The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1891-01-15
HEAR TIE OTHER SIDE.
PRESIDENT STOKES ANSWERS THE
ATTACK OF COL. kEITT.


Tho Charge of Raring Sold the Alliance |
E"T II Gubernatori&l Shadow Positively
Denied and McrciIess1y Kidiculed.
20 the Editor Of the News and Cou-
rier: L have just read in your issue of
January 3 the ill-timed, not to say i'll
tempered article of Col Ellison S. Keitt |
anent the Senatorial contest in which
he ~as interested as Il candidate, mot
in common acceptance of that word"
as he himself puts it.
Your comments thereon are eminent
ly pertinent, entirely fair, size up the
situation fairly well, and doubtless
give uttcranco to the undercurrent of
conviction running through the minds
of all thinking men at all acquainted
with the facts in the case. At the same
time, as you intimate, some expression
is proper and expected from me;
though, as YOU Justly remark, no good
can possibly result to the Order or to
the public service by this public parade
OF 4 purely family affair.
feel sure, therefore, that you will
not refuse to u reply the facilities OF
your widely-read joUrnal that have al
ready been accorded the untimely at
tack.
AS a whole the article in question is
unique. Analysis shows 1t to contain
a modicum Of argument alton, conSid-
erably more Of defamation and innuen-
does, and coIumn of d1liai;&tS. With
its argument shall deal principally;
with its d71im1ts only incidentally, sec
ondarily. It's defamation have
neither time nor patience to discuss.
1t is strangely familiar. an oft repeat
ed story.
DiycStcd Of its defamation and in,
nuendo, Col. keitt'S propositions arG
four, and to the discussion OF these
propositions / shall strive to bring al
Solute fairness, but at the same time
entire franKness and rigid logic. If
the application Of these tests to aspcr-
siOnS upon the characters Of his breth-
rCn-aSperSionS us unworthy as llnwar-
ranted-reSultS in apparent harshneSS
on my part, such harShneSS must be at
tributed to the iueXOraDle conditions
of the case as made up by him, and not
to any unfraternal feeling on my part.
The constitution Of our Order forbids,
as l understand it, my indulging before
the public through the press in animad-
versions upon q member Of the Order.
Provision is made within the Order it.
self for the adjudication of all differ
enccS between members. / shall en-
Geavor, therefore, to coniine myself to
his propositions:
|. Col. keitt holds that an Alliance
Dan, who is member of Congress,
commits perjury "if he is in any degree
influenced by party caucus" In justi-
lication Of his charge he quotes an
agreement signed by committees of the
National Alliance and of the Knights
Of Labor, which agreement, he init.
mates, every Alliance is sworn to obey.
In view Of his ne pins ultra manner on
this point one can scarcely help Won
dering whether Col. EeitG has ever
read the express reservation precedent
to the pledge taken by every applicant
for initiation and upon which the
pledge is conditioned. There are not a
few men in the Order as true, as honest
.9nd Gift be not treason to say iO as in
t,lHgent and StateSm2Rsike as Col.
* citt, who think that the agreement
quoted by him, in SO far as It relates to
party caucus, "contlicts with the free
dom of their political views" This
question has never been 2djudicated,
and in cases OF conflict of ,GDinion, es-
pecLally among brethren and equals, Il
commendable modesty would suggest
the suppression of Incorporate, charges.
2. His second proposition, as we'll as
the third, is cOrOllary of the first. and
stand Or falls with it. The imputaGion
OF perjury to Senator Irby, therefore,
is not justified in the premises. Se2a-
tor lrby, whose record as an Alliance
man, it seems to me, will suffer no dis
paraRement by comparison even with
Col. kiettt. proposes to work for the
Alliance demands through the Demo
cratic party. Col. keittS political con-
/ hn u,
caatc1ts clause; Irby's is-that IS the
whole of it. In our Judgment the
shameful insinuations and offensive
epithets aimed by indirection against
his brother Alliance man by Col. keitt
are wholly unworthy and inexcusabl(
upon any conceivable principle either
Of public utility or Of n lliance polity.
But Senator lrby is Hbundantly abl,
to take care Of himself. even if it wer,
probable that the general public, t,
whom Col. keitt has appealed this CHS
tof distinctly Allan ce Jurisdiction
would not make just discrimination
between the merits antt the spirit of tn,
two men.
3. His third proposition follows b,
implication from the second and fall!
TO the ground with it, but the Colone
must not evade the log ic which he ha.
invoked. If Senator Irby is guilty O.
perjury, as charged by Col. Keitt un
der the terms of the agreement quoted
Chen IS every Alliance member of the
General Assembly involved in the same
condemnation, Col. keitt being Judge
jury and prosecuting attorney in The
caSe-except those who voted for Col
heltt. Now, since not even his sun.
porters voted for him ON the last sever.
| al ballots, all are perjurers by reason OF
their failure to vote for Col. Keitt
This conclusion is unavoidable, because
the agreement quoted reads: "We will
$upp0rt for CDice only such men as can
| be depended upon to enact these prin.
cipleS into statute law uninnuenccd by
party caucus" This, Col Iieitt saws
every member Of the Alliance is sworn
to obey. Very well-Col. Keitt was the
only candidate member Of the Alliance
who considered that freedom from par
ty caucus influence was; not in "conllict
with his political views" But on the
| last few ballots all the Alliance mem
bers Of the General Assembly failed to
vote for Col. Keitt, and under his con-
y f.. n. n ~