The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-03-07
JEFFERSON COUNTY HAS TWO
GOVERNING BOARDS At WORK
PARKER AND DRENNEN FORCES
USE THEIR COMBINED EFFORTS


is as follows: e.
Messrs. W. w. Crawford. J. ]. Moore, c. F.
Douthit, Leo K. Steiner and w. S. How
ard, Committee of Arrangements Primary
Election:
Gentlemen: You will doubtless remem-
Der that at the meeting of the city execu-
tive committee on Saturday night last
amendment was offered to section of the
plan which was adopted by the committee,
which, IL adopted, would have allowed each
one of the candidates for mayor to have
named one of the managers of the election
In each ward. Also that an amendment
was offered to section 10, by which, if it
mad been adopted, committee of arrange
ments of three would have been elected.
one to have been named by each of the cam
didates for mayor. Both of these amend
ments were laid upon the table on motion,
as l remember of Mr.. w w. Crawford.
Inc object of these two amendments was
10 place the primary election in this city
Tor mayor above suspicion, and IL they had
been adopted, no one could have complained
that the vote and the count would both
nave been absolutely fair, and everybody
would have been bound by the result of the
primary election,
You will observe further that in the
plan adopted by you, In section it is
stated: In making said selection the COM
mlttee shall as far as practicable arrange a
1a1r division among competing candidates, 80
that adverse interests may be represented"
and further that "the committee shall APP
point as managers, clerks and returning
officers. men of well established reputation
for fairness and integrity in their respect
I've wards, and in section it is said 1.-THE
intent being that no candidate shall be de-
prived of his manager or clerk because the
one originally selected fails to appear at
the opening of the POLLS"
1t appears from these quotations that
the intent was that we should have a fair
nd fofp h.
ecutive committee voted down the amend
ments upon the propositions named herein
fore is not clear to me, If the intent be to
have fair election and a fair count in
the primary in this city. You are the COM
mittee of arrangements, and the details of
this primary necessarily must be left with
you. | write this to you to know whether
or not you, as committee of arrange
ments, will appoint in each ward of this
city manager who is a supporter of each
one of the candidates for mayor-that is to
say, Will you appoint one Smith man. one
bremen man, and one Parker man. to he
named by each candidate, and in case he
shouid not be present at the polls, will you
agree that MS substitute may be named
and by the candidate he represents
90 not intend by this communication to
say that there is any intent to defraud
ANYBODY, but rumors are rife in the CITY,
ana II Is said openly on the streets that
the OBJECT of the adoption of the plan of
primary by the city executive committee
was to manipulate the vote in the interest
Oh one candidate alone, and, in view of this
my own judgment is that outside of the
correct principle of fair election and a
fa1r count in order to satisfy the voters
OF THIS city, 1t is necessary that such a
pan as suggested in this connection should
be adopted.
You will note also that the plan is in
sufhcient and uncertain as to the kind of
NOTICE that should be given as to the cleo
ton, and as to who the managers are.
This, however, is matter of detail that
the candidates themselves can control, be-
cause, If sufficient notice is not given by
| posting, as required in the plan adopted
| they can themselves give sufficient public
| ity to it by publica ton in the papers, or by
| posting notices, as they may desire But
there are two other things that / desire
1 to call your attention to. The first Is, that
| in registering votes. The registrars shall
| keep their offices open from a. m. to 6
p. M. There are many laporing people in
| the city who are not able to get off be-
tween these two hours, and in order to ell
able them to register and vote as they may
desire, it is necessary that some hour shall
| be specified, either before o'clock in the
1 morning or after o'clock in the afternoon,
4 SO that the laboring element in the CRY
| can register and be prepared to vote in -.
| primary election. 1 do not desire that any
| man shall register and vote in the primary
1 election who is not democrat and who
| will not support the nominees of this pri-
mary election, but L do desire and insist
/ that every democrat who will support the
nominees in the primary election be al
4 lowed a chance to register and vote as he
| may desire.
| Second, there is no provision in the plan
4 proposed which allows anybody to chal-
1 lenge any voter at the primaries AS a
| committee of arrangements it seems to
| CHI ndy do
| not desire to have primary in which any
| man Is really entitled to vote shall vote
more than once; nor do We desire to have
man nominated by the votes of any other
| party; and in order to secure strictly
democratic primary, 1t Is necessary that
some provision should be made by which
votes can be challenged. l desire to say
further that rumor has reached me to-
| day to the effect that Mr.. John L. Parker
will be allowed all the representation that
| he may want on the board Of managers
| and clerks in this primary election. l am
| in favor not only of allowing Mr.. Parker
a representation, but am in favor also of
allowing Mr.. Drennen his representation.
If Mr. Parker should be nominated in the
primary election, 1 want that to be conclu-
| sive 1 do not want the friends of any
| candidate, whether it be of Smith or Dren-
men, to have any room to say that MT.
Parker has been unfairly nominated, or
that any votes have been manipulated in
his interest. The principle that l am con-
tending for is, fair election and fair
count in this city on the primary election.
IL my candidate should be beaten on that
principle, I shall be satisfied and will sup
port the nominee, whoever he may be, but
/ do not feel that will be bound to sup
mort a candidate where there Is any faint
of suspicion or fraud. My object Is to place
this primary above suspicion entirely. If
this should result in a defeat Of Mr.. Parker
he is willing to sacrifice himself upon that
altar; and I, as his manager, will feel that
at least one good has been accomplished,
and that is of silencing all suspicious and
all rumors which now exist, and which
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