Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-12-05
LAWMAKERS ARE HERE
Sixty Per Cent Of the Legislators
Are on the Ground
WARM TIMES IN THE LObB|ES
The Candidates and Those Who Elect
Are Having 1t Out.
WITH SENATOR'S AND DELEGATES

pendents Into Caucus.

From all over Virginia her lawmakers
are coming to the Capitol-from the
mountains, from the seashore, from the
Southwest, from Piedmont, from the Val
ley, from the Southside.
The members of the General Assembly
have been coming in for several days in
ones and twos. Saturday night there
were not a dozen in the city. Probably
a half dozen came in Sunday. On every
train yesterday they came in dozens. BY
10 o'clock last night there were probably
seventy-five Senators and Delegates in
the city.
There were few Of them outside of the
hotel Hobbies. and it is safe &c say that
there was not a member of either branch
in the city an hour before he was in the
crush at Murphy's. buttonholng and be-
ing buttonholed. For the candidates were
there. They had been there for several
days on the lookout for material upon
which to work The material was here
yesterday. and they worked-all day long
and until midnight.
The contest in which there is most in
terest being taken is that for the office OF
| Clerk Of the House. The five candidates
have their headquarters at Murphy s. and
they and their friends worked yesterday
as men work when they want something
worth having and which they are deter
mined to secure.
There was considerable interest mani
I f..,s "a gf
and in the several fights for position in
the respective organizations Of the two
houses. but the clerkship contest over
Swallowed all the rest.
WILL THEY BE ADMITTED?
Its strongest competitor for public in
terest was the contest which the friends
Of Mr. Stands, The Independent senator
from the Thirty-second District, and
! those of Mr. Stickley, the Independen.
4 member OF me House from ,henanuoau,
are making TO have these two members
| admitted 10 the Democratic caucus. These
! will be the hottest fights incident
TO the opening of the session. They VIII
! be decided at the caucus meetings to-
night
The hardest fight will be put up by Mr..
! Stands. 1t is being conducted by Hon.
| J. -. Parker. OF Southampton, q MEM
|
many members Of the Senate favor seat
| ing Mr.. Stands one Of the Oldest mem
| beers of that body. in point OF length Of
/ service stated last night, that While ne
| had always been, and is to-day, an
earnest believer in party Organization OF
/ the strctest character, he believed Mr..
! Stands and Mr.. Stickley should be adj
/ mtted.
THE people who helped nominate and
/ elect Senator Lupton whose regularity
| nobody questions. helped nominate and
elect Mr.. Stickley," he said. THE people
! who nominated and elected Mr.. Mus
grave. the regular Democratic Dele
gate from Southampton, helped nominate
and elect Mr. Stands. Therefore, l
| say let us proceed with the utmost
caution. / am almost prepared TO
| say, Let's seat both. l will say this, II
we lacked only two votes of having a
Democratic majority without these two
| votes. we would seat them without Il
moments hesitation.
PLEA OF MR.. PARKER.
Hon j. c. Parker is here conducting
Mr.. Shands's night. I'VE are not making
this fight for any other purpose than in
pursuance Of a desire TO have justice
done TO Mr. Shands," said Mr. Parker
last night. "He is d lifelong Democrat,
| and the majority Of the Democratic
voters Of the Thirty-second Senatorial
District who elected him TO the Senate
think that justice TO both demands that
he be admitted ~ the Democratic caucus
Of the Legislature. Stands is In no sense
a bolter." Mr. Parker, continuing, re-
viewed the interesting fight in his dis
trict, gave many figures 10 show that
Mr. Stands received a large majority or
the Democratic votes in the district, and
added: I'VE take the position that even
II the state Committee had authority for
its action. Stands appealed from that
decision 10 the highest known authority
I'm the party-the Democratic voters-and
upon the result, counting everything pos
sible against Stands and everything pos
sibe in favor of BOyhn, Stands still re-
ceiyed 4 clear majority of AT least 500
of the Democratic voters Of the district,
who thus oyerruled the State Committee,
and the caucus should respect the Demo-
cratic voters when they have spoken.
Many Democrats who supported and
voted for Boykin are now IN favor of adj
hitting Stands to the caucus"
In support of this last statement, Mr..
Parker exhibited letter written to
Judge J. B. Prince by Dr. Thomas II.
Barnes. who argues that Mr. Stands
should be admitted. DR.. Barnes says the
State Committee could not have been
expected TO decide otherwise than as
they did, as Mr.. Stands did not present
his side of the case; but" he adds, II
insist that the action of the committee
did not make Stands an independent
have argued that his candidacy was en-
Titled 10 the same claim Of regularity
as Boykin's. Notwithstanding the decision
of the Central Committee and that the
action OF the committee, based. as IL was,
on ex parte testimony, should not in any
sense be regarded as tnalty or as de-
termining the question of Shands's party
fealty.
1t is understood that there will be
held some time to-day a conference OF
the Senators and Delegates from the
counties in the Second Congressional Dis
trict, at which the position they are 10
take as regards the admission of Mr..
Stands will be discussed. IL was stated
that this meeting would not be a caucus,
In that nobody is 10 be bound by its ac-
ton
MIR. STICKLEY'S FIGHT.
Mr.. Josiah Stickley. the Independent
elected to the House from Shenandoah.
IS working hard 10 get into the caucus.
He has here with him 10 help him Judge
T. ID. Newman. of Woodstock; l.. L.
Groves, OF Edinburg, and DR.. W. ID.
sydnor, OF Strasburg. Here 10 keep him
out Is Hon. j. NJ Ba1serman. member