The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-01-07

i and competing institutions could evei
have. This Is contamination which
the community has long devoutly de.
sired, and thus, as often In this world
blessing may grow out OF adversely.
-. .----------.==-------------------------.
POINTS ABOUT THE sUBcoMN1T
TEES PRIMARY BILL.
Within ten days the primary ha:
become the Invest topic in Virginia
1t is now certain that the primary law
to which the Democratic party is com
mittsd will preciptate a very vigorous
fight in the coming Legislature. On
one side we shall have the bill inde-
pendent1y prepared by Speaker Byrd,
not perfect. doubtless. but enlightened,
explicit. straightforward and thor
oughgoing. On the other side we shall
have the vest-pocket bill put together
at the last moment by the subcommit-
tee OF the Democratic State Commit.
tee. The Byrd bill has won many
friends throughout the State, though
one or two points in 1t have come In
| for sharp attack We shall await
with profound interest the opinion OF
the State on the offering of the Demo-
cratic subcommittee.
| The Times Dispatch considers that
the subcommittee bill is bad as far
as 1t goes and entirely inadequate In
that it fails to go anywhere near far
enough. Two points that are positive
ly bad were explained in this paper
yesterday. They are:
!. Giving the. appointment of pri-
mary election officers to the local party
committees. which is to say to the
local machines or bosses. wherever or
If ever such things exist This pro-
vision, though 1t is fair to say that
it reproduces the terms Of the party
plan Of 1911. is in Just the opposite
direction from that in which progress
sivc primary legislation ought to move.
.. Putting into the hands Of State.
county, city or district committees the
power to decide whether nominations
in any given case shall be by direct
| primary or nominating conventions. AS
affecting, all State Democratic nominal
TONS this provision deliberately au-
thorizes by law disobedience to the
| existing party declaration in favor
of the primaries and SO seems meant
to prepare the way for reversal of
that declaration.
! Beyond these points Of positive bad
ness. this bill is entirely incomplete
| and defective, chiefly in that:
8. 1t fails to provide for state or
county or city or district-paid pri-
mary. Pay Of the primary officers is, it
is true. provided, but no provision at
all is made for paying for necessary
stationery and supplies, rent of poll
ing places and those other necessary
expenditures of which the Byrd bill
names a long list.
A. 1t fails to fix any Limitation on
the expenditures of candidates.
5. 1t fails to provide or authorize
any machinery for the making of plat
, forms.
i s. 1t fails to determine whether plu-
rality or majority nominations shall
be the lawful rule.
4 1t will, OF course, be answered by
4 admirers OF the committee bill tina,
: these and various other omissions are
t made in order to leave all political
, parties free to frame their own rules,
as provided by section 6. But to our
, purpose of primary law is to elm
mate the fluctuating, variegated wishes
OF parties or party committees and
to give to the details OF popular nom
nations the same rigid, exact and
permanent statutory form which cleo
tons now have. The instruction Of
the Roanoke convention ''to throw
legal safeguards about primaries" is
quite broad enough to give the COM
:. mittee all the freedom necessary to
do this. AT least Mr.. Byrd deemed an
excellent constitutional lawyer and
certainly perfectly familiar with every
thing that was said or done at Roam
oke has appeared to think SO.
7 The enactment OF the subcommittee
bill. or of enc anything like 1t, will
in no sense satisfy the demand in vir-
glnia for sound and comprehensive
primary law. But that demand, now
fairly started, will not down until it is
satisfied. We shall certainly have a
real primary law here some day. And
when that law comes, though it may
not be the Byrd bill. it will be one IA,
more like it than anything else tina,
has yet been offered us.
l
/. A POOR EQUALIZATION PLAN.
The Senate Finance Committee is
treading on dangerous ground in con.
sidering the equalization Of taxes from
the Auditors office. OF course the
members of the committee are SINGER,
} in their desire to reduce the evils o
: unequal assessments and are properl,
anxious to do this at minimum cost