The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1874-07-23
S. G.
Thursday Morning. July %. 1874.
An Ger True Tale.


An Der True Tale.
The speech of Ex-Governor Scott,
delivered on the 4th of July. in Fair
field, which appeared in our columns
yesterday, deserves word of remark
at our hands. The Ex-Governor says
great deal that is true about the
increase of debt. the progress Of cor.
ruptiqn, and the. hopelessness of im-
provement., The spirit Of, the speech
and ,its,genes1. purpose are such as to
excite b6mmia aerAtion, II they d6 not
wholly! inerit lapproval.s They show
that the Ex-Governor is not too old to
learn. and. that he has not been an
Indifferent spectator Of, if he has been
an e4happy, actor In. our, troubled
affairs. He, sees the'wrecks, lying all
around, of the State credit and tue
public honor, and aho Of the private
intagsity ofahis associates and fellow,
partisans.y He recognizes the astupen.
dous failure OF schemea which lie was
conSsfhed. inbrieinating, the prostra.
tion of ally shs7psPiio interests. the
decay of all tfe ppblie iqs.itations, the
poverty. misery, disnontent and dissa-
tisfaesion Of .;the people. He is con.
scious that our public Affairs are
involved in hopeless confusion, and
that Ahe prime causes are the incompe.
tenoy and want Of principle OF those
who laspifed to lead and direct, co-ope-
rating with and shamelessly abusing
Che ckild like dependence and ,trust of
On ignorant and credalous constitu.
eney. The Ex-Governor, like his asso-
ciatss in Office. tile men who were on
his different Boards, the functionaries
in charge Of his bureaus, and like The
present Governor and his right ana
left bowers, all stand upon this mount
OF rnin-all look wistfully away to
some distant. imaginary source of
rassel, or to some other fat land of
Canaan. They are incapable of deal
ing with the evils OF which they are
the authors. ;iii,i,s Il e. ~.
In ahis extremity. they merely in
,criminate esoh other, in trying to shift
che blame from their own shoulders,
They have not word of wisdom to
address to theitd daaedT followers not
q suggestion. ,YoFth 9 baubsa While
we haylthis, va GAN but appreciate the
indignant protest which'ex-Gov. Scott
makes against the unco-righteous pre-.
tension, of the pseudo :reformers. He
knows them we'll. and recalls the ugly
fact that ''most OF them have been
either principals or accessories to all
the bad aud destructive legislation of
chat period. and have been parties to.
all the schemes whereby the moneys Of
the State have been squandered and
its resources crippled for years to
come" In his judgment. they are
only '.seskipg foy new aelas Of public
pluhdes."1 When he said to his cable
audience. that nnless they shall here
after elect better class of men to
Office, the sooner the Republican party
shall oease to exist. the better it will
DE both for the people and the State.
he said only what is true, even without
the condition, but what. at the same
time. he could never induce them to
believe, and what it was perfectly USE
less and idle to say. How can those
people do any better? The petty poll
ticians who, as the speaker said, roam
over the State and pander to the igno-
rance. prejudices and passions of the
people for their own benefit, are the
very men whom they love, whom they
believe and whom they will support.
When he went further and told them
that taxpayers. will refuse to pay the
taxes, which only breed and foster cor
ruption, and that the Democratic
party are not responsible for the
financial evils, when he even advised
them to elect ut least one Democrat
from each County, he showed that his
eyes are open. But it all amounts to
very little. There is no remedy in it
adequate to the disease. DR.. SCOTS