The leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1895-1905, 1899-07-05
To the Voters of Lincoln
County.


fed electors Of Lincoln county will ex-
press in primary election their choice
Of candidates for the most important Of
fees within the gift of the people. In
cases where no candidate receives ma
jority at that time of all the ballots cast,
a second primary will be held July 14th,
to decide between the two receiving the
highest vote in the first primary. In
the matter of county and beat offices, a
nomination will be equivalent to an
election, because large majority of
the white qualified electors of the
county will participate in these prima-
ries and abide by the result. It will be
the best opportunity presented to Sc
lect acceptable officials for the next
four years and we would therefore ad-
wise all white voters of the county who
are anxious to see none but the best
men elected to fill the offices, partici-
pate in these primaries and help to in
sure the desired end. If they do not
vote or If they do and vote for untrust-
worthy or incapable men, the whole
county will suffer and the responsible
ty for it will be theirs.
There are good and capable men run
ming for all the county offices, and for
some there are incapable and untrust-
worthy ones, whose election would be
hurtful to the public interest. On elec-
tion day the sensible and conscientious
citizen will vote for the one and let the
other severely alone.
The policy of THE LEADER toward all
local candidates has been one of neu-
trality. Such policy is justified by
the fact that the records and charac-
ters of all candidates for the principal
local offices are well known to the vo-
ters of the county. Under this state
of facts, if bad or incompetent men are
chosen instead Of the best, the respon-
sibility will be with the voters. More
over, we have that confidence in the
class of men who will participate in the
primaries to believe, that with the
lights before them, they will choose
the best men available in every
instance.
Next to securing the best local Off
cials, the matter about which The
LEADER feels the greatest concern is
the way the vote of Lincoln county is
cast for U. s. Senator for the long term.
For this exalted Office no one will cut
any figure in the race in this county ex-
cept Gov. McLaurin and Hon. John
M. Allen. Gov. McLaurin, if his own
statement may be believed, is running
in order to secure vindication by the
people of his administration as Gov
ernor. Mr.. Allen is running because
he desires to serve the people as Sen
ator and crafty a laudable ambition.
He does not believe that Gov. Nc
Laurin's administration and public
record while Governor are entitled to
such an endorsement as he asks at the
hands of the people, and this is the issue
between them. On all national ques-
tions of any consequence they are
agreed and in harmony with the people.
THE LEADER believes, with Mr.. Allen,
that the Governors administration has
been SO disreputable and unsavory, as
a whole, that it is utterly unworthy of
endorsement by the people of Missis-
sippi. For this reason, aside from all
others, we oppose him and desire to
see Lincoln register her vote against
him. In view of the record the Gov
ernor has made while chief executive,
it should be a matter for deep humilia-
tion and shame if it were otherwise.
His open and fragrant disregard of the
Constitution in several instances his
prostitution and abuse of the pardon
ing power his trafhcking in offices at
his disposal his neglect Of official du-
ties while absent from the Capital, seek
ing to advance his own political for
tunes his drunkenness in office and
the throwing of the whole influence of
the executive against an investigation
of alleged drunkenness of Judges and
other officials by the Legislature his
undeniable duplicity and transparent
demagoguery in attempting to defend
his vulnerable administration form a
part of the record which should repel
and humiliate rather than attract and
enthuse any good citizen clothed with
the ballot. Hon. John M. Stone served
Mississippi as Governor for II years,
and SO free from errors, stain and scan
dal was his administration, that he
never felt called upon to go out and
make one speech in defense of it dur
ing all those years. Going into the
Governors office, riding upon the very
topmost crest of popular wave, Gov.
McLaurin's record for the first two
years was such that he felt called upon
to take the stump to explain it before
the people, and the more he explains
and the longer he remains in Office, the
worse it gets.
Are Mississippians going to endorse
such an administration and by their
votes reward Governor McLaurin with
the highest honor within their gift? II
a premium is to be placed upon such a
record as McLaurin has made, what in
centive is there to man like Longino
or Powell, If elected Governor, to set a
high official standard and give the
State clean and proud administra-
ton? The sign board to public favor
would point either of them in exactly
the opposite direction. We ask the
fathers Of Lincoln county what inspira-
tion there is for their sons to set and
aspire to high standards of official and
personal honor for the future, if we,