The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1893-08-02

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This is to say that Mr.. James H
Tillman told me he was responsible 70
the article signed 'Craddock' published
in last Sundays Chronicle.
(Signed) "F. G. CAUGHMAN.n
This certificate, if such it may b.
called, was given me by Mr.. Caughmar
at my request, as it was being circu
lated by idle tattlers that Mr.. Caugh
man and ] had had some hot word
and that 1 had repudiated any respon
sibility for any and ali parts of thu
"Craddock" dispatch. a report which
was entirely unfounded and untrue.
Now, as regards DR.. Pope's resplen
dent and voluntary testimony, I shall
have little to say. His sole purpose
was evidently intended, regardless O.
truth and fact, to eXtricate Senate,
Irby from an unfortunate situation
DR.. Pope was in Columbia a few days
preceding the appearance Of Senator
Irby's reply and conversed on this sub
ject very promiscuously. Some of the
gentlemen to whom he talked told me
that DR.. Pope had either lied to them
or to the public in his card. (If Dr.
Pope desires the names of these gentle.
men he can get them.) His card is
| brim full Of mis-statements and mac.
curacies. In the first place, there is nc
telegraph office on Fourteenth street
In the second place, to the best of my
recollection the article was never read
to him, OF if it was, it was in the pre-.
! sence of Major Gary. before I left Sena.
tor Irhy's room the first time. AS for
his saying that told him whenever l
had Communications of this character
to publish 1 used the nom de plume
"Craddock" instead of -. H. t.
it is absurd, for all of my dispatches 10
the Chronicle, even those of the most
trivial character, were either not signed
at all or signed "Craddock.n I pre-
ferred nom de plume for the excusable
reason that was tired of seeing nv
name in print. DR.. Pope has probably
taken this opportunity to inject his
imaginary and corroborative testimony
into this controversy for the purpose of
settling an old score. I once alluded
to him in one of my "horrible" Grad
dock" dispatches rs running from the
cable cars'' while in Washington. He
has never liked me since. There are
othes things, too, that serve to chill his
affections. When DR.. Pope came to
Washington soon after the Inaugural
ton to prosecute his candidacy for
marshal he asked me to puff him in
the Evening News (Washington) for
the place. I declined and assigned as
my reason that had other preferences.
He then said that if be was not ap-
pointed marshal, he was a candidate
for Governor and that the next Gov
ernor OF South Carolina would have
to beat Samps. Pope for the nomina-
ton" He requested me to telegraph
this news to my home papers and start
him boom for Governor I refused to
do this for reasons entirely satisfactory
to myself and seemingly unpleasant to
DR.. Pope. He grew somewhat testy
and then said, "Well, damn it, 1 am
going back to South Carolina in a few
days and don't propose to ride on the
Richmond & Darville Railroad because
it won't pay its taxes. Will you tele-
graph that?" [ told him yes, and
laughingly suggested that be might
run his gubernatorial campaign with
that as platform. My conduct on
this occasion was probably the inspira-
tion of DR.. Pope's card and is the iliad
of his woes and "horrors'' therein con-
tanned.
DR.. Pope is a sort ofanateur Journal
ist, himself, and while in Washington
frequently passed away odd moments
preparing nom de plume productions
for the Carolina reform papers, profess
ing to give the political situation at the
national capital, in all of which be
never forgot to say good word for
Pope. "Warwick" was his favorite
cognomen, and it was under this
mighty name that he most often
welded his graphic pen, to tell the peo-
pie of South Carolina what q really
great man be was, and what a fine
chance be stood to he marshal. (The
public will please refer to the files of
the Columbia Register for a corrobora-
tion of this assertion.
I desire also to call especial attention
to the card published by Senator Irby
from Major Gary. He very adroltly
said "the article signed 'Craddock' was
not dictated by you to your private
secretary" but he did not say that it
was not dictated by Senator Irby to
me and [ defy Senator Irby to get any
statement from Major Gary to that
effect. Senator Irby in bis letter said:
"Major William T. Gary, of Augusta,
and Mr.. James H. Tillman came into
my sitting room at the National Hotel.
Major Gary said to Tillman that what
be had told him few moments before
ought to be repeated to Irby. L asked
what it was and Tiilman told the fol-
lowing tale" x Major Gary said no
such thing and he will not verify any
such statement. The conversation was
brought up by Senator Irbly himself,
and was simply a Tehash of what he
had told me that morning, and Major
Gary, who was present, will not cor
roborate single assertion made by
Senator lrby other than the fact that
the dispatch was not dictated by him
to his private secretary.
Senator 1rby also said by way of an
introduction to his card that told him
| had just left Geneal Farley in the
Metropolitan Hotel. This is ridicu-
lous. General Farley had returned to
South Carolina and Senator Irby knew
it. The rest of his story is wholly i'm
ginary and viciously false, even urto
the parenthetical assertion that "Gov-
ernor Ii!lman and Congressman Till
man were not on speaking terms"; but
1t was necessary for him to inject this
statement into his tale to make it plau-
sible. The fact that General Farley
had prepared an article on the political
situation in South Carolina was no
secret. He read it to me more than
six weeks before the Inauguration, and
before and since that time has read it
to many others. There was nothing
whatever in it derogatory to Governor
Tillrnan or any Of the leaders.
This particular "Craddock" dispatch
is not the ouly one ever sent by Sen
ator 1rby to the Chronicle. The follow
ing appeared in that paper simultan-
eously with the Columbia Register. It
was dictated by Senator Irby to Mr..
w. J. Shelton and was filed at the
Western Union telegraph office by
Six points, out of many, where DR..
Pierce's Pleasant Pellets are better than