Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1904-06-03
Friday, June 3, 1904.
PLAYING POLITICS.


would make interestlnf if not funny
reading. The SPECTATOR chose to
comment last week on a few items OF
interest touching the recent manlpu
lation of affairs and the remarkable
personnel of the manipulators. 1t was
found upon enquiry that many Of
those who took hold of Democratic
affairs then, and who have become so
touched, almost melted to tears, at the
plight of the party, have heretofore
felt the same deep interest in, and
sympathy for it, but their feelings
manifested themselves in O. different
way on former occasions. They saved
the party twice, but the way they saw
ed it then was to vote or work, direct
ly or indirectly, for the Republican
party. Now they are going to save II
again, but this time by debating who
shall he its candidates, who shall go to
its conventions, and who is fit to form
it's membership. A supporter of Bryan
and the Chicago platform according
to their test is ''unclean," he is leper
and cannot come near the walls Of the
holy city. If one does not support
their candidate, and We mean by their
candidate, Alton B. Parker of New
York, then he is for Hearst, which
translated into the language of their
tribe means Populist, Anarchist, and
other dangerous personages. If one
dares to inquire by what right certain
gentlemen undertake to place Mr.. Par
ker before the public as the only suit
able person to nominate at st. Louis,
then he has committed treason. The
SPECTATOR has committed treason
because it has dared to make some
1nquirses, among others TO enquire
who placed before the public the tick
ct which was chosen to represent
Staunton at the Richmond convention
next Thursday, and for so asking has
been told that it Is dlsorganizer, land
possibly behind it's back has been call
ed by many harsher and less compli-
mentary names.
But the SPECTATOR has been desil GUS
to know by what right little cOterie or
clique of gentlemen acted, when they
selected as the MOST REPRESENTATIVE
AND MOST SUITABLE MEN of StauntOn
those who compose the tickets elected
to the approaching convention Did
the people of StauntOn ask them to do
it for them, or was it done by some
divine right, and if sO-and it be not
reasonable to ask the question-were
their peculiar fitness for the position,
or on account of their deep and abid-
ing interest in Democratic affairs, or
on account of their efforts for Demo
cratic success, or on account of their
determination to go to the convention
and do all in their power for the good
OF the party, or on account of their
ability to advance the Democratic
cause, or on account of their unswerv-
ing loyalty to the party in the past
Who will arise and declare that they
were, who will assert that these motives
actuated or those qualifications sug-
gested their names as the best or most
suitable among the Thousand and more
voters of Stanton AS a matter of
fact were they not selected-that Is,
did not the self-constituted guardians
and preservers of the Democratic par
ty who made up the tickets-place the
names of many of these gentlemen
there because they knew they would
not attend the conYention2 We're not
the tickets so arranged that inasmuch
as the delegates could select their own
alternates, gentlemen would have an
opportunity to go with proxies in their
pockets to that convention whose SEN
timents the community had not con-
sidered, and possibly who could not
have been elected had their names been
placed on the tickets instead of those
whose names were so placed there
The community believes that this is
the fact, and the results we feel GER
tain will in few days demontrate the
correctness of their belief, and the re
allty of the scheme which seems to
have been intended, and which many
believe was intended to cut off consis-
tent and loyal Democrats of Staunton
from any proper voice in the State con-
Vention ana cram down their Threats
ticket selected for them largely by
men who have been dislOyal to the
National Democratic party for the last
eight years.
We have closely scanned the tick cts
and we do not believe we find all
names on them that have not directly
or indirectly "knifed' the National
Democratic party in one if not in both
of the last elections. We find only
few names on the tickets of men who
ever do more than barely express
themselves on either State or National
affairs ; we find on them very few men
who have any acquaintance with the
politicians of the State, or who could
WELD any save the slightest influence
in State convention. So patent is
this fact that the thought at once
suggests itself that the tickets were
never selected with any purpose of the |
majority of the delegates going to the |
convention, but with the purpose that |
other gentlemen, possibly some rather |
foxy gentlemen, who could not them
selves have been chosen as delegates
or who possibly afraid to appear In the
open, might obtain proxies and attend,
and thus work out their political
schemes in roundabout but effective
way. When the public has learned