The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1906-05-04

and who is now his private secretary.
Gov. Taylor chooses to raise with me
a question of veracity upon the ques-
ton of whether the language he i'm
putes to me was used in a speech at
Covington in 1892 l call as my wit
nesses the very newspapers to which
he refers me, and his own private sec
rotary.
This same Mr.. McCord, in a recent
report of Gov. Taylor's speech, which
appears in the Nashville American,
October 1, 1892, said: he paid his re-
spects to Mr.. Weaver, and if there
was anyone who heard him and his
absurd demands denounced can vote
for him, l have not heard his name.
According to the testimony Of Pri-
ate Secretary McCord, Gov. Taylor
and l were both denouncing the lead
er and the platform of the Populist
party
This is the same Mr.. McCord who,
in the fall of that year, wrote me a
letter in Gov Taylor's behalf, claiming
my support in his Senatorial race on
the ground that Gov Taylor had
fought side by side with me in the
fight against Populism, and had been
the first to come to my aid. Gov. Tay-
lor himself will probably remember
how he stood before the Legislative
caucus in 1898, and boosted that he
had fought side by side with the sal
liant Carmack in the last campaign
the same Carmack who was denounc-
ing the farmers of Tennessee as viler
than the rer tiles beneath the mud-sills
of hell'-the same Carmack whom he
urged to become a candidate for the
Senate in 1900; the same Carnack of
whom he said two years ago, that he
had reflected more honor upon the
State than any Senator ithad had since
the war, and whom he promised to
support for reelection.
Delayed RecoIIectlons.
This disposes of the proof that
Gov. Taylor has thus far offered in
support OF his charge. l understand
that he is now preparing to present
statements from people giving their
of the language used by
me fourteen years ago. | beg leave
to ask why with my challenge thun-
dered into his ears every day for four
months he has waited for the clos
ing days of the campaign to meet it
after this fashion?
= will suggest as a TACT OF some
that Prof. A. l.. Minis,
who was the Populist nominee for
Governor against Gov. Taylor in 1896,
is supporting me against him in this
and the Hon. Benjamin
West, who was the Populist nominee
for Congress against me in 1906, is
supporting rae in this campaign.
Gov. Taylor'3 Indignation IN behalf
of the Populists seems to be both
belated and gratnitous. Gov Taylor
says that while he was calling upon
the PoDulsts with soft words | was
driving them away with harsh words.
His gentle Establishments, however,
did not seem to have been very effect
i've in his own case, for the Populist
nominee who ran against him for Gov
ernor in 1896 got more votes in my
district than the Pop
ulist nominee for Congress who ran
against me. Yet it was in this very
district that Gov. Tay-
lor locates the speech in which ! de-
nounced all the farmers as viler than
the reptiles beneath the mud-sills OF
hell, and that, too, only four years be
fore. | confess that | feel somewhat
ashamed in having to descend to the
level of a calumny at Cnce SO atroc-
ious and so absurd No intelligent
man could have uttered such language
as Gov. Taylor imputes to me, and it