The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1905-03-31

enclose took the trouble to verify a
statement which they saw In another
before INDUCING In cri, /.
cisms equally grotesque and imperti-
nent. 16 Is enough to say that /
never made the statement to which
you allude, nor ever saw Il in the col.
umns OF the paper from which you
quote.
Among gentlemen, it is customary,
before drawing an Indictment based
upon printed statements, to apply to
the author for some verihcation of
them. II you had done this, you
would have been saved very, foolish
letter and very discourteous i'm outa-
tions. II is curious fact that,
coming, as you profess, from a region
which boasts Of its superiority in
manners, you should appear to be un-
conscious of the elementary conditions
of common courtesy
Very truly yours,
(Signed) Henry @. Potter.
The Hon. w. G. Benet.
am sure it will give neither you
nor me pleasure to see this amazing
letter Of yours In the public prints. /
deeply regret the necessity of publish.
ing it.; and I doubt not you sincerely
regret ever having written 1T. But L
am glad to place the two letters, yours
and mine, side by side, and let the
public as q Jury read them and decide
whether am guilty or not guilty of
the charges Of folly, impertinence,
discourtesy and bad manners, for
those are the counts in your indict-
ment. That you have not questioned
my honor and truthfulneSs leaves
me something for which to be thank.
full.
Is 1T not strange that you are, 80
far as know, the only man who con-
siders my letter grotesque or imperti-
nent or foolish or ill-mannered? :?
Those who have spoken or written to
me about it, and they are not few,
have commended me for the courte.
Gus terms in which 1t seemed to them
to be couched. 1t must astonish you
to be told that such commendation
has come to me not only from laymen
and from the clergy, but even from
the episcopate. And this emboldens
me to request that you will favor the
public and me Ly showing wherein
consists the folly, grotesQuarie, im-
pertinence, discourtesy and bad man.
ners OF my letter.
1t has been said by comics that SO
ciety will tolerate breach Of good
morals rather than breach of good
manners. l do not quite agree with
Rochefoucauld or Chesterfield, yet l
do confess to an unwiliingEess to sit
silent when you accuse me of discount
esy, impertinence and bad manners
And since you not only charge me
with gross breach of good manners,
but also charge my State and the
whole South with grosser breach OF
good morals, it will not surprise fair
minded men that I thus answer your
Litter and meet your charges. In
spite OF the great provocation you
have given me, l trust that my lam
guage shall ba temperate and my man
nerS Iespec full, as is most meet In a
Ii yman addr. ssing one who occupies
the exalted position OF bishop.
Let me ask then, wherein have |
offended? I leave it to the gentle
men OF the New Y.,rk press to nay Il
it is not r, cogniz d rule to accept as
true and RrLu;ne what Is published
Ia metropolitan journal as a state.
rnent made by public man, pro.li-
rent In state or church. especially II
after several da!s sIch sta emeDt has
no. been repudistcd by the alleg I'd
uthur. Your first interview ap
peared In The Gl,be Of March 3rd.
You neither repudiated nor modified
anv part OF 1t until March 16, after
your attention had ben calle1 to the
editorial in T (Columbia) State by
the EDITOR Of the State aud myself.
d. you seriously think that my fail
ure t. apply to you per onally for a
v, v,sItrat"n of that interview proves
me TO b. unc on>cious OF the e.emen
'ary C. nditions of C, M II n cuu tgsyP"
What read in Toe Globn ana In The
State, neither Of them chargcabie
with yellow jnurnalism," but both
of 'them spicuUusly conservative
Ho"s papers, appeared TO me- 70 DO
genuine and correct,
And even If 1 erred In relieving
that the interview In The Globe old
not correctly state your views, OF
that errur justify you In characteriz
Ing my letter to you as 'grotesqIe
anh impertinent," and TO charge me
with having written "a very foolish
letter." snd with having made Every
0iscourteou, imputatlO uSn"
The head and front OF my offending
seems to have consisted In taking for
granted that YOU had said what was
imputed to y"u In The Globe inter.
view. ask you TO say as gentle
man was that sufficient cause to en-
title you to apply to me epithets so
rude and ungentleP J. leave it to an
impartial public to say which Of us
two has In this correspondence shown
most courtesy.
And even II In that you were correct,
do you really think you had the right
or the excuse to deal an unktndly
blow over my shoulder at the south
ern States--or Scotland-for 1t ia
doubtful to which region you refer,
although rather think you mean The
southern States. or course l am re-
ferring to your ironical remark about
my coming from a region which
boasts OF Its superiority In manners
AS Scotsman 1 tell you truly that
NY native country vaunteth not her
elf In this regard; and as southern
or assure you that my adopted
country Is too well-mannered to
boast OF It's superiority In manners