The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-10-18

His Own Receives Htza
Around For Offices Hfnseif. Hc
Pirates About Office Ac
uarfsd TO TO Co aud Vow
Wants 10 60 tn the state senate-fhe
Popnli~t County Chairman >andba=s
Him

Inasmuch as the peoples party has
no news medium in this county with
which TO refute the false and malicious
charges made against 1t By designing.
prevaricators. we beg Of you.
in the interest OF justice. the privilege
TO reply in your paper to such a charge
made in Mr.. Il. F. Keith's advertising
organ, The New Era. OF the 18th In
slant. The article in question indirect
IL attacks the wisdom and honesty OF
the peoples party OF New Hanover
county for refusing to nominate o. en-
dorse Mr.. Keith for the senate, and III
conclusion the blame is attributed 10
THE p.stiferious fellow who assumes
10 be the leader of the populist party
in New Hanover county whose
itching for office is SO pronounced that
he cannot tell the truth"
This ''pestiferious fellow" the ON
nipotent. lemonade editor laments, lis
prominent in the party councils in New
Hanover through the influence OF the
editor of The New Era" Had his
wonderful ed-i-tor been in company
With Ananias al the altar when he
got his Mar Friday TO write such stul-
tifying lines. he would have been
stricken dead. His Man Friday-did
we say? In justice TO this remarkable
notwithstanding editor, We should
not charge him with writing a word in
hat withered, superannuated, semi
century plant. The New Error. \ man
with some sense is employed by this
cha How un-n1ka a1ifnr-Fri1AV does
the shooting and Keith bags the game.
Some things are honorable quoth
this philosophical parrot-Speaking OWL,
some things commendable and some
things execrable. OF the latter is this
'pestiferious fellow, who assumes To be
the leader of the populists." We would
suggest that this Bad Fool Keith read
some good work on sanity. He is ev-
identity suffering from a rush Of bile
to the brain which amor dooms ITS
victim to dwelling idiocy. With q
p~rolongatiOn of the physiognomy, a
dwelling droop of the Y and a fool
ish hanging of the heather lip" this
goat-of-an-editor observes:
IF the populists of New Hanover
will be honest with themselves and
throw overheard the seekers after Of
flee, they will lay the axe at the root
of the evil, etc" The populists Of this
count did hat very thing. They OBJ
served the eternal NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
at-any-price of The New Error editor
and committed him to the waves: the
axe was lain to the root and the noN-
ious weed removed. And yet-the owl
boots and the ass brays. OF course,
we should not charge that the Errone-
Gus editor is seeking office. Such an
accusation would be shocking. He did
not attempt to secure the nomination
for congress-no, of course. He did not
attend the congressional convention at
WadeSbOrO and run all owe the court
room begging everybody he saw TO
vote for him-no; such a procedure
(the way he talks now would nav
blushed the very blirds off the animal.
Probably it would be we'll to mention
some of the rantingS c. this non-office-
seeking editor while attending the con-
gressional convention. There were fif-
ty-six ballots taken before an election
was declared. Sixty votes were re-
CURED to elect. The editor had only
thirty-SeVen votes. Complimentary,
however, several counties contributed
and raised his vote to fifty-three. This
was on the fifty-fifth ballot. A number
of delegates who did not understand
the vote demanded that the editor get
up and tell the convention what he
was, a populist, free silver democrat,
republican, all or neither. Those voting
loI TSllI II Mic" Vi IL
remarkable oratory and touching pa
thos prevailed on him not to speak.
oh. l have too much at stake" re-
tOrted the editor. Il shall tell 'em what
l am" The advice of his friends was
unheeded, the orator had to speak.
The editor, gathered himself together,
mounted h rostrum and proceeded to
tell the delegates about his being a
farmer in Fender county. his unprece-
dented career from the plow handle to
the sphere of a prominent merchant,
his New Error, and hat he had seen
Bryan and heard him speak. Directly
the editor got warmed up. The voice
became more unnatural and now and
then a senseless gesture of the hands
and a mechanical move of the body
would augment the sympathy of his
hearers. The grafton. however, was
not without effect. On the following
ballot the editors able competitor re-
ceived eighty-fve votes-twenty-h
more votes than required to elect him.
A delegate then moved TO make the
nomination unanimous. Several sec
onded he motion and just as the
chairman attempted to put the motion.
the dlscomfiitted editor arose again
and proceeded to interpose his objec-
ton. He said that he would object to
making the nomination unanimous.
cavorted and ~harangued awhile and
sat down. OF course, h was not seek
ing office; no he wanted the office 10
seek him, you see, Kind of a transpo-
sition; simple twist of the wrist. etc"
The scene was one of mingled laugh
ter and pathos: laughter because of
the innocent ~clownlike spectacle and
pity, because the performer had no
better sense.
The editor, nevertheless.
was not 10 accept the inevitable. At
ter returning to Wilmington he began
a crusade against the victor. Letters
were written to the various members
of the congressional executive commit
tee. setting forth the error of the con-
vention in nominating Colonel Dockery
and begging that the 'blacl: repu',li-
can should be taken down and he put
up. Of course he was not seeking Of
ice. In despair. the ambitious non-cr-
fee seeking editor gave up the chase.
but comforted himself with the
thought OF mitigating his disappoint-
ment by opposing, quietly his honest
competitor and endeavoring to secure
his defeat. He has openly avowed that