Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1896-02-19
aeliseellaneuus &eading.
TILLMAN To HIS CRITICS.

TILLMAN To HIS CRITICS.
Has No Apologies but Challenges Reply
From Any of Them.
Senator Tillman has written letter
to the New York World in defense Of
his recent speech. 1t is as follows:
To the Editor OF The World:
WASHINGTON, February Any
uniform rule has been to treat criticisms
with silence. I break that rule now
for purpose. and that is to challenge
those who have found so much to con.
demn in my recent speech in the senate
to trial before the jury of their read.
ers, in which I can have at least a
show ofjustice. The New York Times
editorially terms me "a filthy baboon, u
the New York Evening Post ga politi-
cal Anarchist" The World itself has
used the word "blatherskite," the Phil.
adelphia Record calls me "the chieftain
of Anarchists and The Globe of St.
Paul says: This fellow brings to the
senate the unsavory record he made in
his State, a character tattooed with
dishonesty.
These are few of the parliamentary
and elegant phrases employed by the
polite and refined editors of some of the
leading newspapers as applied to my.
self. They have not read my speech,
they dare not publish it in full, and,
basing their criticisms upon few gar
bled extracts in which I used strong
language to express indignation and
contempt, they ask the people of the
country to render verdict against me
as coarse, brutal, ignorant black
guard.
All the words and phrases which oc-
cur in the speech to which they take
exception do not exceed a dozen.
They neither add to nor take from
the arguments and facts as presented.
Not single one of them is unparlia-
mentary, and frequently in the same
senate, language as violent, as coarse
and as brutal has been uttered in the
past by a dozen men whose names are
written high in our country's history.
If my language was unparliamentry
and indescent, why did no senator call
me to order? If the charges we're un-
true, why has no senator answered
them, and why do newspaper critics
not even attempt to answer them ?
Is it supplementary and indecent
to tell the truth? Are we sunk to
that-low estate that falsehood and
official dishonesty cannot be mentioned
without calling down an avalanche OF
abuse and SANDER? What other sena-
tors have whispered among themselves
1 have spoken, aloud and in plain
words. What a majority of the peo-
pie have thought and felt have ut.
tered.
This is the sum of my offending, and
the hireling editors and reporters who
now degrade the so-called freedom OF
the press to so despicable level may
fatter themselves that they create and
control public opinion, but the thou
sands of letters that have poured in on
me from every quarter of the Union,
mostly from the North, and from men
engaged in every pursuit in life, have
given me assurances that the scales are
falling from the eyes of the people and
that the truth, bravely told, has a
sweet and wholesome sound. The
American people as whole, "great
common people," love the truth, and
they love their country. They despise
traitors and thieves and towards. 1t
is large mass to move, but the leaven
is at work and the issue is joined, and
the result will be known on the day OF
election.
So far as I am individually concern
ed, and so far as my speech is concern
ed, l care nothing for the abuse heap
ed on me, and thank my critics for di-
recting attention to my utterances.
When my facts and arguments have
been disproved I will apologize. Until
then decency demands that men who
abuse me for speaking the truth should
let their readers See it and judge for
themselves, or reserve their epithets
for men of their own kind who dread
the truth and love cowardice.
If there is no need of reform, reform
will not come. If represent nothing
but ignorance and anarchy, why was l
elected governor of South Carolina
twice by such overwhelming majori-
ties? For four years, as executive,
fought and abused by corporations and
banks and their hireling newspapers,
why did my State send me to the SEN
ate by a vote of 131 out of a total of
16O in the general assembly? During
these four years the State advanced in
material growth and increases of tax
able values more rapidly than in any
previous period in its history. Ispent
$500, 900 in the erection and equipment
of two of the largest colleges for the in
dustrial, technical and normal training
in the South-one for each sex. And
the constitutional convention, with
which had a great deal to do, fixed
constitutional taxes so as to double the
free school fund the saloons have been
banished from the State, while three
fourths of the people, if not more, are