The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-11-08
IS
 CLOSING UP Ratification Seems Sure
 Winner. FINISH COMES MONDAY Both Sides to Speak Here Saturday Night. Court House Will Probably Ring With the Arguments of Pros and Antis at the
 Same Hour.

NNS
 the county court house.
 A meeting of the big Ratification Club
 has been called for Saturday evening at
 s o'clock in the city court room. The
 club. will be addressed by Hon. J. Tom
 HeNlh of Lafayette and probably by
 Governor Jelks who Is expected 10 De
 present.
 It was definitely learned yesterday that
 former Governor Johnston will speak in
 Montgomery Saturday night against the
 Constitution and Hon. Bibb Graves, who represents the anti-ratifiers in Montgom-
 cry County, said that Governor Johnston
 would speak at the court house. lhe
 two meetings being booked for the court
 house at the same hour on the same
 evening it was suggested that Governor
 Johnston will probably entertain the
 antis in the Circuit Court room while
 Governor Jelks and MT. Hefiin are ad- dressing the Ratification Club in the com modious room of the City Court. If these two meetings are held at the Montgomery County court house Satur- day evening 1t will give the public an opportunity to study the arguments of men who are for the Constitution and those who are against it in this city. Monday is the day on which the electors of Alabama will decide between the Con- stitution framed in 1875 and the instru- ment framed in Montgomery last sum- mer by 155 of the foremost citizens or the State. As the campaign draws to close speakers for and against ratihca- ton are warming up to their work and not day passes but one or more or the campaigners journey through the city. Middle Alabama and the edge of the
 Black Belt seem to be the storm center of the campaign. There Is hardly beat in this section that has not had one or more speakers in it. Quiet workers are busy and nearly every speaker in the State is on the hustings.
 Between F and 1 o'clock yesterday Hon. Thomas H. Watts and Hon. w. T. Seibels of Montgomery visited the big | machine shops of the Western Railroad i of Alabama by invitation of Frank | Walsh, Master Mechanic of the road. It | was the dinner hour of the men and Mir | Watts spoke to seventy-five of them dur | ing their leisure half hour. He was in- | troduced by MT. Seibels. MT. Watts had | but a few minutes, but he hurriedly and
 concisely explained the suffrage clause of | the new constitution. He also gave a
 careful exposition of the provision made | by the new Constitution for better schools | in Alabama and compared the proposed | measure with the old instrument. Several
 negroes were in the audience and MT | Watts told them that he wanted to deal | fairly with them. He said this was the
 country of the white man and the Con- | stitution was framed for white men. He
 explained that it threw the cloak of pro-
 lection about the negro, but just as far | as possible took away from him the right to vote.
 MT. Watts was frequently applauded
 and several of the workmen thanked him for having visited the shops.
 There will be speaking at several points | in Montgomery County today and tonight. T IIav. Hw | Heflin will speak at La Pine at 10 o'clock this morning. At 2:30 o'clock they will | speak at Sellers and MT. Heflin will speak | at West End tonight.
 Many reports have come from Lowndes County to the effect that the County was
 in the doubtful list: A well informed gen. tleman who came to Montgomery yester- day from Lowndes County says that he went over the County and investigated the situation carefully. He declares that
 ity for ratification. Speakers for the Con- stitution have visited every precinct and the people have been eager to listen to correct information on the subject Con verts have been added wherever speeches
 have been made and Lowndes County is no longer in the doubtful column. Judge P H. Pitts of Selma, Is doing some splendid campaign work in that County. He spoke yesterday at Sunday Ridge and
 will speak today at Mt. Willing. He will
 make speech at Bragg's Saturday. George w. Jones' member of the State Campaign Committee from the Second Congressional District is jubilant over the daily reports which reach him from the
 counties in this district. He says there is no longer any doubt as to the situation
 in Butler County which was at first re- garded as being In the doubtful column. Notwithstanding it Is the home of Hon.
 Jesse F. Stallings, one of the leading
 antis. and the home of Hon. J. Lee Long the delegate to the Convention who de-
 clined to sign the Constitution, MT. Jones declares that 1t will give tgood me 1or-
 ity for the instrument He admits that Conecuh County Is not in as good con
 dition as he would like to have it but says that several good speakers among
 them Colonel A. A. Wiley. will spend the remaining days ot the campaign Tn the interior of that County.
 MT. Jones says it is campaign Of edu- | cation and he feels sure that when the citizens of Conecuh hear the instrument
 explained a majority of them will give It | their support
 | There has been some concern expressed
 as to the condition in Autauga county | Conservative Democrats have even ex- | pressed the opinion that the county | might go against ratification G. A. Me l Williams Sheriff of Autauga, who was Ill 1 Montgomery yesterday gave 1t as his de- liberate opinion that the County can nov 2y | savs the friends of the Constitution do
 not claim any big majority but they ex- pect to come out of the election with a | safe majority
 Hon. Alfred M. Tunstall of Greensboro,
 was in Montgomery yesterday and went
 to Selma last night. MT. Tunstall says l that everything in West Alabama is one
 wav-all for the Constitution He thinks Hale County will give 250O to 5000 ma | iority. MT Tunstall has not made any | sneeches in the campaign. He feels a | deep interest in the ratification of the | Constitution however. and says that he | feels the State will give it Il big major itv next Monday.
 l Colonel C. w. Thompson, Congressman
 from the Fifth District has just complet- | ed tour of Lowndes County. and Is now speaking in the East end of his district, He will conhne his time to Coosa and | Clay counties and while persons from | those counties admit that the result there | is in doubt it is said that Colonel Thomp, son has hopes that they will give major ities for the proposed instrument.
 Hon. w. A. Handley and Hon. John T Hehin have been doing some valiant work | in Randolph County. They have covered
 nearly every inch of ground in theh home county and it is said the venerab ble
 MT. Handley is standing the fatigue of l the campaign excellently.
 Hon. J. Tom Hefiin, who came in from Southeast Alabama Wednesday night l brought the gratifying intelligence that | Hon. J. l.. Pugh former United State: Senator. has written a letter to Hon. A. | IT. Merrill of Barbour County. endorsing
 the Constitution in the most vigorous
 terms. MT. Hefin had the satisfaction l of reading this letter In an audience at