The Tupelo journal., 1906-03-09
TUpELo, MISSISSIPPI. FRIDAY MARCH 8. 1906
pEN.PICTURES OF THE OLDEN Time
by COL W l. CLAYTON.


4 ~ 80 80
49, 7"
AA&2-8s &A=--2s
IN the late forties. but / do no1
remember the year. an old NORTH
Caroiinian, whom we all called
uncle Jackie Phillips, moved to
and settled q place on the Moores-
vile and Fulton road about one
mile East Of Mooresville. OF
his family | shall now only speak
of one son. Eli Phillips. / never
knew. but as the old man Phillips
was a strong church man of the
Baptist faith, / suspect he named
his son for the good old man Of
that name mentioned in the first
book of Samuel. Be that as it
may. when Eli arrived to man.
hood, instead Of sticking to the
plow, as he had been raised, he
went off to old Richmond and
went into a store to clerk. He
was there in 1856 when / first
went there to Martins school, as
I have heretofore stated in these
"Pen Pictures. = He was a man
of more than ordinary ability,
with a fairly good English edu-
cation. and possessed a very
agreeable address indeed. Real
" he was all things to all men,
that is, he adapted himself to all
society and antagonized but few.
In 1858 he ran for Probate clerk
in old Itawamba county. It was
the first general election since
the general and UNANIMOUS victory
from Constable to theLegislature.
It was thought still to be very
polite not to be offering for of
fiice against the Simon Pures"
as such. But Col. Moore who was
then Probate clerk, had had the
Office so long that he began to
think he had a fee simple title to.
Eli Phillips had affiliated with
Know Nothings the last general
election. and many even of his
strong friends did not believe he
could be elected. But Richmond
was a strong hold of the old Wing
and Know Nothing parties, and
there were several candidates
offering. and Eli had the sagacity
and good iudgaslefls to say noth-
ing about parties, unless compell-
ed to do SO, and then to make the
point that the office for which he
was running was not a political
Office at all, and should be given
to, good man irrespective Of his
politics. Moore did not consider
Phillips a dangerous sopponent,
and mostly directed his attention
to others whom he considered
more formidable, which Phillips
made the point, that still moves
on down the ages, that Moore
had been in Office long enough,
and some new man should be al
lowed to learn something of the
Office. Again. Phillips had the
to concentrate all
his LEADING party men on himself.
with sr,ecial instructions not to
show their hands. Besides. Eli
Phillipslwas very popular at his
home box, and it was only second
in size in the county. and so when
the votes were counted out he
oot almost eyery vote at Rich
mond and a small scattering vote
thro1gholt the county. and came
in hv = small nl,1rity' and when
the vote was counted and the re-
s,,lt determined. Col. Moore, the
clerk If long Standing. said.
s'There's been a wonderful land
slide in two wears.
Eli phillips was one man who
lect;oneared from the time he
was first elected until he went
ont = # Of office, which was about
thirteen Years. and he was the
onIv man I ever knew who knew
,nhor % 10 o1,;s running for one
ofI;ca and thenwhat office to offer
f fn, next ~ sn.as to he successful,
When WI he was Arst elected # was
" AASAi Az "oSo