The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1913-04-18

said Governor BLeaSe, loohIhS h'
straight in the eye, and smiling jus
a little quizically, "Now, what Dc
you thi-.'
Governor" I replied, as I arose
to say goodbye, "you remind me o1
Bill Nye's definition of classical mu,
Sic You are not nearly so bad as you
sometimes sound!'
Then Coleman Livingstone Blease
chief magistrate of South Carolina
laughed big, booming laugh, and
said, Cali right-that's all right! The
one and only thing 7 ask is that peo-
pie speak the truth of me, when they
speak of me at all"
1t is no easy matter to get to Gov
ernor Blease-at least, it was no easy
matter for me. His secretary-a fine
young chap-swore by the great horn
spoon at first that I shouldn't
I expostulated and explairsed-he
said there was nothing doing. He
told me frankly why, moreover.
He said, quite engagingly, that the
governor had so frequently "been lied
about, up one side and down the other
by various enterprising newspaper
men here and there, that he was get
ting heartily tired Of it,"
I expressed a large measure of SYM
pathy for that point of view, but I
assured the secretary that was not
a liar I insisted, indeed, that George
Washington had little, if anything, on
me in the matter of veracityl
{ The Secretary Relents.
<tOh, I guess you would see him and
talk to him, whether you did or moi" J"
said the secretary, menacingly. wa9
very much panied that the secretary
should have said anything so un-
kind-and I am reasonably sure ]
looked the part, too.
For presently the secretary said.
<'Well you come back here at 1
o'clock, and I will arrange for an au-
dience with the governor"
I was back at ,one-a quarter be-
fore. Almost Immediately was ush-
cred into the executives presence.
1t was explained to me then that
the governor had not quite under
stood thta it was one Of Mr.. ,Hearst's
newspapers that wished to communi-
cate with him. He had sent his felici-
tations to the Sunday American, upon
the occasion of it's first appearance,
and he was quite ready to see its
representative. =
Once I 'got the governor going, :"
it was all conversationally with me.
Every now and then I edged in
word or two, but most of the time the
governor did the talking.
For an hour and half he un-
bosomed himself, and he might be
talking yet had it not been that a
very black negro-the governors
famous chauffeur-stuck his head in
the door eventually and informed his
excellency that miss Fannie was
waiting.
When this happened, was served
with polite notice that I had reached
the end of my rope "Miss Fannie .
7 learned, is Mrs. Blease.
The remainder of the day spent
in walking about the streets of Co
lumbia, asking questions about Blease
the most talked about governor in
the South today, I really believe.
: Reeks With Personality.
Coleman Livingstone Blease simply
reeks with personality and all but
bursts with individuality.
have met and talked with many
public men-I never before met a
more interesting one than Blease.
He is as unique as Theodore Roose-
ve1t or Tom Watson. There is ab-
@solutely nothing of the commonplace
about him.
Apparently, he DOESN'T giveadamski
for anythingovitch. AS a matter OF
Hsact. he do2s-very much. He stands
fire manfully, but he has no great
liking for it. He hurls back every
allegation, and defes every alligator
but he feels the cut and lasn of ad-
verse criticism keenly. nevertheless,
kTafk with him ten MINUTES. Il VII
Bsufice 70 prove the truth of these
assertions.
please is a perfectly natural and
rot at all unwhol :cma, product CT
South Carolina as it today. Cne