. W. A. Rawls. Chairman Democratic state
Executive Committee, Tallahassee, Fla,
DEAR SIR Ever since the adjourn
ment of the last legislature the pub
lie mind has been so deeply engrossed
with the question as to whether pri-
mary election within the democratic
party will be resorted to as ancillary
to the legislature in its selection of a
United States senator from Florida in
1899. and whether our state executive
committee will lend its effort to the
holding of such primary election, that
| feel emboldened to address you
in relation thereto.
1t is currently reported that you do
not conceive it to be the duty of your
committee, under the provisions of
Chapter 1913, the same being au act OF
the legislature Of 1897, regulating the
holding of political primary elections,
TO order primary for the selection of
a democratic candidate for the United
States senate to be halloted for by his
portisaus in the next legis laiure. The
IL legislative act does not proVid- specif-
icaily that your commits shall diIeci
| the holding of primaries, wh'n con
| slider d IN connection win lhe IT So.
luton ad"p;ei by the jpinI assembly
| # the Florida iegisi ,luIe on Way ID
| 1897, can have bus on meaning >o fai
IS he desire of 'h- p "p = j. inv lived
| Fhe pre-. nl,I4 and resolution adoptt d
| a H. last named date lay the iuinl
5-emily of The Florida legislature
passed that 100 ~, so far as ii appears
from the journal of its proceedings,
without dissenting voice, and read
as follows:
Relieving that the popular nomination OF
United States senator will reflect the vishes
of the people and meet with the approval Of
our legislative assemblies. and believing it
to be the only really satisfactory method
where two or contesting for the
same Office; therefore, be 1t
Resoly ed, That it is the sense Of this Joint
assembly that the democratic executive
committees of this state SHALL at any gen
eral election at which members OF the house
of representatives are to be elected who
shall have a vote in the election OF a United
States senator, provide a separate box III
which, by ballot, the members Of the demo
cratic party voting in such election may
| directly express their choice for United
States senator, and the members OF the leg
islature elected at such election shall be
morally bound to vote in the legislature for
the candidate for United States senator re.
cciving in such box the highest vote.
You VIII observe that the resolution
is very comprehensive in its request
to democratic executive committees
of this state" to provide for the hold
ing of primary elections for the NOM
ination of the candidate for the
United States senate. The several
county executive committees could
with as equal show of propriety con-
tend that they were not within the
scope of said resolution as can the
state executive committee. 1t is
clearly the purpose of the resolution
that each should cooperate with the
other in the holding of such primary
electors.
opine that it will not be contended
that it was not within the purview of
| the democratic members composing
the joint assembly of the Florida leg
islature to formally indicate to their
political organization the method to
be employed in the selection of can
didate for the senate to be balloted for
by them. If your committee elects to
ignore the manifest desire of very
large majority of the voters of tie
democratic party in the state of Flor
ida who favor the holding of pri-
mary election for the nomination of
a candidate for the United States SEN
ate, you can only do so upon the
grounds that the convention that
created you gave no instructions in
the premises. Upon such grounds
you might with faint show of rea-
son refuse to order primary election
for the nomination of state officers in
lieu of calling a convention for that
purpose. But the cases are not analo-
gous. Our state conventions have
never invaded by suggestion the pre-
rOgative of the legislator as to the Sc
lection of United States senator.
The democratic members of the legis-
lature have usually by caucus selected
the party's nominee for the senate.
The democratic organization has al
ways bowed to the will of the caucus
Since, for obvious reasons, the caucus
is no longer necessary, the democratic
organization is more the less bound by
party law to submit itself to the pol
icy indicated in this resolution by the
voice of the democratic members OIL
the legislature.
If the resolution above quoted con.
tanned merely dictus of the source
whence it proceeds, the state execu-
tive Committee would not be absolved
from obeying its mandate. But the
direction therein contained for @
change of procedure is founded in
good policy. 1t gives to the demo
cratic Masses practically direct vote
for senator; 1t enlarges the privileges
of the citizen; it destroys the lobby
at the capitol; it obliterates corpora.
ton dictation, and at once removes
the senator from thraldom Of political
bossism to self respecting obligation
to the masses whose servant he should
be. The selection of a United States
senator by the primary election sys.
tenn would even do more than that. /;
would remove from our legislative
halls an unseemly conflict that dis.
tracts the minds of the legislators
from legitimate business, and not in
frequently proves the source of the
most noxious scandals. The late Call
Chipley contest was the prolific source
of the vilest examinations and recrim.
nations. To avoid a repetition OF
that unseemly conflict was the evil
dent purpose of both factions of the
democratic members of that legisla-
ture when they joined in the adoption
| Of tho oh