The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1897-05-28
STORIES OFIPRENTIss.
The Celebrated spoeoh In Reply to tho
Charge of Drunkenness.


The following good story of Ser
geant 9 s.-Pfentiss aud Governor Nc.
MUTT 10 in the "Memosies of Fifty
Years." by ". H. Sparks. 1t oc-
CURED long time before the war,
when the State had an immense
Democratic majority. The Wings,
however, determined to run their
brilliant champion, Mr.. Prentiss, for
Congress-. At that time the election
was by general ticket, the State not
having been yet divided into Con-
gressional districts, and two men,
bers were to be elected. The Wings
nominated Prentiss and Word, tho
Democrats Claiborne and Gholson.
Claiborne was a native of the State,
a relative Of the Hon. v. @. OLAF
borne, who, had been a territorial
governor, and a young man of splen'
did abilities, then a member of Con.
gress. .>'@
MoNutt was the Democratic nomi.
m slfRi6So 6Soenfor~" Governor. Gholson was
Judge Gholson, Of Aberdeen, who
died some years ago. Mr.. Word
was T. J. Word, Of Yalobusha, be-
fore Grenada WAS caryed therefrOm.
Mr. Word is also dead.
The campaign is described as a
most animated one. It is said that
Prentiss spoke in every county of the
State and that the people fooked on
massee to hear him, following him
from county to county, and his
name was in every mouth. The
Democratic nominees funked. Nei-
ther met him on the stump. His
was a triumphal march through the
State. HcNutt was pitted against
him. MoNutt, who was a man of
magnificent abilities, sVirginian and
lawyer, was then Governor. His
torians state that, next to Poindex-
ter, he was the ablest man who had
ever filed the chair up to that time.
a sad commentary, however, is
passed upon him, in that he was ad-
dioted to the howl.
"Upon the only meeting of Prem
tiss and McNutt," says Sparks, "the
latter in his speech urged as rea-
son for the rejection or defeat of the
former his dissipated habits; admit
ted his great abilities, his mastery
geniu' pronounced him the first
man Of the age intellectually, hut
deplored his habits, which we're rem
dering him useless, with all his geni-
us, learning and eloquence.
"Prentiss said in reply: My fell
low w-citizens, you have heard the
charge against my morals, sagely,
rad, ! had almost said soberly, made
by the gentleman, the Democratic
nominee for the chief executive Office
of the State; had I said this it would
have been what the lawyers term a
misnomer. 1t wonld be impossible
for him to do or say anything sober
ly, for he has been drunk for ten
years-not yesterday, or last week,
in a frolic, or socially, with the good
follows, his friends, at the genial and
generous board, but at home. and by
himself and demijohn; not upon the
rich wines Of the Rhine or, the Rhone,
the Saone or the Guadalquiver; nor
with gh.spiritea or high-witted
mon, whose souls, when mellowed
with glorious wine, leap from their
lips, sublimated with words swollen
with wit, or thought brilliant and
dazzling as the blood Of the grape
inspiring them-no, but by himself;
selfish ,and apart from witty mon or
ennobiing spirits, in the secret seclu-
sion Of dir little back room, and
on corn whiskey-these only com.
muning in affeotionate brotherhood,
the son of Virginia and the spirits Of
Kentucky! Why, fellow. citizens, as
the Governor Of the State he refused
to sign the gallon law until he had
tested, by experiment, that gallon
would do bim all day! @
Now, I will admit, fellow citizens,
that sometimes, when in the enjoy
ment OF social communion with gen.
tlemen, I am made merry with these
and the r.ch wines of glorious France.
1t is then that I enjoy the romance of
life. Imagination, stimulated with
n S,,sn -