The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-11-10
HEFLIN HITS
 THE ANTS A Brilliant Speech For
 Ratification. HON. I. H. WATTS'S SPEECH Court House Meeting Drew
 Out Large Crowd. A Reference During the Evening to Roosevelt and Booker Washing ton Caused a Dramatic Scene
 in the Court Room.

The last rally of the ratihcationists of Montgomery took place in the city court
 room at the county court house last night
 when the Montgomery Ratification Club
 was addressed by Hon. Thomas H. Watts
 of Chambers. oGvernor Jelks was unable
 to be preesnt owing to the death of a relative of his family.
 The court room was we'll filled with white men, only one negro. the janitor,
 being present. In the course of his re- marks MT. Hef1in took occasion to con- trast his audience with those which had assembled throughout the State to listen to the speakers who are opposing the new Constitution.
 MT. Robinson of Mobile and Colonel Brandon of Tuscaloosa, who were expect ed to speak failed to reach the city. Hon. Sam c. Jenkins of Wilcox, came in on d delayed train from Conecuh County,
 where he spoke yesterday. but he was fatigued and did not speak.
 MT. Watts made the opening address and spoke thirty minutes giving a
 splendid exposition of some of the princi- pal features of the new instrument. MT. Hetiin was the principal speaker. He
 consumed one hour and fifty minutes, in- terspersing his remarks with many droll
 anecdotes. He kept the audience In good humor and his speech was very
 effective.
 When MT. Hefin entered the court
 room at S:30 he was roundly cheered. He was accompanied by George w. Jones'
 representing the State Campaign Com
 mttee; Chairman Teasley of the Mont
 gomery County Campaign Committee and Hon. Temple Seibels
 The meeting was at once called to order by Mir. Seibels who announced that the president of the Ratification Club, Hon. Gordon Macdonald, was unavoidably l absent. He introduced MT. Watts, who
 was lfberally applauded.
 MT. Watts began his reMaarks by say
 ing that he came to the meeting as a
 mere Hooker on in Vienna" He said
 that he had not expected to speak. but | in the absence of other speakers he had l been pressed into service.
 In the few minutes which had been
 allotted to him MT. Watts said that he
 would undertake to impress upon the audience the importance to the people
 of the election to be held Monday It 1 was merely question he said of turning | the government over to the sheep or to
 the goats. It was a contest, he declared | between white men and negroes. It was
 the fight of 1874 in a different form and l like in 1874, MT. Watts declared, the white
 men would win.
 This declaration was enthusiastically
 applauded.
 l MT. Watts said that in his opinion the l suffrage plan of the new Constitution
 was as fine a document as had ever | emanated from the human brain. He | explained the different provisions of the
 suffrage plan with the greatest care and
 the utmost simplicity. As he elucidated
 the work of the Suffrage Committee of | the Constitutional Convention he was i frequently applauded.
 | Speaking of the provision in the suf- ! frage pian relating to Confederate sol diers and their sons. Mir. Watts compared | the concession made by the new Constitu- | tion to Confederate soldiers to the Cross
 of the Legion of Honor conferred by the French Government He said that Ala
 bama had simply said that Confederate
 soldiers and their sons were entitled to | vote without regard to any other pro- vision.
 This sentiment was wildly cheered. | Taking up the poll tax provision. MT. | Watts showed that only persons within | the present poll tax age are required to | pay poll tax. Electors have to pay that
 tax now and there is practically no | change.
 I y qualification clause and the section re-
 lating to registration were elaborated by MT Watts and the audience gave him | the closest attention.
 l MT. Watts then touched upon Governor Johnston. He said that this distinguish ed citizen of Alabama was in an adjoin- ing room appealing to the people to vote against the Constitution. He said that Governor Johnston had approved the call for a Constitution in 1S99 but when he found he could not conkrol the men elect | cd to that Convention, Governor Johnston
 had called his Legislature together and
 repealed the bill. (Applause). MT. Watts declared that it was because
 Governor Johnston could not control the Constitutional Convention of 1?J1 that he
 was now opposing the Constitution (Ap- 1 plause).
 The distinguished Montgomerian paid his poets to Hon. Jesse Stallings and Col. w. H. Denson. He spoke of them as ex-Congressmen out of jobs, and the audience applauded.
 MT. Watts entered into an argument to show that the negro is not entitled to political rights. He said there was no sort of sentiment in Alabama to continue the negro in politics. and closed with an | eloquent appeal 10 the voters present to i let the white cliffs of Caucasianism rise
 above the slough of negro ignorance and i vice.
 | MT. Hefin followed Mir Watts. When he arose from his seat there were cries of ''Hefiin Hetin," and the young orator l from Chambers was given an ovation | when he strodc upon the rostrum and
 was introduced by Mir Seibels
 MT Hefiin expressed his pleasure at be- | ing able to address an audience in the l great Capital City of Alabama. He said | 1t gave him pleasure to observe that not
 one of the tribe of old Ephraham" was | in his audience.
 They're oNer wander. a-grunting and a-groaning, a-listening to the red-headed rooster from Jefferson, said Hr. Hefin, hirging his arms in the direction of the
 Johnston meeting, and the audience roared with laughter.
 After having some more fun at the con
 trast between the two gatherings, he be- gan to reach into the hearts of his au- dience. He said it was zing to see a
 man who had been a Confederate soldier ! and Democratic Governor of Alabama ad-
 dressing a negro audience in opposition | to the white D, oplc of his State. He de- clared that the white men who were lead l ing the movement against the Constitu- l ton saw a chance for division of the white people, and had taken advantage 1 of the occasion tp use the negro in the hope of giini g lost power He said t1a h1 would announce t0 !