The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1908-02-05
HISTORIC MEETING
OF Senator Tillman and Rocke-
fe,le: on a Pullman Car.
The True Version Of the Meeting as
Given by the Senior Senate,
self for Publication.

Mr. Zack McGee, the Washington
correspondent Of the CoIuG1 bia State
sends tc tnat paper tie. true version
CT the historic meeting between Sen
ator Tiliinan and John D. Rockefel-
Ter on g Pullman car. Gir. McGee
says the Senator has Just returned
to Washington and tells about the
meeting enthusiastically. Rockefel-
Ter sought the interview. Senator
Tillman vants this clearly understood
because some of his colleagues in
the senate, Who read the dispatches
about Il melting have been twitting
the Senator about hobnobbling with
plutocracy. Here is the way the in
teryiew happened as told by the Sem
ator himself.
"a fellow came to my seat in
Pullman car, explained the senator,
and sroI-e to me- He had sunshine
in his face, and said to myself this
fellow whoever he is is an optimist.
I supposed it was some fellow who
had heard me speak in the senate or
at some Of the chautauquas.
I'm Mr.. Rockefeller" be said very
simply. OF course, recognized ljta,
and of course I invited him to take
seat beside me. He sat down and
we talked until I reached my sta
ton, which was about an hour.
should say.
Mr. Rockefeller did not mention
Legislation, the recent pani: nor IN
any way intimate that he had any
money than I had, and you may. be
sure I did not say anything ABOUT
it. I say this because the story sent
out about our meeting did Mr..
Rockefeller an injustice.
II got in some talk, though, on
my own hook. Mr.. Rockefeller
seemed to be interested in the coun-
try through which we were passing
and he piled me with questions as
to the value Of the land and the
character Of the people. That was
my opportunity. remembered that
ne had been credited with giving
away s35,0O0,000 for educational
purposes last year, and I called at
tention to the expressions Of Andrew
Carnegie and philanthropisIs of that
ilk in favor of giving more money
to Tuskegee and other schools for
the negroes I told Mr.. Rockefeller
that there were Millions of whites in
the South, whites descended from
pure English and Irish and Scotch,
who were living there povety strick-
en- and ignorant, poor because Of
their ignorance, and that the North
ern millionaires never thought OF
helping them Mr.. Rockefeller SEEM
ed to be interested and I warmed up
to the subject injecting some vitriolic
Tillmanisms into the conversation
here and there
The senator paused in his story in
order to complete laugh that inter-
fered with his flow of language. He
was exploding like gasoline motor
exhause as he continued:
''You know. Mr.. Rockefeller is so
used to giving orders that he just
exclaimed in an ordinary tone, as if
there was all there was to it:
That will have to be remidied,
Such condition must not be.
We'll, sir, sounded so much like
Theodore Roosevelt that l couldn't
help thinking how much I'd like to
get those two fellows together.
I'VE went on talking and I told
him how the New York moneyed
crowd run our Southern railroad. I
had chance to get in good rap at
the condition of the Southern at the
Junction near AIKEN, S. c. The train
comes down there with Pullman cars
for the millionaires bound for Aiken
and day coaches for the poor people
going on down the Inc. The poor
people get out and sit around an old
way station while the train carries
the millienaires think ! called
them d. mllionaires 4 talking to
Mr.. Rockerfeller-on to Aiken.
Then the train comes back and picks
lp the poor people. The train is
scheduled to run right through and
he railroad folders do not announce
his discrimination in favor OF the
'ich folks.
we talked on. Mr.. Rockefeller
seemingly interested, until reached
nv station. I got out and that IS
he lasr sav Of him. didn't men
ion Standard Oil al?.:: ito" id
le