The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1905-07-12
T1LLMAN AT GREENvILLE.
A Talk to Farmers on Farm Topics
With a Touch on the Dispensary.

Greenville, July 4.-The big gun of
Greenville's Glorious Fourth celebra-
ton did not explode with anything
like so much noise as the same gun
has made on other occasions. 1t was
for Ben Tillman-a tame speech
that he made today. There were
flashes of the old Tillman fire but
these shots were good humored and
rather harmless.
The celebration was a great success.
There were from 1000 to 5000 per-
sons at the grounds Of the Piedmont
Fair Association, and at least 1000 of
these attended the speaking. The
stand had been erected on the slope of
a hill in magnificent grove on the
old Perry place and seats were ar
ranged on the sides Of the hill. All
the arrangements were excellent ex-
cept that the reporters had no table
and the eloquence dispensed might
have gone unrecorded had not Sena-
tor Tillman insisted upon turning over
to the newspaped men the table in
tended for the use of the speakers.
The senator was introduced by Mr..
r. Mays Cleveland, who presided in
the absence of the county chairman of
the Cotton Growers Association, Mr..
II. B. Tindal, who was sick. Mr..
Cleveland, one Of the best farmers and
most substantial citizens of Greenville
county, has been active in organizing
the cotton growers and is on the state
executive committee.
Two unequivocal assertions were
made in Senator Tillman's speech; the
rest was indefinite. He damned the
Southern Cotton Association with
faint praise; he showered bouquets on
that associations leader in this State,
E. D. Smith; he merely touched on
the dispensary; he told of his own
success as a farmer and gave his
..brother farmers" good advice on
more than one point; he dismissed
ex-senator McLaurin with sneer and
as one politically moribund.
The two positive assertions were
these: He is opposed to the principle
of local option as applied 70 the
liquor question in the Brice law, is in
favor of a vote all over the state at
the same time in the Democratic pri-
mary and deprecates the voting on
the question county by county: two.
unless changes are made in the man
agement, unless the c-oul Of suspicion
is lifted from the dispensary system,
he will take the position in the cam
paign next year that the system
should be abolished. He declared
that il his health permits he will be in
next years campaign as a candidate
for reelection to the senate and will
take a hand in the debate on the dis
pensary; he will, if he decides to op-
pose it, pay his respects to those who
have brought his pet institution into
disfavor and disrepute. In regard to
the pending question in Greenville
county, where petitions for an election
under the Brice act are being cir
culated, the senator said nothing, but
his declarations Of dissatisfaction with
this method of referendum on the
question may be sufficient to stiffen
the dispensary forces for a fight in
what is at present conceded to be
losing battle for that institution.
In regard to the cotton farmers
organization, the senator gave it as his
belief that the association had done
good in certain respects but that it Is
not entitled to all the credit for the
recent rise in cotton. He said the
other farmers movement-that Of
1Se2-had openly gone into politics,
rs was their right; that this mo:e.-
men had declared its intention Of stay
ing out Of politics and he gave Mr..
Smith credit for sincerity in this de-
termination to steer clear Of politics,
the inference being that others prom
inent in the movement might not be
so sincere in that purpose.
This is a fair analysis Of Senator
Tillman's trend of thought; it does
not purport to be a quotation Of his
words. He was asked to make a
speech to farmers on agricultural sub
iects and he stuck as close to his non
political text as it was possible for
Ben Tillnan to do. His talk suited the
times, the occasion and the crowd. In
the crowd could be seen nearly all
the old-time Tillmanite leaders Of a
do1en wears ago in this county but the