The Lexington advertiser., 1915-07-16
Authorship of Primary Election Law

u AHtAVLsn4P VI Urinary Eleetl0D Law
Governor Noel has received, ID the
course Of the present campaign, sever.
al inquiries from legislative candidates
IN regard to the authorship of our pres.
ent primary election law, as it was
being more or less of an issue in sew.
eraI localities. He made the following
response to one of these letters:
- wrote the present primary cleo
tion law, debating the matter off -hand
to Senator Hinton. without any bill, or
other law to guide me in its subject
matter. | introduced the bill in the
! legislature of 1900. At that session it
/ passed the senate, but was defeated in
the house of representatives by dilato-
ry tactics. At the next session of the
legislature, in 1902, re-introduced the
! bill. 1t passed the senate being the
first bill introduced in the senate. 1t
/ went to the house committee. The
! house committee reported against the
! bill and in favor of what was a modi-
| fed convention bill. | wrote the mi
nOrity report, which was signed by five
members of that committee, and is
found on pages 292-3-4 of the House
journal. | wrote an open letter in ad-
yOcacy of the bill, which letter was
published in the Jackson papers and
laid on the desk of each member of the
legislature, and helped to organize the
support Of the bill in the house of rep
resentatives. Judge SIN. Smith, now
the chief justice of the supreme court.
was then member of the house, from
this county. ! urged him to take one
Of the leading parts in its advocacy,
which he did. There were others in
the house who took an active part, and
among them were Hon. o. S. Robbins,
Arthur Reynolds, D. J. Hubbard, ]. w.
SWinney and W. j. Gibson, who signed
the minority report. MIR. Reynolds,
Of Ethel, Attala county, was especially
active and | handed to him the minori-
ty report | wrote. Judge Smith got
the house to recede from certain
amendments which would have seri.
ously crippled the bill. His action will
be found on page 437 of the House
Journal, After the bill went to the
governor, Longino, on March 8, 1902,
he wrote q series of objections to the
bill. ana asked for its recall which will
be seen on pages 434.6 on the Senate
journal. | was member of the spe-
clal committee, to whom that message
W, S referred. A majority of the com.
mittee reported against the recalling
the bill. A minority report was offered
by Senator R. +. Abbey and defeated
by votes 10 by "a and the senate then
adopted resolution offered by me pre-
senting our construction of the bill as
will be found on pages 440-441 of the
Senate Journal of 1902 The vote show.
ed that the bill would be passed by
two-thirds majority, even if the gov
ernOr vetoed it, After this vote, the
governor approved the bill with grave
doubts which is found on pages 44O-2
of the Senate Journal of 1902.
II was not member of the legisla-
ture OF 1904, but was invited by the
house committee on elections to submit
amendments, and discuss amendments,
to the primary law adopted two years
before. The amendments | favored,
were reported favorable by the COM
mittee, a number of members SAYING
they desired me to be given an oppor-
tunty of perfectiny the law, and most
Of them were adopted by that legisla-
ture.
The previous primary election law.
that found in the Code of 1902, was
not really primary election law, be-
cause it left the whole matter to the
state executive committee, which or
dered conventions, and continued to or
der them, till power was taken from
them in 1902 by the primary election
law.
The primary law was ignored and a
convention ordered by the Democratic |
committee Of lssaqucna county in 1902. |
A proceeding to test the law was in.
The law was upheld in full |
by our supreme court. My argument
in support and explanation of the law
on that triaj is found on pages 626-8 of
50 Mississippi Reports, in the we'll
known primary election case.