The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1908-06-27
This is the Question Now Be.
fore the Congressional
Committee.
THIS WAS CAUSE OF
THE ADJOURNMENT
Many Members of Old Com
mittee Were Candidates,
and Law Says They Can
not Act as Members of the
Committee Under Such
Conditions.

The question, which committee, the
old one, or the one recently select
ed. is to canvass the returns of the
! primary in the Third congressional
district, is now being discussed in
every county in the district, for the
reason that after wrangling with the
subject Cor half a day, the old COM
mittee, which convened Thursday in
Tallahassee, adjourned until July Is
in order that more Information. il
such is possibly, might be secured.
| The law states that no committee
man who has been a candidate for
office may act as committeeman, and
the meeting of Thursday at Tallahas-
see developed the fact that with the
exception of two. members, every
committeeman had recently been
voted upon for some Office and there
fore was ineligible TO serve as a mem
Der of the congressional committee.
PenSacolianS Return.
Those VINO went from Pensacola to
attend the meeting returned yeSter-
day morning. These were Hon. A. II.
D'Alemberte, the member from ES
Gambia county, Judge L. J. Reeves
and Hon. Thos. F. West, counsel for
Mr. Kehoe, and Judge F. B. Carter,
Mays. One of the gentlemen in an
interview on what transpired at tls
meeting said:
Immediately after converting al
eight O'Clock Thursday night the
committee adjourned to meet on the
fourteenth day OF July, next. at Tai
ilaAsssee, Florida, T az ee1fT,.sI
Cor Mr.. Mays had entered protest
against s. w. Clark serving on the
committee for the reason that he was
not entitled to SIT upon said COM
! mittee, having been a candidate be-
fore a primary election for nomina-
ton to office since his election or APP
pointment on the committee. 1t was
urged that as Mr.. Clark had been
candidate, that under the law he
should not be permitted to act or
serve as a committeeman, and that
the office was vacant. Section 273 of
the General Statutes provides that
| No county, state or congressional
committeeman who is a candidate be-
| fore any primary election shall act or
serve as such committeeman and any
vacancy caused by such disqualified
ton may be filed by the county, state
or cOngreSsiOnl committee, as the
case may be- This question having
| been haised, ii was found upon in
! 4uify 'JndI every
Der of the committee had. since his
appointment or election. been a can
didate and l. the construction of the
law cOntended for 10y counsel was cor
rect, then there was very grave doubt
F! of the qualifications of any such mem
bers-
Resolution to Adjourn.
| LAS stated before. Immediately up
on converting, Al eight o'clock, in the
| evening, Mr.. D'Alemberte offered the
| following resolution, which was
adopted:
Whereas, A question has arisen as
| 10 the qualification of a number OF
! the members o. this committee, and
il appearing that a number of the
members of said committee are not
| qualified to act as such; therefore be-
it
Resolved, That this committee do
now adjourn until Tuesday. the 14th
day OF July, 1908. upon which date
this said committee shall meet at the
county court house at Tallahassee.
Florida at u O'Clock nOon.'
An act OF the legislature of 1907
provides for the selection and qualis
ficatiOn OF mem bers Of the committee,
and IL is thought that in most of tina
counties new members @ the conn
mitJee have been selected and upon
their taking oath as required by Law
that they will be duly authorized C
act. In counties whore committee
= men were not elected, the county
democratic executive Commute is aB
Lhorized to select the congressional
committeeman and IL is thought hat
these matters will all be taken care
OF before the date fixed for the
meeting of the committee, 50 that all
members will be duly qualified and
authorized 10 act in canvassing the
vote for congressman
Kehoe'S Position.
II was stated that Mr. Kehoe's Do
sition in the matter is that ne wants
: IL definitely decided which o. the
( committees is 10 pass upon the ques-
lions that will be brought before II,
before he takes any steps. Neither
he or mis- friends are very particular
about which Of the COMMITTEES can
vaSs the returns, but when they are
canvassed they desire II TO be legal
and final with no possibility of any
questions being raised and a po-sibla