Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1901-03-13

Dane ana IhaL CURSE thS SHN~e go
the nominating conventions that Is
responsible for all the ills to which
our city governments have fallen heir.
This bill erascuIates those two
elements from your city politics and
at the same time it gives to you who
desire not to follow the party precept
or the party doctrine in your vote ON
municipal elections the right TO FOLLOW
the dictates of an independent con.
science outside of party lines, and 20
nut up your candidates in mass con-
yentions or city conventions, as you
see fit. and vote for them as you see
fit. A meeting is held by the citizens
of a municipality. There may be cry
ing evils IN the government They
may all be presented at that meeting
a candidate may be agreed to and all
swear to support him. He can be
put ON the ticket as an Independent
nomina lion, and he car be advertised
from one end to the other of the
municipality, and everybody who has
attended that meeting or that conyen-
ton which is called may vote for him
and advocate his election. II is not
SO, that politics are injected into
municipalities by reason Of this bill.
Bad politics are emasculated from
them by reason of it, and that OF IT.
self is almost reason sufficient to pass
IT,
Reply to Some Objections to Stevens
Bill.
Now, we have heard from two very
eloquent gentlemen this afternoon
and two before this afte noon about
the wickedness and RIGHTEOUSNESS Of
this bill because under it men are re-
duired to seek the Office and the Office
does not seek the man The last
gentleman who spoke upon this sub
5ect is one Of our ablest lawyers In
this state. and has the power to al
most make people believe as he does,
He has been engaged in the business
Of arguing very hard cases before
tribunals that went on the merits and
were strong against him. He has
been very ingenious and very power
full in eliciting from courts and Juries
decisions In his own favor. There is
no more versatile man In the state.
and when he comes before you AMI
presents to you the two arguments
which he did against this bill, it Is
the very best conclusion that he can
reach. There can be not very much
against it, He says. first, as told
you, that under it the officer mus.
seek the people and not the people the
officer. Let US see. Under your
caucus and convention system, 30 Is
true, it is not: That men are not
forced upon tickets? That nobody
drags them out from the quiet OF their
own homesides and places them up
before the public as the candidate for
an Office? You have not heard OF an
instance Of that kind in this state
since you went into politics. know
1t was said on the floor of this as
sembly that ca one occasion that was
done. but that statement is not borne
out by the facts. That statement was
made in reference to the convention
Of 1882. | will call no names, but you
and all Of Us who were here in 1892
know the fact that from one end TO
the other of this state there was one
canddate before that convention.
The people had talked about him and
the people were for him The day. OF
that convention came and somebody
said to that man, you get of of this
ticket and let somebody else get on
It, and he got. and the man that
was nominated was defeated at the
polis. In just two years from that
time the man that was told to gen off
was candidate again. and by a oln-
raltty Of over 50. 000 votes swept this
state There was nothing spoatane-
GUS. there was nothing free and open
ABOUT the proceedings Of that con
vention, and would point to that con
vention itself as the one before all
others that calls for the abolition of
the abominable system that made that
possible. In every convention the
man who gets the nomination ia a
candidate for the Office His friends
90 out into the caucuses. They go
out into the conventions. They go
over the state and work up sentiment
in his behalf You never knew OF r.
case where it was not so. A caadj.
GATE has always sought the office In
tnis state.--at all events in so far
10 say that he was a candid ne. Aad
II Is no detraction from a man & Lonor
IL Is no scar upon his manhood to be a
candidate for an Office. Il ia A God
given right. 1t is a privilege which
belongs to him, and he does not de
grade himself IN his own mind or in
the mind OF anybody else by the mere
Iact that he is a candidate for Office
Inc gentleman who addressed Won
upon that subject this afternoon. al
though he knew the fact very well
dld not tell it TO you.-for the high
ana exalted Office of Judge of the s..
preme court OF this state. for vears
PACK, no man has gone upon that
pehch without having circulated from
one end to the other OF this state a
petition asking for signers naming
nm as a candidate for the office
Fass the Stevens bill. and no candi
cate for q state Office or any other
once within your gift will he required
to beiittle his manhood any more thar
every one Of the men who nh those
responsible positions on your su
pEeme bench and who are the fua
afDlter9 Of every question NJ law thai
Is presented in this stata, have done
ana are required to do. The Who'll,
ali