The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1902-08-06
THAT CLEAN CAMPAIGN.

From the very inception of the present
campaign the opposition have had a great
deal to say. about "a clean campaign"
as they phrase it. They have persist
entity and strenuously insisted that the
contest should be conducted without BIT
| terness, abuse or Misrepresentation. and
| that no unfair methods should be resort
| ed to on the part Of candidates or their
| followers.
| How the opponents of the Governor
| have carried out their conception OF
clean campaign is amply proven by their
| speeches and their newspapers. 1t has
| been from the beginning a campaign of
abuse and Misrepresentation, and the
head of the opposition ticket has been the
| chief sinner. He started out by trying
to discredit the records of his predeces-
sors in order to exaH his own. He has
character of other Governors with the
sole object of adding to his own credit.
He has not hesitated to misuse figures
and misrepresent records and official
statements. All this has been done in
order that the administration of Johnston
may be exalted, regardless of the injus-
tice done those who preceded him or those
who followed him.
The Advertiser has been abused, Wilt
fed and maligned because it has pub
lished the facts, and has shown the fall
sity of Johnston's claims by giving the
figures. The paper has been accused of
dealing in personalities because it has
insisted on exposing the true character
of the opposition. The few papers which
are supporting the Ex-Governor. led by
his Birmingham mouthpiece, try to make
up for their weakness by substituting
misrepresentation for argument and abuse
for facts. They seem to think that multi
plicity of words and vociferous assertion
is argument, and that to misrepresent
The Advertiser is to advance the cause
of their candidate.
All this doesn't hurt The Advertiser.
1t is part of the campaign tao
tics of those who know that
their only chance to win Is by deceiving
the people. II they can make the voters
believe that Johnston was the only capa-
BILE and honest Governor Alabama has
had and that but for him ruin and bank
ruptcy would have been the fate of our
State, then he can hope to get their votes.
Their idea of a clean campaign is one in
which Johnston's shortcomings are to be
buried in the same grave with the meri-
torious services of Jones and Oates and
Sanford and Jelks.. Their theory is that
none of Johnston's failings shall get to
the public, and that nothing to the credit
of other Governors shall see the light.
These calumniators seem to forget that
there are records which disprove their
charges and nullify their claims. They
are apparently oblivious of the fact that
most of the claims made by Johnston for
his administration are not only unsup-
ported, but that the facts and figures are
in direct opposition to such claims. They
seem not to remember that there are
official books which disprove some
of Johnston's strongest claims and which
show, beyond possibility of doubt, that
he has misstated records and figures
All this is done in the interest or "a
clean campaign" When The Advertiser
or any other paper publishes statistics
and figures to disprove Johnston's claims
it IS accused of making a personal fight
on him. There has been no candidate for
high office whose record was more vul-
nerable, or who could be more injured by
plain statements of facts than Johnston.
If his supporters could by any
means induce the friends of Governor
Jelks to stop publishing facts it would
add to their cause, but they can't do
this, not even with drink"
Of xfrI ho lliafa in