The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1910-08-11
LUMBER MAN COMES
ITO ELLERbE'S DEFENSE.
NY INGENIOUS ARGUMENT TRIES
TO JUSTIFY HIS VIOLATION
OFPARTY PLEDGE.

TO JUSTIFY HIS VlOLAllVN
OFPARTY PLEDGE.
Editor County Record
have read over twice your edit
orials in The Record of August 4
wherein you attack vigorously Hon
j E Elerbe's vote against free lum-
Der. / am glad to note that you are
q personal friend of Mr. Ellerbe's,
and that there has been no criticism
made of his work in Congress except
! his vote against free lumber This
scrit;cism IS made on account Of the
Democratic platform IN the last
I Presidential campaign declaring for
free lumber, and because Of this
declaration of the so-calaed Demo-
cratic party at that time, it IS claim
ed that Democratic CongTessmen
/ and Senators were bound by their
pledges to support this declaration
in the platform, and that because Mr.
EE2lerbe, with a very large number Of
other strong and iaf1uential Demo-
cratic Congrossmen and Senators,
1 voted against free lumber and in IA
IEsSor of q tariff for revenue, they are
Erharged vigorously, mostly by polit-
Eical opponents and their friends, as
being unfaithful 10 their pledges.
l am, of course, as you well know,
Eno politician. and am not writing
YOU this letter for publication, and
will not engage in any political con.
troversy and if I desired to do Sc, il
would be altogether useless and um,
necessary, as Mr. Ellerbe is fully pre-
pared to defend his vote against free
Humber and, therefore, does not need
such help as could render in a con.
troversy or otherwise. Lam writing
in the interest of fair play and, in a
small way, to show my personal sap'
preciation Of MIR Ellerbe's hard, az.
duous and effective work in Con
gress for the best interests of his
Fellow citizens and for the Sonth al
large, not only in his vote ON the
Humber tariff but in numerous other
ways.
The following are the points in
your editorials which ! wish to refer
to Il take it, of course, that yor are
)Mlling to be connected where yor
are in error):
First, as to the increased price OF
jnmber to the local and Southern
2onsumer Mr. Ellerbe is entirely cor
beet, and his statement can be yer
ified by numerous affidavits. if nee.
essary, from lumber people and alst
consumers that not only the present
Tariff but also the Dingley tarf
caused practically no increased priot
70 the Southern consumer of lumber
At large, and no increased price what
ever to the local consumer, Mr. Ell
lerbe's constituents. This may seen
arrange to You and difficult to un.
derstand, but partial explanation il
his and should be easily understood
Practically all of the Canadian lum'
ber brought across the line is mar
keted within q radius of from 100 tt
ZOO miles from the dividing line be-
tween Canada and the United States
md is of q low, coarse, knotty grade
Known to the lumber trade as boz
Ind roofer grade; this grade OF
lumber in the South is manufactured
from the top cuts of the tree, being
he coarse ,knotty logs and these log'
cannot be manufactured into any
bther grades except box or roofers OF
mail, low-grade scantling. Wher
Eo,i speak of lumber" to a person
lot acquainted with the lumber trade
only means lumber; to the lum
German he does not know what II
heans without the word lumber i:
aefned by lumber language or ex
bressions, by using the grades anc
pecifcations known to the lumber