The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1904-07-01
Aycock.s Address.
e.naaued from Page Two.

AO0CIS OF OIL ROilIlcdl enemleS. OEe
of the largest stockholders in the road
and a director of it, is a leading Repub-
lican, a competent business man. the
Eastern district of North Carolina. Mr..
collector Of internal revenue for the
E c. Duncan. One of the stockholders
who attended N last annual meeting
and voted to approve the report OF the
president and other officers showing tnc
transactions of the past year IS Mr.
Dan Patrick, a leading Republican or
Green county and a former president OF
the road. / mention the names of these
gentlemen as showing that there could
rot be any possibility of the road nav
ing been badly managed, or else these
men AVE been very derelict in heir
duty in failing 10 point out wherein
and directing my attention to ii. The
charges of mismanagement having been
repeatedly made in the public press, I
deemed it my duty TO appoint a COM
mittee TO thoroughly investigate the
conduct OF the road. That committee
was composed ct as able, high toned
and impartial men as the state con-
t2ins within her borders. Their report
has been published. There is nothing IN
ii showing the slightest dishonesty.
There is in the report the clearest evi-
dence Of a difference of business judg-
ment as to the proper conduct OF the
road. It is possible that the road could
nave Deem DelltT IldldSeU- lnOe6u l.
am sure that it would have been better
If ON things done had been left un-
lore and If some things left undone
had been done, but we u judge the
work Of men by the sum total of their
actions, by the wisdom which they have
shown, as we'll as by the mistakes
which they have made, and taking all
this into consideration it is manifest
that a property which has doubled its
income within the last five Years and
doubled the market value of it's stock
within the last three years, is certainly
better managed than the business OF
the average business man of the state
and has been better managed than can
ordinarily be expected from public
service.
I nave thought it needful to say
this much concerning the doing OF my
administration. 1 trust that you will
now permit me to say something of the
effect of them.
I declared in my speech Of acceptance
that with the adoption of the Constitu-
ional Amendment w will have peace
in the land" There will be rest I
said, from political bitterness and race
antagonism. Industry will have a great
outburst. We shall have intellectual
freedom. Public questions will stand or
fall in the court of reason and not Ok
passion. We shall forget the asperities
OF those years and shall go forward
into the twentieth century a united
people, striving in zeal and in generous
rivalry for the material, intellectual
and moral upbuilding of the state. May
an era Of good feeling among US De the
outcome of this contest"
There are those among US who fear
that these predictions have not been
fulfilled. These doubters are looking
upon the surface of things. They do
not look at the great underlying truth.
They declare that bitterness is more
rife than ever before; that the era of
good feeling has not come; that criti-
cism is more severe than ever; that
freedom of speech is not permissible.
They have mistaken appearance for
fact. There is bitterness between indI-
viduals. There is strife and enmity
between some people. There is of
course a reckless criticism. Our peo-
pie had been SO long restrained by the
necessity of staying united in order to
face the danger of negro control of the
state that when they first gained their
freedom under the Constitutional
Amendment they naturally felt called
upon to exhibit their freedom from re-
straint by frequent, and often undue
criticism. Newspapers which would in
the Old days nave unhestitatingly sus-
tanned my administration at every
point. nave Cr1ClclSeQ IL WITH muCn Sc
verify and sometimes, as I think. with
much injustice. Speeches n publlca-
tions which heretofore would haze at
tracted universal approval or universal
condemnation, according ito the side
that they were on, have met with a Iii
vided support n a divided criticism.
Controversies have grown large about
small things. Personalities lave fire.
Quently taken the place of the discuss
sim nf Oraat nrnbIanS All af thpSa
things have been done in assertion OF
y new born freedom. They are ever
the first fruits Of liberty of speech.
They mark the beginnings Of real lib
erty, which will hereafter be restrained
by judgment. They show that the
minds of our people are active; that
they are alert even in fault finding.
They can be destructionists, but this
is the beginning OF the constructive
power as we'll. If we pull down now
we shall build hereafter. If we criti-
else without restraint now, we shall in
the future learn that effective criti-
cism is that only which is based TN
fact n then only to be INDUCED Id for
the correction OF evil and for the pur-
pose of turning men toward bstter
things. This bitterness and this stIile
has not reached the great body Of the
people. They have gone about their
work undisturbed by fault finding and
the asperities of discussion. They have
found industry the best outlet for their
superabundance of energy and hey
are bringing to pass a wonderful day In
this state. Truly, as 1 predicted, there
has been a great outburst of industry
AT the time of the taking of the CEN
sus in 1900 there were III cotton mills
| in his state. Since then 80 more nave
been erected. In 1900 these mills had
1888. 432 spindles: since then S63, 206 more
have been put in. In 1900 there we're
%, 400 looms; since then 21,o01 looms
have been added. In 1900 there was
invested in cotton mills in this state
S25,S40. As. 90; since then SIS, 260, o00.0O
| have been added to the investment. We
| have added SO per cen to our number
of mills; 70 per cent to our number of
| snindtas. "a oant to aur number of