The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1914-03-11
WHAT CAUSED ROW
STEYENSCk'S SPEECH TO Which
GOV. BLEASE OBJECTED
SCORED STAR CHAMBER

Member of House From Cheraw OPP
poses Reopenins of Asylum Inves-
tisation, Pointing Out That COM
mittee Inquired Into What it Was
Appointed to Investigate.
During the course Of half hour
speech on the floor of the House
Wednesday morning Representative
W. W. Stevenson of Cheraw took
occasion to score the governor of
South Carlina for the stand that he
had taken in the executive meeting
of the board of regents of the State
Hospital for the Insane on December
y, 1913, when Dr.. Eleanora B. Saun-
ders, woman physician at the asylum,
was made to appear and answer GER
tain charges and insinuations made
by fellow physicians and others with
out the privilege Of being represent
ed by an attorney, of having stem
ographer to take down the testimony
or Of having her father present at
the meeting. Star chamber proceed
ings, such as this State has never wit
messed or will ever witness again.
was the way in which Mr.. Stevenson
characterized the executive meeting.
Mr.. Stevenson's speech was called
forth by a resolution introduced by
Mr.. Kirby of Spartanburg providing
for another asylum investigating
committee to examine specifically in
to the. matters touched upon in the
governors message, which caused the
! investigation, or for the same COM
mittee to render supplemental re-
port giving the desired information.
Mr.. Stevenson was member of the
committee and spoke in justification
of the report already filed.
"The two main tasks with which
the committee felt that it was con-
fronted," said Mr.. Stevenson, "was to
give DR.. Saunders an opportunity to
refute charges which had been made
and which would damn her name If
not answered, and to do whatever we
could to improve the condition of l.
500 of the States unfortunates IN the
asylum, and from that purpose we
would not let the political differences
of two men swerve u.s.
The resolution by Mr.. Kirby men
toned, among other things, on which
the committee should have reported,
the charge by Senator Tillman that
Governor Blease's "underlings and
satellites" had tried to manipulate
the sale of the present asylum site.
MIR. Stevenson read from the report
ssssf the board of regents recommend
ing the sale of the property. "Sena-
tor Tillman did not say that those
'undcrlings and satellites were mem
bers of the general assembly, ne
said, "and this report shows that
| somebody wanted to sell the site,
which might be basis for the charge
made by the Senator"
Mr.. Stevenson SAID tnet the report
of the committee had been framed
with the view of leaving out as much
as possible anything that would
cause political strife, as members OF
the committee did not feel that any
good could come from such course.
"The motion to exclude anything CT
such a nature was made by Mr.. Har-
din OF Cherokee, who IS certainly moi
inimical to the governor" said Mr.
Stevenson. who stated, however, that
Mr.. Hardin did his own thinking and
showed his stateesmanshp by moving
to leave out of the report such OBJ
jectionable features.
AS to the charge made by Senator
Tillman that the administration fol-
lowers would try "to oust DR.. BAD
cock, Mr.. Stevenson said that the
superintendent of the asylum had
stated that he would resign his posi-
ton if DR.. Saunders was made the
object of attack, and following this
the record of regents passed resolu-
ticn to the effect that while Dr.. Saun-
ders' resignation was not called for,
it would be very acceptable. There
might be in this fact, said Mr.. Stew
enson, some basis for the charge that
an effort would be made to oust DR..
Babcock.
AS to the charge made in Senator
Tillman's letter that IAN effort would
be made to smirch DR.. Saunders,
Mr.. Stevenson read from the testi-
mony resolution originating with
Governor Blease in the meeting OF
the board Of regents, saying that 1t
was for the best interest of the lady
that the matter be hushed up, ref
erence being to insinuations made
against her character. Much OF the
transcribed notes Of the meeting was
read bv Mr.. Stevenson to show that
throughout Governor Blease had
made insiauations against the char
! acter of the lady which were calcu-
lated to smirch her name.
Simple justice to South Caro-
lima woman demanded that she pc
given an opportunity to present her
side in reply to her detractors. sald
Mr.. Stevenson. In conclusion, MT.
Stevenson stated that he did not
think the committee should have re-
turned renort which smacked Of
politics, for the reason that the In
lection Of this feature on the hoor Oh
the House would have caused dlsseh-
sion and might have resulted in harm
to the asylum.
Nr, Moore of Abbeville and Mr.. Z.
c.. Wyche of Spartanburg took the
position that the committee mad not
made full investigation INTO TIE
matters which they were appointed 10
examine and that supplemental re-
s,,c ~