River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-06-23

stance, tnen lC Is not the people or the
state of Wisconsin that make I'D this
convention; it is the state central COM
mittee. lGreat and continued applause.)
II desire to say further, Mr.. Chairman.
in support of this resolution that the
principle contended for here in the report
of the minority is one that has been
recognized in al deliberatiye bodies, in
all the legislative bodies, from the begin
ming of this government.
I'm the early history of this country
political parties such as exist under pres
ent conditions were absolutely unknown.
They have been matter of slow growth.
They have gradually, by process of
evolution, acquired status that they
never before had, and | think that this
convention should give us fair
hearing upon this question. L can cite
authorities to you that will be almost
conclusive In 1876, when this country
was confronted by condition which re-
quired an extra constitutional tribunal
for the very purpose of determining who
were entitled to be electors under the
constitution, this question arose before
them, and they decided in the first in
stance that they could not go behind the
returns | further call your attention to
the fact, and it will not be disputed upon
the floor of this convention, that when a
member of the assembly coming from his
assembly district with a regular certif-
cate of election presents that at the bar
of the assembly chamber he has a right
to be sworn in, and to participate in all
the proceedings of the assembly, and he
cannot be unseated by any other author
;ty or power than the assembly itself.
This principle for which we contend here
upon the floor of the house is one that is
so we'll established by parliamentary
usage, by the statute and by the course
of dealing in this country in legislative
and deliberative assemblies, that it seems
to me, gentlemen, it ought not to be
questioned at this time or in this place.
1--WE are not coming here asking of
this convention anything of favor. We
are not asking anything that you should
do for us that you ought not to do. We
are making no plea here because we
have been unseated, or have not been
seated. We are standing here today
upon our rights, and against d practice
which will allow popular assemblages to
be actually subyerted by the action of
self-constituted committee. (Applause.)
II desire to say further, Mr.. Chair
man, in support of this motion at this
time, that this convention will be an
swerable to the people Of the state of
Wisconsin if the delegates who have
been certified here under the law, and
who are here at the door OF, this conven-
ton demanding admission, and have
been refused seats upon this hoor-if they
are obliged to go back home and allow
their rights to be settled and determined
by committee which has no jurisdiction
therein.
1.-THE proceeding which it is proposed
to follow here today is absolutely and I'M
deniably revolutionary. If the accred-
tied delegates certified here by the chair
man and secretary of the county commit
tees are denied their rights in this con-
vention, by a committee assuming a
jurisdiction which it does not possess,
II. A.,
convention itself, then, gentlemen, where
is our remedy? What more can we do
than to ask you to settle once for all this
question Of whether or not the state CEN
trail committee, under its assumed power,
has the right either in law, equity or
morals to determine the will of the peo-
pie of the state of Wisconsin by arb-
trarily seating and unseating delegates
and allowing this convention no voice in
the matter.
Now it may be argued, and it proba
bly, will be argued, that this convention
itself will determine that, and that there
fore the report of the minority ought not
to have been made; but call your atten-
ton to the fact that under the proposed
procedure here this question is not to be
determined by the elected delegates certi-
fed here by the people of this state; but
it is to be determined by body consti-
tuted and made up by the state central
committee itself Great applause); and
that the state central committee has the
right, by it's arbitrary action at this time,
or any other time, to make up a body of
men and ask that body assembled here to
pass upon that right. ask you, i'll Gods
name. is that fair, or right, or just?"
Mr.. Bancroft-"As the mover for the
adoption of the majority report l wish
to be heard. The gentleman who repre-
SentS the minority Of the state central
committee is in favor of minority rule.
He demands that minority rule as a
right. l want to say to the gentleman
that he has at last reached a convention
where he will get his rights but nothing
more. This committee has had delegated
to it by these state conventions represent
ing the Republican party in Wisconsin
the power to act as a committee on ere
dentials. There was never a convention
held where any man, no matter what his
credentials, coming from the primaries
has been entitled to a seat in~the conven-
ton until his credentials had been passed
upon by a committee upon credentials
There was never a time in the history OF
the Republican party when the minority
was allowed to rule. There never was a
time in Wisconsin when the majority re-
port of the conventions regularly con-
stituted committee on credentials was
voted down, AND 1T WON'T BE To-
DAY. There is no other committee on
credentials except the State Central
Committee to which the power Of this
: convention has been delegated.
"Gentlemen Of the convention you
would be stultifying your own party,
your own machinery, your own commit
tee,I to vote down the almost unanimous
report; and / say this amendment should
be defeated and the motion to adopt the
majority report of the committee on Gre
dentials should be adopted
Chair-'"The gentleman from the First
district has the floor"
Speech of Mr.. Jeffris.
Mr. Jeffris-"Mr. Chairman and gentle
men of the convention let us lay aside
the intense feeling of strife and ill-will
that has been engendered in the last few
weeks In the Republican party and let us
look at this thing fairly and impartially
and as citizens. The proposition here
before the house is that this convention
shall be made up of duly certified dele
gates from the different counties of the
state. The State Central Committee has
stepped in, or assumed to step in and
say no, we will throw out those counties
that we want to throw out and will let in
those counties we want to let in. They
say it is an almost unanimous report of
the committee There are 16 men who
make that report that belong entirely to
one side and one faction of the ReDub-
lican party. We might as we'll be plain
Gentlemen who are following Mr.. La
Toilette l don't mean it in an offensive
sense, but / ask you to stop and consider
where you are carrying the Republican
party in this convention if you follow out
the threat Of the gentleman from Rich
land who said the majority report al
ways has been adopted and it is going to