The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1894-09-05
A Strong Statement.
Greenviil{e NeWS.

ming to shout already of stamping out
and putting down and "crushing" any
opposition to the State ticke to be nomi-
mated by the John Gary Evans conven-
ton. Governor Tillman has spoken in a
published interview on the same line and
we are hearing much of the dangers Of an
appeal to the black vote.
All that kind of talk sounds well
enough, but it will not frighten any body
and when we come to consider the sub
joct practically it means nothing.
Suppose ticket is nominated in oppo.
sition to the John Gary Evans ticket and
are you going to punish and crush and
stamp out and put down?
Do you mean 10 ostracise them po'iti-
cally? You haye done that already. The
negroes and Republicans have precisely
the same showing in the politics of this
State that is given the white Democrats
who declined to follow and support Till
| man.
The theory and course Of the Tillman
| managers and leaders has been to shut
| the Conservatives out everywhere and in
every way as completely as the negroes
| are shut out.
Two years ago We made fight in the
primaries. That was denounced as a
|
had not made that fight discord and fac
tional lines would have been abolish
ed. This year we made no fight, took no
part. All we asked was some opportuni-
| ty to express choice as among "Refor-
mers," all of them men approved by their
own faction, and without any taint of
Conservatism. BY the operation of a. new
| system of machinery and a manipulation
which made opposition inside the party
| practically impossible, we were denied
| even the privilege of choosing from
| among "Reformers."
Even minorities have rights. Even
| anti-Tillman people who live and pay
taxes in State ought to have the power
somewhere and in some way of express
| ing their preferences for the men who are
to administer the laws and manage the
affairs of the State. The Conservatives
| people, and they cannot be blamed for
wishing to have some say in electing
State officers.
Furthermore, they have seen the party
they are members of saddled with the
platform of the Populists, who are in
most of the States and in the country at
large bitterly hostile to that party. They
| have heard the leader of that party in the
country, and the president elected by
their votes made the object of bitter and
vulgar abuse and shameful slanders by
| Governor Tillman and his friends and
supporters.
Furthermore, they have heard Cover
nor Tillman declare his belief that the
Democratic party is rotten and debauch-
| ed and his purpose to lead all who will
follow him into an alliance with some
other party, regardless of names.
Now, what are the Conservatives to do 2
The bulk of them submitted Loyalty four
years ago when the majority of the white
| people were against them. They sub
| two years ago when they had made their
| fight and been defeated. This time they
| have made no fight and have been denied
the opportunity even to vote for their
choice as among "Reformers." They
have,been shut out Of the party they have
| belonged to and have done good service
for. No opportunity has been given for
an expression of the will of the majority
| Of the party. John Gary Evans is the
nominee of less than 10000 of the $4,000
| democrats of the State, 80 far as the re-
turns show. Are we stand and wait un-
til it suits the pleasure, convenience and
interests of Governor Tillman to official
| ly declare the Democratic party of South
| Carolina dissolved and to lead his follow
ers elsewhere7
He says his democracy is white suprem-
acy. His words and acts stamp the
statement as false. Was it in the inter.
est of white supremacy to blackguard
| accuse Democratic officials and represen-
tatives, to put the city of Charleston, full
of white people, into a black Congress
| district, to stir strife continually by every
| possible means, to draw and maintain
| lines of division.
Now suppose, considering all these
things, white men do nominate ticket
| to be voted for at the general election in
November, who is going to crush them
I out, and hoW2
You cannot ostracise them politically.
/ You have already done that. From the
smallest place to the highest every anti is
ruled out.
Will you ostracse them socially? They
are rather too many and respectable for
that to work.
Will you boycott them and try to ruin
them in businessP You have tried that,
too-tried hard. But they are too strong
and too many for that kind of thing to
work on. You have done rs much Of il
as you could.
| y
You have Just put them where they
can't be any worse off than they are.
You have deliberately thrust them out
with the Republicans and the negroes.
You have exhausted your resources .oi
vengeance and punishment. No matter
how far they 60 or what they do you can
treat them no worse than you have treat
ed them. You have made anti Tillman-
ism the capital political crime. II any o1
us break all the other political com mand-
ments we can be punished no more. You
have been little too smart; you have
run the string little too far.
So all this talk Of crushing and stamp.
ing out and putting down will not fright
en- anybody: II any number of white
men in this State decide to nominate and
support ticket for the November cleo
ton they will have legal right to do il
and moral right to do it, and they will
do it and nobody will hinder them.
Speaking for the Conservatives, it will
be matter Of choice with chem whether
they will vote for anybody or not. They
are footloose and free, have no reason tc
be afraid of any body, are not afraid Of
anybody, and can and will do Just as they
like and vote for anybody Who may take
their fancy. There is no question of ne.
gro supremacy. The negroes can put uE
ticket of their own if they like and can
vote as they like. They will very likely
hold the balance Of power. But they will
hold it anyhow when Governor Tillmar
leads off his new party movement when
he sees thet light in the West. We have
no doubt John Gary Evans will work as
hard for their votes as Brother Watson
did over in Georgia or Brother Kolh die
in Alabama. We suppose he intended
to make his break before November, sc
the ticket, if one is put up, will not even
hasten the calamity against which the
GreenuiIse Ne,cs has been struggling these
many years.
In our view the damage has been done
We have urged submission on one side
and moderation on the other, but The
limit of possible submission has beer
passed and instead of moderation there
has been steadily increasing fanaticism
tyranny and 6stracism. All we can Ge
is to stand aside and let the thing work
itself out. 1t is beyond control aow.
We look to see new party formations
and coalitions here. In our Judgment ar
invlncible political combination will
result and some very strange things
things which few years ago would
have been thoaghtimpossible-will come
to pass.
The Reform. leaders are ia the position
of boys who have started thousand tor
rock down a hill. They might like tc
call it back, but tho work has been done
and the disaster must follow. They CAM
| stop it by shouting 0nd threatening. AS