The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-05-25
Especial to News and Observer

tive Government
Especial to News and Obseryer.)
inside history of the events leading up
To the elimination of tine Agreements
whereby the action of the State Re-
publican convention was determined
upon, and the slate made up for State
candidates, as an incidental attach
ment TO the more important questions
of endorsing and disnifying Internal
Revenue Collector L.. c. Duncan. di-
IUctIy and inferentiaiIy their patron
political saint, Il. Spencer Blackburn,
are ever written, there would be Il
chapter in politics which would ap-
pail the most confident optimist in the
purity or stability of our boasted plan
OF representative government"
.Prefacing with the above written
statement, one of the most reputable
Republicans in North Carolina gave an
outline of the schemes. trades and
bargains, compromises, sUrrenders
and agreements entered into by the
dominant element Of the real man
ayers Of the Republican State con.
vention, which met in Greensboro q
week ago to put forth a State ticket,
select delegates to the National con
vention, liX the organization of the
party for the next two years, cast the
lines upon which the campaign should
be run this year as representative or
North Carolina Republican principles
and policies.
The informant was not Judge By
mum, who, after finding out what had
been going on and what had been de-
termined upon, issued a public mani
festo, utterly and disdainfully repu
dating the result OF the contest had
the day and night before the con-
Vention met, upon one side of which
We're State Chairman Rollins, Thomas
Settle, Collector Harkins, Judge Tim
berlake, Judge Bynum, Judge Robin
son, District Attorney Ho1ton and
others contending for cleaner politics,
Opposed to them and triumphing, was
Collector E. G. Duncan. and with the
exception of some of he revenue Off
GERS. and private Republican delegates
i'm Guilford and Randolph counties
his entire brigade of ofiice-holding
and non office-holding delegates from
the. Eastern district. The speaker
then stated. that with all this solid
support from the east, the detection
in Guilford and Randolph counties
Office holders in his confidence, the
large majority of his delegates know
ing nothing of his plans or caring to
know anything but MS Wild from
getting control of the SITUATION
Overtures were then made to Black
burn, who was understood to be IN
dire straits as to his title as nominee
for Congress in the Eighth district
This title was to be determined by
tot
as 10 the regularity of delegates to
the State convention, sent by Black
burn and anti Blackburn forces in the
counties Of the Eighth district.
A Diseracerul Coalition.
Blackburn's present political exist
ence and his hopes depended upon the
result of this one thing. Duncan's
official competency or integrity had
been seriously called in question, by
. revelations in the trial of Angle,
Sprinkle and Young in the whfskey
frauds case in the Federal court are
evidence had been adduced in the
trial of Davis, a government gauger
under his jurisdiction, that the clip
ping of revenue stamps, by means OF
which the frauds were made posi-
BILE, were under the direction of an
officer in Duncans office. The de-
fendant himself testified to this fact
which was not contradicted on the
trial.
One of the contentious of Judge
Bynum, for the acquittal of Davis, his
client, was that he was acting under
the authority of the collector. who, il
there was guilt, must have been the
one responsible for ii, and not a subor-
dinate So. said the speaker. not only
was DsIncans reputation at stake, bur,
his Official scalp. To make Il long
story short, the speaker narrated u
series of conferences, contentious and
trades, whereby Blackburn, making
common cause with revenue Office
holders. poStmastcrs and Whisl<ey dis
fiIIers under his control joined forces
with Collector Duncan. This made
the ascendancy OF the latter so over
Uhelming, that the only thing State
Chairman Rollins could get conceded,
and this only after the most strenI
Gus i:isistcace ard threats on his part.