The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-10-26
SIDNEY J. BOWIE
DISCUSSES ISSUE
Talks to Pratt City Voters on
the Sheriff S Race
EXPLAINS THE CONTEST
Congressman Oscar w. Underwood
Also Makes an Address Which Is
Well Received-coIonel His-
don's Position Condemned.
EXPLAINS THE CONTEST


Bowie, who still represents the Fourth
district, addressed the voters of Pratt
City at the city hall last night in the in
terest of Judge j. P. Stiles, democratic
nominee for sheriff of Jefferson county.
The hal} was comfortably filled with
representative citizens who gave the
speakers an attentive audience.
DR.. r. II. Hamrick presided over the
meeting and introduced the speakers.
Congressman Underwood reviewed the
Stiles-Higdon contest proceedings before
the Jefferson county democratic eXeeu-
tive committee and justified the commit
tees action in declaring Judge Stiles the
nominee after an investigation and the
throwing out of Illegal votes that had
been charged by Judge Stiles as having
been cast for Colonel Higdon.
He condemned the action of Colonel
Higdon and his supporters in "bolting
the party and running for the office in
spite of all party honor and regulation"
and called upon all true democrats to
stand by the regular nominee, Judge
Stiles, and uphold the party that has
ever been a shield of safety to the white
people of the south.
Congressman Underwood's address was
received with enthusiasm.
Congressman Bowie Speaks.
After reviewing the qualification of
legal voter in the democratic primaries
of Alabama and making the statement
that he did not vote in the recent pri-
maries on account of not having been in
the county for a full twelve months
prior to the election, Congressman Bowie
spoke in part as follows:
II had as much legal right to vote
in the recent primaries, having only been
in your county for few months, as sew
eral of the voters whose ballots were de-
clared Illegal by the democratic executive
committee. 1 had no right to vote, nor
did those persons voting at Ensley who
had not been in the county twelve months
and whose votes were declared Illegal by
the committee.
THE situation that is facing the people
of Jefferson county is plain question of
law and common honesty. II Colonel Hig
don had been willing to stand by the YER
dict of the legal votes in the recent pri-
mary there would have been no question.
and the matter would have been settled
without this wrangle. The evidence
aduced before the county committee
showed that Higdon received Illegal votes
This evidence was undsputed and con-
elusive 1t was not only shown that he
received votes of people who had not been
in the county for the required length of
time but of people who had not paid their
taxes. BY these methods he received a
bare majority of three.
II am willing to rest the entire case on
six affidavits published in an afternoon
paper today from people at Ensley whose
votes were declared illegal by the COM
mttee. These affdavits only make the
claim that voters will have lived in the
county twelve months prior to the general
election in November. The law plainly
says that voter must reside in the coun-
ty twelve months prior to any primary in
which they participate. These affidavits
are only clever evasion of facts intended
to fool the people. Here are six votes
that on the face of the affidavits, are adj
out Stiles is given a majority. l am will
ing to rest the case solely on the evidence
of these affidavts and go no further.
Any man with ordinary intelligence can
see the absurdity of the claim and the
justification of the committee in declaring
these votes illegal.
Charged With Dishonesty.
"The county democratic executive COM
mittee has been charged with dishonesty
and partisanship. If the committee had
been dishonest and had intended to count
Stiles In, why did 1t accept the count of
the Lewisburg box when it was missing,
and under the law could have been dis
regarded The committee and Judge
Stiles knew that the result of the count
ing of that box would give Higdon ma
jority, and yet the committee and Judge
Stiles accepted the evidence of the result
in the Lewisburg box and declared Hid
don the nominee on the face of the re-
turns.
docs this look like dishonesty and par
tisanshp on the part of the committee?
The committee did more than that. The
Stiles a vote of Sc. Some one present
when the vote was being canvassed ques-
toned the correctness of this count stat
ing that the vote should have been 80.
The committee went to the tally sheet in
the box and found that a clerical error
had been made and that Stiles vote was
really only 50 instead of Sc. While the
committee had a technical right To count
IS votes for Stiles as shown on the face
of the returns, 1t did not do So but
counted only 30 as shown by the tally
sheet This was not the act of a partisan
committee, was It?
1T is charged that Higdon was counted
out by new committee This is not true.
There is no new committee. There can be
but one committee-the committee elect
ed by the voters of Jefferson county at
the same time and by the same voters as
it is claimed elected Higdon. A majority
of the committeeman sitting before the
primary were reelected, and it cannot be
justly charged that a new set of men sat
on the hearing of the contest.
1.-The charge that the committee was IL
legally packed with proxies is absurd |
was present and saw two proxies favor
able to IIigdon seated AMER the contest
had begun. A letter written by Colonel
Higdon himself to a friend at Littleton
begging him to secure the proxy OF conf
mitteeman and stating tn proxy was
entirely legal explodes any charge thar
Higdon may make on this score (Here
Mr. Bowie read >the letter written by