Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1912-09-13
STATES HIS POSITION.
Eugene s. BIease Did Not Oppose Pri'
mary investigation.


mary investigation.
Editor Of the Daily Record. Columbia
s. c. Sir:
Pressure Of business has prevente'
the earlier writing Of this letter. Al
though a little late, perhaps, l feel 1
is proper for me to take this metho'
of setting myself right before you
freaders, for fear that some Of then
may have believed the wrong posi-
ton in which you have sought re
peatedly to place me.
In reporting the meetings Of th'
state Democratic executive COMMITTED
held since the day Of the first primar!
election, you have persistently re-
ferred to me as being opposed to al
investigation Of the recent primary
election. On two occasions, In YOU
headlines, you have referred to m!
opposition to the investigating reso
luton. In your issue OF last Thurs
day, in your editorial headed, '"Th'
Proper Action" you used these words
Instead Of opposing the investigator
Mr.. Eugene Blease should have de-
manded It."
At first 1 thought your headline
writer's had misrepresented me unin,
'tentionally, for l understood thai
headlines are usually written hur'
ridly, but the fact that your editoria
continues to misrepresent my position
makes me inclined to think that the
Misrepresentation I have received al
the hands Of your paper Is not alto.
gether unintentional.
have never opposed the investiga'
ton of the primary election. At the
meeting of the executive committee
Of the primary, I distinctly stated to
the committee that I did not oppose
an investigation, and I voted for the
resolution looking to. the investiga-
ton. At the meeting on last Wed
nesday, I did not oppose Mr.. Man.
ning's resolution. I took the position
before the committee that 1t was not
proper to order an investigation until
the committee knew what the official
returns from the various counties
showed, and that 1t was proper mrs,
to appoint a committee to tabulate
those returns and report the results
to the full committee. When my sub
stitute failed, and the consideration OF
Mr.. Manning's resolution was again
called up, I then moved that at least
three members of the committee OF
seven be supporters Of Governor
Blease, and at least three members
thereof be supporters Of Judge Jones.
i stated before the committee my rea-
sons for making this motion. So far
as I know, no newspaper has pub
lished the reasons as given by me.
Briefly stated, my reasons were be-
cause fairness and business demanded
that both sides be represented on the
committee, and I felt that, If both
sides were represented, it would help
to bring about good feeling on the
part Of the people generally through
out the state. A number of Judge
Jones' supporters on the committee
agreed with me in my view and voted
for my amendment. The majority Of
the committee, however, did not favor
1t.
I do not hesitate to say that I was
opposed to the investigation being or
dered until the returns were tabu-
lated, and I thought that Judge Jones'
should make specific charges of fraud
before any full investigation should
be ordered. I was also opposed to a
partisan committee, representing the
Of the voters in the election,
making an examination and investi-
CATION, without the majority Of the
voters having representation on the
My opposition has been
as to the manner Of the investigation