The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1911-01-27
WEST FLORIDA
MANS OPINION
Records of Senate Journal Cited
Damaging to BIOunt
THINkSBRYAN THE man
Journal of 1905, Pages 1926 and 1888
Shows BIount was Against Interests of
Masses on Railroad Questions


DeFuniak Springs, Fla, Jan.20, 1911
To the Voters of Florida:
There are two candidates to be voted
for in the Primary, January 81.
Whichever is chosen by the people
will hold the office for six years.
The United States Senate is compOs-
ed of 92 men, and all laws which etfec
the whole people must pass that body.
The contest between the common
people and the power of aggregate
wealth is nearing a crisis.
The victory of the common people ir
the elections of last November which
relegated to private life the most of
the men who have represented the
power of wealth in the House of Rep.
resentatives, leaves the United States
Senate the last stronghold of the cor
porations. If they can keep their
Representatives and attorneys in power
they can defeat the passage of any laws
calculated to give the people relief.
If the common people elect men to
represent them they can get relief
from many of the oppressive burdens
of the present.
Mr.. Blount has had lifetime of
training as the legal representative of
corporate interests. He says if he is
elected he will go back on that lifetime
of training and represent the common
people. Do you believe he can or will
10 so? "Can the Leopard change his
spots?"
Do YOU believe that if the J.. & N.
railroad, which has employed Mr..
Blount for 26 years, thought that he
would represent the common people in
place of them that they would be
using the efforts they are to secure his
election?
Mr.. Blount says that as State Sen
ator he voted to extend the powers of
the Railroad Commission. The Senate
Journal of 1905 on page 1926, says Mr..
Blount voted against the bill to enlarge
the power of the Railroad Commission.
The same journal, on page 1888, says
Mr.. Blount voted against the resolution
to amend the constitution to give the
Railroad Commission more power to en-
force its rules.
Which do you believe? the official
records of the state or Mr.. .Blount? If
Mr.. Blount will attempt to deceive you
about what he has done, do you believe
he will carry out his promise when he
is elected and has the Office for six
years?
The only argument which the friends
of Mr.. Blount have to advance is that
he is West Florida man.
Which is the more to your advantage,
to have West Florida man who has
always represented the corporations still
them in the United States
Senate, or to have Jacksonville man
who has always stood for the people to
you?
MIR. Blount was elected by the people
of Escambia county to represent them
in the State Senate. The Senate was
in session in 1905 forty-one days. Mr..
Blount was absent eighteen days repre-
senting the L. & l.. railroad and other
clients; neglected his duties as State
Senator to represent private and cor
pOrate interests. Does that indicate
that he would be any more faithful to
the interests of the common people in
the United States Senate?
FlOrlda people nave cnance now 10
either add a Senator to the class to
which Aldrich, Smoot, Lodge and Bur-
rows belong or to have one in the class
with LaFullette, Cummins and Gore
Your vote is not for either Mr.. BlOunt |
or Mr.. Bryan alone is it for the common
people or for the corporate interests
and the trusts.
Mr.. Bryan has never represented any
interests, and he has always
Deed in the forefront Of the battle for
the peoples rights and interests.
His ability. his uprightness of charac-
Ter, his honesty, his devotion to the in
,erests of the people have never been
questioned. Mr.. Blount has always
oeen for the corporations, and there is
not a single instance on record of his
ever expressing the slightest interest
n or sympathy for the common people
Until he becomes candidate.
j. F. RICHBOURG
Member of the Legislature from
Walton County.