The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-04-22
EDITOR DEAL CALLS THEM
"GRAFTERS. SNEAKS AND
COWARDS'

Tie people of al sections Of North
Carolina have fait the deepest resent
ment towards the revenue officers who
made a murderous attack upon Mr. r.
A Deal, editor of the Wilkesboro
Chronicle, because of his criticisms of
the practices that have been common
among revenue officers. Mr.. Deal is
made of the right stuff. His paper this
week fairly bristles with facts and
statements that demand investigation.
Here is his story of the assault:
''Grafters. Sneaks and towards.
The article written last week con-
corning the way that blockaderS get
information ana escape IN Lewis Fork
township seems to have struck hard
on the revenue ofticerS although they
were not Implicated IN the article, 1t
was not Indicated who the guilty ones
were as our informant did not know,
or at least did not tell. But 1t raised
the ire OF these fellows. and instead
of acting any sort of gentlemen, they
attacked the editor near the post office
FRIDAY afternoon. He had been in
bed tor some time with grip and
neuralgia and was making the trip
to the office, as no one was at hand
TO send. We were met near the Office
by one G.. W. Samuels, the other offi-
GERS being near and with oaths he de-
manded the name of our informant.
We told him he could not get it that
way, and started to go on to the post
office. He said that its a - lie of
your own make" A big CRAFTY rsve-
nue. ruffian ran up named HaSty ana
with pistol waving SWore you are the
lying s-of-a-b-"-and about that time
Samuels battered our face several
fItit
of the sort We We're barely able to
walk anyway and were easily Knocked
over When friends ran in HaSty at
tempted to bluff them with his pistol.
showing that it was Il made up job or
sneakS and towards. 1t was an uneX-
pected assault to us. Samuels and
Ourself had been good friends; we mad
said no words against him; we were
members of the same fraternity and
sat together in the lodge. Amy infor
nation would have been given him
if he had asked it in gentiemaniy
manner. But he chose rather to act
with Hasty, the sneak, assassin and
coward. These sneak grafters Will 90
murder to keep no their business.
1T has been the common talk for
two years that there was serious graft
and rottenness in the revenue business
here 1t has frequently been published
in the leading State papers, and the
tale of our informant from Lewis Fork
is not new to these sneaks and cow
ards
From the editorial page of Mr..
Deals paper the following editorial
paragraphs are taken:
"a temporary black eye is prefer
able to a permanent black character"
$50 long as Federal Grafters, Sneaks.
Bull-dozers and towards run loose in
the land. it is dangerous for an hon
est man to walk around attending TO
his business
1.-THE Chronicle this week makes
the charge that revenue officers
accept brides of thirty dollars a
month to allow special RepubH-
cans in Lewis Fork township to
make blockade liquor The
North Wilkesboro Journal.
1.-THE Chronicle did not make that
charge and the Journal knows it. We
stated that our informant said dis
tiller told him that each distiller put
$50 q month in the missionary box
to get information concerning the Wis
its of the revenue officers. We sup
pose the missionary box was q sep
arate thing from the revenue officers:
but according to the Journal the reveAI
nues are the missionary box and the
dispensers of the information. The |
Chronicle did not SO charge. but sub
sequent events seem to corroborate
the Journals assumption that the
revenues compose a considerable part |
of the bureau of information"
"The old saying is that it is the hit |
dog that hollers.. That is the truth |
as far as it goes. but there is another
class of dogs that feel like they ought
to be hit that will holler whether you |
hit 'em directly or not. Everybody |
who has lived any length of time
knows that when you see sneak dog |
nosing around. all you have to do is to |
reach towards rock, not even throw |
ing or attempting to throw, and that !
same dog will run the fastest yell the |
Ioudest and make more distress gira- |
lions than any real genuine first-class |
chit dog" could make or do after prac-
ticng a century. AS matter of truth |
it is not always the case that it is ac- |
tually the hit dog, but the dog that |
knows he ought to be hit. that does |
the biggest bowling. And we have |
specimens of the same sort put up in |
imitation of men,"
The statement of Senator Simmons |
that he had made arrangements to |
procure the evidence in this case so as |
to present the matter to the Internal |
Revenue Department-will be APP |
proved by all good citizens. But. why |
wait for evidence in a particular case?
Why not furnish the evidence of DR.. |
Mott, Mr.. Linney and the other Re-
publicans at the WiIkesboro Conven-
ton? Why not demand of Mr.. Yerkes
that he get the records of all the |
cases of collision and defraudng of !
the government brought to light in the
Federal Court? Why not demand an }
that will investigate
everything from top to bottom?
Senator Simmons will doubtless do
all this and if Yerkes refuses to put
an end to the conditions that exist
in the revenue department in North
Carolina, then will be the time to pre-
sent the matter to the President or to
Congress.
COTTON ACREAGE REDTTCED