The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1915-12-21
PROTECTION OF HONE
HIGHEST Law OF MAN
SO DECLARES FORMER GOVERNOR
IN ANDERSON SPEECH.
Cole. L. BIease Makes Address to Large
Audience Mainly Growers and
Workers of Cotton.
Special to The Herald and News.

CT cole. l.. please Oh OdIuA ueiy c11I01-
noon addressed an informal gathering
of Anderson county farmers and cotton
mill workers which taxed the capacity
OF the courthouse auditorium. Mr..
Blease was in splendid form and was
greeted with enthusiasm and listened
to WITH the closest attention.
The former governor said in opening
that he had addressed great many
Anderson county audiences and spoken
mere many times, but it was pleasure
for him to come to Anderson and to
speak to our people. Anderson is
strictly a white mans county.
He had made a speech not many days
ago in another county for the purpose
of proving that the white men of South
Carolina stood, above all things, TO"
the protection of the sanctity Of white
women. Had the occurrence which
made that speech necessary happened
in Anderson county there would have
been only one man killed, and that a
man in form only-tne black beast julie
Smith.
Governor Rlease declared that the
verdict in Y * made him feel proud
that he had always felt that when
negro brute put hands on our sacred
women the sooner he is under ground
the better. The York jury endorsed
his declaration made before the Con-
dress of Governors at Richmond few
years ago.
Speaking of law and order, Gov
ernor Blease said that he was hailed
as the lawless governor of South Caro-
lima. and drew a comparison between
law and order under his administra-
ton and as it exists today. He was
lawless because he had paro.ed and
pardoned. Others are paroling and
pardonirg now, but the difference is on
which side of the. fence the dog barks.
He had paroled LOO convicts and had
yet to see where the records showed
that one of them had since been con-
victed of crime. Judging from the
crime rampant over the state during
the present year it would be better
to parole all those never convicted and
then maybe they would emulate the
good behavior of his paroied convicts
and we would have better conditions,
There haze been Is criminal assaults
by negroes in South Carolina this year.
Seven white men have been shot by
negroes in the last 80 days. The attor-
ney generals report for the year, made
up from the reports Of solicitors, will
show q. record of crime for this year
unepuaYed in the annals of the sta-e.
If law and order means the turning OF
weak women and little children out in
the snow and the night at the behest
of a corporation he did not want to be
the officer to do it or the executive to
order it done.
The best legal talent available was
used in an endeavor to convict 1seh-
hover before a fair-minded court, and
had verdict of guilty been secured
you would have, seen the front pages
of the daily papers emblazoned with
glaring headlines that law and order
had been vindicated and the constitu-
ton upheld. But twelve white men,
representative of the best white man
hood of the state, declared they believed
in the protection of white homes above
all other things and the papers dis
missed it with a few paragraphs and
it was forgotten
The papers had heralded as one Of
the principal acts of the present gov
ernor this week at Charleston was to
parole a negro convict at the request
of a solicitor and supervisor.
The night schools at mills of which
so much is being said now are being
instituted under an act which he intro
duced wnen a state senator from New
berry. During his terms as governor
q good many strike settlements were
brought about through the influence OF
his Office, without bloodshed or disor-
der though there was no hallaballo
made over it.
The last legislature tried to fool the
people in the matter of tax assessment.
They made a state levy Of 57a mills,
assessed Il mill for asylum and mill
for old soldiers pensions and said they
had not raised the levy. Then last
wear Blease was governor the 57a mill
levy covered everything. But the last
legislature in its extravaganza and Gre