The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1914-03-06
BILBO'S HOT REPLY.

JACKSON, MISE, Mafch a. ne IOl-
lowing is the text of Lieut.. Gov. Bill
hos address to the Senate today:
Gentlemen Of the Senate-I trust
that you will pardon me in asking your
patient indulgence while speak briefly
on a question of personal privilege.
"You have all seer and read an after
noon paper published in onr city which
announces a declaration of open wal
by the governor of our state, and, as
this declaration of hostilities, as ex-
pressed in the governors letter to Hon.
W. c. Pittman, a member of the lower
house of the Legislature, contains a
very vicious attack upon me and my
friends, | feel that | am duty bound to
briefly respond to this call to arms
Surely the gods have at last de-
cided to destroy his excellency, Gov.
Brewer. for he is certainly very mad.
Il accept his challeng" to war, and
wish to assure him that | will be the
last man in Mississippi to ask any con-
~cession or quarter from him, and here
and now deny that anybody was ever
authorized by me to make any proposal
of any nature whatever 10 Earl Brewer
in any way related to the infamous
prosecution to which he has prostituted
his office and sought to prostitute the
courts of Warren County.
There are a great many things that
| do not know, and one Of those things
il that | never knew when | was
whipped. | have been fighting the
peoples cause since 1907, and I propose
to fight IN. | may get killed, but |
will never surrender. Yes, l will ac-
cept the governors challenge, and fight
the governor all the way from Yellow
Rabbit to Vinegar Bend, but | wish to
reassure him and you that, unlike the
governor and his sympathizers, | was
sincere when | declared on the first
day Of the session that we would have
no politics in this Legislh AZURE. If you
remember, said in my opening address
to the Senate on the sixth day of Janu.
airy that we are not assembled here to
try the merits of any proposition at
this time alien to the business of this
body. but that we are here to heal the
wounds of this realm in good conscience
and a profound sense of duty to the
state and people. and | am sure that
each one OF US is ready with voice and
vote to rebuke any effort that would
lead US away from that purpose /
further requested my friends to firmly
resolve with me that we would give
our time, our talents and our industries
to these duties which the people Of
Mississippi have commissioned us to
perform, so that when we returned to
IL homes we might 90 with heads
erect and eyes undimmed to challenge
alike the approval Of our friends and
the criticism of our foes.
80 trust that you understand my
position, will fight the governor and
discuss any issue in which the people
of Mississippi are conc rned on the
busting, and let it be settled at the
ballot box, but | will not be a party to
the governors evident scheme to throw
this Legislature in a boil ing. bowling,
seething political turmoil.
THE governor has gone out of his
way to find an excuse to start the po-
lltlcal pot to boil in this Legislature.
| presume that this was brought about
by the fact that he was gloatinp over
the sad fate of poor Charlie Smith and
the further fact that he was all day
yesterday basking in the presence and
Gaming on the arm Of his great ideal,
W. j.. Burns, and his cohorts.
MY answer on the hust ings to Gov.
Brewer will be full and complete, every