The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1906-08-01
Sunny Slope welcomes "Uncle Ben
With Open Arms.

The picnic at Sunny Slope this year was
"rouser" Between three and four thousand
people gathered there from Abbeville and
The Geore,ans want to run Unole Ben for
president. They came over 70 gel rest lrom
the chickering's of Hoke and Clark, and hear
some genuine stuff" as they expressed IT.
They got the "stuf'' alright ana II was
The burden of Tillman's speech was the dis,
pensary. He said that when he was elected
citizen of South Carolina, and that 1t was bis
right as much as any other mans TO dlscuss
the tissues Of the State and that he proposed
TO do so. He did SO.
He said that the dispensary investigation
committee had been one grand iarce from
start to finish. One year and 5000 for per
sops and papers he represented as being ABOUT
all that was done. he took the committee 10
task Tor not finding out who that nigh OH
cial" was, who, 1t was alleged, was IN the pay
Of the liquor men.
and county dispensary system that brought
warwhoops from the sunny Slopers," and
made the county dispensary look like thirty
cents with hole in It,
'prohibitionists one who wanted no liquor
and another who wanted no dispensary. and
represented the hrst class as being IN a sad
minority.
= He said further that these elections held all
over the country were farcical in the ex-
treme; that only moiety OF the voters OF
these counties were present at the polls when
these various county dispensaries were yoled
out. and that when the time came somebody
would be surprised.
There are a certain class Of people, he aver
though they drink they do not order the
whiskey themselves; they don't like TO put
money In an envelope and mail 1t to
stranger to buy any thing. Then, he says,
there is another class Of people that like TO
make money and selling whiskey suits them
as well as spy other method. These Two
classes, he declares, will get together in spite
Of all the police and all the sherifs and all
the prohibitionists IN the country. As
" straight as a martin TO his gourd, as straight
as the magnet TO It's pole these two classes
will drift together.
Not long Since the State represented Till:
man as saying that he entered q barroom and
q church with equal reverence: Tillman said
at Sunny Slope that II was fabrication or
falsificatlop, (but don't think for an instant,
gentle reader, that this Is the way he express
ed it) that he had said no such thing and that
what he said was: II enter a church or
barroom with equal independence" This
puts an entirely different face on the state
ment
In the course of his remarks he mentioned
the fact that he had not had any opposition
IN bis races for the Senate, and that his popu-
iarity was a source Of exquisite pleasure to
him. He realized that bis popularity and po-
sition entailed great obligation on bis part
to the State and that II was an obngallon that
ness had won for him the confidence OF the
people and declared his intention to remain
faithful as long as he lived.
he found time TO talk about Hampton and
the "sweet scented newspapers" (but to judge
from the contortions OF his face there must
have been q certain kind OF cat near the
stapd). Sweet scented newspapers! end UD-
Gle Ben's lips made a snap, and themuscles
OF his Jaws grabbed the corners of his mouth
and pulled them clean under his neck A
ten penny nail would have snapped as easily
as q piece Of peanut brittle, had II been be-
tween his teeth. These sweet scented news
papers Ugh! What face he made! The
crowd cbeered him to hnish
He jumped on the Press and Banner for
taking the part of Fraser Lyon in the recent
controversy. but made amend later by saying
that Abbeville county had the best county
papers in the State-that they represented the
people better than any other county papers
10 the State.
Tillman said that the State and News and
Courier were only echoes OF that same old
ring that was Knocked out in "ninety-two,
that they had not gotten over 1t and never
would; that they were trying their best, even
now, to get back into the saddle.
He says that he is not debating who the
people shall vote for, but suggested that we
should get governor that would enforce the
laws 10 the letter. Nothing IL worse for
country than TO have lot OF laws on its stat
ute books that are not enforced.
1t would be Impossible 10 tell all be said.
He spoke for two hours and said more things
IN the two hours than the ordinary man /.
time.
When he finishes his tour OF the State he
goes north 10 get money. Says that be al
ways TALKS on the negro question when ne
goes up there; that ne likes TO DO 1T. He is
not afraid Of negro domination in the South
Cod and Hades can't force 1t on the South.