The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1907-05-22

Special to Memphis Commercial Appeall
i Brookhaven, Miss, May is.
/ Gov. Vardaman made three
/ speeches in the southern part of
Lincoln county yesterday. The
first was to the graduating class
of the Ruth High School, follow
ed by the delivery of diplomas by
1.-THE governor to the following
graduates: Miss Rena Price,
Miss Ada Williams, Miss Matte
Williams, Fred Greer and Wade
Cole.
After sumptuous dinner on
the grounds, by invitation, the
governor delivered political ad-
dress to the packed house, COM
posed principally of farmers of
that section and their wives. The
governor took occasion to say
that he had been greatly misquot-
ed and misrepresented on the
question of government owner
ship of railroads by persons who
seemed to be interested in placing
him in wrong light before the
people. He said he had never
favored government railroad own
ership, and would accept it only
in The extreme alternative of the
government having to own and
run the roads or having the gov
ernment practically owned and
run by the railroads, a contingen-
cy not likely to arise in his nat
ural lifetime, if ever. 1T really
looks, "esaid the governor, as if
some people are more anxious to
discuss railroad ownership at this
time than railroad regulation,
which | heartily believe in; in
deed, it even looks as if there is
an effort in certain quarters to
get up diversion from railroad
regulation, which the people want
and need, by dwelling on the rail
road ownership proposition, which
they do not want and have not
asked for. Railroad ownership
could not come anyway except by
change of the national and State
constitution when the people de-
mand and are ready for it.
In further celebrating his ideas
in favor of railroad regulation,
the governor said he is in favor
| of not only law that would pro-
hibit discrimination in freight
and passenger rates, but of one to
ascertain the actual value of rail-
roads and prevent the payment of
large dividends on watered stock,
and which would look for the i'm
provement of railroad property
and insure greater security against
laccidents to railroad employees
and the travelling public.
The governor. reiterated his
well-known views on the repeal
of the fifteenth amendment and
the modification of the four
teenth. He argued at length
that two races as diverse as the
negro and the white man could
not live together in peace and har-
mony under identlcally the same
code of laws. If the white peo-
pie are to control the South, and
they will at all hazards. they
ought to be given a free hand by
the national constitution, so that
laws may be framed adapted to
the racial peculiarities of the ne
gro. Among the things suggest
ed that would be helpful to the
negroes and the whites, also, the
governor said that negroes should
not be allowed to own pistols and
other firearms or to buy intoxi-
eating liquors or cocaine, and that
white men should be prohibited,
under the severest penalties. from
selling them such articles.
The governor vigorously re-.
sented the charge that he had not
kept faith with the people and
lived up to the position taken in
his campaign for governor four
years ago in regard to negro edu-
cation. and cited his inaugural ad-
dress, bis biennial message and
his veto of the Holly Springs