Atlanta Georgian., 1912-07-02
WATSON MERCER
VERBAL FIGHT
IS RESUMED
Thomson Editor Keeps on
"Saying Things" and Game
Warden Returns Fire.

Tom Watson and Jesse Mercer just
won't quit fighting verbal battles De
spite the fact that Mercer promised
Watson cowhiding over the Boyd es-
tate settlement, the sage of McDufie
keeps on saying things about the
Georgia game warden.
Mr.. Watson on the front page Of The
Progressive Democrat this week, in the
course Of his praise Of Governor
Browns message to the legislature
slips this one to Mr.. Mercer:
The governor advises that the
office of game warden be made
elective.
Better still, it should be abol-
ished.
The office was created in order
that Smith might throw some sop
to Jess Mercer-the notorious liar,
braggart and would-be thief.
(Jess, you know, is the scoundrel
whom l brought to task in the Boyd
estate case)
Compelled the rascal to disgorge
$4,000.
Consequently, he nurses an in
durable grudge against the man
who made him come across.
Now, that is calculated to get ;
comeback from most any man. MI
Mercer read the reference to him ant
handed out this, boiled down from
card he had written to one of the coun
ty papers:
Calls Law Good One.
With reference to the ONCE of
game warden, the legislature had
no thought Of who would be the
man appointed when 1t passed the
bill. and Governor Smith did not
have the present commissioner in
mind when he signed the bill. II
is a good law and doing good work
in Georgia, without reference TO
Mercer or Tom Watson.
As to the Boyd estate, about
which Mr.. Watson has written. so
many columns, and with reference
to what he said in the last Jeffer-
sonian and The Progressive Demo
crat charge specifically that Mr..
Watson brought that suit knowing
that he could not recover dollar
for his clients and solely for the
fee
1 charge and accuse Watson of
taking advantage Of confiding po-
itical friend-one who Is not able
to lose the large fee charged him
nor to make the sacrifice he did in
Watson's settlement of his claim.
The wife of Populist friend who
lived in Alabama happened to be
one of the legatees of the Boyd es-
tate and she wrote Watson for ad
vice. And as was stated by Mrs
Suda oxford in last Saturdays
Georgian, it was not her sisters
purpose to go to law with the ex
ecutors of the estate.
Again Charges Trickery.
| charge pointedly that Watson
took advantage of his political rep
utation or notoriety and imposed
on confding friend, losing him
half his wife's interest in the Boyd
estate and charging him an exor
bitant fee.
charge and have proved by pub
| lished letters of the widow of Wat
sons law partner that Watson at
tempted to rob his law partner in
division Of the fee, and that he an
noyed his dying partner and treat
ed his widow in a shameful manner
about the question of the fee.
The main questions in which the
public is interested are the fact
that Watson took advantage of a
party man, Pokdlist, and lured
him or his wife into a suit, losing
them the sum of $4,000 and charg-
ing them an exorbitant fee; that he
was willing to settle as soon as he
established his right to the fee;
then uuarreled with the law part
ner as he lay dying, and now as
climax of his perfidy he mistreats
the widow of his wronged partner.
And that is what I propose to
thrash him about II he makes It