The times., 1899-10-18
THE NORRIS H0LMEAD CONTEST
statemenf Of the Case as Made to
Chairman Jones.

Statement Of the Case as Made to
Chairman Jones.
A statement containing the facts lead
ing up 10 the split in the District Demo-
cratic Central Committee, over the election
of a national committeeman to succeed The
late Lawre ace Gardner. has been made TO
Chairman Jones end VIII tt laid before the
national committee at its next meeting, in
January. In speaking of the statement to
a Times reporter last night, q member
of the local committee said it was in sub
stance as follows:
There were three meeting of the COM
mittee, October 5, I, and g. At the first
meeting there were present seventeen
members and two proxies, leaving three
vacancies, in the Fifth, Fourteenth, and
Twenty second districts. Proxies present
were Dir. Allen, representing Mr.. Kalbfus,
Of the Tenth district, and Mr.. Yates. repre-
senting Mr.. Doyle. of the Seventeenth dis
| trict. They both presented written proxies.
! These proxies, as a matter of course, and
following the unvaried practice of the com-
mittee for twenty years, were placed upon
the roll. The chair did not submit their
validity TO the meeting. nor did he ar.o-
gate TO himself any authority to accept or
reject the proxies as offered.
1t was an inherent right of the princi-
pal TO give his proxy to whom he pleased
and that right was at this period of the
proceedings recognized as unquestioned and
unquestionable. With the proxies upon the
roll and acting fer their principals the
committee consisted Of nineteen members
The committee SO constituted filed the
three vacancies in the Fifth, Fourteenth,
and Twenty districts.
This completed the full membership of
the committee. Mr. Miller the newly
elected member in the Twenty second dis
trict, gave his proxy Immediately after his
election to Mr. Mattingly. Thereupon the
{ full committee proceeded to the selection Of
a national committeeman. There was no
result when the committee adjourned.
AT the next meeting of the committee
/ held on October Z, a written revocation of
1 MIR. Yates proxy was presented from Mr..
Doyle, the same communication designat-
ing Mr.. Boyle to act as his proxy. A like
revocation was presented from Mr.. Miller
as to the proxy held by Mr. Mattingly
and designating Mr.. James Mcdonald to
act as his proxy.
/ For the first time in the history of the
committee, the chair assumed authority to
! question the right of principal to revoke
/ his proxy, and to substitute another for
the original proxy. He refused to have
| the secretary substitute the names of
Messsrs. Boyle and Mcdonald as proxies
for Proxies Yates and Mattingly in the
teeth OF the written request so TO do by
principals Doyle and Miller
! 1T was pointed out in the arguments
| that followed this decision that the prin-
| cipals possessed inherent right to desig-
nate whomsoever they pleased as their
proxies, and to revoke the same as often
| as they pleased and that the chair had
no right in the premises. The committee s
constitution was cited in support of these
! premises. The chair still held to his de-
| cisicn. and upon an appeal being taken
| from it, directed the secretary to call the
| names of Proxies Yates and Mattingly,
| who thus voted on their own retention,
against all parliamentary precedent, being
judge and juror at the same time. BY the
vote of these proxies in their own cases.
! the decision of the chair was sustained
by one vote. After this parliamentary Jug
glery with the situation, -balloting for ma
tional committeeman at this second meet
ing was again resumed without result and
the committee took a recess until October 9.
AT the third meeting, Principals Doyle
I and Miller presented themselves and Off
| cially notified the chair before the meet
ing began and after it was called to order.
Of their presence. and that they revoked
ali proxies heretofore given, and resumed
their seats respectively from the Seven
teenth and Twenty second districts. The
chair declined to recognize them as mem
bers of the committee, and upon an appeal
1 being taken directed the secretary 10 call
1 the roll OF the proxies and not Of the
( principals in these districts.
1t was az the point when the secretary
called the name of Mr.. Yates instead OF
Mr. Doyle for the Seventeenth district that
the Holmead forces in the same room with
| eleven committeeman voting and one
present but not eofihg, elected Mr Hoi-
mead as national committeeman, twelve
constituting a majority Of the Democratic
/ Central Committee. There was not a sin
gle proxy that took part in the election OF
MIR. Holmead, all being principals. But in
| the meeting that is alleged to have elected
Mr.. Norris three proxies voted in the place
Of principals, two of the principals being
present in the Holmead meeting.
DR. Allen. in the Tenth district, proxy
| for Mr.. Kalbfus, voted in the Norris
! meeting Mr. KaIbfus has not resided a
day in the Tenth district since 1896, voted
| in Maryland at the last election, was in
Cuba for six months prior to the meeting
and is now on his way 10 Manila. Mr.
| Kalbfus gave double proxy, one for the
| first meeting, October s. and another to
take effect at the adjournment of that
| meeting The second proxy was held by
Mr. Sensenney, and even if Mr.. Kalbfus
| had a right to give proxy, Dr.. Allen was
! not the rightfuI possessor of it, but Mr.
Sensenney."
The HoImead people assert that the men
managing Mr. Norris canvass. who claim
! 10 be Democrats, could not vote in Dem
ocratie primary in a single State in the
! Union. nor in the District of Columbia, as
they have been and are outspoken workers
and contributors TO the Republican cause
and against Bryan and silver