Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1904-10-28
FLOOD AND RIvERcOMB.
INTERESTING DISCUSSION AND EN-
THUSrASTIC AUDIENCE

INTERESTING DISCUSSION AND EN-
THUSIASTIC AUDIENCE.
The rival candidates for compression
al honors in the Tenth District had
good audience and an enthusiastic on
to hear them in Columbian Hall Mon
day. There were fully 800 persons il
the large room SOON after the speaking
commenced, and during the tire
hours of the discussion they came ant
went. Mr.. Flood says Amherst CAV
them a larger audience. at least 1000
and they had better staying qualities
as all remained to bear the last mar
through. He,e, as soon as Mr.. Riv-
ercomb closed, there was a stamped
of all the negroes and most of th'
white Republicans. They filnched
evidently from hearing their champi-
on get a severe wordy drubbing whict
they might well guess was in store fol
him after the preposterous and unrea.
sonable statements he had made. The
larger part of the audience remained
however and enjoyed heartily the
singing reply of Mr.. Flood, which
they cheered proariously again and
again.
The drill of the Republicans, who
had placed themselves principally on
the front seats was admir- able and they
applauded and yelled in chorus as
their leader would give them the signal
so that sometimes the applause came
in well, for Mr.. Revercomb is good
d ebator and sometimes it didn't. AT
ter the Stonswall Brigade band, which
had led the way for the crowd from
the court house, had ceased playing.
Hon. Joseph A. Glasgow, County
Chairman of the Democratic party,
who presided, rose and announced a
joint debate between Hon. H. u. Flood,
democratic candidate for congress,
and Hon. George A. Revercomb. re-
publican candidate. He announced
the terms, MIR. Flood to lead off in an
hours sprech, Mr.. Revercomb to fol-
low In an hour and q half and Mr..
Flood to close in half an hour, and
then very neatly introduced Mr.. Flood,
who was received very flatteringly
and commenced by congratulating him
self on having the opportunity to ad
dress an audience from the great cd
county Of Augusta, the largest in the
district and best in the State and said
he wanted to give his people an &C
count of his stewardship which had
now extended over three and half
years.
Here three men gave very untime
" ''hurrah for Roosevelt Mr.. Flood
smiled and said: "That Is the tamest
hurrah 1 have heard yet, just about
the kind you will give on the 9Th Nov"
This rally made the Democrats ap-
pland and the Republicans look seri-
Gus. The speaker then exposed the
claim made by the opposing
party and asked bis hearers to inquire
Of the thousands of factory hands out
Of employment where was the pros
perity, ask the thousands of railroad
men whose wages had been reduced,
The tobacco growers who we're under
The heel of the tobacco trust, and the
cattle men Of Augusta who, on &C.
count of the beef trust, were getting
such poor prices for t!;eir cattle? Mr..
he said, is the only one
now who still talks prosperity.
He spoke of the high tax rate the
result Of protected industries, which
the people, explaining
the principle of reciprocity in calm,
words. Then proceeding
to the much talked of question of the
trusts be showed how inconsistent the
is, which after receiv-
ing an appropriation from congress of
$500, 900 with which to put down the
great corporations which were doing
business in an unconstitutional way,
had made q miserable failure, and out
Of 454 of them had only investigated 5
and convicted one, but the mighty
beef trust was too powerful to be put
down. He also showed up the ship
subsidy iniquity, which was the
scheme of the Republican party to aid
the wealthy corporations to build ships
here with great profit after the high
tariff had driven from the seas every
American merchant vessel, for the
tariff had put up the price Of steel and
ship building materials SO high that
an American builder had to 60 out of
the country to build a ship. He also
spoke of the great frauds in the post
al, interior and war departments, and
while a partial investigation had been
gone into, the investigation proved too
big thing to be pushed at this time,
and though the Democrats demanded
it, the Republicans refused. They