The national forum., 1910-11-05
Politics in Fayette County
West Virginia

Fayette county has grown, and that
The responsibilities Of securing good
men devolved upon the shoulders OF
The County Court, because the Legis-
Iature failed to provide for just such
an emergency. They kick on Mr..
Rotten securing his monthly salary
for looking after the courthouse.
How many of them will be willing
10 do it for less? How many OF them
will be willing to go out and oversee
the desperate prisoners, white and
black, for less than is being paid by
the County Court today? The
truth of the matter is, when the
Democrats were in nobody was
needed to look after any courthouse,
for they had nothing but shell.
was needed to guard pris-
oners, for people did about as they
pleased. Nobody had to be hired to
do anything extra, for under Demo-
cratic administration there was little
or no business going OH, and there
fore nobody was needed.
To say that ticket is not Demo-
cratic in purpose and purport, when
Mr.. Osenton and the Democratic
party endorse it, is to say that Mr..
Osenton and the Democratic party
have changed and become Republi-
cans. How many will say that?
How many do you suppose will be-
lieve that?
Lawyer Sweeney says we know
nothing of the politics of this county,
and have simply been imported here.
Well, all we have to say on that
score is we were campaigning in
this county long before Hon. MIR.
Sweeney entered the game of poll
tics, and when it took men with arms
in all pockets to insure the holding of
a meeting. We have gone over the
mountain trails at every hour of the
night, We have slept in open sta
tions when we could not catch trains.
We have walked from 10 to IS miles
with men who are now on the Re-
publican ticket in order to get back
home to make appointments for the
next day. Maybe he thinks this is
not campaigning. Maybe he thinks
this won't give man knowledge OF
the conditions of the people. If it
does, then we feel that his logic is.
extremely faulty.
Too much credit cannot be given
Mr.. L. Burke O'Neil and Mr.. w. w.
Caldwell, who have had practical
charge of headquarters and have
really borne much of the burden OF
the responsibility of the office when
Chairman Ramsey and the rest of
the committee had to be away. Not
only are they competent, but they
have been aggressive and have put
in vogue many methods that have
been helpful in the campaign. Mr..
Luther Montgomery comes in for a
share of credit for his promptness
with his newspaper plant in paper
in getting out over the county on
time the notices of the different
meetings, bills, etc. Taken on the
whole, the committee could not have
selected more able and competent
corps of men than these.
Hon. J. M. Ellis seems to think he
has been sadly mistreated i'll many
respects. Well, if he has, and we
fail to see just where he has, we
can't see just what he hopes to gain
by hitclling up with party that will
increase that state of sadness. The
colored people in the county did as
much to defeat Jim as anybody else
because they did not turn out at the
primary. Let's put the blame where
it belongs. AT the precincts of the
men whom he is fighting now is
where he received his largest vote,
and at the precincts Of the men with
whom he has cast his fortune is
where he received his smallest vote
Tell the voters how this was, James