Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1913-01-24

democrats of Tazewell and North
Tazewell, to select their own
postmasters, alleging a lack of
authority to act, was a mere
subterfuge, and no one knows
that better than the county
chairman, who announced the
ruling. Two years ago when the
ranks of the Republican party
were torn in shreds and the
Democrats had the first chance
in 4 score or more of years to
obtain and control some of the
important Offices of the county,
this same committee, "a few of
its members, be it said to their
credit, dissenting ignored the
expressed wish and desire of the
party, and would allow no op-
position TO be made to republican
supremacy, with one lone
isolated exception. The commit
tee did name a candidate for
State Senate, ignoring the fact
that more than one applicant
sought the nomination, and ig-
noring the demand Of the party
for a mass meeting to decide
which of the two should be the
standard bearer of the party,
named one and discarded the
other; and the result of TIN at act
of the committee is now history
and well known to all. When
the county chairman's attention
was called to the fact that the
committee had no authority, un-
der the rules, to name n candi-
date, where more than one
aspired, he replied that the
Committee could do as it pleased
and no one had any legal re-
dress, or a meaning in substance
of the same, that the rules were
merely directory and could be en-.
tirely disregarded by the
committee if it so desired, but
now Il different view is held and
those rules must be obeyed. This
last is correct, but nothing ap-
pears in those rules to prevent
the committee adopting any
democratic plan that will pre-
serve harmony in the party, and
at the same time obtain the will
of the Democracy. Mr.. S. M.
Graham demanded the right of
the committee to make the race
for Clerk against two opposing
and bitter republican factions in
the field, with every prospect to
win, but he was cast aside in
order TO give the opposition a
clear field. Mr.. Graham was
then endorsed by large mass
of Democrats in Clear
Fork district and by Il resolution
of that mass meeting, the county
committee was reluctantly forced
to ratify that endorsement, and
came out in Il circular to the
voters to that effect, but hardly
had this been done, when a
member of the committee advis-
ing with others, without con-
Mr.. Graham's friends,
and without their knowledge or
consent, prevailed upon him to
from the race, that
was already won, and thus again
the will of the party was set at
naught. We all know why this
was done, but the plot failed
and the democratic party was
the loser, and all because the
will of and welfare of the party
was disregarded, for the purpose
of individual interest. The will
of the people should rule and the
action of the committee last
Monday should be disregarded
and a preferential election held
where a majority of the Demo-
cratic voters desire it. The only
mass meetings of the Democrats
of Tazewell county that have
been called for sometime passed
were for the purpose of electing
a county committee. If that is
all the Democrats of the county
can do, they should get busy at
once and call another mass
meeting. They can at least elect
a new committee and perhaps on
that will have more regard for
the will of the people. This is
the year for it anyway.
DEMOCRAT.
January %.