Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1898-09-29
VANAMAKER EVADES
A JOINT DEBATE.
He Declines to Meet Chairman Elkin
on the Platform.
COL. STONE ANSWERS SWALLOW.

He Points Out What should Occur to
Any Sensible Man, That the Charges
Proposed For Debate Charge Crimes
and MisdemeanOrs Under the Laws
of the Commonwealth, and That the
Proper Place to Deal With Them Is
the.Crlminal Court. Where 1t Is
Swallows Duty to Present Them.
Especial Correspondence.)
Philadelphia, Sept. 26.-The two sig
nificant events of the week, politically.
aside from the satisfactory consumma-
ton of the Republican harmony pro-
gram in Philadelphia upon the lines
predicted some weeks ago in this cor
respondence, were John Wanamaker's
avoidance of a joint debate with State
Chairman Elkin in Media on Saturday
and Colonel Stones crushing rejoinder
to Swallow.
The crank candidate for governor is
sued a public challenge to the Repub-
lican candidate to hold several de-
bates with him on carefully prepared
list of charges. In the main they are
the same old charges which he pub
lished in his newspaper last winter,
for which publication he was convicted
of criminal libel and is now awaiting
sentence.
He was then unable to produce any
evidence in support of them, even
enough to acquit him of malicious in
tent in publishing them, and Colonel
Stone promptly turned his letter over
to the district attorney of Dauphin
county, properly holding that if the
charges We're true the only effect of
public debate, with an exhibition of
the testimony, would be to give warn
ing to the defendants in advance of ar
rest and enable them to escape JUS
tice. Following is Colonel stones let
ter:
Philadelphia, Sept. 30. 1898.
Rev. S. c. Swallow:
My Dear Sir: My attention has been
called to a published letter dated Sept.
21 and addressed to me in which you
challenge joint discussion upon what
you claim to be the issues in this cam
paign. l am not surprised that you
have omitted prohibition as an issue,
but 1 am surprised that the Prohibition
party which nominated you upon that
issue should so soon forget the pur-
poses and objects of their organiza-
ton and follow you in a crusade which
entirely ignores prohibition. You chal-
lenge me to discuss II declarations, or
charges upon the stump. All of your
II declarations charge crimes and mis-
demeanors which may be severely pun
s,l.. H., r. IL. - l. ,tata
You do not name the offenders nor
the time when these crimes and mis-
demeanors We're committed, but claim
to have evidence to substantiate them.
l have no such knowledge, except your
unsupported statements which you
have heretofore made, but have been
unable to sustain in the courts. If
you have such knowledge of crimes
committed, and have such evidence, it
is your duty not only as a good citizen,
but as a Christian minister. to lay
the evidence before the grand jury of
your county. The witnesses which you
propose to call in joint debate will be
sufficient to obtain an Indictment If
they are sufficient to convince an in
telligent audience of the truth of your
charges
and determine the truth of these
charges. and that is the proper course
for you to pursue, instead of under
taking on the stump to prejudice the
people against candidates whom you
do not charge with committing the
crimes or with knowledge of them. /
have, therefore, taken the liberty to
refer your letter to the district attorney
of Dauphin county, where you reside,
for such action as he may take in
the matter, assuring you that if / am
elected governor of Pennsylvania l
will heartily cooperate in all cases to
bring guilty parties to justice and
punish all crimes againt the state.
Truly yo-.s,
WILLIAM A. STONE.
The care with which Mr.. Wanamaker
avoids public cross examination upon
the reckless assertions he has been
making since he missed the United
States senatorship and the guberna-
torial nomination is succinctly set forth
in the following report of the commit
tee which sought to arrange joint de-
bate on Saturday:
William l.. Mathues, Esq, Chairman
Republican Executive Committee of
Delaware County, Media. Pa.
Dear Sir: At meeting of your exec
utive committee. held in the court
house, Media, on the evening Of the
21st inst, the following resolution was
unanimously adopted:
Whereas, 1t has come to the know
ledge of this committee that an inde-
pendent meeting has been advertised
to take place at the courthouse, Media
Pa, on Saturday evening, Sept. "a, at
which the Hon. John Wanamaker has
been invited to speak and discuss the
issues of the campaign; and
Whereas. There are questions at is
sue in this campaign in which all are
interested; therefore, be it
Resolved, That the chairman ap-
point a committee of three (3) to confer
with the committee in charge of said
meeting, and also with the Hon. John
Wanamaker and the Hon. John P. Ell
kin, chairman of the Republican state
committee, and arrange. if possible, to