Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1914-06-19
The Ninth District.

The situation in the Ninth Dist
riot, growing out of the failure to
select postmasters to take the place
of the Republicans now in power, does
not look any too encouraging here.
A great deal has been written about
this situation by those who lack in
formation as TO it. The truth of the
matter seems to be that when Tate
irvine was candidate for the nomi-
natiCn. he asked Postmaster General
Burleson to recognize his recommen-
dations. Mr.. Burleson refused to do
so, saying that he could not recognize
such recommendations prior to the
nomination of candidate. After he
was nominated the postmastcr-genc
raj stated that he would accept Mr..
Irvine's recommendation, but by this
time the controversy over the offices
grew so bitter that Mr.. Irvine felt
that he would hurt his candidacy by
accepting the power of dispensing the
post-otllcc patronage.
AT this juncture he and Governor
Stuart got together and worked out II
plan which had something of the idea
of postmastcr's primary in it, But
neither of them was willing to spon-
sor the idea, and then sought to have
it sponsored from Washington. After
they failed in this the suggestion was
made that the two Virginia Senators
Governor Stuart and Representative
Glass, be made to constitute sort
of patronage committee to handle the
Ninth District post-oillcc appoint
mcntS.
Although some of the newspapers
have stated that Senator Martin was
approached on this subject, such
statement is not true. When il was
made to senior Virginia senator by
Richmond correspondent, he de
clared that he had not been approached
on the subject, and that, furthermore,
he would not consider such II propo-
sition for II minute. He contcndcd
that Representative Glass had no
more to do with the Ninth District
TIM Representative Hay or Reprcsen-
tativc Montague, and said that unless
the postmaster general followed the
usual method of recognizing the SEN
ators in districts where there is no
representative of his political faith,
he would wash his hads of the whole
affair and allow the selections to be
made in any way the postmastcr-g gen
cral might sc fit. 1t is there that the
question remains today.
1t is pity that such II pass has
come about in the 9th district, and
it is difficult to understand by what
line of reasoning the postmastcr-gcn
eral can justify his refusal to recog-
niZe recommendation from Tate lr-
vine, when he was the unanimous
choice of his party for the nomination
soon to be made, while at the same
time he would allow representative
Glass, an aspirant for senatorial
honors, who will be far from the una
nimous choice of his party, to have
hand in the Ninth district situation. If
defeat comes to theparty in the Ninth
district, it will be largely because
representative Glass insisted on hav-
ing hand in the situation that does
not concern him in the slightest, ex-
cept as prospective candidate for the
United States Senate, hand the de-
partment has hitherto, without ex-
ception, refused To allow even in the
case of Irvine. Senator Martin has
never contested for this patronage.
He has simply declared that if pre-
cedents were followed he would make
recommendations and that if they
were not followed, then the post
master-general would proceed as he
saw fit.-Danville Bee.