The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-01-07
WhitsOn Makes Speech.

WAASoVA 4A&AS5 0pGSSus MT. Whitson was recognized to speak upon the report of the subcommittee. This report. he said. as he understood 1t. undertook to recommend plan not only for the nomination of all State officials but of all judicial and Congressional of ficers. The Committee, he said, had never before undertaken to prescribe in which way Congressmen and circuit judges should be selected. The proposi- ton was not only new but an import ant departure. The question for the com- mittee to decide was, What is the best plan for a general primary?'
 The counties of Jefferson, Jackson Montgomery and Pike, he said, had al- ready ordered primaries in the spring at much earlier date than was named in the report of the committee. If the re- port of the committee naming a date in August was sustained the practical re- suit would be, he said, that there would be three primaries in many of the coun- ties of the State, one for the nomination of county officers, one for the nomination of State officers and beat meetings for the selection Of delegates who would in turn select delegates to the National Democratic Convention As a result of this condition. Mir. whitson said, there would be hundreds and hundreds of Dem ocraB who, for want of interest in the August primaries, would not go to the polls.
 Less than one-half of the Democrats of Alabama will express their choice at the polls if the primaries are held in August" declared Mir. whitson. Tt does seem to me that in a spring primary can- didates would have time to develop theIr strength and have the agony over with"
 Carter in Hurry.
 MT. Carter of Clarke suggested that the committee immediately proceed to the adoption of the report.
 Mir. Stanford of Pike said that he had an amendment to Section 20 of the re. port. This section provided that the can didates should file written declaration of his intention to enter a contest ten | days before the primary. This time was, in the opinion of Mfr. Sanford, entirely too short and he proposed to change it to twenty days. The amendment was adopted later on in the meeting. MT. Nathan. one of the leading advo- cates of convention, spoke against the report. 'It seems ta be conceded he said ''that the committee is going to order a primary. I do not care to worry the com mittee with reiterations of my well known views on the question of selecting judges of the Suprere Court in a primary, Isc- l fore this discussion is over shall offe. an amendment substituting a convention plan for the primary. plan proposed by the committee"
 He declared that the committee had no ! right to place upon the candidates for | judges the extremely heavy burden of a costly campaign in the primary. He asked | if it would net be to the best interest of the party to select the Democratic can didates for places on the Supreme Court | in the time-h 1nored way.
 At the conclusion of his remarks Mir. Nathan moved that the committee recess for an hour and the motion prevailed. After the Recess. The committee reconvened after the recess at 4:20 o'clock.
 Mir Sanford of Pike said that there were two amendments to the report of the subcommittee, which might be made by unanimous consent. The first amend ment, said Mir. Stamford, provided for the nomination of a supernumerary judge, with the other State and judicial officials. The subcommittee, he said, had omitted to mention the supernumer- ary judge among the officers to be se- lected. His amendment only added the supernumerary judge to the list,
 It was unanimously agreed to. He proposed an amendment to Section 20. whereby candidates would have to file written notice of their intention to