The Farmville Herald And Farmer Leader

States Rights Party Of Virginia To Start Local Campaign Soon

Glenn Calls This "Return To Two Party System"

C. W. Glenn, of Farmville, one of the slate of electors for the States Rights Party of Virginia, said today that this is not a third party organization, but is rather a conservative "movement"

"The two major parties have been gradually merging," said Glenn. "and their political philosophies are almost identical. Our movement for the independent slate is an effort to preserve the two party system in this country.

The movement is gaining national recognition, and Morgan W. Strothers, of Richmond, has been appointed Virginia's representative on the national committee which will be announced soon. Clarence E. Marion, former dean of the Notre Dame Law School, is chairman of the independent electors movement.

Strother, in a statement to the News Leader, said that the committeemen from 20 to 30 states will meet in Richmond or Washington this week for a national organizing session. Following that meeting he will call a meeting of Virginians interested in the movement to organize the state campaign

The independent electors, of which C. W. Glenn is a member, have filed a petition with the state board of electors to have the name of T. Coleman Andrews appear on the Virginia ballot as candidate for president of the United States. His vice-presidential running mate is T. H. Werdel, a former California Republican congressman.

Andrews said the action was strictly a draft proposition and that business interests would prevent him from waging an active campaign. He will rely on the means of mass communication to carry his message to the people rather than go on a whistle stop speaking campaign

Andrews and Werdel were endorsed by a conference of more than 30 delegates from conservative splinter parties in 25 states, in Memphis Sept 15. At that time a movement to set up a third party was defeated, and the group called themselves a "conservative movement" It was termed "a federation of independent state parties."

The group meeting at Memphis adopted a declaration of principles. A summary of these declarations is as follows:

1 We believe in the limitation, by the people, of Government power.

2 We denounce all forms of centralized power, be they socialist, communist, fascist, or other.

3 We believe that the heart of American Government is local self government. It is the duty of the several states to protect this right

4 We believe that Constitutional principles should determine and control all practical measures.

5 We believe that taxes should serve the people, not punish the people and the sole purpose of taxation, under the Constitution, is to secure revenue for the expense of a constitutionally limited government and the defense of the country

And lastly that. We affirm that the national states rights movement is the first defense of American constitutional principles and is unalterably and forever opposed to the major party merger which now confronts us.

R. B. Crawford, one of the Virginia leaders in the States Rights movement, said that groups in other states have been working for months to set up a slate of electors in their states to sponsor a conservative candidate The process is relatively easy in Virginia, and Andrews will appear on the official ballot as a presidential candidate.