Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1915-06-25

luuAig VI . AOh6 NAuc 10 get up anu tel
everything bad about the Governor,
and tying the Governors hands and
insulting the Governor. He is here to
night, his manager is here. | tell you.
and | tell him, you can't pull him upon
this platform with a log chain, and get
him (cheeringl and give me an op.
portunity to reply to him. He won't
come here unless he has got the last
say and unless he has my hands tied
in an agreement in writing, and that
the Governor cannot bring out any.
thing new, and he must speak about
the same matter in the original speech,
Who ever heard of such a thing?
At C~larksdale, he came around with
an agreement in writing. / told him
to come down to the court house at 2
o'clock. When l got through with my
speech. l said: Ladies and Gentle
men, Senator Russell is here to make
q speech. l want every friend of mine
to hear him. and then remain and hear
my reply. He made his speech and
replied to him. He did not make up a
charge that l did not answer in de.
tail. And l turned to him and said,
IF you have any charge that has not
been answered to your satisfaction, let
me know and l will answer it now
He sat there with his mouth closed.
We came down to Cleveland the
next day, and he sent W. the com
mittee a proposition: Let the speeches
begin at 10 o'clock, to let him speak
n hour and then myself an hour, and
then him a half hour. But could | re.
ply to all he says in thirty minutes !
And then him fifteen minutes. They
said he has his gall about him. They
said let the speaking begin at IL
o'clock, and let the Governor speak
till noon, and then get dinner and let
him speak from 2 until shutdown, and
let the Governor reply to 1t for one
hour and then give him a ~sur-rejoin.
der. That gave me an hour to reply
to his false accusations.
He came to Greenville and said he
would not speak unless he had the last
say. exposed him so that the people
would not hear him. So, at the last
warned him, III you have anything
to say for the benefit Of the people OF
the State, the people would be glad
to hear you, and l warn you in ad'
vance If you have anything else they
will leave you" And they left him
He came to Carrollton, and / wish
had time to read you the correspond
ence. He was not going to speak al
Carrollton unless he had a chance tc
pour out falsehoods for an hour, and
then give the Governor a reply, and
then he have fifteen minutes to pour
out %falsehoods. Nothing else would
suit him. The committee wrote him
"You don't want a joint debate, and
you won't meet him without you have
time to charge him falsely with these
things, and you may dictate the terms
and the master Of ceremonies" and
he did. Well, I did this while ovel
there, l smoked 1t out of him, and he
lost his temper and said that Doctor
Thomas H. Somerville was a cut-throat
of character and a liar and a charac
ter assassin. And l asked him II he
meant to say that Tom Somerville was
all that, that l did not want nor did
the people of Carroll county want to
misunderstood him, and he said Eyes,
and l told him so to his face" So,
told him to remember It, and I would
run him off with it.
The next time at Oxford, and for
fear he would not answer me at Ok
ford, I went to Lafayette Springs, and
so l asked him to meet me there. La.
fayette Springs is his stronghold. I
asked him If he had not said Tom Som.
erville was a liar and a character as
sassin. He said, "No, l never said It,"
At Oxford there sat a big six-foot boy
Of Tom S~omerville's; there sat two
sons Of Jim Stone, and I knew that
he would not say 1t in Oxford. I said
let's don't go and tie you and me I'D,
and he commenced that he wanted to
60 last, or l won't 60 at all. He pub
lished some circulars that he was 60
ing to the court house to speak while
l spoke at the opera house. He pulled
out one hundred and sixty-seven men,
women and children, white and black,
and had over seven hundred. In my
speech at Oxford I said, II will say
now, that you will have to meet me at
Lafayette Springs to answer me, or
you won't get the votes OF this coun-
ty."
said at Lafayette Springs, "You
are the man that denounced Mr.. Tom
Somerville as a cutthroat and liar, and
he said, mo, sir; l never did It," All
right.
Next day we were over at Toccopo.
la. There were a number Of gentle
present who had heard It denied
at Lafayette Springs. l repeated the
question to him there, and he said,
mo, l did not do it." He could see
those fellows that were over at Lafay.
cite Springs the night before-"I didn't
do it." l said, Didn't l say to you at
Carrollton that l did not want to mis-
understand you. and the people did
not want to misunderstood YOU" and