Year: 1859

10 the Editor Of the Fcliciana Democrat:


RI am one of those who believe il to he essen
TALLY necessary for proper fair, and equitable ad.


mpistration of government like ours To have it adj


mnistered on true Democratic principles as laid


down in the Cincinnati Platform and as long as our


government is administered in strict accordance with


those principles, ust long will this Great Hcpub.


lie Of ours, with all its vast extent Of territory and


its varied interests be preserved. protected and per
pctnated therefore. we should never depart from


those cardinal principles for The purpose of advan-
cling or fostering any local sectional interest what


In order TO maintain those great and salutary


principles the integrity Of the whole Democratic par


ty must be preserved. and to do this party nomina.
tons become absolutely nccessaiy otherwise. mum


her OF candidates for the same Office would often en-


ter the canvass, and the party would he defeated hy


a division in its ranks Hence it is important that


these nominations should be made on n perfectly fair
and equitable basis TO give to the entire Democ-
racy interested in the nomination about to hr made


aiu fair, and reasonable opportunity of being heard
in their primary meetings If you defeat this essen.


ia and equitable principle You sap the very lounda-
ton of n truly representative government and in


stead of having your public servants selected and


chosen by the voice OF the sovereign people who have


a right to be heard you have them chosen by few
interested Office seekers, clique. faction and if


persisted in. will eventually destroy the only means
by which party can be held and induced to act in
harmony together.


If there was any thing Democratic in the proceed.


ngs of the meeting at Clinton. the sth of Janna-
ry have not been able TO discover it, In the first
place, the meeting was called at the request of thir


teen gentlemen the notice was TO the Democracy TO
meet at the Court House in Clinton, when there was
two other respectable villages in the Parish one
about thirteen, and the other about twnnty,siy miles
from Clinton. Could it be expected that the citizens
OF jackson and Port Hudson, and the remote por-
tions Of the Parish would or could attend meeting
at such great inconvenience? Did not Justice enu
ty, and fair dealing demand that some more canla.
bic and convenient plan should have been adopted
But the meeting was appointed to take place AT the
Court House, at Clinton One would naturally sup
pose the meeting would be held at the Court House
Not bit of it, When the time arrived for the meet
ing to come Off B. NJ G. Brown, Iisqr.. believe rang
the bell few times, came down stairs, locked the
Court House door and walked off, Many persons
not Interested in the secret of the intended movement
were standing about, waiting to the doors of the
Court House thrown open, and the crowd proceed to
the court room Not SO. The meeting, (such as il
was), was held round on another street at what is
called Sturgcs Hall. What caused this movement
leave to be determined by the Democracy hereafter
Bnt, strange to tell in the town of Clinton with
resident population of over 1900 souls. and perhaps
eighty or one hundred saddle horses hitched around
and aJout the Court House fence, with quite mum
Der of carriages and other vehicles in town, at the
time, there was nineteen gentlemen, all told who vo-
ted for the resolution recommending the Hon. John
McVca to the favor Die consideration Of the conven
ton at Baton Rouge rs q proper candidate for the
Office of Associate Justice, &c.


Now, Mr. Editor, such proceeding is we'll calcula-
ted to divide and distract the Democratic party East
Felicana has nearly five hundred Democratic voters,
many of those voters live twenty and twenty-five
miles from the court house. who have an equal right
to be heard in the selection of their candidates with
those more centrally situated. Now, put the ques
tion to every candid Democrat Has the Democracy
of East Feciana been fairly dealt by in this matter
when the nominations made for the last fall cleo
tion of Parish officers in East Feciana, that is the
Sheriff, Recorder, &C., the Democracy voted at their
respective precincts, and no doubt fair expression
OF the will of the majority was obtaned--was there
any good reason why the should not have
been adoptsd in this nomination They have appoint
ed three delegates for each ward in the Parish could
lot the Democrats of the respective Wards have us
EASILY elected them? If they had they would have car
lied to convention the wishes and preferences of the
Democrats of the Wards from which they were elect
3D. and not the partiZan views of the committee who
selected them, and of the nineteen gentlemen who
.dopted the report of the committee at the SO called
Democratic Meeting.


If they had followed the plan adopted in nomina-
ing the Parish candidates at the last election, it
would have been fair, just, and proper. What right
ave nineteen gentlemen in Parish containing near
y five hundred Democratic votes to assume the re-
possibility of nominating three delegates from each
Yard in the Parish thereby usurpng the rights and
privileges Of the Democracy of the different Wards
lrc they under pupage that they cannot speak for
themselves or must their voices be sifcd to answer
particular cud!