The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-06-18
GOV, MONTAGUE
o.. PARTY HARMONY (: y
His Friends Glad He Will Speak
in New York.
CON GREssIoNAL CONTESTS MI
Political Guessers Call Glass and Law
less Winners-As to Taking the Al
Iegiance oath-Member of Leg
islature to Resign-Notes.

The friends Of Governor Montagu ex-
pect him to add new laurels to his crown
by the speech he will make at the "har,,
mony'. dinner to be given by the Samuel
J. Tilden Club in New York City to-mor-
row night. They feel complimented that
his Excellency should have been selected
to speak on so important a matter as the
reuniting of the party in 1904. and with
so distinguished an array OF national
party leaders Ex-President Cleveland Is
down for the principal address, and he is
to be followed by ex-senator David B.
Hill, Senator Joseph w. Bailey and Gov
ernor Montague. Colonel Bryan was IN
yited to be present and speak, but 1t is
not known that he accepted the invita-
ton Governor Montague carries the
principles of his party close to his heart.
and as an after-dinner speaker he VIII
show up well in any presence. The Gov
evrnor went up to Charlottesville to at
tend the university finals yesterday aft
ernoon, and will proceed from there to
New York tonight.
Congressman Lamb and Mr.. Jefferson
Wallace will meet in joint debate at Har-
rison Courthouse to-day. While the con-
test between them is interesting, yet like
that in the Fourth District between
Messrs, Lassiter and Southall, it is not
.
a. very hot one.
There are two forces in the State, how
ever, that are not la1king in warmth.
They are in the SecoSl and Sixth Dis
tricts, and are very a1irited. Politicians
are saying that Messrs. Glass and Law
less will win, and they are both stoutly
aking this claim. Messrs. Lawless and
Maynard are both hard at work in the
Second, and it is said that Mr.. Bland
will have a good following.
Over in the Sixth District Mr. Glass
seems to be the unquestionable, favorlte
Secretary of the Commonwealth D. =.
Esgleston has returned from his home
in Charlotte He says Mr.. Glass will
undoubtedly carry his county by fine
majority. The race between Messrs.
Glass and Clayton is getting spirited, II
not bitter, and feeling Is expected to run
high in the meeting at Houston next
Monday. when the two candidates Will
appear again in joint debate, Mr.. Glass
will have the closing speech. and his
friends say he will fairly spread himself.
Halifax is said to be overwhelmingly for
Mr. Glass, and prominent Democrats
from over there say he will have as
much as a thousand majority over Mr.
Claytor in the primary. Both these can
didates are hard at work. and Messrs.
I,yle. Rowman and Berkeley seem. to be
conducting something Of q still hunt Inc
primary will take place on August ord.
Some confusion seems to have arisen
over the oath provision of the new CON
stit1tion, and a number of officers
throughout the State are already swear
ing allegiance to the new instrument
when they are not required to do so.
Fer the information of all, section
"a of the revised instrument. relating 70
the matter Of taking the oath. is printed.
It is in full as follows:
..Section a. Members of the General
Asst mbly and all officers, executive and
judicial. elected or appointed a1teI, TINS
Constitution goes into effect, shall, pc
fore they enter on the performance Of
tlleir public duties severally take and
subscribe the following oath or atfirma-
ten:
Isl do solemnly swear Cor affirm that
I will support the Constitution OF the
United States, and the Constitution OF
the State of Virginia, ordained by the
convention, which assembled in the city
of Richmond = on the twelfth day of
June, nineteen hundred and one, and
that 1 will faithfully and impartially
discharge and perform all the duties in
cunlbent on me as 4--------. ACCORDING
to the best of my ability; so help me
Gct.'"
It. will be seen that all On1cerS OF the
government elected or appointed, after
the new Constitution goes into effect,
shat! take the above oath before en-
tering upon their respective official du-
ties The schedule provides that mem
hers of the General Assembly, judges
Of courts of record and executive Off
GERS. stationed at the. seat of govern
ne1lt shall, between tho 10th and goth
of July, 1902, take the said oath, and their
failure so to do shall vacate their re-
spective offices. But this provision as
to the oath of allegiance does not app
ply to any officers of the government save
those specifically mentioned in the sched-
ule ana recited above In other words, all
other officers now required to take the
oath of office, serve out their present
terms without again subscribing the oath,
and are only required to take it when
they assume new terms, either by cleo
ticn or appointment. This matter is
one of great interest to all officeholders
throughout the State.
A member of the Legislature from the
Eighth District has issued a letter tc
his colleagues asking their views as tc
the authority of the Constitutional Con-
s.ttution to proclaim the new instru-
ment. and incidentally suggests that there
might be some objections on the part
of members to take the oath according
to the provisions of the schedule.
The writer, though Democrat, is said
to have been an anti-Constitution man