The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-04-17
ATKINSON TO GAMBLER.
THE JUDGE WRITES AN OPEN LET
TER TO THE COLONEL.

TER TO THE COLONEL.
Holds Col. Gambler Responsible for
the Early Date of the Primary
The Meyerhardt Letter Once More
The Matter of Resigning Offices
personal Organs" Touched Up.
Judge Spencer r. Atkinson, under date
of April n, has written spicy letter to
Col. Allen d. Gambler with regard to the
latter's refusal to meet him in joint de-
bate, and touching upon the details of
their campaign for the Democratic nomi-
nation for Governor of Georgia. Liberal
extracts from Judge Atkinsons letter fol-
low:
II repeat the charge that you are respon-
primary, and that the action of your
friends on the executive committee win
work a serious hardship upon the people,
and was so designed The effort to justi-
fy your partisans upon the committee In
taking snap judgment. by ordering the
primary elections on June g. will not sue
coed. The people recognize it as a resort
to machine politics of the worst sort, and
will condemn you for 1t. Your committee
has not only limited the time usually al
lowed the candidates for the prosecution
of their canvass, but by its action will
take the farmer from his pow at a sea-
son when he can i'll afford to lose a days
work to go to the polls. This, you thor
oughly understand, was done for the pur-
pose of DISTINGUISHING the farmer vote in
the primary; because your friends and
partsans well know that the farmers of
Georgia would not endorse your record.
THE Democratic executive committee
Of your own county, at meeting held last
week, voiced its protest against early pri-
maries to the end that all the candidates
might have fair and equal showing
You assert that you have issued no
secret circulars to the former supporters
of Gen. Evans, or anybody else This is
your language, yet in the same paragraph
you denounce the publication of the Mey-
eyhardt circular as being lin violation of
every principle of honorable Journalism
NOW, IL 1t were not a secret circular how
could there have been violation of con-
fidence, and why this abuse of the editor
who published it? That II was a secret
circular is proven by your own statement
that ii was personal You advertise
yourself as the champion of clean meth
DDS and honest politics. Do you regard
the sending of such matter as was con-
tanned i'm the Meyerhardt letter a clean
method" Is 1t honest politics? II has
not been so considered in Georgia hereto
fore, and should be condemned now as I'M
worthy candidate for any office. No
faaf.N Co.,
ever known to resort to such means 10
secure votes as you have employed.
we DO not need to call to our aid the
author of this (the MeyerhardD letter to
explain its meaning. 1t Is its own inter
prefer. Its meaning cannot be mistaken
IL is not demand for fair elections. but
remuneration of those who were for
Gov Atkinson In 1894, and those who
according to your statement have dom
mated the Democratic party since 1Sa4,
Every honest man desires fair elections
and all would have Joined in an open
effort to have the executive committee
adopt rules and restrictions to prevent
fraud.
You seem to have forgotten that there
We're two contests in the selection of dele
gates TO the state convention of 1894. At
kinson opposed Evans for Governor. ana
you opposed Clifton for Secretary OF state
You defeated your opponent. and were
nominated, If the delegates in that con-
Vention obtained their seats nv unfair
means, by resort to 'nefarious methods
then your nomination was likewise secur
ed through fraud. You did not decline
this honor; but, after drawing the salary
attached to the Office for nearly four
years, now make confession through Sc
cret circulars that the convention which
nominated you was fraudulently consti-
tuted. In this view of the case, how can
you now assume the championships of
clean methods and honest politicsp If
your nomination and election were secured
through fraud, and you have at last reach
ed the penitential stake, il is proper that
you make restitution to the state by pay
ing back into the treasury the liberal sti-
ponds of 5000 per annum. which you have
received during your incumbency of this
Office. d"
"Your course since the publication OF
the Meyerhardt letters shows that YOU
are disqualified for leadership in the party.
on the day of the publication of this Sc
cret circular when a printed COPY was
shown you by Mr.. s. w. Posten, cores
pondent OF the Macon Telegraph. why did
you refuse to admit or deny its author
ship? When he showed the letter and
asked you about II, why did you stand
mute? If you believed the charges con-
tanned I'm the circular to be true. why did
you not then frankly say so, and stand by
It? Why did you wait until following
day, and then send telegram from 2
point over 100 miles away. admitting thar
you wrote the letter? II, as you subse-
quently stated, you only meant to condemn