The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1912-01-12

a blow; and here you wish to allow a
man to publish lie and have seven
days in which to cool off and apollo
gize for it, after the injury has been
done and when they can not require
or have all parties who read the lie, to
read the apology; hence, the injury is
done and can not be remedied by
apology; yet, if a man shoots another
in sudden heat and passion, after read
ing one of these dirty ISLANDERS, your
beloved and highly learned courts say
that it is "manslaughter," or possibly,
as no words justify a blow, 1T is
murder"
Suppose that a newspaper published
On Saturday, Sunday or Monday pre-
ceding primary election, contains the
most wilful and malicious lie about
candidate, which they have done, and
they accomplish their purpose and de-
feat the candidate, what good do you
suppose, or what benefit will it be to
the candidate within seven days there
after for the unscrupulous liar to come
out in an apology. He has accom-
pliched his purpose; the people have
spoken: the candidate who has been
lied on has been beaten; the assassin
is happy and the man who has been
injured by this bill, if it becomes a
law, must simply sit down, silently
and say, she has apologized," and the
law excuses him. Take for an in
stance, in. the campaign for 1910, when
the Columbia State published ar arti-
Gle in which it was said that DR..
George B. Cromer had stated that
Mayor Blease had taken certain ac-
ton, after he became mayor, in re-
leasing certain parties who were his
clients before he was mayor, and re-
fecting upon Mayor Biease's reputa-
ton for honesty and character. This
article appeared on Monday morning
the day preceding the primary. For
tunately DR.. Cromer and Candidate
B1ease lived in the same town. DR..
Cromer was seen Immediately. He
gave out a written card in which he
denied having made the statement,
thus branding William Banks, the re-
porter who started it, as liar. This,
neither Parks ror the State has ever
attempted to deny; they did not have
the manhood or the courage to resent
what DR.. Cromer had said. How was
this report corrected? By sending
thousands of circulars all over the
State containing DR.. Cromer's denial,
an act which has never been equalled
in the political history of this State.
Yet, if I had not been able to correct
this lie, I presume an apology, after
1 had been defeated would have been
all that would have been necessary to
have eased my feelings and to make
amends for my defeat.
1 mention these matters IL order to
show you that when you are not in
the favor of the liars of the press, how
they will act in order to injure you.
Now, gentlemen, look at the news
paper trust in South Carolina, sup
plemented by paper in Charlotte,
and see if you think that man who
these papers are against will have any
showing in the defense Of his charac-
ter if you lay down the bars as you
are attempting to do here. You all
know that the Charlotte Observer and
the Cuban incubator at Columbia are
controlled by the same parties. You
know how they have lied on candi-
dates for Office in this State, and you
also know that this paper was born
in insurrection against the Democracy
of South Carolina and nursed On the
bottle of a combination Of negro Re-
publicans and independents, who
Hampton said were worse than Radi-
Gals, and before the establishment CT
this paper, much of the filth that we
have now used in campaigns, was not
INDUCED in, but since this mixture of
blood has taken control in South Caro-
lima, campaign libel and slander is so
common that people have about lost
what respect they ever had for news
papers, particularly this Sheet and the
little ME Toos" that are barking at
their feet. Now, when you speak of a
civil suit, please tell me what a judg-
ment would be worth if obtained