The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson, S.C.) 1914-1917, 1914-09-08
To My Friends and Supporters:

10 My FTleHuS anu supporters:
a due sense of gratitude and thanks
to you for your confluence and sup
port. as we'll as a feeling Of proprtety
up5n my part. fmpels me to make to
yon statement. AZ briefly as can.
with regard To the late primary elec-
'tiotiif0r the United States sc0atc.
AS you know. two years ago ] made
tile fight for reelection for governor
without haying any financial means to
nuintain any organized management
III my behalf In that campaign. and
had to rely entirely upon the volun-
tary expression OF the will of the pco-
pie In castlng their votes at the polls.
was opposed by the organized ef-
forts and the reS0urces OF the bank
crs. manufacturers and cor pOrations.
with substantially the entire press of
the state lined up against ne with the
determination to show neither fair
ness nor justice. nor to abate single
effort to misrepresent the true state
&c the campaign as 1t progressed, but
on tho contrary to distort aud villify
me IN every respect.
with this combination OF press and
capital against me. l received 72,043
votes. u lcnH of J.i95 over d man who
! At. bc"m ':...-tcd from his early en-
trance into public life with the Till
nianitc n:JvLmont. and who had been
trained AS the candidate I'm whom the
scnlor senator from South Carolina
and the press placed all of their hope
Of defeating me. This gentleman had
boon speaker OF the house OF repre-
xcntatires. had been an associate JUS
tico upon the supreme bench. and had
been chief justice up to the time he
resigned for the purpose OF carrying
the standard VI the trusts. capitalists.
corporations. and the press. who had
c0nspired with the determination at
all events and under all circumstances
10 try 10 perpetuate their control over
the politics OF South Carolina, and sc.
lcct her state officers.
Immediately after that election 1t
was announced by the partisan and
lunscrupclous majority Of the state
executive committee that there were
/ frauds and wilful Irregularities COM
mitte,l IN tho election which was held
under their own management and aus
pices. / quietly then submitted to the
1ndignlties aud injustice which were
!. attempted to- be perpetrated upon me
and the majority Of the people OF the
state. 8
3 IneTc we're cast IN TINT election
7 for Dtate officers 140.757 votes. 1t was
'vehcmently asserted by the newspn-
,pcrs and by the' members of that ex-
'ecutlve committee who were trying
TO nullify that primary election, that
there were mot that many qualified
white democratic voters in the state.
'The proceedings in the. nature OF a
I contest which we're inaugurated by
/ mY opponents, under thu advice and
3Ip9Nspiqos, OF, the n partisan, +. executive
--c3L1mittee, however, showed conciul
Hlveiy, even by, tho one: sided and paarl
tiohai, iexainifation made there, that
such Ncharge yas without Foundation,
and the contest resulted in a ridicul
;ldus' farce. j,sia "''pf .( mas III
.There was evinced in the present
: 'eleottong the greatest interest In any
election held within the last twenty
years :or more, and yet the total num-
:her II votes as CAST for the office of
United States senator. as reported by
my opponents in control nf the co:nt.
was only l32,S01-about 5000 less
than were cast in the election of 1912.