The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1895-07-30
1T IS A LAW.

VI O6CE0UdEy OOK0. IL appeared unQ6l
a scare head, the final line being 'sAn
Outrage on Coke" in large type.
Doubtless it was written by Captain
Coke himself, for the pronoun II" ap.
pears in several places in the article.
From the 5th of last January up to
the present times portion of the Demo
cratic press and some so called poll
ticians have been industriously trying
to belittle the last legislature. the men
who composed it and the men who
elected a majority of the members. We
have admitted time and again that the
legislature did some extremely foolish
things; that it left undone some things
it ought to have done; that it ought to
have cleared the deck of Democratic
Office holders. Some clerical errors
we're made, too, but probably not more
than are made by other similar bodies.
The very character of most of the
errors show that they were errors of
the head and not of the heart-mere
~oversights. It was the best legislature
North Carolina has had since the war.
The people of the State know that this
is true. They have sized up the fimsy
charges made by political mounte
banks. For that reason we have made
but little defense of the legislature. It
don't need it. Tattlers may talk about
an honest, upright man, but that man
cannot be injured.
The Secretary of State is in a posi-
ton to pick flaws and raise a cry every
time he finds a t ~uncrosse1 or
an i undotted. He has not been idle.
He would be ungrateful to the ballot
box ~stealers, suffers, vote buyers and
technical raisers of this State who
elected him two years ago if be did not
jump at every straw. But such petty
business will not pay. The people of
the State easily see that the Democrats
are merely angry because the legiela
ture did so well, with a few exc options.
that the people will elect a similar one
again next year. These idiotic charges
are outbreaks of anger and nothing
more. Secretary Coke has lost what
little influence he has had with the
people of this State, and though he
may make cyclonic attacks upon every
thing in sight and talk with a voice
like a steamboat fog horG, the people
will only smile and pass ON.
But to the subject: The Secretary
of State publishes in defense of his DO
a letter from State Printers,
Stewart Bros, which, if it proves any.
proves that the Secretary was
to make a mountain out of a
mole hill The letter is as follows:
WINSTON, N. c.. July 10. 1895
Hon. Oct Coke, Secretary of State, |
Raleigh, N. G.:
Dear SIR: Replying to your two tel
egrams inquiring as to ratification of
Revenue Act" we wish to inform you
that we have had the tissue copy look
I'D up and have inquired fully into all
The incidents leading up to the placing
IF chapter 116 in the Public laws.
We find first, that the Revenue and
Act" was furnished us I'M
numbered, according to the figures of
your own Office as 466. and that the
late of ratification clause only appears
It the close of the Machinery Act por-
ion of it, and it was treated as one act,
md it 50 appears in the 5000 edition of
he pamphlet containing that act which
furnished your Office.
We find, second, that when the
ct came to be placed in the volume of
avs, having had the express statement
f Mr.. Bachelor that we could arrange {
nd number the chapters to suit our {
elves, an effort was made to follow the {
Of the make up observed in the {
AVIS of 1898. and the Revenue act was {
laced in the volume as chapter 116, c
nth two small acts following it and 1
receding the Machinery Act, which I
'as made chapter liz Surprising this 8
} be the proper style in which it e
appear. and treating it as a
art of No. 466, which it's number q
it to be, and which the head v
nes on the tissue prints show, when a
lev stvle both the Revenue and Ma
1inerv Act as House Bill 1893" wea
,str,7cted the authorized date of rati- n
cation placed at the end OF each tt
Finishing this will give you the infor51
alton YOU seek, and assuring yod al
AT our COPY in no case differs from e
e copy you furnished US, q original on
mr. office. we be to beg as usual
Very truly yours, -
M. I. & J. @. STEWART, Sid