The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1897-06-02
BUTLER ON TILLMAN.
ssRevlsed Letter" Calls Forth
Warm Rejoinder.

w "a Xxx AtSJ SAAS
To the Editor of The State
observe in tue modified state
mentn Of B. R. Tillman,; published in
the State of the 23d instant, he lugs
my rame into his labored effort at
vindication The statement from be
ginning to end is more in the nature
of confession and avoidance"
than a yindication Expletives and
SANDERS, lis fayorite weapons of con-
troversy. will not satisfy an inquisi-
tive public, which is getting down to
3 more serious form Of enquiry
He says "when these stale slanders
about rebates nnder my administia,
ton were put into circulation By the
newspapers and taken up by General
Butler in the canvass three years ago,
& met them promptly and vigorously
-. Union and elsewhere, and last
winter / joined with Governor Evans
Ia asking that the Legislature should
appoint a committee To look into the
dispensary's management aud set the
charges of corruption at rest for
ever
This is very general. evasive and
erroneous In the first place. the
e.stale SANDERS, were not taken up
by General Butler by anything de.
rived from .the newspapers " Here
is what occurred at Union had
received communicated from a
gentleman in Charleston, not news
paper man, informing me that by the
terms Of the whiskey trust agree
meat, every member of the trust was
bound to pay rebate Of seven cents
q gallon to all who purchased thou
sand gallons or upward, that is to
say. was bound under the trust agree
ment TO pay back seven cents on
every gallon thus bought that the.
Mil Greek distillery of Ohio was a
member Of the t1lss, and therefore
bound TO return this rebate ; that as
Governor Tillman,. as chairman of the
boagd Of control. and understood to
Be she sole responsible head, had
purchased large quantities Of liquor
from the Mill Greek distillery. he
ought to have received large sums
from the Mill Creek distiilery, run
ming up into the thousands of dollars
This is substantially the information
I received from an entirely reliable.
experienced source.
This communication got into the
News and Courier and can be found
ln the files of that paper of that date,
before had an opportunity to use it
On the stump. in this way
7E Asa meeting preceding the one
al Union. I do not now remember
where, Ar. Kohn. the correspondent
OF the News and Courier, asked me
If / had any manuscript | expected
to use, would let him have it in adj
vance, SO that ne conld make copy
at his leisure, and thereby save him
the labor when sending off his dis
patches
81 gave him the memorandum furn-
ished me as above stated, enjoining
him not to publish it until | had en-
sraced Il in some subsequent speech
DIT. Kohn. through inadyer,ence. l
suppose forwarded it to his paper.
and It was published before had an
opportunity TO refer to it
Mr.. Kohn afterwards told me he
had informed Governer T:llman it
had been published without my au
thority
Notwithstanding this information,
Governor Tillman having tie opening
speech at Union, made this publica
ton the tezt for violent, coarse,
vulgar attack On me, stirring up the
passions of few ruf6ans and black
guards in the audience, and then
when | go, up to reply, the rnffians
attempted to browbeat and howl me
DOVE. When the excitemen, was al
It's height and trouble seemed lmmi-
nent, Governor Tillman, as usual.
left the stand and sought place of
safety In the course of bis rlba'dfy
and vituperatlon he denied having col.
lected the rebates and endeavored to
take refuge from the awkward dllem
ma in which he found himself, by
raising other and false issues, having
no relevance to the rebate question.
When replied. said. among other
things, ,basshe,e were but two al
ternasiyes. either Governor Tillman
has, collected the thousands OF dol
lars of rebates from the Mill Creek
dis,il!ery and not accounted tor them,
or had been guilty OF grave and
censurahle aerel;ction of official duty
III nos collecting the rebates ai'o turn