The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1911-02-23
POLITICAL INDEPENDENCE

We admire a man of conviction,
man of principle, man who does thing
because he believes it right; man who
thinks before he acts; man that can
stand up and proclaim the truth regardless
IF public opinion. Such a man is the
need Of this age of petty demagogey.
New issues are constantly arising which
are demanding the careful consideration
# sane minds Today il is the tariff
cmorrow, a question of more vital con-
Germ will demand our attention.
Rene fell for the need of a stroag
leadership. Her manhood had dwindled
into class of mere parasites and plagiar-
lists, who perform only at the beck OF
call, of some other man. A few did the
thinking for the r9any and thus no progress
was made in science, literature nor art
for some years prior 70 her downfall.
We too are drifting somewhat into a
class of parasites. We see man at whose
feet we are willing to fall and worship
and surrender the last vestige of our in
dependent manhood We think his every
action an action of perfection. His very
life the life of an idealist That for him
to err is impossible. He speaks, and we
like sheep TO the slaughter, obey unhesi-
tatingly, while those who do have man.
hood enough to stand up for what they
think is rightfully they are classed by us
as a class of. raving fools. In short we
believe that no one should have con-
trary opinion to ours.
We are hearing in goodly portions of
Mississippi today the threat that, if car
ried out will weaken the manhood of Mis-
sissippi and cause our great state to fall
from that prestige that so long has been
our birthright--a state of independent
thinkers Why condemn your neighbor
because he does not think as you think,
because he does not see things as you see
them? Why not extend to him the same
right that in justice and truth belongs to
you? Free thought and free speech will
give us truth and make of us a Nation
of creators and inventors. Why not per-
NIT each of us to have an idea and to act
unmolested with that idea in view? Why
can we not continue in peaceful habitude
one with the other while you facor one
man or stand for one principle and for
another? Such was the intention of our
fore fathers in the creation of this nation,
when they declared, that all men are
created equal; that they are endowed by
their creator with certain unalienable
right, etc.
Mississippians have always as rule,
been independent thinkers, and this alone
has made her great. Today Mississippi
has the exclusive distinction of having
eight sons holding seats in the Senate of
the United States, an honor that is no
other states. Would that distinction be
if we had always demanded that our fell
low think as we about matters Of which
intelligent people naturally Disagree? We
have in Mississippi the highest type Of
manhood and how are we to beqneath
it untarnished to our pestcrity?
There is no necessity of our making Is
sues of men in local affairs when the same
is so immaterial. For instance,in local poll
tics, what matter of the candidates If one
be Vardaman man, another Percy man
and still another an Alexander man?
Those minor fellows will be called upon
to determine the merits of these three dis
tinguished Mississippians who aspire for
seat in the United States senate. The
democratic voters of Mississippi will de-
termine that The thing for us individ-
ually to do is to choose men best fitted
for the position that he seeks regardless of
political affiliations. Demand of the man
for whom you vote that he be man dyed
in the principle of true and noble manhood
that he be above reproach and that hid
stand for something.
There is noble lesson to be gathered
from the independent action of the citizens
of Missouri and Tennessee when they
forget party affiliations and cast theil
ballots for men and Principles-for right
and justice.