Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1912-07-25

Convention and present them to our
readers. We now give the eloquent adj
dress Of our tCwnsman. which was con-
cededIy the most eloquent effort Of the
Convention.
The Democracy of Jefferson Coun-
/ ty ask this convention to take one of
| the sons of that county and use his
name in building up the ticket with
which we intend to carry the state.
II is a name with no blemish on It,
and il is presented to you with the
warm endorsement and the hearty en-
thusiasm Of thousands of his friends
and neighbors. In the name of all the
democrats who live in that part of
| the historic Shenandoah Valley, we
ask you 10 nominate William Fontaine
Alexander for the office of State
Auditor.
We ask it for two reasons, and the
first is that we have tried him. We
gave him a place of honor and trust
for twelve years and he came out of
| it with his popularity enhanced, and
without dishonest dollar in his
pocket. By his upright conduct dur
| ing those twelve years, and by his in
ltelligent discharge of wider and more
important duties, arising from his
Subsequent connection with large
business interests, and by our famili-
arity with his daily life and character
from his childhood, we know that no
man in the state is better fitted for
the authorship of West Virginia
| We also ask this nomination be-
cause we know that it will strength
en- the Democratic ticket. We who
represent here today the Democracy
of the Shenandoah Valley are not only
Democrats by faith and inheritance,
but we are too proud of the Demo-
cratic party and its record, and have
too much solicitude for its future, to
ask you to do anything that would
cloud the outlook in this our year of
glorious prospects We who come
from that famous valley. can promise
this convention larger majority fo=
your nominee than we have ever be-
fore given to a Democratic ticket.
We are proud, | say of the Demo-
cratic party because of its historic
achievements, and we are proud :of it
because it has elements of vitality
and of doctrine which make it an es-
.sential part of this republic. The Dem
ocratic party cannot die until the re-
public dies. 1t has one thing in COM
mon with other parties--it has had
internal dissensions, and it has had
overwhelming reverses at the ballot
box, but unlike all other parties, its
! perfect identify with the life of the
country enables it to survive every
disaster, and rise from the earth again
with renewed strength We buried
the old Federal party we buried
the Knownothing party, we buried the
Wing party, we buried the .PopuFst
party, and in this year of our Lord
1912 we will, with the providential aid
of Theodore Roosevelt, bury the, Re-
publican party. We all know many
Republicans whom we respect as
neighbors, and esteem as patriots, and
love them ais friends, and so when we
anticipate with pleasure a Republican
funeral it is their leaders and politi-
clans that we have in mind We cam
not love them. So far as they are
concerned there are no good Indians
but dead Indians. Think, my country
men, think of the appalling condition
to which Republican leaders and poll
ticians are bringing our public life.
By the solemn and reluctant testimony
of the Republican president of the,
United States and his managers, we
are told that large portion of Re-
publican leadership today is untruthful
and corrupt, and by Republican ex-
president we are told that the other
portion is untruthful and corrupt If
you take one of these witnesses you,
must condemn one half of the. Re-
publican leadership, and. if you take
both you must condemn it all In my
judgement both witnesses are reliable,
and so we are going to a Repubh-
can funeral next November, a funeral
without music, without flowers, and
with no resurrection.
1t is the glory of the Democratic
party that the great states of the
mighty northwest were secured by a
Virginia ordinance written by a,
Democrat that the magnificent en-
'pire of the Mississippi Valley was
bought for us by Democrat that
the annexation of Florida was the act
of a Democrat that the vast com
monwealth of Texas, larger than
France, became ours through the
craftsmanship of Democrat; that it
was Democrat who secured to the
Union the Pacific states, an empire
that would stir the ambition of a
Bonaparte and dazzle the Imagination
of Caesar. 1t was the Democratic
party that led our country to victory
in the two wars of 1872 and 1847, and
true to our flag, true to our country,
true to the Constitution, and true to
the genius of Christian civilization, we