Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1902-10-08


Office shall submit his candidacy TO vote
| of the people.
Opposition Platform Inconsistencies.
Surely platform consisting almost en-
tirely of bitter personal attack Of cam
didata on the ground of alleged abuse OK
| power made possible by the caucus and
/ convention system of nominating candi-
| dates. which would be impossible under
! a primary election, should pledge itself
10 a primary election law that VIII cor
rect these abuses, remedy these evils, and
| forever protect the people OK TIE state
! from absolute despotism.
This is the consistent course pursued
I by the Democratic party Of Michigan In
/ it's last platform:
| Declaring that: 1.-THE present state adj
| ministratiOn secured place and power two
| years ago only by gross corruption ana
! the manipulation Of caucuses ana nOml-
| mating conventions, and again this year
| similar methods have been employ al to
! secure its continuance In power
! They logically conclude Therefore,
| such a reform Of the primary nominal
! ing system, that the people shall be the
/ suDreme and final arbiters OF nomination
| to Office, is imperative To this end we
are in favor Of legislation by which pri-
/ mary elections Of all parties for the direct
nomination Of candidates shall be held at
the same time and places under the super
| vision Of public officials and regulated by
| law"
| But the Milwaukee convention declar-
| ing that all manner of evil has been per-
! petrated by this administration through
! caucus and convention manipulation lauds
! this ready instrument for great wrong as
! about the only remaining constitutional
| bulwark Of liberty. What has happened
| to the Democratic party since 1893.
| Then when 1t had not been so disturbed
! ~ rs-tfpaauing Enph HcOnfrGl Of
! cuses and conventions" as shocked the re-
| fined sansibilities of the late Milwaukee
| convention, the Wisconsin Democracy of
| 1898 condemned the whole system. IL
| had not yet come under the influences
which were so strongly manifest in the
! recent convention.
Radical Change in Democratic Convention
Sentiment.
In 1898 the Democratic party "of his
| tory in this state" making no such sweep
| ing charges against the evils of the eau
| Gus and convention system took this
| ground, simply as a good Democratic
! principle, and wrote this in their plat
! form:
Owe are in favor Of a primary election
! law to replace the present method of
nominating candidates to office, to the end
! that all nominations shall be made by d.
! rect vote of the people"
Note how the agency Of the public
| service corporation has transformed this
sentiment to suit it's purpose. This year
| the Milwaukee convention says:
I'VE are opposed to any and all meas
| ures the tendency OF which is to deprive
| the people of their constitutional right to
| assemble together either in their own
| proper persons or by representatives
| chosen by themselves for the nomination
| Of all candidates for office; and we de-
nounce the Stevens primary election
| bill as un-Amcrican and un-Democratic
| in principle and dangerously and vicious
| ~ paternalistic. II enacted into law, it
| would destroy the elementary principles
! Of Republican institutions by subordinat-
| ing the viii of the majority TO tLat of u
small plurality, which would dish IN
| chise the minority in large number of
| the counties in this state, and give cities
| and municipalities great power in the
| selection of candidates for Office
| No suggestion of any remedy for the
alleged evils, no suggestion of even the
| necessity Of a remedy for them. On the
| contrary, any effort TO change the meth
! DDS of making nominations is opposed
as an assault upon the constitutional
! right to assemble together.
| To suggest that u primary election law
| would be limitation OF the constitution
/ al right to assemble, Is to raise the same
| objection to all caucus laws; aye, even
| to the law regulating general elections
| and prescribing the Australian election
| ballot, for one is as much the infringe
! ment of this right as the other. Provid-
| ing for general elections to he held in
! a prescribed manner makes Il unlawful
! to hold them in any other manner, and,
| according to the declaration of the Mil
| waukee platform is TO deprive the peo-
! pie of their constitutional right to assem-
! BILE together for the purpose of holding
! an election some other way. This is a
| fair sample Of the soundness. not to say
! tiou' and other reckless utterances
against nominations by direct vote of
the people
| 1t has sometimes been argued against
| the primary election principle that it was
| not provided for in the constitution. The
| constitution nowhere recognized parties
! or provides the details OF elections any
| mere than for nominations. The fact
that the people have through usage taken
! the desgnedly delegated power of elect
! ing the President into their own hands;
the fact that in the last session Of Com
! greSs there was a unanimous vote i'll the
! House of Representatives for electing
| United States senators by direct vote of
! the people together with the widespread
popular feeling on that subject, shows
! the evolution of our government more
| and more in the direction of entrusting
| government directly with the people. 1t
! shows the desire, the nonpaltisan desire
! of the people TO be accorded the right Of
| directly choosing their public servants,
without being obliged to delegate that
! right of choice to anybody, we'll knowing
! that IL they are given that right that
| those servants will be more directly re-
| sponsible to them,
Purpose of Caucus and Convention Per
verified,
There Is nothing sacred about the eau
| Gus and convention system. 1t original
ed in the demand of the people TO have a
| voice in naming candidates. 1t has been
| diverted from It's original purpose of al
| lowing the voter "A voice, TO the suppress
ing OF his voice. 1t should be replaced
by a primary election which will fulfill
its original intent.
The opposition platform objects 10 pri.
mary election law on the ground that II
would subordinate tn will Of the mRiori-
| ty 10 that of s'rdll plurality.
This assumes thar under primary
election law there would be the same diff
I hculty in getti"' meS out to vote that
there now is under the caucus and con
vention plan. and that there would be q
great increase in the number of caudi.
dates Both assumptions are unfouuded
viewed in the light Of reason and ex'
pcrieuce.
The Test of Experience.
The Minneapolis Journal speaking OF
the very recent primary election, says
The great advance marked by the pri
mary election system is the intense in
terest IL ar0usas among voters"
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