The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1897-08-05
The Cherokee Meeting.

Cherokee's meeting was held at Gaff.
ney, and about 500 heard the senatorial
candidates. The meeting was orderly
and pleasant.
Irby was the first speaker, and after
expressing his pleasure at being pres
ent, he proceeded to correct that por-
ton of his Spartanburg speech where
he said that he declared Gonzales, Ell
lerbe and Neal favored negro labor in
cotton mills. His speech was miscon-
strued, unintentionally, he knew, by
the reporter, he said. Whathe did say,
he declared, was that in favoring the
election of McLaurin, Gonzales, FL
lerbe and Neal were indirectly favoring
the building up of Republican party
in this State, and that should the Re-
publicans gain strength here, the ten
dency would be to substitute negro
labor in the mills. He knew that Con
zsles had opposed putting negroes in
cotton mills, he added, etc.
After completing this correction, Col.
Irby said that all the candidates owed
him q debt of gratitude. Evans he had
made q Governor, He was his boy,
and he didn't deny him.
Evans. 81 deny you, though. !"
Colonel Irby, proceeding, denied
that there was any combine against
McLaurin; declared all talk that ma
tional issues should be discussed was
buncombe, and asserted that the real
issue was whether or nota Republican
party should be started in the State.
John Gary Evans didn't talk about
political dsddies, because the people
were not interested in that kind of talk.
He said that he became nearer being
Irby's political daddy than he does
mine, for voted for him for the United
States Senator, and if he had behaved
himself he'd have been there yet" de-
clared Evans. "He has been his worst
enemy"
Mr.. Evans referred to his candidacy
last year, and said he was defeated on
account of the lies and innuendoes told
by men who called themselves gentle
men.
Mr.. McLaurin was going over the
State, said Mr.. Evans, crying that q
combine had been formed against him.
This was nothing but the sympathetic
act, Mr.. Evans averted, for every man
in the race wanted the Office. This
fight was one of principle and one in
which conservatives and reformers
could unite. "If you vote for the man
who has turned his back on the re-
form movement, you admit that you
have laid aside principle and given
place to animosity, said Mr.. Evans in
appealing to the conservatives.
Senator McLaurin was the next
speaker and he said the question of ne
gro labor in cotton mills was uniustly
dragged into this discussion. It had no
part in this campaign. For himself he
favored white labor. wherever it could
be employed in preference to negro la
Dor. He preferred white tenants to ne
gro tenants, and employed them, he
said.
Taking up the tariff bill Senator Nc
Laurin showed what Southern interests
he had been contending for. He had q
box of monozite mined near here, and
explained that the duty he and other
Southern Senators had secured on it
would raise the price considerably.
Mr.. Mayfeld held the crowd for
twenty minutes, with hurried exposi-
ton Of his views on the dispensary and
the tariff. In that time he could not
elucidate as much as he would have
liked, but while he spoke he was listen
ed to attentively and cheered when he
finished.