Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1910-09-15
StatesnanshIp vs.. Machine Politics,

Statesnanship vs, Machine Politics,
Mr.. EDITOR. Please allow me
space IN your paper to express
my views in regard to the meth
ods OF putting out candidates, az
practiced by the machine, used
by the Republican party in this
county. will say whatI have to
say IN a general way and wi b
malice toward none.
want to say first to the Re.
publicans, and, in fact, to all my
fellow citizens and friends, that
the time has come when we as
Republicans and Democrats. and
as men who stand Tor law and OF
der, can vote for the man, and
yet be loyal to the PARTY to
which you belong. If you belong
to the Republican party, and il
you believe in the fundamental
principles of that party as sci
forth by it's founders and endors
ed by such men as Webster. Lin
coin, Mckinley and Roosevelt,
no State, county or township
convention, predominated by
machine bosses, whose only aim
is to incubate such candidates az
will help oil their political ma.
chimes, has any right to bind you
to it's action. If yon are q Demo.
crut, and honestly believe in the
policies OF that great party
whose promulgators, such as JEFF
ferson and the immortal Jackson
"the Saviour of the SOUTH nc
political machine has the right
to force upon you the fetters q
coeciion, that will bind you tc
support a dishonest product o
its machine. Good citizenship de-
mands that we all turn t h {
search-lightupon every man who
offers himself for office, and SCI
what attributes Of genuine states
manship he possesses. Weigh
him carefully in the, balances o.
Justice, and If he is found want
ing, let him alone: and although
you may be read out Of the par
ty:, and although some plumed
knight, who halls from the land
of br.som-sedge and teed-ticks
seeks to loan you out as though
you were a slave or q mule, you
have performed your duty as a
citizen and no one has the right
to say you are disloyal to your
party. Perhaps if this gallant
knight who SEEKS to kick you out
the party, would stop to think,
he would see that you, the very
ones whom he seeks to read out
of the party, are the ones who
made it possible Tor him to hold
office. Has it come to this. that
we cannot vote for the best man,
without being ground to frag
ments by some political machine?
II so, then we are no longer free
men, and the founders of h 9
great government sacrificed their
lives and fortunes in vain. II
you vote for dishonest or incom-
petent men. simply because they
have the endorsement OF some
political ring, you are disloyal
to your country. disloyal to
your family and disloyal to your
sell.
Listen. it you please, to the po-
litical bosses and ring.leaders.
They speak with ridicule OF the
independent voters;they callthem
disloyal; they. seek to loan them
out, but the day is not lar dis
tant when they themselves will
stand before the innumerahle
host OF independent voters. and
be called upon to give an &C.
count of their stewardship, They
will be weighed in the balances
and found wanting, Say, Mr.. Po-
litical Boss; you who would lend
the independent man out with
out interest, what think you OF
the independent men who gath
cred at Sycamore Shoals in Ten
nessee and marched to Kings