The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1914-01-13
GOV. ANNUAL MESSAGE TO
5. c. LEGISLATURE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 81


because men went around Columbia,
and in Sumter, and il Spartanburg,
and in Greenyille, and in ot1er places
and sought contributions to make up
campaign funds to defeat Blease with?
What was this money being got up
for? Whoa was it being got up by?
Why did BIease's opponent need such
an enormous campaign fund? Was II
to pay his campaign expenses around
over South Carolina? Was it to pay
mis- sons expenses in travelling with
him and carrying his books? Was II
to pay the legitimate expenses OF h:s
campaign manager? What was 1t for?
Who was to use it and for what pur-
rose? WY did the railroads make large
cor r.ri3utions to Bleases oppon-
ent's campaign fund? Why did GER
tain cotton mill presidents make such
large contributions TO BleaSe's oppon-
ent's campaign fund? Had any can
didate in South Carolina ever before
needed campaign fund such as was
raised against Blease? Did Tillman
use it, or Evans, Ellerbe, McSweeney,
Hayward, AnseI or Blease? Did Gen
eral Earle use it? Then why this
powerful campaign contribution for
the primary Of 1912? If that primary
was corrupt. who corrupted it? II
men voted in it who were not en-
titled to vote, who hauled them from
North Carolina and Georgia and paid
their expenses?
II is plain to any thinking man,
and it will be admitted by any honest
man, that these large sums of money
raised by contribution and hauled at
a central bureau in Columbia and by
parties in other parts Of the State,
are what corrupted 1t, if it was cor
rUpt, and only by the true manhood
of honest citizenship Of South Car
.olina rising in it's might and refusing
TO be bought and debauched by this
crowd, was South Carolina saved
from corrupt government bought at
the ballot box
Now, who is responsible for this
great cry Of fraud in the primaries?
The governor publicly stated on the
STATE House steps, the night after the
election, that tle other side had
stolen more votes and put them in the
ballet box than they knew what to do
with. If his statement was. a slander,
why wasn't he prosecuted? II MS
statement was a SANDER, why was II
that the committee cf the State eX-
ecuti,e committee, a large majority
of whom were composed OF his bitter
est opponents, after they had gone
to SnartanDurg and to Greenville and
IN Anderson and to Orangeburg, dis
banded, gave up their Investigations
and sneaked off quietly and went into
their little holes?
These charges Of fraud and corrup-
ton are absolutely unworthy put IN
line with tae source from which they
come. The man who introduced the
resolution in the State executive COM
mittee charging the white people OF
this state with fraud and corruption IN
that election, pulled then the rope
which rang the bell sounding ais
death knell throughout the dems-
cratic party Of this State. The par
tisan majority of the committee Wnlch
took it UP will find that It Will take
them wears OF hard, loneSt, struggle
IN redeem themselves in the eyes OF
the peop}e of this State. Today the
Deople are alive to the fact that these
charges of fraud and perjury and
corruption have been made against
Them. The white people OF Sout1 Car
oIina. and when the time comes, II
men with the moral courage ana the
political backbone get upon the ros-
trum in t2is State and expose the
righteousness Of those who made anu
who took up these charges, every one
of them will be wiped from the face
of the political arena, and those
who stood with the majority in that
election will again stand with the
majority, for fair dealing and tor
honesty.
No. it is not the system that needs
improving; il is not tne law that
needs amend.nS-We have law enough
but it is the enforcement OF tnat
law that we need. Prosecute the men
VINO handed out the money and Wills
kew. Prosecute the men who try to
DllN AOlGIS. OSCNNhlN VIZ
Who hire men to travel throughout
the State under the guise Of book
agents, newspaper reporters and
subscription list hunters, and under
other guises, and instead OF following
the vocations which they claim TO
follow, go around trying to buy Vot-
ers, trying to debaucn the citizenship
OF the State, and telling the most will
full and malicious lies upon tne then
governor of their Commonwealth,
Such men and their accessories are
the men who attempted TO corrupt the
primary, and it was only by Blease
exposing their schemes from the
public stump that they were w2ippeI
by his showing up that they had
caused a. shortage in the ballots, that
they had spent money and done
evrything that could possibly be
cone. 10 defeat man-and then
when they we're whipped, all
they could ho!ler was fraud, when
i