The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1902-07-09
CLEMENTS REBELLION.

There is no use in wasting time on
long homilies showing up the wicked
ness of Clement in boiling. When it
has been shown that he has no ration
al cause for rebellion, and the mask
has been stripped from the justifying
reasons he sets up, about all the need
ed work in that direction has been
done
Mr.. Clement is not impossible by
any considerations of regularity OF
proceedings in convention i'll which
he lost the prize for which he was
contending He is not moved by any
considerations pertaining to the well
fare of the Republican party of the
State. He is influenced in this can
vass solely by what affects the politi-
cal ambition of Percival w. Clement.
He is now nearer the governorship of
the State than he ever will be again.
1t is his opportunity-such as it is
and he seizes it. He could never be
nominated for Governor in the regular
way nominations are obtained-in a
convention of the delegates of his par
ty. He came nearer to success in
the late convention than he could
again, or again could hope to come
Mr.. Clements success in securing de-
legates was a surprise to him-as it
was to others. This success appears
to have bred in him the assurance
that, before the people, he could win
something better than what he lost in
the convention, to wit, the election
itself to the office of Governor. So
he is encouraged to make bold dash
for the chief executive chair 1t is
the introduction into Vermont of the
revolutionary doings of the latin COM
munities to the south of the United
States and Mexico.
In his candidacy for the nomination
to the office of Governor Mr.. Clement
was acting entirely within bounds,
just as any citizen, entirely within
the rights and privileges or duties of
citizenship by all proper means may
oppose the enactment of law, or
the election of chief magistrate but
when the law is enacted, or the chief
magistrate elected, continued op-
position becomes another thing - it
may be rebellion, as has happened
now and then, here and there, in the
| United States, from the time of Shay :
disturbance to the secession of the
South after Lincoln's election. Peo-
pie take different view of man S
conduct before, and similar conduct
after, a proposition has become a
! thing adjudicated. The matter of Mr.
Clements nomination to the COVER
norship was settled against him in the
late convention. He rebels, and starts
a revolution. If the revolution were
justified by any wrong done or by the
denial of any right to Mr.. Clement,
public sympathy might fight for him.
But the only error of the members of
the convention opposed to Mr.. Clement
| was III lOtttN my W HUI III IOSptOb VI
the hobby on which he was riding
towards the State House. That, how
ever, can hardly Justify rebellion or
be made a cause for war against the
party which treated him with ex-
cessive fairness.
The only argument that will appeal
to this rebels consideration is the
knock down argument. There is nc
use in pricking with the needle OF
moral suasion, or teasing with the
switch Of homiletic discourse, so stiff
necked man as is this rebel. He
has got to be knocked down with the
club of an adverse popular majority,
and to this sort of fight the citi.
zens of Vermont opposed to him must
address their energies from this time
till the second Tuesday in September.