The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1913-01-25

in human beNgs that / despise. 1t is
next to cowardice, the most despica be
of human traits.
Governor Blease stresses the point
OF secret letters, and, with great cum
ming. picks ont sentences from private
letters which L had written to my
friends. or men who represented
themselves as my friends, to prove
that L was not frank. He stresses the
fact that Mr.. Sims was not his friend
and is delighted TO find l had writ
ten one letter to a man not a Bleas-
ite l do not believe many people in
South Carolina will accept his theory
that 1 am a hypocrite and a double
dealer, because in writing personal
letters and marking them "confiden-
tial." / explained to those men who
were Blease friends and who claim
ed to be my friends what my real
opinions were. Because 1 said
would be hands off did not mean, nor
Is IL reasonable to claim that 1t meant
would be dumb.
3. The conspiracy with w. f.
Gonzales Is not conceivable or be-
lievable by anyone except man who
In his desperation, made the charge
in order to fire the hearts OF his fol-
lowers. The people of South Carolina
we'll understand the relations between
the Gonzales brothers and the Till
mans. The feud is of long standing
and all we'll informed people know
what provocation the Tillmans have
had and with what relentless energy
and with what ability the Gonzales
brothers have prosecuted their side
OF IL. 1 do not wish to stir the en-
bers OF this feud again, and 1 have no
such purpose in calling attention to
this long standing quarrel. COVER
NOR BLEASE KNOWS THAT HE
DID NOT BELIEVE WHEN HE
WROTE THIS DODGER LAST AUG
UST, that / had entered into any
conspiracy whatever with w. +. Con
zales. have been told that the
Gonzales brothers voted for me in
the primary last August. Whether
this is so or not, 1 do not know and
do not care. But / know that 1 never
saw Pat MCGOWAN or read Gonzales
private kilograms to him which some
Of Blease's friends stole off the wire;
and If had it would not have influ-
enced me at all.
Right here, 1 will ask Governor
Blease to answer point blank, how did
he get copies Of Gonzales kilograms
to MCGOWAN? He is such a stickler
for the forms of honesty in others,
will he honor bright and tell US who
stole them"
1 know and assert on my honor
that i alone wrote the Ferguson let
ter and that no one had anything to
do with it. or anything else 1 have
written or signed.
The following statement has just
been handed me by A. M. Carpenter,
OF Anderson. South Carolina, telling
how the Ferguson letter came to be
given out and how the statement that
accompanied it was made up for the
press:
About o'clock in the afternoon
Of August 20, 1912, 1 met Senator
and Mrs. Tillnan at the north en-
trance TO the capitol building. They
had started for home, and had
stopped and were talking TO j. NJ.
Baker, one Of the officers of the
senate. Senator Tillman stopped me
and said he wanted to ask my ad-
vice. He stated that at the begin
ming of the gubernatorial campaign
in South Carolina he had declared he
would take no part in II, and had
tried to follow that course, but that
during the two or three weeks just
previous he had received a number
Of letters from people in the State
whom he thought TO be his friends,
asking his opinion of Jones and
Blease. and that he replied 10 these
letters frankly. that in each case he
had made it plain TO his correspond
ent that he was writing in conf
dence, but he had found that in
some cases his confidence had been
betrayed, that the letters were be-
ing misrepresented. and that he had
been placed in the position of doing
secretly things he was afraid to do
openly. He said he had been placed
in a false position before his friends
and his enemies, and that ne felt
o 4.