The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1907-06-28
A PROPOSED AMENDMENT

4kc2 o-M@D
II is provided in article ii, of the
constitution that mo per
son except a n~atural-born citizen, or "a
citizen of the United States at the time
of the adoption OF this constitution,
shall be eligible to the office of presi-
dent" The unwritten law provides
that no person excep a citizen born
in a state which has never seeded
shall be eligible to the office of presi-
dent In order to bring the matter to
a test, we propose that the unwrit-
ten law be enacted and made a part
of the constitution 1t is always best
to be rank. If southern men are
ineligible in fact to the office Of presi-
dent, they should be Ineligible in law.
The above is an editorial from the
Richmond-1imes-D Dispatch. This is too
serious a matter TO be treated in this
frivolous manner 1t is a distressing
fact that sectionalism has for the last
forty years made men from the south
ineligible to positions on the presiden-
tial ticket. 1t is time for the demo
cracy of the south to demand that this
unwritten law be repealed. We be-
lieve were it to make that demand in
the next national convention that it
could force its claim on the party and
that it would be found on election day
that this unwritten law of Ineligible
ity of men from the southern states is
of not near the force that some south
ern men believe and a great many
northern democrats pretend to think
it is.
So long as the southern democrats
yield in this matter to the men Of the
party at the north just so long vii
the former be kept out of their rights,
which are TO have their section Of the
country given an equal showing with
the north, east and west as to the
locality from which the candidates On
the national ticket shall be chosen. All
the southern democrats ask is that
their section be not ~barred-not that it
be given, at the next or ally other
election, preference over any other
section. AS long as they hold back
from making such just demand and ad-
NIT the plea of the northern democrats
that, because of sectional feeling at the
north, it won't do to nominate a man
from their section, the nomination
will BE- made from the north.
This cry of the northern democrats
is an admission that they are less loyal
to the party than are those of the
south, for the latter ask where
the men are from who are nominated,
but support the ticket and give IT, the
solid electoral vote Of their section.
| Why can't the northern democrats be
| as oblivious of sectional lines and as
true to the party: We believe they
would be when the time came to act.
The opposition comes from the poll
| ticians and is for the purpose, as said
above, of keeping the nomination
! within their own territory. We do not
believe there is such animosity toward
the south among the masses OF the
northern voters as would seriously az
feet the result of a presidential cleo
tion lust because one of the candidates
was from this section. Furthermore
we believe there are several men Ill
the south any one Of whom If put Cn
he democratic ticket in 1908 would
poll a larger popular vote ard secure
more votes in the electoral college than
BRYAN whom so many consider mol
only the truly logical candidate
but the only one the democrats
can afford to nominate. With NJ
Bryan as the nominee We would no.
be surprised to see the solid south
broken, which surely would hot be the
a with one of several southerners
who have been mentioned for the nom
ination.