Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1908-05-08
POLITICAL.

hOh. W. n. SoheS, JOSePu w. Cnlnn,
DIR. B. A. Middleton and w. H. Rice.
The delegates go uninstructed.
The strength of Governor John A.
johnson of Minnesota as Presidential
candidate is being displayed by his adj
mlrers by comparison of figures. Mime
sofa is Republican State, yet Johnson
carried it in 1904 by 6,244 majority and
in 1906 by ~, 31S.
Friends of former Gov. ]. Hoge
Tyler. of Radford. are urging him to
make the race for Congress in the
Ninth Virginia district as the Demo-
cratic NOMINEES against the incumbent.
G. Bascomb Slemp. 1t is said that the
former governor is willing to make the
contest.
There are still many Democrats who
predict Mr.. Bryan's eventual defeat
just as there are many Republicans who
see no chance for Secretary Taft to win
at Chicago, although he seems to have
more than 500 delegates. They think
something is going to ''turn up. -
Micawber-like, to overthrow Mr.. Bry-
ans ambition.
The acts of the legislative session.
which closed March 25, are now printed,
and all of them except the emergency
acts will become laws on June q, 1908.
The emergency acts are in effect from
the time the Governor signs them, and
doubtless many of them are now in
force, but are being violated because of
the lack of information regarding them.
The Federal Office holders will cut a
big swath in the Republican national
convention, and those from the South
ern and Western States seem to be
able to dominate the situation. This
attempt to perpetuate power by using
the government patronage is a danger
to free institutions, and independent
Republican voters are becoming in
dignant.
The Petersburg Index-Appeal states
that it has lived to regret its (former)
advocacy of the Primary for all else
save local Offices. 1t thinks that in
few years there will be in Virginia
formidable opposition to the system.
and adds that 1.-THE Republican party is
wiser in this respect. 1t has no primary
system, and it does not wash its soiled
linen-real or fancied-b before the public.
The Democratic party may well profit
by the example, and take counsel of its
enemies"
The Democratic county committee of
Lancaster met Friday and fixed We'd
nesday, May 9th, as the date for Sc
Letting delegates to the Roanoke con-
vention- 1t was decided to send ten
delegates to the convention, each with
half a vote, the county being entitled to
five votes. The delegates from Mantua
and White Chapel Districts will be Sc
lected at precinct meetings; those from
White Stone District will be elected by
district mass meeting at White Stone.
Litwalton was allotted 2delegates, Otto
man j, Courthouse and White Stone
district 5.
Senator Bailey saves his skin" is the
heading of the dispatch from Texas
telling that the Senator has won out in
the bitter struggle with his home people
by $4,000 majority. At one time it
looked very like Mr.. Bailey would be
RELOCATED to the quiet of his Texas home.
his constituents seemingly thinking him
no fit man to represent them in the
Senate of the u. S. One of the re-
markable features in the election was
the pledge every voter was forced 10
take. Before being handed a ballot
each was required to take oath he was
a Democrat-not Republican, not a
Populist and not Socialist-and had
always supported Democratic nominees,
from constable to PresideHk
The prophet of the Blackstone Courier
writes it down as foregone conclusion
that Judge William H. Mann will be
the nominee by the next gubernatorial
primary, in the event there should be
another gubernatorial primary in this
State (which God forbidD AS we read
the signs on the horizon, the Courier
prophet has the matter down pretty
nearly right. One of the best evil
dences of Judge Mann's strength and
prospects as winner is the fact that
the friends of all the other candidates
are concentrating their fire upon him.
But he stands the fire unfiinchingly.
and has grown immensely in popular
good will since his late campaign
against an exceptionally strong field of
opponents. -Index-Appeal.
Nansemond county democrats last
Saturday took stab at the Virginia
primary system. In mass meeting they
went on record as opposed to the system
which, its speakers said, was breeder
of rancor and discord. promoter of
pernicious effects, and whose operations
are endangering democratic supremacy
in the State. Finally. the following
resolution instructing the delegation
against the primary was carried without
a negative vote: Resolved, that the
democrats of Nansemond county favor
the adjustment of the primary, and
hereby instruct its delegates to the
Roanoke convention to vote for its re-
peal" The primary is the best plan
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