The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-11-04
REV. DIR. WOODS REPLY.
Dr. T. N Ivey to the Rescue of the Independent
Democratic Party. Save me Cassius
orI Perish.

To the Editor: a week or two since.
there was published in the leading dailies
IN the State letter written by myself
on Independentism 10 Politics.
In the last issue Of the Raleigh Chris
tian Advocate DR.. Ivey publishes edi5o-
rally very unfair and !ll-natured cri-
ticism of that letter If he wrote if il
was evidently written under great virita-
bility. | have characterized DR.. lvey's
criticism as unfair and il-natured. it is
unfair, in that he Goes not quote me in
full, and that his interpretation of
what / said was an utter and manifest
perversion of my language.
1t is also unfair in that the criticism is
published in the Advocate which is read
by a great many persons who do not
read the dailies, and thereby lead them TO
misjudge me. / do not charge that my
good brother did this for this purpose,
with malice afoFethought." 1t would
be very painful for me to believe that
he is capable of such a thing
My understanding is that She courts
always interpret an act Of tho General
Assembly in the light OF tho intention If
that body; and so an Individual must al
ways he permitted to interpret his own
meaning Of anything which he may have
said or written. and not be Judged by
any Wrestling or straining or pervcrsion
of his language by any one who may
seek to discredit him or to bolster mp a
hopeless case.
l am perfectly willing after the read
ers of the Advocate have read my views
OF "Indcpendcntism in Politics that
they may be the intelligent judges as to
whether these views are fairly charge-
able to such Interpretation as Dr. Ivey
puts upon them.
] submit that these views do not teach.
nor were they intended to teach "the
doctrine that while it is wrong for man
as a Christian to vote for an unworthy
man, II is right for him as party man
to vote for an unworthy man, 70 matter
who he may be or how unworthy he may
be" It does not announce that there
are certain times when tho authority Of
4 political party is higher than that of
God" that as Christian men we must
fcrswear the devil, but that as Christian
voters we can afford to support him
that when man enters a political party
he places in his mouth the bit by which
he is to be guided without any regard TO
moral direction
And l most humbly submit that my
views have net gotten our beloved
State in the Slough of Despond" On the
contrary. l am glad to be able to tell I'r.
Ivey, for his information that from eur
rent reports, there has never been 4 time
in the history of "our beloved state
when she was in such splendid trim as
in this year of grace 1902 and that, ioc,
under Democratic administration.
Neither is the Church weakened" b.?
such views. From any and every point
of view all the friends of the Church OF
God, claim for her, that she has never
before occupied such high vantage
ground as she does now, and that her
future was never before so hopeful.
In reply to the assertion that | ara
preaching a doctrine, or ever have
preached doctrine that even winks at
80 saloon evil, l only have to say that
the letter to Mr.. Whitaker was my first
published utterance on party fealty; and
before DR.. Ivey was born 1 was openly
fighting the saloon, and have been con-
stantly at it for fifty one years. l re-
sent with righteous Indignation and scorn
any insinuation chat anything can be
fairly deduced from anything which /
have said. that I am in favor of the sa-
loon, or that / am seeking to rub our
manhood of that spirit of moral and civil
freedom which we have Inherited from
the God above us.
I cheerfully accord the right to every
man to independence in politics; but that
if he is strictly independent, he is not an
independent Democrat, or Republican
he is simply an Independent.
l have not attempted any discussion Of
the morals of politics, and will not now.
only TO say that whenever party fealty
requires a man to do violence to his con-
science, or TO disobey God, then throw
party fealty to the wind, but in doing so.
you sever party ties. a man who would
not do this and who does not do it, even
| if he belongs to Brother Ivey's party,
has none of that spirit of moral and
civil freedom which we have inherited
from the God above us
FRANK II. WOOD.