The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1913-03-21
THE cRuMP AGREEMENT.


Senator Lea contributes the lates
installment to the controversy con
corning the fusion agreement witt
Mayor Crump in the form OF an in
terview from Washington The Sen
ator,s statement is delightfully."- frank
STRAIGHTFORWARD and directly TO TIM
point. He gives the details OF thu
various conferences that led 10 thu
agreement between the independent
democrats, republicans and Memphis
delegation.
Senator Leas frank statement Of
the facts is to be commended. The
democrats who made it, Senator Lea
Col. Amis and others, acted for what
they though, was the best interest OF
the cause Of temperance and honest
elections ard we believe that they
acted wisely. Subsequent events
will prove that fact. Gov. Hooper's
course has brought disaster to the fu.
sion cause we greatly fear.
The Herald does not OF it's own
knowledge know that Hooper was a
party to the agreement, but 1t does
know that some of his most ardent
friends, the democrats who. made him
governor, believed that he approved
the agreement and would stand ty It.
The logic oil subsequent events shows
that this belief was fully justified.
Gov. Hooper knew Of the agreement.
at least he knew that Crump insist
led that as part of the agreement,
the temperance laws should not be
further extended, and he accepted
without protest, all the fruits of the
agreement and it is certainly not an
Z act Of good faith for him to pretend
ignorance.
1t strikes us that Senator Lea
states the case in nutshell when he
says:
There is no use of quibbling OF Of
discussing the difference between
tweedledum and tweedledee. Even If
there mad heen no direct and absolute
understanding as there visit
would have been palpable bad faith
for Governor Hooper to have accept
ed and received the benefits of this
agreement by the passage, through
the votes OF the Shelby county dele
cation alone, of the measures in
which he was most interested and the
election of republican election COM
missioner, knowing that the Shelby
delegation was relying on no effort
being made to pass additional legis-
lation on the liquor question without
his tHooper) communicating directly
to the Shelby delegation his intention
OF urging end pressing such legisla-
ton as soon as he had obtained ev-
erything that he desired with the aid
Of the Shelby votes.
4 have made as many sacrifices
for prohibition as has Governor
Hooper. did not violate my con-
science by entering into such an
agreement, but would have violated
the dictates of common sense if, in
terested in the preservation of the !
laws, had not agreed to plan that
guaranteed their maintenance. by a |
legislature in which the genuine
friends of such measures were in a
minority. acted in the interest OF
these and such other measure As in
my opinion made for the welfare OF
the state"
IL We fully agree with Senator Lea
that he has made .as many sacri-
fees for prohibition as has Gov.
Hooper" In fact he has made more.
No man In Tennessee, and we speak
advisedly, has ever made more sacri-
fees for prohibition than Senator
Lea. The triumph of the cause OF
temperance and honest elections in
this state has cost Senator Lea in
money, in time and in effort more
than it has cost any other And no
man i'm Tennessee contributed more,
probably as much, to elect a legisla-
ture that would uphold the admins
tration OF Gov. Hooper, than Senator
Lea. In the light of these facts,
which cannot be successfully contro-
yerted, Coy. Hoopers ,egostistical |
assumption that he possesses all the1
virtue and patriotism and courage
to be found in the ranks OF the
temperance forces in Tennessee has
very little to warrant 1t.