The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1902-07-24

campaign, and after the Amendment
goes into effect to seek to have it set
aside by the courts. He intimates
that this is serious charge and
ought not to have been made upon
information 1t is a charge of a
purpose to do what in part they have
already done, and it is charge OF a
purpose to do what they had boldly
declared in 1900 Oh every stump in
the State they intended to do. No
one, so far AS / know. complains of
the exposure except the Republicans
land they were expected to complain)
and certain Democrats who have re-
Gently become noted for their criti-
cisms Of the Democratic party and it's
leaders and who speak more often in
terms of approval and commendation
than in criticisms of the opponents
of Democracy. Why are these people
50 stirred up over this exposure?
Why should they be so cock sure
that the Republicans do not intend
to carry out their ante-election threat
against the Amendment? Why do
they go into Mysteries when it is
charged that the Republicans are TO-
mcnting independentism in North
Carolina?
But Senator Pritchard issued an
address not long since TO the people
Of North Carolina in which he did a
little charging based upon 'informa
tion.' refer to his address, issued
April 8, 1902, signed by him as Chair
man of the Republican State Execu
tive Committee and issued by the
direction of the Republican State Ex-
ecutive Committee. In that inter-
view he used this language: L am
informed that the leaders of the Dem
ocratic party propose to try to induce
the county commissioners in the va
rious counties where they are in con-
troll to release from payment of poll
tax all those who fail to pay their
, taxes on or before the first day of
May, provided they agree to vote
the Democratic ticket, regardless of
the fact as to whether or not they
come within the provisions Of the
statute which authorizes the commits
sioners in certain cases to exercise
discretion
Here is charge made by the Re-
publican chairman and Senator that
the Democratic party proposed to try
to induce the commissioners OF the
Democratic counties. in violation of
law and in disregard of their oaths
of Office, to release from payment of
poll tax all persons who have not
paid their tax according to law who
would agree to vote the Democratic
ticket Was there ever a more SLAM
derous, outrageous and uniounded
charge promuI gated in the State, a
charge of corruption against the
whole Democratic party, charge
that it would attempt to induce the
Democratic commissioners of the
State to commit bald-faced perjury
for partisan purposes, and this charge
based upon 'information?' That the
charge was slanderous has been
proved by events. l do not recall
any very vigorous censure of Senator
Pritchard for publishing this slander
from those who are now going into
Mysteries over my exposure. / do
not recall any protest on their part
upon the ground of its 'improbabil-
ity,' although it was absurd and RI
diculous upon its face. These things
are pertinent, these things are sig
niticant. The people Of North Caro-
lima should reflect upon them, and
they should ask themselves whether
these things do not indicate that the
, Republican plan of campaign, as out
, lined by my informant, is already al
| work in North Carolina and far ad
: vanced.
"In less than fortnight after Sen
, stor Pritchard's address to the people
, an extract from which has beer
f quoted, the Republican commission
ers of Madison county, where The
: Senator lives, sitting in Marshall
his home town, are charged to have
: done the Identical thing which h'
= charged the Democrats intended tt
t have done in Democratic counties
e and there is no other county in tn
i State where this unlawful thing wa
: done.
1.-The Senator says in his interview
i that there has never been any negr'
| domination in North Carolina as
j State That question has been de
t cided against the Senator by ma
V jority of sixty thousand votes. Thi
# statement of the Senator is, there
o fore, to use the now famous languag
e of Senator Beveridge, 'unwarranted
!. The Senator qualities his statemcn
t that there has been no negro domina
l. ton in North Carolina by adding tn
o words 'as State | suppose b
# means there was none in the sectio
: of the State where he lives. Nor
q than any other man in the State, tn
q Senator is responsible for the twenty
s. seven negro postmasters and the on
e thousand negro office holders tha
y his party placed in authority owe
n the white people Of Eastern Mort
e Carolina when it was in power. II
is and his Republican associates in tn
West had enough of the spirit
is Anglo-Saxon manhood not to want
le the part of the State in which the
j. lived the horrible conditions they ha
IS helped to force upon the white peop
s. Of the East, and it comes with /
20 grace for them to mock tae whit
E. people of the East, on whose nee
,s they put the ruthless heel of neg
is domination, with the statement "
st had none of it in our section OF Il
to State The fact that the Senate
e appointed negro postmasters in IL
IS East and would not appoint then
D. his own section of the State maxi
N his crime against the white people 8
- the worse. The people of North Ca
is olina have not forgotten these neg'
~ Office holders and they have not TO
L. gotten who brought them into exis
rt euce and placed them over them, al
IN if, when the party which perpetrat
i'd this great outrage appeals to t
We white people of the State Tor tho
D. votes they are overcome by the mel
er orr of those horrible days and C