Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1881-06-16

now held by any citizen Of Abbeyille county,
ne ehaii have tho support not only Of the
ftsss and Banner but Of the intelligent aud
cultured citizens Of this county.
"Ooonee should spurn tho commission that
should be.issued to one of her citsens 'bas
cause that; county had heretofore received no
omcial appointment Commissions should
90 asked for and granted only because Of
she peculiar 8tness Of the recipient for the
position. Geographical politics in our opin-
ion, are demoralising in tho highost degree,
and can only tend to level all tue higher
standards and to crush out all the nobler
aims and impulses Of tho citisen. When it
comes to that condition Of affairs that tho
accident of ones birth shall determine his
htness for ofice the peopls will have reason
to mourn"
These expressions indicate that Abbeyille
holds Office solely on the superior com petency
and htness Of her citizens and appears to be
IN etfeot declaration that Ooonee aud other
counties hold no outside Office because of the
lack Of tbese qualifications. We quote the
language and leave our readers to Judge it's
meaning, but We do not believe the fair
minded people Of Abbeville entertain any
eaoh views. and if they did the same
geography which tho Press and Banner
| condemns would ut tho fret opportunity
squeloh such presumptuous arrogance aud
vain egotism. The same article says: ave
hope that our neighbor will present the
personal claims of citizens because of
their talent their education and their
| real merit, and not because Of the
fact that they live near the mountains."
The candidate we offered compared we'll
In education, moral character, gifts of an
advocate, age aud experience in his profes
sion with the candidates from other counties,
and we believed then and do now. that we
the strongest claims to the Office. IN saying
this now we do not mean that tho appointee
is not entirely acceptable to us. On the
contrary, we know Col. Orr we'll and like him
as man and as a lawyer and believe he will
fill the Office with ability aud credit So
would the candidates of Abbeville ond other
counties Of the circuit.
There is on impression here. and it is not
without foundation, that the tier of counties
along the mountains have not received that
recognition in the distribution Of Offices which
the culture of their citizenship and the ser.
vice rendered by them to the party in power
merit The Columbia Register generously
admits this, and the Pese and Banner will
in time have to admit it. We dscloim any
superiority, but spurn the implied inferi.
ority of our citizens over those of other
counties. Citizens of this county have on
several occasions sought positions for which
We believed them eminentiy qualified, aud
while we admit no county can or ought to
expect to be successful 10 every appli-
cation, still we think oficos should be dis
tributed as far as possible to different sections
of the State. We soy this as to all the coun-
ties aud feel sure that Abbeville always has
had and always will have competent men for
all Offices, and never object to it Or any other
county holding them, but claim that our
county should not be entirely ignored.
Public Offices like friendship have
cohesive tendency and whether OBJ
tanned by nomination and election or by
appointment, they are due more to the nau
ences of locality aud personal friendship
than to competency, for in this day of
education competent nun con be found in
every section Of the State.
Much harder to bear than failure is
the supposed cause of failure, to wit that
Oconee does uot enter tho contest upon the
We hold, and VIC will prove it in our next
issue, that the citizenship of Oconee in point
OF native talent, moral character and patriot,
ism will average we'll with that of my other
county, whether the comparison be made
among the farmers, merchants, lawyers,
doctors or mechanics. If this be true, is it
not geography that chiefly operates to defeat
the aspirations f citizens of the line coun.
ties to Officer 1t lis idle, not to say arrogant,
for the Press and Banner to put the
holding of Office 10 Abbeville on the
the sole ground Of qualification. Our contem-
porary could not mean it. Did Abbeville in
former days join the cry of the up country
against the parish system? If 80 why? Was not
our government honestly and economically ad-
ministered? Were not our offices filled by men
amply qualified and had We any reason but
geography to base our opposition on?
Suppose the lower counties had said then 1--WE
set no claim to anything except in so far as that
claim may bc justified in the qualification of
our men. The low country enters the contest,
as the upcountry should do, merely upon the
fitness and competency of our citizens" Would
this have satisfed Abbevlle or the up country
vi "ou'u ~ hot haVe peen addlng insult to in
juryf
All! geography! geography Will the Press
and Banner deny that geography has great
weight in every election, municipal, county,
State and national. or claim that il should not
have? In The election Of officers Of towns and
cities the location Of the candidates is con-
sidered. In the selection of members to the
Legislature here and, we believe, oil over the
State, the location Of the candidates has great
weight, oil according to every section a ripht of