The New York herald., 1922-05-07

| TfON NNc uuOfcoo % yOf"tef "hsttSc WYNN
dinner Of the Brooklyn Bar Association IN
As has been said, Judge Putnam is
in every essential product OF the civil
ization. the government, the customs
and the traditions OF New England. and,
according to De Tocqueville, the greatest
factor in producing the political thought
which crystallized into government there
was the town meeting.
That institution, according to the
scholars had Teutonic origin and was
transported to England, where it be-
came an efficient agency in government.
and thence to New England, where the
system reached it's perfection. Through
the town meeting every citizen had a
hearing The poor and lowly met and
debated with the rich and exalted on
equal terms over their town affairs.
That system spread from New England
| throughout the United States, and all
| the States We're divided into counties.
| the counties into towns and the town
became the unit of government, the real
place of political initiative. SO that when
political conventions became the bodies
from which emanated the nominees of
/ tiic NdfiOuS pdtlicS iOl OHuCc tHiS tOWA
unit became the base of the column.
| In county convention each town was
represented by delegates selected by con-
| tests conducted by the voters of the
respective political parties within the
towns. The method was for a candidate
who wanted to be nominated for office
ito so into a town and If the town was
entitled to. we will say, six delegates
he enlisted the support of as many citi-
zens as possible, selected his delegates
with due geographical care, and his op-
ponent did likewise, thus distributing
the proposed delegates in the various
sections of the town. Then a battle
royal occurred to see which of those
citizens Of that town should attend the
county convention and make the NOM
nations for the county officers.
When they assembled with the dele
gates from the other towns at the place
where the convention was to be held
list of the towns and a list of the
delegates selected from the several towns
was made, and when it was in order to
nominate the candidate the town was
called and the representatives of the
town, called delegates, were called by
name and recorded their choice for "a
candidate for the Office to be filled. Like
conventions were held for the nomina-
ton of members of the Assembly in
Assembly districts, for the State Sena-
tors in the Senatorial districts, for men,
bers of Congress in Congress districts.
AT these Assembly district conventions
delegates were chosen to represent the
district in State and judicial conven-
tons and these representatives with
their credentials attended those bodies
and participated In the selection OF can
didates for all the State elective officers
and the Justices of the Supreme Court.
These conventions made it possible for
delegates from each of the towns COM
posing the county or the Assembly, Sem
atorial or Congress district to meet and
become personally acquainted. 1t per-
mitted all of the delegates assembled to
see and know the public men who
aspired TO hold the officea
This acquaintance was of the highest
political value, and sine the discontinue
ance of the convention system there are
no similar political gatherings at which
representative men and women assemble,
and / have frequently heard people who
used TO be interested in these meetings
say that under the present system they
had ceased to know their public officers
even by sight, and that they never have
occasion 10 meet with any considerable
number of their fellow citizens to talk
oyer political affairs. Certainly this was
taking great deal out OF the political
life of the State.
This method of having a large num-
ber of people actually participate in gov
ernment in representative capacity
bred an intelligent interest in politics,
and by the process of strife political
leaders were developed in every one OF
these towns. and from these leaders so
developed came the great leaders of the
parties in the State and nation. 1t was
perfect system, Of representative gov
ernment. Under 1t every so-called