Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-12-12


able with holding seats in the State
Legislature.
If the position and argument Of the
Republican bosses in these cases were
tenable there would be no need for
Captain Getzendanner and Lieutenant
PiersOn to resign their commits
sions in the army until their regiments
were regularly mustered out of service,
for they could easily get furlough
covering the legislative session of for
| ty-five days and rejoin their regiments
| at the adjournment.
i The truth is-and the Charleston
schemers and every lawyer in the State
know it-that they no longer hold their
legislative seats. BY the plain and in
disputable language of the Consti-
| tuition, quoted in these columns several
times, they vacated those seats the
instant they accepted commissions IN
| the army, the same as if they had died.
Their seats have been duly filled by
the choice of the people of their re-
spective districts at the recent election
and according to all right, justice and
law those duly chosen successors must
be permitted to take their seats
If there is any man in the State who
has honest doubts on this point we re-
fer him to the opinion on these cases
of Judge John Brannon, one of the
Oldest and ablest jurists in the State,
which is published elsewhere this
morning.
Judge Brannon discusses the law on
the subject and the Constitution and
quotes numerous presidents to sustain
his point, which is that not only have
Messrs Pierson and Getzendanner va
Gated the seats they held in the Legis-
lature by entering the service of the
United States, but that the election of
their successors at the recent election,
which the Republican bosses and their
organ have been declaring was not
legal, WAS LEGAL IN EVERY WAY
AND THAT BY ALL LAW AND JUS
TICE AND RIGHT THESE SUCCESS
SORS ARE ENTITLED TO THEIR
SEATS.
AS we have said Judge Brannon is
one of the most eminent and learned
jurists on the bench and while his
opinion of course, does not make law,
it will satisfy fair-minded men who
might have been misled by false state
ments on the other side to believe that
possibly the Constitution was capable
of different Interpretation from that
which is plain on the face of the simple
and direct language it uses.
There is no need to argue this ques-
ton farther There is no room for an
honest doubt on the subject in the
mind of any intelligent man and the
political bosses who are maintaining
otherwise are not doing so for any
honest purpose.
Messrs. Pierson and Getzendanner
are not entitled to seats in the coming
Legislature and any attempt to seat
them or to keep out of their seats
their duly and legally elected success
sors will be in defiance of law and an
act of revolution.
The Democracy demand nothing but
what is theirs by right, law and JUS
tice, and they WILL NOT BE PUT
OFF WITH ANYTHING LESS EX-
CEPT BY REVOLUTIONARY
FORCE.
The political bosses and charlatans
at Charleston are dealing in this mat
ter with full grown men who have
thorough understanding of their legal
rights and will maintain them in the
face Of all opposition and they will
not be the less determined in so do
ing because they realize they have the
people behind them.