The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1901-06-05
LET US HAVE PEACE q!

system l1duSSAIVOoS SeSAAi t1>s-S--S
education. Senator Tillman de-
serves much of the credit for
this system, and when he started
in 1856, four years in advance OF
the race he made which landed
him in the gubernatorial chair,
and gave to the people the pri-
mary, he said then, that the pur-
pose was to give the people an
opportunity to educate them
selves on political questions.
There is no doubt about it, the
people are well informed, and
instead of going wild over some
popular idol, they gather up all
the information attainable IN
vestigate for themselves, and
they can easily detect the sim
cere from pretence.
Senator Tillman is without
doubt a very adroit politician,
and is as fine an actor as we
have ever seen, but notwithstand-
inc his adroitness, and his fine
acting, he has brought about a
condition which exposes even SO
shrevd a one as he. The Sena-
tors taking issue with Governor
McSweeney, and questioning his
right to decline his resignation,
is nothing more than a pretence;
we do not believe there is
any sincerity in it-a political
stage play and nothing more: and
the letter he writes couched as
it is, in language impugning Gov
ernor McSweeney's motives is in
deed unbecoming, even If the
governor did not have a legal
right to decline those reslgna-
tions.
AS we understand it, the letter
is rather in the nature of a re-
quest to reconsider what was be-
Iieved to be hasty action: the
Governor did not assume any
authority to force either Of the
Senators to serve if they did not
choose to, but realizing what
such campaign would bring on
the Governor as the Chief peace
officer of the State sought
to return the designations,
hoping thereby to preserve
the peace. The designations
we're so worded as to leave
room for either of the Senators
to recant up to midnight of the
18th, day of September, and the
indications were, that notwith-
standing the tacit understanding
that no primary would be held
until after the date fixed in ghe
designations: an election was
going to be forced to come OF
earlier. Therefore, it is easily
seen that had a primary been
ordered before the time fixed in
the Joint designations either Sen
ator would have been justified
in withdrawing his resignation,
and a whole lot of expense would
have been entailed and nothing
done. Then again, if the prl-
mary was forced before the time
agreed, the fearful consequences
of an exciting primary together
with the tremendous cost of the
election all might have been had
and even then, the designations
could have been withdrawn.
If Senator Tillman feels that
it is his duty to stamp out the
doctrines of Senator McLaurin,
and is afraid that he is the only
man with the nerve and brain"
to successfully accomplish this
result, he can resign next sum
mer in time for the regular pri-
mary and then enter the race,
there is nothing to prevent such
action. True, it might interfere
with the Senator's present fav-
orite, but that should not weigh
against his purpose, if his mo-
tiues are unselfsh and purely
patriotic. It should not matter
to him who the General Assem-
bly selects to succeed him after
he has defeated McLaurin in the
regular primary, because, if in
the regular primary McLaurin
is defeated the new General AS
sembly will be composed of anti
McLaurinites, and Tillman's vic
tory will be the more complete.
But should McLaurin succeed in
hanging Tillman's scalp on his
belt, the General Assembly will
be against Tillman and his views:
of course, the successor to Till
man will then be a man who is in
accord with McLaurin's ideas of
progressive Democracy.
Senator Tillman impugns Gov
ernor McSweeney's motives in
the following language: "Your
conception Of the Office of Sena-
tor and its powers can be best
understood by the ease with
which you think you could fill
it." Why should he thus init
mate that Governor McSweeney
had a selfish motive in returning
the designations, when the Gov
ernor's letter set forth such rea-
sons that an echoing response
comes from all quarters CT the
State, and although there is a
pretense Of indignation in the
Senators letter, he does not in
sist upon his resignation without
a strong string tied to it. The