Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1908-05-26
TO THE DEMOCRATS OF
Sid JUDICIAL DISTRICT

Palestine, Texas, May Is, 1908.
In a letter addressed to the voters
of Houston county, my opponent, Mr..
Bishop, of Athens, claiming to be
Henderson county's candidate for dis
trict judge" makes an appeal to local
prejudice and backs it up with a
number of misleading and erroneous
statements which call for reply
from me.
It is plain that he wishes to make
it contest of Henderson county
against Anderson county, instead of
Bishop against Gardner, as it should
be, but out of regard for my friends
in the former county l shall not in
dulge in anything calculated to
arouse county feeling.
He says that ''at each succeeding
election for the last sixteen years An
derson county has elected her man
for this position" To show you how
misleading this is, l will give you a
little history. This district has been
composed of Anderson, Henderson
and Houston counties for about TWEEN
ty-four years. The first eight years
Williams of Houston was judge, and
had he not been promoted to higher
court, it is altogether probable that
he would still be the judge of this dis.
trict As it is, including the eight
years of service as district judge, he
has been in office for about twenty
four years, and we of Anderson coun-
ty are proud of his record, and will
help to keep him on the supreme
court until he goes up higher. But |
had better be careful lest Mr.. Bishop
should charge a political conspiracy
on the part of Anderson and Houston
counties to keep some Athens lawyer
from getting on the supreme court.
When Judge Williams, with the aid
of the Palestine lawyers" and the
Anderson county democracy, was pro
ilOtCQ W lhC Soul vi Wv II ippOeliSo,
Reeves of Anderson was made district
judge, but died shortly afterwards
and Watkins of Henderson was ap-
pointed and served for nearly two
years, or until the next election. Wat
kins was appointed over two Pales
tine lawyers, the governor thinking
that he (Watlins) could with more
certainty win at the next election
over an opposing candidate. In due
time Watkins was nominated for
judge and had the cordial support of
the Anderson county democracy, but |
was defeated at the November cleo |
ton by Burnett of Anderson, who |
was the republican nominee. Now, |
Mr.. Bishop certainly cannot charge
the election of Burnett and the de |
feat of Watkins to the Anderson coun
ty democracy, but that is evidently |
the effect, if not the purpose, of his |
statement; otherwise there is no
point, in a contest for the office be- |
TWEEN democrats, to complain that |
Watkins was replaced by an Ander-
son county man at the election follow
ing his appointment" l submit that |
in this he has not been fair
At the next election, which was in
1896, Watkins could have had the
nomination, but he did not want it,
and it is true that any competent and
worthy democratic lawyer in Athens
or Crockett could have had the nomi-
nation had he desired it. In fact, the
went begging until Gill of
Anderson was induced to accept it, at
the earnest solicitation of democrats
of Henderson and Houston counties
After hard struggle, Gill was elect
ed over Burnett, who was nominated
for reelection by the republicans.
Certainly, under the circumstances,