The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-08-21
BRIBE OF $1,OOO IS
 OFFERED COMMITTEEMAN
 FOR VOTE ON TREASURER

| vote if you so desire."
 The resignation was accepted and Mir. Gilmer left the Committee. The Committee decided that the vacancy | should not be filled until the business before 1t had been transacted.
 Judge Chilton's Argument.
 Judge John M. Chiffon. having been invited by Chairman Arlington to come
 forward, said that he had in his hand
 q petition from the other candidates
 asking that a primary be held. The
 petition. he said. was signed by
 George c. Clisby. W. W. Brame, T. W. Mitchell and I. D. Collier. What
 ever action the Committee took in the
 matter before 1t, Judge Chiffon said,
 should depend upon, the proper con-
 struction of the primary law. The l plain inference from the primary law, i was that the people should fill the va- | cancy. No other inference was possi- ble. He doubted that the Committee
 had the right to fill the vacancy. But if, under the State law, the Committee did have the right, it should leave the
 matter to the people. All sovereign power came from the people. Power came upwards from the people and not downwards to the people.
 He cited the action of the recent National Democratic Convention which passed a special resolution authorizing the National Committee to fill a va cancy on the ticket should one occur by reason of death. This showed, he argued, that the Committee did not have that power until it was express ly conferred upon 1t by the convention. He contended that no express powor had been conferred upon the County Committee and that 1t would be exv ceeding its authority if 1t selected a nominee. Such an act. he said, would cause lamentable schism In the par ty. He pointed to the action of the Pike County Committee in naming a nominee, an action which resulted in independents taking the field and in great popular dissatisfaction, Motion of MT. Anderson. Charles P. Anderson moved that the Committee order a primary. Charles B. Teasley seconded the mo- tion. In doing so, he said he con- cured heartily in the view that a primary should be held.
 Tn doing this,' said Mfr. Teasley, who spoke earnestly and almost brok- enly. T am going counter to the
 wishes of the best personal friends ever had, and a man I supported last spring. By this act I probably for felt his friendship. I regret this, but my conscience will permit no other course. I have been threatened with the evil that my act will bring upon me. am not a candidate for any off, fee, but if should decide to be a can- didate would prefer to go before the people with the record of having done the right thing than to go before them with the record of having done a wrong thing. although 1t redounded to my good. -e
 NO mmember of this committee," Mr. Teasley went on. has more right to nominate for office. than the humbiest Democrat in MontSe emery County. 1 Where could they get that right? What harm, what danger can there be in al- lowing the people to nominate? Let
 us stand or fall with the people. T want to say. too. that member of this committee told me that he had been offered a thousand dollars for his vote on this question of filling the va cancy by the committee or by a vote by the committee. I am authorized to make his name public, if any one cares to hear it."
 Mir. Teasely paused and looked around. Stiffness prevailed. No one asked the name and 1t was not made public.
 In conclusion Mir. Teasely said the petitions that had been handed to the
 committee meant nothing. They con- tained names. but a large per cent. of them were not qualified voters. In some of the beats, he said. the petitions had been circulated with the state- ment that there was only one candidate for the place.
 MT. Seibels Was Troubled. W. T. Seibels said that when the race first begun a warm personal friend had approached him and urged him to vote for the committee to fill the vacancy. After a second interview he had given that friend the impression that he would vote that way. He had regret ted his implied promise. His con science had hurt him. because he be- lieved that the vacancy should be filled by the people He had finally gone to this friend and begged for his
 release from the promise. The release had been refused him and the matter had troubled him deeply. He had fin- ally decided that his duty demanded
 that he should absolve himself from that promise and he was now ready to vote for primary.
 Mir. Gunter said that the committee appeared to have resolved itself into a committee of absolution. As for him. self he wanted no absolution. He had made a promise and he had no desire to secure a release from it.
 T gave MT. Cochran my promise" | said MT Gunter, and I am prepared to stand by 1t. But as long as Beat has no representative on the committee MT. Cochran's friends know that he Is beaten before the committee and we | will not press the fight.
 Mir Andersoon then offered a resolu-
 tion declaring for a primary under the regular rules of the Democratic Party. The resolution provided the primary | should be held on September 26. and
 that the candidate receiving the high est number of votes should be declared the nominee. Mir Anderson's resolution
 was adopted by the committee. S. J. Pettus said that the committee should elect a man to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of MT. Gil-
 mer.
 MT. GiImer Succeeds Himself. MT. Anderson said that the conditions
 which had called for MT. Gilmers re- signation no longer existed. He nomi- mated MT. Gilmer for the vacancy and Mir. Gilmer was unanimously re-elect- ed.
 MT. Seibels suggested that the reso-
 lution adopted be changed so that 1t
 would call for majority primary in-
 stead of plurality primary. He had no personal choice in the matter, he said, but some of the candidates want
 ed a majority primary.
 He moved to reconsider the vote by which the resolution was adopted for the purpose of making that change in | 1t.
 J. J. Farley moved to table the Sei- | bels motion. The motion to table was