The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1916-06-23


as 7 said, the situation was relieved;
conditions were improved; the peo-
pie cot along without this enormous
amount of money; and if it had not
been for my standing between you,
the tax payers of this State, and that
legislature, you would today have
saddled upon you twenty-four mil
lion dollar debt, and would be pay
ing interest on it at the rate OF flVe
per cent, when you can now Dorro"
all the money you want at half that
rate of interest. Without desiring to
appear egotistical, l ask you tax pay
ers, what think you of my action in
your behalf in this matter?
Possibly you will be more interest
ed in knowing what l stand for now,
and I shall therefore proceed to tell
you:
!. The warehouse system, which
was enacted into law while was gov
ernor, which was recommended by
me in my message, and which was
approved by me as soon as it was
presented.
2. Biennial sessions of your gen.
eral assembly, which would be a saw
ing of thousands of dollars to our
people.
3. The making Of six per cent. the
legal rate of interest in South Car
olina.
4. The establishment of rural
credit system for the State.
5. The abolition of all useless Of
fees.
6. The reduction of taxation.
Z. Amending the constitution by
striking out that section which pro-
Vides for the payment of $4,000 to
the family of negro who commits
rane on a white woman, and provid-
ing that in such cases jury may be
drawn Immediately and special
court held within such time as the
governor may direct.
8. Liberal support for the State
institutions for the education Of our
boys and girls.
9. Building up the free school sys-
tenn so that every white child in
South Carolina may be given an edu-
cation.
10. Laws that will favor and pro-
tect labor in all of it's legitimate pur-
poses, and such laws as will protect
capital in it's lawful Investments; so
that capital and labor, each neces-
sary to the other, may work in mar
mony for the material advancement
of all our people.
II. A law that no officer elected
by the people shall be removed from
Office unless convicted by jury.
-. The decrease of present day
lawlessness.
13. Local option by counties for
the control of the whiskey traffic.
IA. Confederate veterans. There
are few real, genuine Confederate
veterans living. If you will remem-
ber when the war closed, and place
the age of a man coming out even
as low az eighteen years, you will see
that, to have been in that war from
its beginning, he is very old man.
and even if he was engaged in only
the last of it, he is an old man. Now
I favor getting the true records and
giving to the bona fde Confederate
soldier a sufficient amount of money
to make him comfortable during the
balance of his life. If you Will re-
move the stragglers from the camp
and give the money only to the true
soldier, we can make them at least
comfortable, and the balance Of their
days pleasant, and it will he no hard
ship upon the tax payers, and no tax
payer in South Carolina would object
to the amount borne by him for car
rying out this most honorable ana
worthy purpose.
These matters and others l shall
discuss in detail at the various cam
paign meetings, for, as everybody
knows, it would be an absolute I'M
possibility to take them all up and
discuss them at any one meeting.
Upon this platform, and upon my
record as legislator and as governor
and as a private citizen of my State,
| ask the support and the assistance
of the Democrats of South Carolina.
shall have nothing to say against
the personal or private record of any
candidate in this campaign, unless he
first attacks me, in which event l
shall defend myself and spare moth
ing in reply. Public records are pub
lie property and are always open,
and it is legitimate to criticise them
in such terms as We may see fit.
Therefore, 1 invite the freest and
fullest discussion of my record as
legislator, as senator and as COVER
nor, and in any other capacity that 1
have ever served, and have no OBJ
lection to the truth being told as to
my private or personal life. I, there
fore, call your attention to the fol-