Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1902-02-06
CONVICT CONTRACT
LAWYER DlSSECTS GOV. DAVIS
VULNERABLE ATTITUDE.
Makina Grand Stand Play ana
Doesn't Want to Break the
Contract.

A prominent attorney who heard
the Rector-Davis debate at no!
Springs Tuesday, said to Little ROCK
Democrat reporter:
"In his speech at Hot Springs yes
terday Mr.. Rector did not discuss at
full length Governor Davis connec'
tion with the convict labor lease. as
the allotted time given him had explr-
ed But he did say enough to snow
that Governor Davis had no claim
upon the laboring classes by reason
of his connection with the lease or IN
his efforts to have the same set aside.
1t will be remembered that While at
torney general he signed that lease.
He cannot give reasonable excuse for
signing it by saying that he did not
know what he was doing or that he
did not give it the proper consldera-
ton. If he is now qualified Tor the
Office of governor he certainly then
should have been qualified to know
the effect of the contract. 1t is no
excuse for him to say that he signed
If without consideration or that frauu
was practiced upon him in procuring
his signature A man in his position
should give due consideration to such
important transactions. IT not, the
people cannot trust him in the future
with explicit confidence. He claimed
at one time that he was induced to
sign the contract through fraud. MI.
Dickinson denied this, and then Gov
ernor Davis set up the baby act,
that he did not give it proper consid-
Grafton or did not understand it. SUI
flee to say he executed the contract
and should have known what he was
doing. But this is not all. He now
poses before the people as thel:
champion in his efforts to set aside
the contract. Governor Davis should
answer a few questions. What effort
has he made to set the contract aside:
He might we'll know that party to
a contract could not set aside without
the agreement VI Oh peil IiS.''
should have gone into the courts and
sought to have had it set aside, but
he failed to do this, and when an op-
portunity on the other side was pre-
sented to him to make a defense IN
a case where a bill was filed by the
lessees to enjoin interference on the
part of the state he failed to do so.
Anyone would we'll know that such
able attorneys as compose the firm OF
Rose. Hemingway & Rose would
know especially after the agitation on
the subject. that in drafting a bill to
enioin interference they would GER
tainly set out all the elements neces-
sadly to a valid contract, and as Mr.
Rector said instead of answering and
denving the allegations of the bill, he
directed a demurrer to the complaint
which admitted that every allegation
of the complaint was true. The bill
showed cause of action and valid
contract. The chancellor had nothing
left fir him to do except to oVerrule
the demurrer. Instead of denving the
allegations of the bill and interposing
a cross-bill to set aside the contract,
with proper allegations, Governor
Davis took course entirely incOnsist
ent with the position he now takes,
and entirely inconsistent with his pre-
lenses that he desires the contract set
aside and is making an effort to do so.
The truth is that no thinking man
can believe him to be reasonable and
sane and also conscientious in his
pretenses. 1t is q species Of dema-
gogy for him now to come before the
laboring people and claim that the
contract is an iniquituous one and
bring convict labor in contact with
| free labor in view of the fact that he
has failed to take any proper steps
whatever to annul the contract and
| that he has even gone to the extent
in demurring to admit the allegations
of the lessees that the contract was
valid and thus places himself before
the supreme court and the people,