The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1888-04-04
Merely a Tineserver.

Merely a Ti'neserver.
Our friends OF the Ne,cs and Courier
have acertain facility for sitting as
tride she fence, on any question what
soever, and for stepping down first on
one side and then on the other, and
finally bobbing up and perching Sc
zenely on the rail, that amounts al
most 20 genius As We have said,
che question is of no consequence
whatsoever. The fence is its farorite
position; and, it must be confessed,
That it Is, in many respects, position
Of advantage. While you are, con-
structiyely, on both sides, you have
committed yourself to neither. If
either side gets too warm for you, you
seek shelter on the other, and swear
by all that's honest that you were
there all the time.
You can easily prove an alibi,
by being always nowhere in par
icular.
In the J. M. Smith matter, this ia
ciEty for shifting faces finds o mag
ni6cens opportunity, and it is not lost.
Il is seized with avidity and made
the most OF. The thoughtarises,
however, that the Ne,cs and Courier,
having, in its capacity as official or
gan" TO swallow rather a nauseous
dose in the recent Charleston election,
is trying to ease its spirit Of resent
mont BY having fling at Columbia
and poor Mr.. Smith. The excuse for
this inconsissency-for even the N. d
C. can see how such q doubling up
might be considered inconsistect-ls
that while che candidates We, in
Charleston, were called upon to vote
for were bod, yet Mr.. Smith is 'corse.'
For the force Of this comparison OF
bad with worse, we have only the au-
thosity in reference to the frauds in
which MI. Smith. probably, had his
share. In this matter, it would be
better witness than judge. :.
This consistent journal is veSy care
iul to point out the pages in therecord
UPON which are entered the charges
against J. II. Smith. There are other
pages in shst record which the y. and
C. would not relish turning to. If it
will turn to pages $50 and 264 Of
the Report ON Public Frauds" it
would be more edited than in re-
hsshing the record of Mr.. Smith.
But in attacking Mr.. Smith, the ".
csd G.. Sorgets that it is encouraging
ipdependensism-a thing abhorred by
sings and bosses-and that it is as
ssiGng the principles that govern
what it so proudly called the regular
Democratic nomination.
NMr. Smith is dropped, Will it not
be 'the opening WEDGE" which We
heard 20 much Of last fall, and which
threatens the splitting asundsr of the
partys The so-cslled regular" Dem
ocratic nominating convention put up
Mr. Smith as euinine pill-un-
sugared and undisguised-for good
Democrats to swallow. We had
some Of these pills to swallow last
fall, and though We agurgled and
guggled" We managed TO worry them
down. The nomination by the Greg
usa-" Democratic convention is pan
sces for all conscience misgiying.
This was the only reason We tolerated
the nominations, and elected the can
didates. But the trouble the city
has had with them since, with their
economic theories and e1travagant
practices, and with their system of
oppression, has proved a heavy retri-
hutton.
We confess, then, for many reasons,
we would Ike to see Columbia hold
her breath and swallow the Smith
pill, as We swallowed our pills We
had many pills-Columbia has but
one. But it will do the work. It
will teach Columbia the terrible les
son which it is hoped Charleston has
thoroughly lesrned-to put no trust
in what the ring calls the regular"
Democratic party. 1--we place our
selves in the power of this self-styled
regular" convention. we can expect
nothing but ring-rule. When we ac-
knowledge them to be the regular"
convention, we must abide by their
work-Sor it is ours by blind adop-
tion.-ChorleSon San.
MF. Smith and his Judges.