The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1909-05-25
You Are Dead Right,

1Ou e1kC bC<io 4tiSohss
After quoting the editorial squib
in which We said Should Congress
man Lever run again for congress
from this district he would have to
run as Republican or an Inde-
pendent, as he cut loose from the
Democratic party when he voted 10
tax the people for the benefit the
lumber trusts in direct violation of
the Democratic platform adopted at
Denver, and on which he was elect
ed to Congress" the Calhoun Ad-
vance says:
Judging from the above The
Times and Democrat will fight
Mr.. Lever should he run again for
Congress. The trouble with some
newspapers is that they never eX-
pect a man to exercise his judg-
ment and be man; they expect
"a jumping jack out of their rep
resentatives, tbut Mr.. Lever is
not one of this kind. He does
what he thinks is best for his con-
stituents regardless of what some
newspaper. says about him. Pity
we haven't more of his calibre.'
The Times and Democrat took
part in all the Democratic primaries
last year and helped nominate all
the Democratic candidates, including
Mr.. Lever, and the delegates to the
State Democratic Convention, which
elected delegates to the National
Democratic Convention, which met
at Denver and nominated Democratic
candidates for President and Vice
President and adopted platform for
the guidance of all loyal Democrats.
Having taken part in these prelimi-
nary primaries and elections of the
Democratic party we feel bound by
the platform that was adopted at
Denver for the guidance Of all loyal
Democrats. One Of the planks
of that platform demands that the
tariff tax be taken off of lumber.
This platform was adopted before
Mr.. Lever was nominated for Con-
gress. He knew that it demanded
that the tax be taken off or lumber
when he accepted the Democratic
nomination for Congress. When he
voted for candidates in the primary
he took an oath to vote for all the
candidates nominated by the Demo-
cratic party and to abide by the
rules adopted by it. The plank in
the platform demanding that the tax
be taken off of lumber was one of
the rules adopted by the Democratic
party, and Mr.. Lever, as participant
in the Democratic primary, was
bound by it. And when he accepted
the Democratic nomination for
Congress he was doubly bound by it,
from the fact that the Democratic
party made him one of it's active
agents in carrying out this plank
of the platform when it entrusted
him with nomination for Congress.
If Mr.. Lever felt that he could
not support the platform of the DEM
ocratic party loyalty he should not
have sought an important Office from
it without putting it on notice that
if elected he would repudiate it's
platform as he has done. Before he
was nominated was the time he
should have exercised his judg-
ment and be man" by coming out
and telling the Democratic party that
if elected he did not intend to abide
by the party platform, but would
vote as he saw fit on all questions.
Had he done this, does the Advance
believe for one second that Mr.. Lever
would today be the representative
in Congress from this district? The
only way he. got there was by en-
dorsing the platform he has since
by his vote. Whether
this comes under the jumping
jack" class spoken of by our con-
temporary we leave it to say.
The Times and Democrat does not
deal with men, but with principles.
1t has no feeling whatever against
Mr.. Lever as man, but objects to
him as Democratic Congressman,
because he refuses to be bound by
the platform adopted by the party
for the guidance :, of it's members.
The Democratic party has hundreds
of loyal members in this district who
can represent it as we'll or better
than Mr.. Lever does, and we are
free to say. as a loyal Democratic
The Times and Democrat
will support any one of them who
will be loyal to the party platform
after, as we'll as before, he is elected,
in preference to man who repu-
dates the party platform after he
is elected, be that man Mr.. Lever or
some one else We could not sup
port Mr.. Lever against a loyal Dem
ocrat and still continue to be DEM
ocratic new paper, because he has
deserted his party by repudiating its
platform.