Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1906-07-13

compare well with the best public servants
Vermont has had in 80 years of Repub-
| lican rule.
Will the Republicans of Vermont fail
to support these candidates because Per-
cival w. Clement, with a consuming de-
| sire to be governor, demands of an
! intelligent electorate that he be placed
| in the governors, chair? For what
! purpose? What can or will he accomplish,
| If elected, except to destroy the Repub-
| lican party in the state? He does not saw.
| He claims these nominations are ma
! chine nominations. And yet not a dollar
was spent to influence them and no more
| spontaneous call upon a man for public
| Office was ever heard in Vermont than
| that which came to Fletcher d. Proctor
| at the outset Of this campaign. Who
! among all the people Of Vermont sought
| to contest with him the nomination?
Percival w. Clement Who among all our
! people questioned his ability, branded
| him as an encourager of graft and dis
! honesty, denounced him as a base traf-
! ficer of honor for Office and traduced him
as citizen and business man? Percival
| w. Clement. And why? Not because
! Percival W. Clement is a man of greater
ability, more sterling integrity, higher
honor. or stauncher Republicansm, but
because Percival w. Clement wants the
| office of governor and has failed to get
it through the regular channel OF party
nomination and selection. All that Per-
! cival w. Clement is, politically, he has
! gained by the positions of trust and honor
conferred upon him by the Republican
party which he now seeks to overthrow
and destroy. The Republican party
! elected him mayor of Rutland a repre-
sentative in the House and a member of
the Senate in the general assembly of
| Vermont. In all the years when he was
| the eager recipient of these honors at
the hands of the Republican party he
i 1fcgsz ...1
corruption, no trafficing of honor for
Office, no incompetency no blemish of
any kind upon Republican officeholders
or Republican Institutions. Now to be
governor, he has deserted the men and
the party who have so often honored
him and denounces these same men and
this same party as guilty of every possible
lapse of public and private duty. with
all due respect for the genius of his in
gratitude and disloyalty, we protest that
1t is not wise or commendable for loyal
Republicans to repudiate the principles
and candidates of their party and follow
leadership of selfish ambition. personal
greed and destroying hate. There is no
issue in Mr.. Clements candidacy, except
the issue of person. His platform and
his utterances are tended to destroy
and tear down, not to construct and
build up. He denounces existing condi-
tons as evil and corrupt but suggests
no definite method of lettering them. He
alleges all sorts of wrongs but offers no
specific remedies He charges misgovern-
ment but fails utterly to verify his des-
larations.
We appeal to the sound reason and
sober sense of all good citizens of Yer
mont who love our state and our insti-
tutions to weigh carefully and well the
two men and what they represent.
Percival w. Clement now heads the
Democratic state ticket He has secured
that nomination not because the Demo-
cratic convention endorses him or what
he represents, but because II expects to
make more havoc in Republican ranks and
attain nearer to the destruction of our
party than it could possibly hope to
accomplish by nominating a Democrat to
the office. Mr.. Clement has sold his
birth-right as a Republican, repudated the
organization that has repeatedly honored
him with office, thrown away the prin-
ciples and policies he has advocated and
voted for all his life and reasonably
renowned his allegiance to his party to
the end that he may sit in the governors
chair in Montpelier To every man honest
with himself this will appeal with over
powering conviction as "traficing honor
for office" to the extreme limit of the
business.
Mr.. Clement four years ago went before
the people of Vermont with an issue 1t
is true that the Republican platform of
Il
local option law, but Mr.. Clement and
his supporters claimed they had reason
to believe that the Republican party
would not do what 1t promised in its
platform. Many good and sincere men
held to that belief but the fight was
won and the party Immediately carried
out its platform pledges and enacted that
law and many others which it promised.
Mr. Clement himself then came back to
the party and asked the privilege of
contributing to the success OF the ticket
in 1904; he was accorded that privilege,
and went about the state advocating the
election of the Republican state ticket
and advising his friends everywhere to
support the Republican platform and the
Republican nominations. He had no use
for the Democracy of Vermont In 1904
His friends did come back and Gov. Bell
was elected by more than 80, 900 plurality
Mr.. Clement by his every act and word
admitted that the Republican party had
met his wishes and redeemed its pledges
by enacting into law the reforms he had
demanded.
When it became evident that Mr.. Glenn
ent could not secure the Republican nom
ination for governor in 1906 and that the
prize would go to man whom he viewed
as a personal enemy Mr. Clement inn
mediately commenced a campaign for
himself which has resulted in his be-
coming the candidate of the Democratic
party ana ne Is now ASKING MS RepuDli-
can friends to again retrace their steps
and follow him, without an issue save
personal hatred of Fletcher d. Proctor
into the Democratic camp Many good
men followed him out of the Republican
party In 1902 because he had an issue in
which they believed; they followed him
back to the Republican party In 1904
because he assured them that he was
satisfied with the party and its platform
and he had no issue to raise against it,
now he asks them to follow him out of
the party again because, while he has |
no issue, he does harbor personal i'll
feeling of many years standing against |
the Republican candidate which he hopes |
to settle, with the help of his friends, |
in this campaign.
This is the sum and the substance of |
Mr. Clements position today. Does 1t |
appeal to Republicans as worthy of sup |
port? Is this the kind of man that right |
minded Republicans and Democrats should |
elect to the office highest in the gift Of |
our people? Can you trust a man of |
such a character to administer the af- |
fairs of our state? Does he come up to |
the standard Of the long line of governors |
who for more than so years have shed |
lustre upon the office and made honorable |
the history Of Vermont?
We counsel the people of Vermont that
integrity of purpose, fidelity to high |
ideals and jealous regard for the interests
OF all Vermonters as exemplihed in the
life of Fletcher d. Proctor and persona