The news & observer., 1897-02-27
aYATT HIT ALEXANDER.
SAYS TIE PRIVATE SECRETARY
TRIED TO 6RlBE HIM.
Mr.. Alexander Says re Did Nothing of
the Sort and That hyatt Mis-
understood Him.

senate CLduDeT OF III lHe toUnAey StoI'-A
day mo1mng, knew THAT fight was
going on in the small ante-room that
opened into the Senate chamber. 1t was
just five minutes after eleven O'Clock,
THE galleries were beginning to fill with
ladies and the lobbies with the powerful
| lobby of the Southern Railway present |
| to see whether the influences" they had |
set in motion would secure TO them the |
| bonus of $120,000 per annuu, or wheth- |
| er the peoples representatives would
permit that sum to remain in the pockets
of the people.
| Two clean shayen men, Senator Hyatt,
| Of Mitchell county, and Private Secretary
to Governor Russell, Mr.. Alexander, were
| talking in low tome of voice, unobserV-
| ed and unheard by those about them.
| Suddenly blow was struck, the two
men clinched, and 1T required the imme-
| date and active restraint of Labor Com
| missioner Lacy and DOor-keeper Near
| thur to keep them from "bunglng" each
others eyes After time Representative
| Aiken, OF Pennsylvania county, managed
| ITO lead Senator Hyatt away and to his
| seat in the Senate, still raging and de
nouncing Private Secretary Alexander.
1T all grew out Of the lease fight. Hyatt
has been expected to vote both ways ON
| this bill, though he has had little ii any
thing to say about it. When the measure
first came I'm the Senate, Mr.. Hyatt voted
for postponement, and since then Gov
| ernor Russell has been trying to induce
| Mr.. Hyatt to vote for the interests Of
his constituents rather than to help
]. Pierpont Morgan and Company.
There was another side working ON
Senator Hyatt. He is q protege OF Sena-
| tor Pritchard who is a thick and thin
| friend OF the Southern Railway. lie
wanted Hyatt 10 vote for the Railroad.
| Hyatt knew it, and hc determined to
vote as Pritchard desired.
Senato tor Hyatt says that Private Sec
retay Alexander, who had been trying
for some days to persuade him to vote
against the Southern Railway bonus, told
him that If he (Hyattl would stand by
the Governor, the Governor would stand
by him. He also said that Private Sec
| rx4aT-y Alexander made him the tender
of position in the Agricultural Depart
ment II he would stand by the Governor.
Speaking OF this. Senator Hyatt said:
THAT made me mad, and | said to
Nlexander j regard this rs an insult
!
struck him and we hstched.
| ALEXANDER7S STATEMENT.
Private Secretary Alexander denied
Senator Hyatt's statement; said he made
ino such tender to Hyatt; but was merely
urging Hyatt TO stand by the Governor
IN the fight he was making to annud the
lease. He wrote and gave 10 the press
tine following statement:
Il was speaking to Hyatt about the
lease bill and urging him to vote for the
original bill ! said, 1t is claimed that
! Federal patronage is being used to de-
feat the bill annulhng the North Caro-
lima Railroad lease 1t is claimed that no
Imam who votes for the bill viii be recog-
I nized in the distribution OF Federal pat
ronage.' This was the statement | in
tended to refuqe when | spoke to Mr..
HYATT. and sand that the Governor was
las able tn take care of has friends as the
Southern Railroad was to take care of
theirs Whereupon Hyatt said In a loud
/ tone OF voice and seemingly to attract
attention. that I was trying to bTlbe him.
said ii was a 6e: that he did net under
/ stand or want to understand what /
snid. He attempted 10 strike ane, but
jumped out in the crowd AND said |
Swanted TO bribe him; to which ! Te1terat-
fed the lie' HIS friends took hlm away,
Aaand there was no further colloquy or con-
ttroversy / offered him no position nor
gpromised to use my influence for him in
any manner, shape or form.
Mr. Hyatt, when interviewed by
News and Observer reporter, saio: do
aot print anything about 1t. There is no
need to let 1T be published" He refused
9 Al flaFa
Being shown what Alexander had said,
he simply replied that it was untrue
McARTHUKs STATEMENT
Assistant Door Keeper V. J. Near
thur was standing in the room talking
with John ID. Kerr, Esq,, of Clinton.
when the row occurred.
Mr. Macarthur says he had his back TO
the combatants and when he first heard
it he thought it was some one scuffllBg
in fun Looking around he discovered
something was wrong. He saw Hyatt
strike Alexander two blows In the breast,
saying, Damn you, / won't allow any
body to talk that way to me"
II rushed in between them," continued
Mr. Macarthur, land told Hyatt to go to
his seat He started and Alexander re-
marked that he had been misunderstood.
Hyatt came back saying, ithe damn
rascal can't talk that way to me. lie
tried to bribe me. He said if I'd vote
the anti-lease bill, he'd see that ! was
made clerk to the Commissioner OF AZ
ricuHure.'
Alexander denied this. Hyatt said,
you did say it, Alexander said
didn't Hyatt said, you're liar and
started toward him again as If to strike
him. when / again interfered.
Hyatt was then persuaded to go TO
his seat and Alexander was taken by
his friends out of the hall. There was
no loud talking during the entire dis
pute"
| A Populist Congressman yesterday
said that Russell had told him that the
Southern Railway had contributed S25O-
600 to the Republican campaign fund
and now they were demanding that they
/ be allowed to dish out the Federal pat