Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1912-08-23
IS MADE
AGAINST bLEASE
Of South Carolina
Democrats Equal To An
EleCtiOn.
Bitter fight for Governorship
Between Governor PedSe
and Judge Jones

COLUMBIA, 5. g., Aug. 23.-DemO-
Gratis of South Carolina in a primary
election next Tuesday will nominate
a state ticket, one United States en-
ator and seven representatives in
Congress. Nominations are equival.
ent to election. -
All of the present representatives
are candidates for denomination and
several of them will be named with
out opposition. Senator Benjamin
r. Tillman is opposed by N. B. Dial
of Laurens and w. Jasper Of Parks
vile. Owing to the condition OF his
health Senator Tillman has taken no
active part in the campaign. Never
theless, his friends believe that he
is certain todefeat his two opponents
in the primaries.
The bitter fight for the governor
ship between Governor Cole l..
Blease and Judge Ira B. Jones is
mo%nopolizing public attention to the
exclusion of all other contests to be
settled by the primaries. There is
but one issue: Shall the administra-
ton of Governor Blease be sustained
and continued or be condemned and
ended. On this issue the entire state
is divided into hostile camps, while
the bitter charges hurled at Cover
nor Blease by his political enemies
have attracted the attention of the
entire country.
Governor Blease is regarded as a
result of the old dispensary system
which was established in South Car
DINA by Tillman, and which has
caused innumerable scandals in the
past few years. As a member of
the legislature, he was in close asso-
citation with the commission which
ran the d%ispensary system and it is
charged that he shared the large re-
bates witch wholesale liquor houses
were forced, it is alleged, to pay on
all purchases of liquors for the dis
pensary.
The dispensary system became so
notorious that the state decided to
abolish the commission. In winding
up its affairs, however, the state en-.
tered suit to recover from wholesale
liquor houses in various cities large
sums of money alleged to have been
pal din rebates. In all these suits the
name of Blease, who was then state
senator, was mentioned. Several
criminal prosecutions were brought
against officials, but no one vas con
victed.
Blease a for governor two years
apx onH uyon oil h yIOh nnnOco6 nv
almost every newspaper in the stare
and the charges against him wcr':
blcarded everyw nee. !ter hrs "a
a%lgLra:'On he startcl or' to punish
h.: e"t les. At III" 1T Is Ell of his ad-
ministration he bean issuing par
dons on a scale never before known
in the South. More than 400 pardons
have been signed by him since he
became governor.
Governed Blease had warrants
sworn out against Attorney T.. B.
Fielder Of Atlanta, who represented
South Carolina in winding up the af-
fairs of the %dispensary commission,
but the governor Of Georgia refus-
ed to honor the requisition papers.
To protect himself, Fielder hired De-
tective William j. Burns to prove the
charges against Blease.
Detective Burns and his men Offer
ed a legislative committee testimony
to show that Governor Blease had
received money for the pardons
granted, and had accepted money
from the blind tigers for protection
and had signed or vetoed railroad
legislation which came before him for
a consideration. Attorney Samuel ].
Hicholls was named as the agent of
Blease in these transactions. Burns
hid used the dictagraph on Nichols
and its records were offered as evil
dence. Nichols admitted that he
had had dealings with Burns men,
but said that he was drunk and that
the dictagraph were the sayings of
an intoxicated mn.
Many thought that the revelations
would put Blease out of the running
for a second term, but he has turn
ed them to account by saying that
they are lies told by the aristocrats
to discredit a nan whom the COM
mon people elected governor. His
friends contend that the statements
about the governors personal char
acter are the ISLANDERS of his political
enemies. They say he has headed a
vigorous administration according to
his own wy of thinking, and that in
the degree that it has been vigorous,
in that degree has it displeased and
angered his opponents. They point
that the governor has strict ideas OF
state economy; that he succeeded in
having the department Of state geo.
logist and the office of chief game
warden abolished in view of the fact
that he considered them unnecessary
and a useless expense; that he ve-
toed many Of the items Of the appro.
priation bill presented him by the
legislature and that his vetoea.1ere
| generally in the interest Of saving
| the state money. Governor Blease
himself vigorously defends his par.
| don record, insisting that it has been
directed by the dictates Of justice
and mercy.
500 DEPOT ABOUT DONE.
A nv m ..--.- n n ~ . ---.