The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-01-13
CHALLENGE ISSUED
 BY [. H. ALEXANDER Candidate Asks Vardaman to
 Debate With Him THE ANSWER IS REFUSAL Alexander Says Mississippi History Does Not show Anyone Who
 Declined To Take Pnrt In Joint Debate
THE ANSWER IS REFUSAL

cia1.)-C. H. Alexander, candidate for the United States Senate, has again
 challenged,i and ex-Gov. J. K. varda-
 man, one of his opponents, has again declined to meet him in joint debate. In a note to the ex-governor MT. Alexander reminds him he is com
 mitted to the idea of joint debates, hay- | ing urged it between w. J. Bryan and
 Senator J. W. Bailey In his paper. He
 also assures Major vardaman that he
 will not indulge in personal discus-
 sions.
 MT. Alexander says in this note that | he does not recall that any distinguish
 ed Mississippians who have in the past
 aspired to the high office of the Uni
 ted States Senate have ever summed political debates with opposing can
 didates, and concludes with:
 If for any reason you decline my in- vitation for series of joint debates, | q do not call 1t challenge, for the word smacks of boasting and hostility,
 l ask In the alternative that we meet
 in single joint debate in this city be- | fore our own neighbors and friends at
 a date to be fixed by you between the | 9th and 25th of this month. After | that you can decide as to whether you wish further debates"
 MT Alexander asked for a prompt reply, and got this:
 My Dear Sir-I have your com
 munication of the 7th inst. I am sorry
 l cannot accommodate you"
 Being asked what he was going to
 do about tiff he would camp on | Governor Vardaman's trail?" MT. Alex | ander said: No; that would be dis
 courteous to Governor Vardaman, but
 he could hardly see how the campaign | could be finished without all candi- dates appearing on the same platform
 since he expected, as last summer. to | accept wherever possible every invi- l tation to address notable gatherings" Governor Vardaman was seen at his office and asked If he had anything to
 add to his note to MT. Alexander, and
 replied:
 Nothing more than I have said see no good to come from these joint speakings. I shall conduct my cam patgn in my own way-not against
 Alexander and Percy, but before the | people of the state, and I am not in
 the least pestered by these little chal-
 lenges and invitations to joint de- bates. Let the common cause gentle men pursue the even tenor of their way-do as their own interests dc-
 tate That Is what they are going td
 do any way. If they are very anxious for Joint debates why not let them get out and hammer each other? I shall conduct my canvass as it suits
 me, not to please them"
 The banks of the state are coming to the relief of the department of agricul- ture In very substantial way Several days since Commissioner Blakeslee sent circular letter to the 362 banks in Missis-
 sippi advising them that the state appro-
 priation to his department was nsuffi- cient to assure the continued publication
 of the Bulletin. the eight-page paper got
 ten out once a month and distributed free | to about 25.000 farmers of the state, and asking their assistance. Twenty-Five or
 thirty of the bankers have replied, prom
 ising even more assistance than was asked of them. MT. Blakeslee agreed
 that he woudl mail the Bulletin to 100 farmers, the names of whom were to be furnished him by the banks for ever $1a subscribed to the publication fund and several of the bankers have replied that they would subscribe for several hundred copies.
 The cash thus received from the bank CTS will be placed in the funds of the de-
 partment of agriculture and report made to the legislature as to the expenditure At present MT. Blakeslee has about | enough funds to publish the Bulletin till July. After that he will be forced to | suspend publication of paper that is do- | ing a great deal of good in the state | but the value of which the legislature | failed to appreciate.
 | The Bulletin for January has just been | issued from the press. and is full of in- | teresting articles for the farmers Five pages are devoted to the Boys Corn clubs showing what boys won the prizes, how
 much corn they produced on an acre of land and method of fertilization and cul- tityot Inc iy,fr do voted to boil weevils. cattle ticks. etc, all of which subjects are of peculiar in- terest to the farmers of the state at this time.
 | l.. H. Doty, a well known attorney of Jackson, has announced formally that | he Is candidate for lieutenant governor of the state, and issues an address to the voters in which he states that If elected | he will serve the people with fidelity and without fear or favor-with an eye single to the welfare of my native state. and | that under no circumstances would he be | dominated by any faction.'
 canvass of the state before the August primaries Miss Susie V. Powell has gone to Clin- | ton to talk about school improvement, and the last of the week goes to Pontotoc county, where Sne VIII remdln several days on similar mission. Miss Powell | is taking 8 great deal of interest in the celebration of Arbor Day, on the 2Dth of January. and hopes that every school in the state will remember the date and pre-. pare for the exercises arranged by the state superintendent. The programme is the same as that of last year, only the
 date for Arbor Day was changed from | April to January.
 | Commissioner of Agriculture Blakeslee
 went to Fairfield, Itawamba county, to- day. where he addressed the Farmers union at that place on cattle tick eradi- cation, corn clubs, fairs. etc. The follow | ing day he is billed to appear at Tisho- mingo. on the same work. and before re- turning to Jackson may fill dates at
 other places in the northeast corner of the state.
 SEED LED TICKET IN THE ERECTION