The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-03-27
STATE PRESS.

The Boston Herald learns that Bry-
an is growing less popular in the south,
Go from home to learn-incOrrect news
The truth is Bryan is much stronger
in the south today than at any previ-
Gus time.-Raleigh News and Observer
The British threaten to hold Kruger
personally responsible il the Trans
vaal mines are blown up. This lets
the cat out of the bag. Kruger and
his army can shoot down English sol
diers and the government stands ready
to forgive, but to destroy gold merits
death. This is a war for gold and gold
must be protected at all hazards
Durham Herald.
The low level to which public office
has been reduced in North Carolina is
the gravest charge that can be brought
against the populists, republicans and
populiStS-democratS of the most dig
nified office. The Observer has some
acquaintance with the men of the state
and is a tolerably close reader of it's
exchanges, n yet it Solemnly ayers
that there are OF the bench now three
judges of whom it never heard. whose
names it never saw in a newspaper
until they were scheduled for the high
and responsible offices they now hold.
At this time there are candidates for
judicial and other positions in the
state who would have been laughed
out of court fifteen years go, because
they are incompentent for the positions
to which they aspire. 1t is a humiliat-
ing fact that of late years we have
degenerated very much in the charac-
ter n competency of our public Of
icials.-Charlotee Observer.
Mr.. Spencer Blackburn stands today
convicted as an advocate not only of
the assassination of leading democrats,
but also as an assassin of the charac-
ter of an honorable gentleman. In his
speech at Newton he was guilty of the
great wrong Of incitng his ignorant
followers to assassination. If, when it
was published, Mr.. Blackburn a said
that he spoke the incendiary words
under excitement n regretted utter
ance, the people would have thought
him indiscreet, but not vicious. In
stead of doing that, he chose to become
the assassin of the character of Mr..
H. A. Chappell, h honorable gentle
man who wrote the report of his
speech, by branding him as "a stupid
correspondent" and his report as
without foundation in fact and abso-
lutely false. Elsewhere, by affidavit
of the best men in Catawba county
it is shown that Mr.. Blackburn stands
guilty Of writing a card that is with
out foundation in fact and absolutely
false" Nobody believed Blackburn's
denials when he first made them.-Ral-
eigh News and Observer.
Raleigh News and Observer: New
York. March 19.-Colonel J.. S. Carr
slipped and fell upon the ice yester-
day afternoon. A gentleman in Raleigh
te~legraphed yesterday afternoon to
Mrs. Carr at Philadelphia asking
about the accident and Colonel Cars
condition. Mrs. Carr answered, My
husband is resting very comfortably.
Hope to be able to get him home the
last Of the week The doctor hopes the
sprain is not very serious. "-Weldon
N. c., March 19.-Elijah Whitaker and
William Pugh, two colored individuals
after indulging pretty freely in mean
whiskey Saturday night, got into a
fight. Whitaker advanced upon Pugh
flourishing a knife and a pistol. Pugh
caught hold Of the pistol, took it from
his hand and then fired a ball into
Whitaker's neck, infiicting a danger
Gus and ugly wound. Pugh gave him
self up to the officers and claims thai
he fired in~self-defense.