The age-herald., 1900-02-19
The Proposed Direct Vote for Governor


 To the Editor of the Age-Herald.
 Will you not inform the writer. and your other uninformed and inquisitive readers,
 what is meant and intended by the "Direct Vote for Governor" which 1t is proposed the Jefferson county democratic executive committee shall. at It's meeting on the 21st
 inst, consider and determine?
 The chairman's call for the meeting is general only and hence gives no informa- tion on the subject, What has so far ap- peared in the public prints has not stated
 what was to be determined by the proposed
 "drect vote.' The writer happened to meet the street just recently a gentle man usually active and informed in politi- cal matters, and the subject of the proposed "direct vote' being mentioned by him, the writer made the inquiry he Is now here makng-what the "direct vote" meant and intended to ascertain and settle? The gen. tleman manifestly not before realizing that he had not actually considered what tho "direct vote' did mean, and really did not know yet, though he did, after essaying, in the best faith, to honestly answer the inquiry, admitted in effect, if not in words, that he really did not know, and had not
 before considered.
 The novelty and special importance of the
 question, Mr. Editor, grow out of the fact that the people of one county may, so far as the public has been informed, be called upon by the proposed "direct vote' if adopted, to deal with, and possibly practi- cally dispose of, the valuable and important | rights and privileges of two of their hon. | ored and esteemed county citizens in the | matter of their aspirations to the same l high office which is especially marked by | the fact that it is to be filed not alone by | their vote. as in case of county officers
 where the nature of the rivalry compels en- l tire acceptance of one and entire rejection of all other candidates by them, but by the entire state before whose general nom- mating convention every aspirant is entitled to go and test his strength by the com
 bined vote of the entire state, without re-
 gard to what his strength over his rivals in his own county might be- In other words this question and its importance arises from the very unusual circumstance of there be- ing two candidates for the same state office from the same county, each of whom en- | joys the confidence and esteem of the citi- | zens of the county and to whom the citi- | zens of the county desire to see accorded | equal and exact justice-entire impartiality l at their hands.
 | Then the question recurs, what does the l proposed "direct vote" mean? Does 1t | mean that the candidate receiving a ma | jority, large or small on a primary vote 1 to be taken throughout the county shall 1 have the entire delegation of the county to | the state convention with all that that ad- vantage implies, thereby, in effect, de- clarng that the other candidate shall not go before the state convention at all, but shall retire from the contest, notwithstand- ing it might be that he had the strongest assurances of nomination before the con-
 vention, if with equal justice done him by his own county he were permitted to go be- fore it with his fair share of his own coun- l ty delegations; or does 1t mean that the re-
 lative strength of the two shall be ascer- 1 tained and each given his fair share of the
 delegates based thereon, whereby neither of our citizens would be driven from his can
 didacy or forced to go before the conven-
 tion, in a sense, repudiated by his own
 county? What, MT. Editor does it mean? 1 Let the people and the executive commit I tee representing them seriously consider l this matter in all its bearings, and in the
 name of the traditional home-pride of our l great democracy, as well as common jus | tice, treat both our citizens alike.
 l This is not written in the interest of eith-
 CT candidate. Neither has the slightest | knowledge of its authorship. The wishes of the candidates themselves on the question
 are unknown to the writer, except so far l as the county press has disclosed them. l This communication is written in the inter 1 est of justice alone without regard to the l interest of any individual. J. B. H. Birmingham, Ala Feb. 1T. 1900.