Fitzgerald enterprise. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1895-1912, 1908-10-01
Mr.. Watson.

an advertising agent; he understands the art He
is known to nearly everybody, but known BY few,
ard nearly everybody has different estimate of
the man.
Our estimate does not do him honor. Except
as historian, we regard him as failure; as pol
itician he is more than failure-he is nuisance.
He isficke inIhs theories and treacherous with his
friends. The following from the Atlanta Journal
throws some light on his character:
The information does not come altogether in
the nature of surprise that, according to the
statement of former Senator Pettigrew, he was Of
fered ten thousand dollars by the managers of the
Republican campaign in 1904 to make ten speeches
in behalf of Thomas f. Watson's candidacy for
the presidency and that a result of the investi-
CATION he then Satisfied himself that the
Republican party financed in large measure Mr..
Watson's campaign
There is certain sense of satisfaction, however
in having the information in definite and concrete
form, as confirmation of suspicious which have
long been entertained, and which, in the light of
more recent events, were becoming something more
than mere suspicious.
We greatly mistake the decency and integrity
VI
luded followers who supported him bindly for so
many years, until they discovered that Watson
was the sole beneficiary of his irrational fops if
they do not now complete the work of eliminating
him as a political factor in Georgia, where his
course has been one of bitterness, selfish egotism
and multiplied treachery.
We say that this exposure does not come al
together as a surprise for the simple reason that
logically and necessarily his candidacy, now and
four years ago, could have effect except to di-
vide and weaken the Democracy, in which lies the
only hope of the south, and prOportiOnately to
strengthen the cause of the Republican party,
which is the hereditary enemy of the south Then
and now it was course inconsistent with every
dictate of real patriotism.
That there was EEnigger in the woodpile'
no rational man could doubt, who was willing to
see the truth.
If anything could add to the shamelessnes of
the man who has thus made himself the indirect
supporter of the Republican party it is the brazen
effrontery with which he practically acknowledges
the charge that have been preferred.
He saws he EEneither knows nor cares"
The stupidity of man who cannot see the
danger of dividing the people of the SOUTH in the
interest of his own selfshness and the supremacy
of the one party which has always been hostile to
the welfare of the people of the south, merely
firms the opinion which is gathering force every
day that this political Ishmaelite has "fatigue
public indignation" and should be visited with
the contempt which he has long since so richly
merited.
If it were worth while to argue any phase of
the question it would be easy enough to point out
that in this year of grace he is going up and down
the state denouncing Bryan for imaginary effort
to establish negro domination and for having re-
fused to vote for Judge Crisp as speaker because
he was Confederate soldier This is the burden
of his tedious wall.
And yet four years ago, when, according to
Senator Pettgrew, the Republican party was
financing his campaign, the Brownsville incident,
out of which has grown his negro supremacy charge
had not occurred, and, according to his state
ment, he was, until few weeks ago, ignorant of
the alleged fact that Mr.. Bryan had voted against
Crisp in the Democratic caucus.
The only excuses he offers for his malignant
attacks upon Bryan now, did not even exist in
imagination at the time when he was making his
previous rainbow race for the presidency.
His attitude involves such mass of contradic
lions that it is impossible to argue it with any de-
gree of patience 1t has been shown from the re-
cords that at the time when Bryan was alleged to
have voted against Crisp in the caucus-for it is
not denied that he supported him as the caucus
nominee-this man Watson was not only voting
against the Confederate soldier Crisp, but was &C.