The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-03-02
Leadsal North Carolina Daiies i'm Newsstand Circulation
MALONE AND M'LAURIN..A PARALLEL.
Ben Hill SklfulIy Used Surgeons Knife on Malone
Ben Tilnan Used Broad Axe on McLaurin

twenty years ago III TIE SENATE william
Malone, who had been elected to the
Senate as a Democrat, gave his vote to
the Republicans to organize the Senate.
He obtained the distribution of Federal
patronage and then and there became a
Republican.
The conflict between Senator TilInan
and Senator McLaurn recalls the Ma
hone incident Of twenty years ago. Nc
Laurin has followed almost step by step
in the footprints of Malone. He was
elected to the Senate as a Democrat, as
was Malone, though Malone had re-
eeived Republican assistance while Nc
Laurin had no Republican help. In an
emergency when the Republicans needed
one vote to carry out thir plans, Malone
gave it to them. In return he controlled
the distribution of Federal patronage
Soon thereafter he threw off all disguise
and called himself Republican In an
emergency twenty years later, the Re
publicans needed one vote in the Senate
McLaurin gave it to them. Since that
time he has been distributing Republican
patronage in his State.
In 1881, before Malone had disclosed
bis purpose to betray the party to which
he professed allegiance, Ben Hill uneov-
cred his treachery and he stood exposed
in his political infamy before all the
world.
Last week, months after McLaurin had
made his famous speech against the
treaty (Which by the way he stole from
New York preacher)-and then gave
the Republicans the necessary vote. Rem
Tillman denounced his party recreancy
in the United States Senate. And the
"lie" and the blow followed. That is now
history.
Malone and McLaurin occupied almost
an identical position
But there was a difference in the men
who uncovered their party treashery.
Ben Hill was trained man who used
the surgeons knife with precision and
grace.
Ben Tillman was an unframed man who
used the broad axe viciously and crudely.
Hill operated on Malone without the
violent bursting of the blood vessels.
Tfllman's broad axe brought the blood
squirting in every direction
Hill was the surgeon in the well ap-
pointed hospital.
Tillman was the butcher with the
noise, the groans and running of warm
blood in the abattoir.
glance at the scene in the Senate on
March 18th, 1881, when Ben Hill "uncov-
cred Malone" will show McLaurin's true
position today. Extracts from Hills
speech then will show the criticism Justly
due to McLaurin now
From THE Life of Benjamin Hill this
statement is taken:
AS the Democrats had a majority,
counting Malone and David Davis. as
soon as the Senate met on the morning Of
March 18th, motion was made to or
ganize and elect officers. and it was in
the debate growing out of this motion
that Mr. Hill made his celebrated attack
uncovering the political traitor to his
party and to his State. The mere formal
selection of officers did not interest
Senator Hill; but he had scorn and con-
tempt for political jugglery and treach
cry, and he saw in this conduct of Ma
hone an effort to form coalition with
the Federal administration for the pur
pose of dividing the South and by the
helping of the negroes to get control of
the State governments. 1t now became
clear that such was the purpose of the
Republicans and Malone and his follow
ers. 1t was expected by its origination
that this scheme would find support
among what was known as the Indepen-
dent Democrats of the South and that
the State of Georgia would furnish two
prominent recruits who had been re-
Gently defeated for reelection to Con-
gress. Mr.. Hills attack was the first
gun fired by the Democrats against this
corrupt coalition to divide the South. and
it was so terrible and effective that it
made the scheme odious, defeating it in
its very inception
Writing of this speech at the time a
Washington correspondent said:
mo wonder that the object Of attack
his terrible denunciation of Malone as the
papers expressed it next morning-no
wonder Senator Malone instinctively
dropped behind his desk. now and then
lodging to one side or the other ner-
vously, as if he felt the talons of the
great eagle buried in his flesh. The
speaker did not look at the Virginian,
nor at any one else, but far away ard
above the crowd, as if addressing an in
visible audience and arraigning an i'm
aginary culprit''
BEN. HILLS SPEECH.
The Tillman- McLaurin speeches are
fresh in the public mind. The following
extracts from Mr.. Hills speech made in
March, 1881, show that his excoriation of
Malone applies word by word to Nc
Laurin: