The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1914-08-26
LIAR To HIS face
GOVERNOR TAKES EPITHET Twice
HURLED BY JENNINGS

! DOES NOT Resent IT
For the First Time to Their Faces
Blease Says Jennings and Pollock
| Were Hired and Fo- the First
Time the Singing "Dirty, Con.
temptible Liar" is Passed.
| The senatorial campaign came to
a close with crash at Sumter
Thursday when L. D. Jennings de-
nounced the governor to his face as
"a dirty, contemplate liar" This
was in answer to the accusation that
L. D. Jennings and W. P. Pollock had
been hired to enter the campaign to
help Senator Smith. Twice the un-
complimentary epithet was hurled in
the governors teeth. He offered no
resentment, however, though fianked
by his bodyguard and members of
the State detective force. In answer,
he hitched his thumbs beneath his
suspenders and stalked to the oppo-
site side Of the stage, while the crowd
Il uo
shouting and hurrahing for Mr.. Jen-
nings.
It was when the governor was
reading letter relative to the candi-
dacy of Richard I. Manning that the
tilt occurred. The letter, the gov
ernor said, had been written by an
anti-Blease man to supposed"
anti-administration man, who hap
pened to belong to the other camp.
The writer urged that Mr.. Manning
was the logical gubernatorial candi-
| date for the anti-administration
forces to concentrate upon, arguing
that he was "the daily leading candi-
! date" as indicated by the attacks
directed against him. The question
was asked by the writer, did you
ever hear Of a weak man being at
tacked?" In commenting on this,
the governor said, Il guess that's
why they put Smith in the race, and
hired two men to heip him."
Twice previous the governor had
referred to Messrs. Jennings and Pol
lock as "hirelings,' once at Marion
and again at Monck's Corner. At the
Marion meeting both had already
gone back to the hotel, neither being
on the stand at the time. Neither at
tended the Monck's Corner meeting.
Like fash Mr.. Jennings leaped
to his feet when the governor made
the accusation. Advancing hurriedly
to the governors side and touching
the speakers arm so as to attract
his attention, Mr.. Jennings answer
ed: ANY man who says was hired
to help Smith is dirty, contemplate
liar" Waiting a minute, as if for
the governor to make reply, Mr.. Jen-
nings again repeated his denurcla-
ton. BY this time people began to
Chamber to get upon the stage. Po-
licement drove these back, and State
Senator John H. Clifton, county chair
man, advanced between the antagon-
lists. Forcing himself into a chuckle,
the governor took his stand at the
farther end of the platform, and,
when the crowd quieted, asked:
isn't it funny how big cock can
crow on his own dung hill?" He
had been warned, he said, that he
| would be attacked. He thanked God,
however, that he had men enough to
take care of him. He then explained
that it was mo use" to start fuss,
where a whole lot of innocent people
would be endangered. If any one did
not like what he had to say. 'let
them come to me when leave the
stand, and where innocent persons
will not be in danger and I'll give
them satisfaction the governor in
vited.
Senator Smith, too, called the gov
ernor to a halt, when the chief exc
cutive said that be had had detec-
tives watching "a certain office in
Columbia" and that these had. dis
covered that money was being sent
out in Senator Smiths interests.
Some had already gone, and more
was to go Saturday, he asserted. He
had heard that one man had been
promised 81, 900 Wednesday. They'll
never get the money" the governor
asserted, "and if the man sending it
out isn't careful, he'll not hold office
long," the speaker concluded.
1t was at this juncture that Sen
ator Smith challenged the governor
to furnish the name of the man send
| ing the money out and that of the
man receiving it.
"Now, governor, since you have
made the charge, if you'll give me the
name of the man sending it out, and
that of the man receiving it, Ill in
dict the man myself" the senator
answered with emphasis. No money,
he asserted, had been or would be
used illegitimately. In answer the
| governor said: "If Senator Smith
keeps his word, I'll make him pros
ecute next Wednesday a man sup
posed to be one of the best friends
Smith ever had"