The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-05-14
CHIPLEY'S WAR ON CALL.
THE FIRST GUN OF THE CAMPAIGN
FIRED AT FORT MYERS.

Led up to the Declaration Of HostiI-
ities-Col Chipley Asserts That the
Senator'S Record is Without q Re
deeming Feature.
FORT MYERS. May 13-On Aug Is. 1889,
Senator Call published letter in which he
used the following language:
now give notice to my defamers that de-
Tnand that they shall remove their masks come
out from under the cover of the name of the
/ FIOrididn and the Pensacola Neics. and assume
| their own proper names and stand with me be-
/ fore the people in a canvass of every county in
| the state before the nomination of members of
| the Legislature shall BE- made on the charges
| they have made against me, and the charges
which shall make against them. .
! shall charge and demand Of them to answer
accept the issue, and invite them to canvass
the state with me upon it. .
l demand that they make this issue plainly
and openly, and go before the people upon il.
challenge and invite them TO this contest
before the people.
w. ID. Chipley, claiming that be had evil
dence in writing that Senator Call desig-
mated him as a party referred TO- ac-
cepted Senator Calls challenge, when the
senator declined joint discussion through
out the state, but said persons desiring to
attend any appointments he might make
could do So
Mr.. Chipley then resigned his position as
chairman of the democratic state executive
committee for Florida, that all danger
might be removed of involving the party
organization in the quarrel, announcing at
the time his intention to review Senator
Calls record before the people of the state.
These facts led to the speech by Mr.. Chip
ley at Fort Myers tonight, this being the
first appointment in a general canvass of
the state.
The following are extracts from the
speech:
Controversies within our party should be
avoided, and 1t is with regret that am here on
TINS occasion to bring charges against demo-
crat whom we have trusted and honored.
am not here through any desire of mine
put TO make plain my position in issue
rudely thrust upon me by Senator Call himself
and from which my duty to Florida and the
democratic party, and my own self Prospect
will not permit me to retreat.
Mr.. Call in violent and libelous article, dated
az ST. Augustine, Aug. 10, 1889, assaulted alleged
masters" behind the FLorididn and Ddi n
Aeios; not having the courage to publicly name
them, he challenged them to meet him before
the people, and reiterated said challenge five
times.
hold in my hand letter from Senator Call,
which has been handed me, dated the day
before the date of his challenge, in which he
says 'Chipley is the Pensacola NetcS.'
accepted his challenge thus repeatedly
thrust upon me, but informed the senator at
the time that had not written or instigated the
articles to which he objected: for while 7 re-
garded the attack on Mr.. Call as justified by the
facts, considered it premature ard apt to be
forgotten before the real battle would COM
mence.
But agreed to stand with him before the
people, as demanded in his reiterated challenge,
when, to my surprise, Mr.. Call retreated from
his own proposition.
sMr. Call has published q give his own words)
that 81 am an enemy to the people of the state,
and to the cause of public morals
Do you believe that? Do you wonder my
| fellow citzens, that am before you to resent
such vile charges?
To avoid the real issue, he will no doubt tell
you that am a candidate for his place. This is
not true
l said before this contest arose that it would
be a proper and graceful thing for the other
sections of the state to select Mr. Calls sue
cessor from South or East Florida and
reassert that it is upon that policy 1 stand to-
| day.
MIR. Call has shone all his life as a reflected
glory. AS the son of his father, the nephew of
| his uncle, and the brother of Maj George W.
Call, he has been like star in the water on
earth mere reflection OF the bright star in
| heaven, the mirage of which it is my purpose to
eiface as cast into the water block after block
| of his own record
Mr. Call has been in public life forty years;
eleven years in the United States Senate-and
| what has he done!
He is not the author of a single measure in
| state politics or legislation.
ne mas never DeeD lQonClfl6d WITH any public
or private enterprise within the limits of Florida
with any credit to himself or benefit to the state
or people.
His record is absolutely barren of any good.
charge Mr.. Call with gross inefficiency, as
demonstrated by the Record, which shows that
in eleven years. of 40 bills and joint resolutions
| offered by Mr. Call, only fifteen became laws,
and OF these only two were of general interest
| to Florida, and seven were personal or perfume
| tory. OF these, few were passed as drawn by
| him, but had to be put into Ineligible shape by
| the committee. o fair specimen of which you
| will find in the appendix of the pamphlet will
| hand you, in the history there given OF section
| 8, which was first altered by Mr.. Call himself,
after being printed, and then amended by his
| brother senators twelve times.
charge that his record in the present con-
gress is even worse than in previous sessions he
having introduced in the first three months of
| the session sixty eight bills and joint resoll-
tions. to the unconcealed amusement OF his col
| league.
What good does such man do Florida?
In the Forty eighth congress Mr.. Call broke
| his own record for inefficency. He passed one
OF his sxty-nine bills. Two years work, with
$40 900 salary, with perquisites, to relieve the
political disabilities of A. w. Stark.
| believe will tell you a story just here
about Mr.. Calls record. An old farmer who
has been digging living out of Florida's soil
| for fifty years. told me not loag ago that he
had always been Call man; that he did not
| know why, but he reckoned it was because the
| senator was kin to Gov. Call.
| But he had been for Call, and when he read
| my acceptance of Mr.. Calls challenge he Just
| waited to see the senator wipe I'D the earth
| with me. My friend said further that when
| Mr.. Call backed down from his own propc sition
| it hurt him. and he could not help thinking
| about it, and one night he dreamed about it; ht,
| saw Call in full run, being pursued by bis own
1 record (My friends, let me say right here that
| that there is nothing under the sun which Mr.
Call should be more afraid of than that record J
But to resume my story-my friend saw in
| his dream Mr.. Call slipping into hollow iog
| Unfortunately he got into one of those logs
| which are said to grow down in nv friend s
| county, which swell when wet and shrink when
| dry.
| The log was wet when Mr.. Cali slipped into
| self stuck hard and fast. His position was a
| dangerous one, and, like all men facing death,
he commenced reviewing the events of his
life.
My friends eyes twinkled with merriment as
he added AT last Mr. Call came to his sena-
torlal record, and when he got to that he felt so
small that he slipped out of that log just as
| easy as posSum out OF gum stump"
| The last decade has presented many impor-
tant measures, and great opportunities have
| been enjoyed by Mr.. Call If he had possessed
| industry. ability and influence, be might have
secured Florida's Indian war claim.
| He could have repealed unearned land grants
| before the companies earned and secured them.
He might have rehabiltated the Pensacola
navy yard.
He should have secured for Tampa the Brooke
reservation. and large harbor and river appro-
| priations with our 200 miles of seacoast and
u.