New-York tribune., 1908-02-14
SEES A NEW KENTUCKY
GOV. WILSON OPTIMIST.
Negro No Longer Political Issue
Var ON the Might Riders.

Governor Augustus z. Wilson, Kentuckys ne"
Republican chief executive. discussed last night
at the Waldorf-Astoria the depredations or the
might riders in his state, saying they hao
wrought great damage, but that before long they
would be stamped out and the sulity puIisheu-
He denounced the representatives of certain TO-
bacco interests as towards.
Governors Wilson said that the Blue Grass state
was debatable political ground, with the chances
favoring a Republican victory in the state this
year il the right candidates were nominated Inc
people of Kentucky he said, voted more intelh-
gently than they used to do Now they are IN
fiuenced more than formerly by live issues anu
opinions and less by the negro question
The Kentucky Republicans have not yet signi1ed
any decided choice, Governor Wilson said Tor
Presidential candidate. and that Nice-President
Fairbanks. Secretary Taft and Governor Hughes
all had followers, although poll of the state
Legislature gave Mr.. Fairbanks the advantage by
two to one. The Vice-President said the Governor
made an excellent impression on his recent visl'
TO Kentucky. where he delivered seVerai speeeho'
Governor Wilson said:
.Americans are the same everywhere-a hard
headed people The strictly Americans there
In community the more ohsunacy you WIZ
find. Now. in the South have been voting con-
sistently for forty years against the negro ~" z
kept at it without realizing that by sticking u
such a policy were eliminating ourselves from
national politics This thing has changed ana no"
Kentucky must receive the same consideration tS
state political factor any other state Oh t's
size and Importance. L don't say vote with 'he
negro in everything, take him in as partner
but let US cease this senseess, heeoIess "sii'
against him. which is prosecuted out or opsuHdcS
only. We have not made anything py lhe iisi|
1t has done harm. I have always been anu aii
against it now, and in my speeches III .e ia'
campaign I argued against it. kehtuchS ha1
shown realization of the truth iate' anu !
think will ccntin,ie to show il. She proke the
Solid South, anyway. ,
Kentucky is debatable political territory Whlch
was shown by the nineteen thousand hepuoiioa
plurality at the last election. With gooo calo.-
dates this fall I reason why 'he nepoDiA-
cans should not carry the state
Governor Wilson gave his views on the fiesi-
Dental situation in Kentucky with some reiuct-
ance:
Well he said, there is in my state a AR
banks element Taft element and also a very SIN
cere Hughes following Mr.. Fairbanks's speeches
were good sensible speeches. on a high piane' anu
they made deep impression on the people.
OF the tobacco situation in the state and the
lawIessness of the might riders he said:
The night riders a lot of towards ANY
man who goes around at night wearing mask
is a coward. Twenty men of our militia could
fight five hundred of them. They have worked
great havoc, destroying property, and are even
responsible for the loss or life, but every power
at the command of the state authorities Will be
used to check them
The power OF the law will be soon restored ana
the guilty ones will be punished Heretofore it
has been impossible to obtain indictments against
these men, and the process of the law has been
nulfied. We thought for time that the insur-
ance companies would revoke the policies Of the
tobacco growers because of the number Of fires
set by the night riders The bumpers, as they
are called who put their tobacco on the market,
were getting higher prices than ever before for
their commodity The Society of Equity, which
has been trying force all the growers into a
pool says the high price il result of its pooling
Now take Christian County for example.
There property is not worth within 60 per cent Of
what it was before the raids. Governor Beckharn,
before me- kept as many sixty nlilitiamen on
duty at Hopkinsve, in Christian County, and L,
too have kept them there. Nobody knows enough
TO charge the tobacco associations with being the
riders but the inference is strong There is much
oppression and suffering but it will soon come out
all right"