The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1903-10-21

Lexington, Oct. 14.-There were
two very fine arguments today in the
closing Of the case. One by Congress
man George W. Croft, who is the law
partner Of Col. Tillman, and the other
BY Mr.. G. Duncan Bellinger, Of coun-
sci fog the prosecution.
Col. Croft continued very much
upon the same lines as did his associ-
ates in the previous arguments and
laid far more stress upon the edjto-
rial attacks by Mr.. Gonzales that
did upon the Incidents immediatel
connected with the tragedy. Duri. :
the progress of the arguments far more
Importance has been attached to the
editorial crusade against Col. Tillman
than to sustaining the plea Of self-de-
fence. The counsel for the defence
have devoted moss of their time to the
idea that newspapers take too much
license; that Mr.. Gonzales prosecuted.
maligned, slandered and traduced Col.
Tillman, and that it was nothing
more than he deserved to be killed
because of his editorial attacks. They
have gone so far in this line as to COM
pare Mr. Gonzales with Brann, Of
ssThe Iconoclast, " and tosay that he
was a breeder of turmoil and discon-
tent, and that all such men sooner or
later meet violent death.
The plea of self-defence, based upon
the demonstration that Mr.. Gonzales
is said to have made, while casually
mentioned, has been minimized and
far more attention has been given
the editorial and political phases of
the case.
On the other hand. the State, and
especially Col. Crawford and Mr.. Bel
linger, have spared no words in en-
phasizing the charges that Col. Till
man planned to kill Mr. Gonzales,
and that he deliberately sought him
on the streets for the purpose Of kill
ing him, and that his only excuse for
so doing was the editorial policy OF
the State toward him.
Col. Croft, in the course Of his ar
gument today, referred to editorials
that have currently appeared in the
State, and then be created something
of sensation by his statement that an
editorial had appeared in the Spartan
burg Herald, in which the charge was
made that the jury had been
packed. :" He said that this was an
outrage, and that the editor and pub
Usher Of the Spartanburg Herald, who
was in Court, ought to be ruled for
contempt and sued for libel.
Here is what was said in the Spar
tanburg Herald by Mr.. Zach McGhee,
to which the objection was made:
SSnho &o loo
age Lexington Court jury, that is,
on it's face. On the other hand, coun-
sci for the defence seemed to be cock
sure of acquittal. Why, they are not
able to say, unless it be, as some one
has expressed it, it is an acquittal
jury in other words a packed jury.
The opinion Of the writer is that this
is not true, but we insist that no man
knows"
Col. Croft insisted that politics was
the whole cause of the tragedy and
that there was absolutely no use to
claim contrary. Then he went on to
eulogize Mr.. Gonzales as brave man,
but added that his equal "for malig.
nifty, his equal for hatred has never
existed in South Carolina or any other
State in this Union -
This was the motive Of the defence.
Col. Croft during the course OF his ar
gument undertook to SHOW that the
State had editorially linked "the two
Tillmans'' and that there was no way
of disassociating the crusade against
Col. Tillman from that Of his uncle,
Benjamin r. Tillman, and that the
first fight against Col. Tillman had its
genes: in the opposition to Senator
Tillman.
He denied that Mr.. Tillman ad-
dressed Mr.. Gonzales with the saluta-
tion before shooting him. but that if