The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1902-07-18

matter whenever two or three OF
them are gathered together. What
ever value may be attached to "peace
conferences" and other laudable
efforts for securing Democratic har-
mony, it is admitted by all thought
full men, men who are not politicians
or office-seekers, that the success of
the Democratic party in the State
this year, and next, depends first OF
all upon the character and fitness OF
the nominees and the methods by
which their nominations are made.
Candidates of high character and
of acknowledged fitness have often
been defeated in this State and in
other States by serious OBJECTIONS in
the ranks of the party that named
them. This detection is sometimes
due to the ignoble quarrels of rival
leaders, and the smoking of the pipe
of peace may then be the best and
only way of averting it; but when
the trouble is due to lack of conf
dence in the methods pursued by
party leaders, whether these leaders
get together or not, the people not
infrequently take the matter into
their own hands and express the dis
pleasure at the polls, or by staying
away from the polls.
All good Democrats in this State,
whatever their views on dead or OBJ
solete issues may have been, will hail
with delight every evidence of ap-
preaching party unity and harmony;
and it is likewise the part of wisdom
to encourage and foster the fullest
discussion of the merits ofcandidates
for important offices to be filled in
the near future, that there may be no
mistake as to the wishes ofthose who
hold to the cardinal principles Of the
Democratic party and who sincerely
hope for their continued SUPREMACY i'll
this good old commonwealth.
With this end in view, and with no
other; The Times would call atten-
ton to the candidacy of Hon. Edwin
Warfield for the Office of Governor of
this State next year. MIR. Warfeld
has not established bureau" of
any kind to further his interests, and
and we take it that he does not pro-
pose to do so, either this year or next.
Mr.. War6eld, it is very we'll known,
desires the nomination and he would
be proud of the high honor Of leading
his party in the Gubernatorial con-
test of 1903; but we are quite sure
that such an honor would be robbed
of much of it's value to Mr.. Warfeld,
or, indeed, to any other honorable
candidate for that high office, if the
same should come to him in any other
way than as the free and un trammel-
ed expression of the will of the Demo-
cratic voters in this State.
In politics Mr.. Warheld has been a
consistent Democrat, always true to
his party and its candidates; but the
demand for his nomination for Cover
nor seems now to come from Demo-
Gratis of all factions and shades of
thought. Here, in his old home coun-
ty, the scene of his early political con-
tests of years ago, there cannot be
heard now a single dissenting voice
among Democratic or independent
voters. All recognize his worth, and
all crave an opportunity of express
ing their esteem.-Ellicott City
Times.
TWAS OMLYA SLLPOF THE PEN.
The 4gis has been sorely taken to
task by one of its good friends on &C
count of an article, which appeared
in the last issue, with reference to the
sale of Intoxicating liquors i'll Bel Air.
1t is only common justice to say that
perhaps the local was interpreted in
a different manner from the meaning
it intended to convey. The impress
sion that we wished to give, was
that there are many good people in
this county today who have no hest
tation in saying that they would
rather see the Local Option Law on
our statute books, violated as it is,
than to have the voters give their
sanction to the sale of liquor in a
lawful manner. In other words,
violators may continue to sell with
IMMUNITY, yet the harm done is not
so great as if it was stamped with
the official sanction of law. This is
of course an open question and pre-
sents two sides which it would not
seem wise to discuss at the present
time.
The thorn that seems to sting at
the present time, however, is that
those persons, who were most active
last winter in preventing the voters
from being allowed to express their
opinion on this subject, see very little
of the drunkenness that is almost a
daily occurrence in our midst. Those
ofus who avoided going on the streets
of Bel Air last Sunday for fear of
being run over by drunken negroes
or being greeted with a volley of
oaths, would no doubt have been ex-
ceedingly glad to have any changein
the law that would at least prevent
the dissertation of the Sabbath and
give us an immunity ofone day in the
week.
The condition has assumed such