The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1896-12-01
North Carolina Railroad is ia
Golden Link, Says Russell
MUST "8uY 1T OR BUST"
Like Cotton Market, His Views
Are Subject to Change"
RussELL's PRICE IS s5,soo,ooo
Some Views as to "Cannibais OF wal
Street" Which Were ConspicuouslY
Absent From RusseIl's Cam
paign Speeches
Wilmington Messenger

ShartIy after the election, q MesSen-
ger representative called upon the Hon
orable D. l.. Russell, the Republican
Governor-elect, and solicited an inter
view. He, however, declined TO tax
at that time but on yesterday consented
10 chat on some matters or pubilc inter
est and questions that are TO be very
important during the next few months.
The reporter asked
What do you think will be the out
como az the Senatorial contestF
II hone Pritchard will be elected
What viii be the chances for Guthrie
and Dockery?
"Neither of them viii have any show
ing because neither Of them can ever
get ANYTHING but Democratic votes. The
Democratic members might swallow
Dockery but he viii be an awful dose
even for them.
But Dockery says he was conscien-
tiously for silver and would have re-
fused the Republican nomination after
the St. Louis convention declared against
silver.
YES. And he was fool enough to
think that somebody would believe him!
Before the Republican convention he
was pretending TO be for Allison, an
anti-free silver man, for President. But
after the Republican convention turned
him down then he was SO strong Tor
silver that he could not support Nc
Kfnley!i Nobody ever heard OF his be
ing for silver tillfB Butler picked him UP
and cA1nked him at the Republican
marty Butler thought that was great
nolities. By il he was going to disin-
4egrate the Republican party, give Rus
sell 'shakin ague' and 'skeer' him so
had that he would come down in favor
Of the Ponulist candidate for Governor.
So out went old Doekery a snortin
through the woods: dishing out exploded
unveracities about Russelfs buying the
Republican convention and about his
knitting the Republican ticket in 1888,
and appealing 70 Republicans TO vote
for Bryan and Guthrie and free silver.
II hear that he voted for Watson and
| believe it'll Ererytime Dockery open
ed his head he rallied the Republicans
TO Russell. He was about the cheapest
help any body ever had. He could not
have done better for me il / had had
him on a salary and he had honestly
tried to earn it. Buffers smart manage
ment resulted in forcing upon his party
a worthless hulk that they were and are
ashamed Of and in solidifying the Re
publicans so that in all the State there
was scarcely one vote, not even his own,
which left US to follow Dockery. Butler
thought he was loaded! And he fired.
He busted his gun but didn't even
flush the game. However, Buffers case
is not hopeless. He is young yet Be
sides, his folIies have not sprung from
treaehery but from a laudable purpose to
advance his own party. | believe that
those Republicans are in error who think
that Butler is general who wants to
betray his army by leading them back
to the enemy's camp for capture, con-
demnation and execution. / believe that
he is sincere in saying, as he does say,
that North Carolina must not be turned
backwards to be run over by the Demo-
cratic machine"
Why was it that you did not reply
to Dockery's attacks on you during the
campaign?
"Have / not already told you that |
wanted to keep him going? Besides it
consumed too much time in a speech to
take up in detail his stupid falsehoods.
For example, he said that my brother
Thomas b. Russell went to his house
in 1888 to get him to support me for
Governor. In this there was not one
word Of truth. It was well known that
| would not accept the nomination for
Governor or anything else in 1888, be-
cause I wanted to head off the Demo
Gratis by refusing to run a State ticket
in that year. The result showed that
/ was right. He said that / bolted the
ticket and caused his defeat for Gov
ernor. The truth is that / supported
him and the whole ticket. | quit my
private business and lost several weeks
in that campaign, paying my own ex-
penses, as / always have. Time was
worth something to me. My personal
earnings have not been confined to beat
ing confding friends by borrowing their
money and paying them in bankrupt
notices or desperate compromises. L
have not followed the profession Of
ofice-seeking for a living Indeed,
have never held an Office that did not
involve a pecuniary loss Yes, in 1888
/ bowed to the decision OF the party
because of my devotion to its prin-
ciples"
They say you changed your ground
on the silver question after the st. Louis
convention?
II do not claim absolute consistency
on that. However, said time and time
again in the campaign that did not
agree with the st. Louis declaration
in favor Of the gold standard"
1t is thought by some and denied by
others that the Mckinley administra-
ton will adopt strong measures to COM
pei Europe to accept bimetallism. What
do you think about it?
"The Republican party declared fol
this in unequiyocal words The money
kings of the world do not want silver
as standard money even on parity witt
gold They want q rising dollar so tha'
their securities, bonds, bills notes and al
forms Of debts due to them shall appre
ciate in value as time rolls on. Tht
people Of this country expect the Republi
can party TO redeem its pledges and Il
show that it is in earnest on this ques
ton If our return to the protective polio.
does not bring prosperity, and the golC
unit continues to advance while propert!
and labor decline, this country will &,
TO the silver standard. But this ma,
come without unlimited coinage at six
teen to one"
viii you give your views with regar'
IL