Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1914-04-14

Aug. u last year 20 select delegates To
the state Democratic platform conven-
tion held in Louisville on Aug. IS The
chief beneficiary in this steal, which has
no parallel IN The history OF Kentucky
was j. G. w. Beckham, who. profiting by
the theft had the effrontery 10 take a
place on the committee on resolutions be-
fore the convention had a chance to de-
eide upon his fake claim to a seat in the
body.
Let him not attempt to deny the
truth Of this statement by villifying
its author. for it is underwritten by
the very convention he arrogantly and
foolishly claims to have controlled.
The committee on credentials for
some ineXplicable reason did not UNI
seat this fraudulent delegation. and
then was witnessed i'm that body a
scene which has no peer or parallel i'm
the history of Democratic conventions
in Kentucky A delegate from the
floor Of the convention called up the
minority report, and so general was
the knowledge of the outrageous con.
duct of Mr. Beckham and his bench
men, as graphically described in the
Louisville Times, that the convention
by decided majority repudiated the
report Of the committee on credentials
and, in anger and disgust, was pre-
pairing to literally spew Mr.. Beckham
and his crooked allies out Of its mouth.
Then 1t was that so called follower
OF the saloon interests and Mr.. Stan
ley" for the sake of party harmony
and In very pity for the despicable
plight IN which Mr.. Beckham found
himself, came to his assistance. Then
1t was that Bob franklin. Ben Mar
shall. myself and others rushed to the
stage and earnestly pleaded with the
outraged delegates not to kick the man
down the stairs. who at this time
would assume to have been their idol
and their hero
Mecreary Puts County Unit Plank In
Platform.
The very men who put the county
unit plank in the Democratic platform
like the real leaders of the temperance
cause i'm the Kentucky legislature, have
eternally branded the hypocritical lead
ership Of Mr. Beckham as an impos-
ture and "A sham.
That plank was written in the plat
form because a majority of the dele.
gates felt that the candidates Opin
ions and and the party's utterance
should be in full accord, and, Governor
McCreary having insisted that ii
should be included in the report of the
committee in resolution, his wishes in
the matter were respected and obeyed.
Mr.. Beckham's self lauded harangue
before that body, like the flowers that
bloom in the spring, had nothing to do
with the thing at ALL"
Mr.. Beckham's statement that have
ever attempted to defend my position
in that convention or that it ever need
ed a defense is, in the words of Oscar
Underwood, absolutely unwarranteC
by facts" and | never said anything
that would warrant anybody with
modicum of intelligence in making
such an assertion.
have always believed in local op
ton, and l have never hesitated {,
say so. Every community should hav,
the right to decide whether alcoholic
liquors should be vended in it or not
and when the licensed sale has been
prohibited l unhesitatingly approve the
rigorous enforcement of the law
against those petty miscreants known
as bootleggers and blind tigers.
Wilson Favors Local Option.
President Wilson has discussed this
subject with such cogency and frank
ness that | am willing to unhesitating.
ly and absolutely commend and accept
every sentence and every syllable Of
that utterance as the exact and accu-
rate expression of my views upon this
veXed question:
My Dear Mr.. Shannon - The question
asked in your letter of April q about my
attitude toward the important question Of
local option is. of course, perfectly
legitimate one, and you are entitled TO a
very frank answer l would have replied
sooner had l not been prevented by i'm
perative public engagements. l have ex-
planned my Views to you in private but
have of course no objection to your max
ing them public.
/ am IN IaNOf OF local OptlOn. am a
thorough believer in local self government
and believe that every self governing com
munity which constitutes a social unit
should have the right TO control the mat
ter Of regulation or of the Withholding Of
license.
But the questTaas involved are social
and moral. not Political, and are not sus-
ceptibe of being made parts of a party
program. Whenever they have been made
the subject matter OF party contests they
have cut the lines of party organization
and party action athwart, to the utter
confusion of political action IN every other
field. They haze thrown every other
question. however important into the
background and have made constructive
party action impossible for long years to-
gether.
So far as l am concerned, therefore
can never consent 10 have the question OF
local option made an issue between polit-
ical parties In this state. My judgment
is very clear I'm this matter. l do not be-
lieve that party programs are of the high
est consequence to the political life OF the
state and Of the nation ought TO be thrust
on one side and hopelessly embarrassed
for long periods together by making a po-