The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-11-07
LETTERS TO EDITOR
Reasons for Underwood

While the question of the most available man as a candidate for the democratic nomination for President is being dis cussed by the leading papers, magazines. politicians of both large and small cali | bre, the business people and common voters; the men behind the guns are also interested in this nomination and would | like to be heard.
 | The democratic party in it's national convention will be more fortunate next | time than 1t has for many years, because | of the several men who are recognized | as being qualified and altogether capable | to fill creditably the office of President of the United States Personally, be- | leve we should nominate a southern man, and that man should be oscar W. Under
 wood of Alabama, because MT Underwood has proven to the whole country that he | is a statesman, that he is conservative, that he is trained in national affairs, that he is honest that he has the cour- | age of his convictions, and is in every way better fitted to fill the presidential chair than any man yet mentioned as a | possible candidate.
 These are facts that must be recognized by all who are familiar with the history of Congress since MT. Underwood was made chairman of the ways and means committed His course has been unani- mously approved by all democrats ire
 spective of lacity, with the possible ex- ception of one man in Nebraska, about whom the democrats have more than once
 made mistake in having anything to do with.
 Upon the surface of the political waters. the democrats have a most excellent chance to win in their next contest If we can win with any candidate, we can or ought to win more easily with Underwood than any man now being mentioned as a candidate. If we cannot win with him as our standard bearer, it will be be-
 cause not of a lack of fitness, qualifica-
 tions and statesmanship, but because of
 sectional prejudices, on the part of the | east and west. Then if the ticket should be defeated because its candidate was | from the south, we would then know what we of the south would have to do to
 demand political recognition. We would
 then know for certainty that the iun- knd feeling between the states in the | days past is still alive.
 I do not think it good policy to re- kindle the unpleasantness of the past unless it is forced upon us. but tho sooner we let 1t be known that We
 demand recognition in national poll ics and assert our political self re- l spect, that much sooner will we obtain
 political respect from others. So long as we of the south are willing to follow any one who we think is avail
 able and accept the dictations from others because they are ~-om the north.
 east or west, and that we are to have no voice in national affairs, because we are from the souyf, and therefore are barred, then just so long may we expect to he ignored, and rightfully we should be. Any man or any com munity who does not respect itself and is not willing to fight for its rights is not worthy respect from others and what is true of an individual or com
 munity is equally true of our II dem-
 ocratic southern states
 My first reason for wanting Under
 wood nominated is that he is to my
 riind unquestionably the logical man
 for the place, the most experienced
 in national politics of any man now on
 the boards, and in every sense of the
 word fitted for the place. Secondly.
 I want him nominated because the
 south has not furnished a President
 because of unjust prejudice for the past
 half century, because we have fur
 nished solid and uniform democratio
 for nr-
 because we are rightfully entitled to be made a factor in national politics equal to that of any other section of
 the country of the same scope.
 It Is argued by some that the time
 is not yet here for the south to ask
 for recognition or to assert its rights notwithstanding it has been a half cen tury since the war. If we committed A sin in the sixties, haven't we been sufficiently punished, or have we not
 sufficiently atoned? If not in these 50 years will some philosopher please arise and tell us when we will be eligible to fl the higir oIfice of Pres ident of these United states?
 Having a man for a candidate in the person of Underwood it would be bet | ter for the south to demand his nom- l .ination, knowing that we were offering to the country man altogether worthy and competent, and go down in defeat, asserting anc cemandlng rec l ognition, rather than march to victory | under the conditions heretofore exisc- | ing, because what w- would lose 70 the south in the failure of tariff re- auction and other democratic policies | we would more than gain in prestige, | political self respect and recognition | from others of the fact that the south | would no longer remain in the na- tioffal democratic back yard.
 c. D. WILLIAMSON.
 Decatur, November o, 1911.