Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-10-04
THEY WANT A FIGHT.
DALLAS CITIZENS ANGRY AT CUL8ER-
SONS HOSTILITY TO 1T.


There was a Dallas official in New York
recently who seemed to know all about
the fight now in preparation, as well as
about Governor Culberson He was per-
feotly free to speak and reserved nothing
except his name.
You see, I'm holding Dallas county
office" said this sage official, (Which pays
me about $40, 900 year, and am looking
for reelection myself 1 am for the fight,
like every other official and business man
in Dallas, but I've no feud with the pull
pits, and 1 don't care to arrange one by
letting my name go in this connection"
"What sort of a man is Governor Gull
bersOn?" was asked this Texas gentleman.
"Charlie Culberson, the governor" he
replied "is nothing but boy. He's only
about 80 years old. I've known him all
my life, and he's good people; one of the
boys, only in this instance of the Corbett-
FitRsimmons fight he's got off on the
wrong foot.
"Culberson's father, as you know, is
member of congress. Young Culberson,
the governor, is about as swift politician
IA Texas has afforded since the days of
sam Houston. He's n lawyer, with pre-
He's been member of the legislature and
Just prior to his election as governor had
served two terms as attorney general of
the state. The fact that he was young
didn't hurt him bit in Texas, and he
won these offices with ease and filled them
with success.
AT the last state convention he came
up for the nomination for governor. He
is a nativ resident of Dallas county, and
among ne bakers dozen of candidates in
the state Dallas county furnished two.
The question with Culberson was, could
he carry Dallas county against his Oppo-
nent The opponent in this instance was
rather Il straight laced and religious party;
had what you would call the religious ele
ment behind his game. CulbersOn came
to me and to Sheriff Cabell and others of
the ofliccholdcrs of Dallas county and
asked us what we thought about it.
'"WelI, Charlie, we said we've talked
this thing over among ourselves and have
concluded to take your end of it, We are
going to turn in and give you Dallas
county with it's 80 votes, and we'll see
what we can do for you with the rest of
the state. Well give these other fellows
run for their money in any event.
And we did. Culborson hadn't any
money to put into the campaign. So we
threw in all around and made up a bundle
amounting to about sig, 600. My own per-
sonal contribution to this showed three
ciphers on the proper side of the dollar
mark, and ! know others who gave as
much. And want to say right here that
we, the very persons who nominated Gull
berson are the very ones who are now try
ing to pull off this Corbett- Fitzsimmons
match.
1--WE got Culberson through all right,
and of course ne was elected. The election
part is a cnch in Texas, so far as the Dem
oCrat is concerned and we had won the
fight when we got him the nomination.
About the first thing he did was to disturb
us on the question Of finance. Weare veer-
ing little for gold down in Texas these
days, and Culbcrson, without stopping to
find out where his tribe was going, came
out in the most extravaganza flat footed
shape for silver, 16 to l. Yes, we used tc
be for silver little harder than we are
now. In 1892 we went into the game with
money on three cards-Cleveland, free sill
yer and the offices We win on Cleveland
and lose on the other two. Since then we
have been getting steadily over toward
gold until we are getting to be right now
rather yellow outfit.
But, as l say, in spite of this tribal
migration to gold, Culberson came EN-
phatically out for silver, IS to /. This
didn't please us a bit; but, after all, as
free silver is rather more of a theory than
anything else, we didn't lay it up against
him But coming out against the Corbctt-
Fitzsimmons fight is different affair.
This fight, calculated to bring, as it suSely
nOO OOO into nnllnS iS a rrnrticnl
matter, and when Culberson gets in the
way he touches us where we live. His at
titude toward the fight is going to bother
him hereafter, the more so as it is moth
ing but political play on his part.
but you wanted to know something
of CulberSon personally I've already told
you he is a boy; u bright, courageous,
nervy boy. While he seems to be siding
with the pulpits in his opposition to the
coming Corbott- FitzsimmOns contest-for
of course the pulpits oppose it profession
ally-still Culberson himself couldn't be
called the pulpit sort. While he doesn't
drink too much, Culberson stands ready
without the slightest hesitation to sample
most any kind of invigorator that ever
lived back of bar in bottle. When he Is
irritated, he can swear like teamster.
when Culberson began his opposition
to the fight, he expected there would be a
great moral uprising, and he was going to
head the uprising. But so far nobody has
risen up but the preachers. The congre-
cation is still sitting in its seat and wants
the fight Culberson is beginning to see
this. The other day he was down in Dali
las and tackled me about it.
'''Jim, said Culberson to me, haven
got friend left in Dallas?'
YES Charlie, l said, my wife told
me the other day that her preacher said
he'd stick to you while you had a button
on your shirt. But the trouble is, Charlie,
preachers didn't make you governor last
time and can't make you governor next.
Now the men who have control of these 80
Dallas county votes, and who will take
them into the next convention, are point
ing up the other way. They want this Cor
bett- Fitzsimmons fight, and the course
you are taking don't tickle them to death
a little bit. If you want my opinion,
reckon your last chance to have the Dallas
county delegation in the next convention
is about petered out
"Culberson didn't look pleased with
what I'd told him, but could see that he
believed it.
In personal appearance Culberson Is a
handsome man, about feet 8; broad,
4 ~. l. -