Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1892-07-28
The Hon. Sam. Byrns.

Mr.. Byrns, under date of July 18th,
you announce yourself a candidate for
Congress, and coupled with that an
nOuncement you see fit to say several
| things concerning the REGISTER and its
conduct during the present campaign.
Contrary to the practice adopted by
your organs, the REGISTER shows you
fair play by copying in full your letter
wherein you declare your candidacy
and the alleged causes leading thereto.
Two years ago the REGISTER favored
your nomination.; after your nomina-
ton, it advocated your election, with
| all the yigOr and force which its editor
possessed: persistently and without
ceasing, up to the day of election. The
REGISTER was for you because it believ
| ed you would fifty and fairly represent
in Congress the great issues which DOM
mated the campaign and gave the De-
| mocracy of the Union a victory with
indicated the faith placed in you by
your constituents? The answer to
this question is that by which you must
stand or fall.
| Your first act after election affecting
your constituents was that of going to
Jefferson City as an attorney for cor
poration to lobby against a bill pend
ing before the Legislature. OF the
merits or dement's of that bill, it is I'M
necessary now to speak. 1t was bill
introduced at the instigatiOn of the F.
& l.. L., and other labor organizations,
TO which organizations, before election,
you had made numerous if not unlimit-
ed pledges - formal and printed
pledges, to which your autograph was.
as we know OF our own knowledge, duly
attached. Yet the introduction of the
ate the condition of the laborer found
you ready prepared to assist in its de-
feat. You plead that you We're there
merely as an attorney, with $50 much
in hand the whilst" and that your ac-
ton was at the bidding of the corpora
ton which had hired and, for the time.
owned you. Mr.. Byrns, is this not the
worst of all pleas? As paid attorney
you could not stop to inquire if the
thing to be done was good, bad or in
different. You were the slave 10 your
employers. and all other interests-Of
your constituency, OF the State-must
be subservient to the fee which bound
you to your willing thraldom. That
fee no doubt was large one-it should
have been, for it bought in addition to
the talent of an able lawyer the pres
tige attaching to the high and honor
able position of Congressman; but how
ever large. and however much it fat |
tened the leanness of your purse, was
it large enough, Sam? An answer |
from you to this question is scarcely to
be expected; but if you were to answer,
in the light of succeeding events, a
NO must roll down the ave
nues of ever-receding time.
You will remember, Mr.. Byrns, that
the REGISTER did not Immediately give
voice to the dissatisfaction expressed
by your people at this your first lapse
from their interests; it hoped that your
speech before the committee having the
Hitler bill in charge was legacy left I
over from private practice, and that
you would sin no more We were con-
firmed in this opinion after reading a
letter from you to one of your constitu-
ents, wherein you assured him that
you had merely made speech for which
you were paid as an attorney-only
that and nothing more; you had done
no lobbying whatever with the mem
bers for or against the Hitler bill. We
were again little perplexed when GER
tain members of the Legislature denied
the truth of your disclaimer; but we
still maintained a deep silence; for,
with those we love and for whom we
have labored, we are patient and of
long-suffering. Don't you know that if
Mr.. Kinsey had been elected and had
gone up to Jefferson City and done the
thing you did, that we would have
jumped on him with both feet. without