The gold leaf., 1902-11-20

Plaudit. "WeIl Done" from His
FELLOWSHIP Has Three Times Suc.
cesstuliy Led the Party to Victory
His Genius for Organization and
Leadership Recognized Abroad.
Raleigh News and Observer 5th.
The victory of yesterday closed the
almost continuous political cam
palgn that began i'll North Carolina
upon the meeting OF the State Con-
ventIon III Raleigh III the summer OF
lS9S. There has been no such polit-
zeal period except when the white
people OF the State thirty years ago
| rescued the State from the carpet
| bag and negro government. When
the 1898 campaign opened every
branch OF the State government was
III the hands OF the Re-pop-li-cans.
AT the previous election they had
carried the State by nearly 10000
majority and thought they were too
| strongly entrenched to be driven
| from power The Democrats. recOl-
| lecting his successful service rs State
| Chairman i'll 1892, elected Hon. +.
NJ. Simmons as State Chairman.
| Surrounded, cheered and elped by
| able and courageous men, WHO were
ready to make. any sacrifices to re-
| deem the State, Mr. Simmons effected
the best organization, put hope into
| the hearts OF the people, and after
| the most strenuous campaign since
| the ku klux klan days, the white
people OF the State returned to their
| own. The shouts OF victory had
| scarcely died out before the leaders
OF the party saw that unless some
measure to eliminate the ignorant
negro vote could be devised, results
| OF the victory would be only tempo
rary. They began at once to study
the Mississippi, the South Carolina,
| the Louisiana plans OF cOustitu-
| tiOnal suffrage regulation. When
| the Legislature met the amendment
under which the people voted yester-
| day Tor the first time was submitted
to the people for ratification. The
| campaign upon the adoption OF that
amendment was hOtly contested
The allied Republican and Populist
parties eXerted every effort to defeat
the amendment They declared it
was unconstitutional, vicious, un-
| just; they told the illiterate white
| voters that the amendment would
| disfranchise them, and hundreds were
| deceived by their misrepresentation
| That was no tlmetO change the man
agement of the State campaign and
| by unanimous vote Mr.. Simmons
was reelected chairman. But the
amendment was adopted by more
than 10000 majority, to go into
effect on the first OF July, 1902. Even
| then there were many who doubted
| that it would accomplish the epurpose
| for which it was devised and ratified
| The success of the amendment was
an open question. The same agencies
| that had directed the 1898 and 1900
| campaigns were best fitted to COM
plete the work by conducting the
first campaign under the amendment.
And so, with one accord, the people
called Senator Simmons again to be
State Chairman. He was willing and
ready. AS in former campaigns he
gave his whole time and thought to
winning the magnificent victory else
where recorded in this paper. On
Monday night, in his speech in
| Greensboro, Mr.. Simmons reviewed
the continuous campaign begun in
1898 which ended yesterday, and
said:
'In 1898 we regained control of
the Legislative department OF the
| government. In 1900 we regained
control of the Executive department
OF the government. Tomorrow we
will regain control of the judicial de-
| partment of the government, and
| the Constitutional Amendment, the
Magma Charta OF white supremacy,
will be established by a majority so
| great that no man i'll North Caro-
lima will henceforth dare lay his inn
pious hands upon it. When tomor-
rows sun goes down the work OF re-
demption will be complete, and |
shall then lay down my commission
as chairman of your committee that
| may give my undivided time to the
great work YOU imposed upon me
when YOU commissioned me to repre-
sent YOU in the United States Senate.
As chairman of your committee
have given YOU my best efforts. AS
YOUR Senator YOU are entitled to re-
ceive and, God being my helper, you
shall receive my best efforts. When
my work here is finished, when | have
retired from the conflicts of life, ]
shall not remember with most pleas
ure the fact that my fellow country
men have made me Representative
and Senator, as proud and grateful
as | shall ever be of these great hon.
ors and distinctions. My greatest
pleasure in connection with my
public work-the proudest legacy
save that of an honorable life-which
| shall leave to my children, will be
the fact that. when the State was tC
be saved from the Plutonian night
into which it had passed, | was
chosen by my countrymen to lead IL
the crusade for redemption and at
YOUR command | took into my hands
your white and stainless banner and
with the aid of one hundred and
eighty thousand true and loyal white
men, we planted it upon the highest
rampant of victory, where it will stay
as long as the white men OF North
Carolina and their defendants shall
continue to love and cherish home
and altar and fireside.
i Until Mr.. Simmons had conducted
: the first election under the amend
ment, the wisest party leaders would
not have consented to his retirement
as State Chairman. 1t is never saft
to change horses while crossing 8
stream. The campaign OF 1902, 19Ot
and 1898 was only one campaign. Il
; began with the avowed determlna
+;on 70 eliminate the neorO AS an i'm