The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1911-11-09
CONGRESSIONL COMMITTEE DECIDES
UPON CONVENTION METHOD

, Anti-SelIs members of the First dis
/ trict republican executive committe
won their fight Saturday in the com
mittee meeting at Bulls Gap wheI
they, by vote of to 6, decided t.
, have delegated convention al Greene
i vile February II, at which time re
publican candidate for congress will
be named. County conventions to Sc
lect delegates will be held February 10
Speeches favorihg convention wer'
made by Judge H. T. Campbell, Hon
A. A. Taylor and Maj. Paul E. Divine
while j. r. Gardner, 0. b. Lovett anG
Congressman Sells spoke for the pri
mary.
The meeting was the stormiest held
in the First district in years. Congress
man Sells denounced Chairman A. L.
Shipley to his face, charging that he
was acting as the tool of John L. Cox
and that he had been disloyal to the
republican party. A. A. Taylor said
that thirty-five per cent of the First
district voters could be purchased, hence
he favored convention. Gardner de-
MED the charge that the people were as
corrupt as intimated.
Resolutions were finally adopted by
the committee endorsing President
Taft and Gov. Hooper, although the
statement was made that they were
not sincere in their Hooper endorse,
ment, the Sells people saying that the
faction arrayed against them were not
for anything republican.
Congressman Sells made a bitter
speech, denouncing the convention idea
as John |. Cox scheme. He closed
by charging Chairman Shipley with
having tried TO call the committee to.
gether last year, after Sells had been
nominated in primary in order to
get out an independent candidate
against him. He said he never. had
had the support of the committee nor
the party as he should have had, and,
turning to Mr.. Shipley, declared dra-
matically:
"As for you and your methods, I.say
to hell with such republicanism, and
damn such n republican,
The twelve counties were equally di-
vided as to the method of nomination,
and Chairman Shipley cast the decid-
ing vote in favor of q convention. The
committeeman voting for the conven-
tion were from Carter, Sullivan, Wash
ington, Cooke, Claiborne and Granger
counties.
The resolutions adopted read as fol-
lows:
Whereas, it is the judgment of all
observant and thoughtful men that
primary elections as mode of making
party nominations, have been seized
upon in many instances in late years
as an instrument whereunto by the
force of money, venal and vicious men
have bribed their way to power, have
debauched the electorate, debased and
depraved its manhood, and preyed up
on and overcome the weaker memb bers
of society, thereby adding shame and
turpitude to misfortune; and
Whereas, the unbridled and unre-
strained use of money in primaries and
general elections, with its consequent
public sentiment tolerant OF wrong and
dormant in the struggle for right and
civic reforms has resulted in injecting
into all political councils as a controll
ing question the sordid inquiry of
!. Who can put up the most money ?"
to the exclusion of all Others, no mat
ter how we'll qualified or fitted by the
quality of mind and the result of work
and toll and
Whereas, until the passage of an ap-
propriate law regulating all primaries
and dealing with all corrupt practices
in reference thereto with appropriate
penalties, forfeitures and the enforced
publicity of all money expended there
in by candidates and their organiza-
tions, SO as TO stay the hand of the
bribe giver and protect the electorate
from temptation, it is believed that Or
derly and we'll regulated conventions
will best subserve the interests of the
party and all candidates, without re-
spect to their financial conditions and
enhanced the value of brains and mar
hood, to the exclusion of the he5iier
and criminal worker at the polls
Now, therefore, be it resolved, by the
republican executive committee for the
First congressional district Of Tennes-
see, in meeting assembled at Bulls
Gap, on this November 4, 1911, That
delegated convention is hereby called
to meet at Greeneville at II o'clock,