The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1918-07-05

ltrouble of searching any tiles in ar
effort to find any letter copy O:
which I may have.
Mr. McLaurin says that in order tt
win the support OF the Blease faction
to his warehouse measure during tns
extra session Of 1914 he agreed fr
make me his secretary. His letter
in this mornings State is the first !
had ever heard Of that Governor
Bleasc called the extra session main
| ly for the purpose Of getting ware
house measure through When it
came to him he promptly signed 1t
! Later Senator McLaurin came to ne
and offered me the position Of his Sec
retary. I told him I was inclined &
accept it, but would first have Lo
! consult Governor Blease, under whom
| I then held the position of secretary
to the governor. Next day Mr.. Nc
Laurin came into Governor Blease's
private office and mentioned the ma
ter to him, in my presence. | know
from the conversation that ensued
hat that was the first time Mr.
Blease ever knew of it. accepted the
position, and for two years, until 1
resigned following the Washington
rip, 1 gave Mr.. McLaurin as loyal
and conscientious service as I was
icapable of. If was being used as a
tool to lead Blease into trap knew
nothing of it.; and if had had any
such idea that Senator McLaurlD
would use the state warehouse sys-
tenn for any such purpose I never
would have accepted position under
him, in the first instance.
The letter which Mr. McLaurln
says somebody has told him has been
seen in the possession Of Mr.. Cooper,
and which he charges that gave Mr..
Cooper at the request Of Former Gov
!ernor Blease, is letter I wrote the
|edtor of the Anderson Tribune last
January, and which, had Mr.. NC
Laurin seen, he would probably have
kept silent as to letters he wrote Mr..
Capers, of which I knew absolutely
nothing until the Columbia State
reached my home this morning. l
never even knew before that Senator
McLaurin had ever suggested to any
body here that money might be Sc
cured from Capers in Washington to
finance a bolt from the Democratic
party. I never knew before that Sen
ator McLaurin had taken me TO Wash
ington to get NE into another trap
there. I do know if that was his
purpose that he failed, because after
l heard that conference my resigna-
ton as secretary went to Senator NC
Laurin the very day the official au-
ditors finished their check, and now
ever much Mr.. Capers may address
Senator McLaurin as my Dear Mac,
there is absolutely no truth IN any
assertion by anybody that I took any
part in that conference except as an
innocent onlooker, who did not even
know there was going to be confer
ence. and the records down here ID
the state house will show that it was
a very few days afterwards that
ceased to draw a salary from the
state warehouse system. And my
disapproya1 Of that conference was
the cause of my resignation.
I have never given Mr5 cooper
any political letter at the request o.
Mr.. BIease or any one else; nor nave
ever furnished him with any letter
at all in any of his campaigns Ior
governor. From the inception OF this
campaign 1 have seen him only once
or twice, when we have spoken IL
nassing. He has not mentioned bis
race to me, nor have I mentioned the
campaign to him, either directly or
indirectly.
II seems to be necessary that /
give a brief recital Of the reasons
which actuated me in writing letter
to the editor of the Anderson Trlo-
1ne in January of this year, which
seems to have aroused the fire OF Mr..
McLaurin. and brought about the con-
fession as to how he was trying TO
use everybody connected with hlnl,
for his own personal political amol-
ton.
During the session of the general
assembly just passed there was a rlst-
icuff between a state official ana q
military officer, which was really
more amusing than serious. AT tne
request of Governor Manning, VINO
urged it as a war measure OF con-
cern to the state at the particular
time, the newspapers did not publish
it. and I agreed not to mention II
because I was appealed to upon the
proposition that it might interfere
with the securing of funds necessary
to EQUIP the home militia, which was
an organization for the protection OF
the homes of the state during the ao-
sence OF the National Guard at the
front. Rightly or wrongly [ y1eided
to the appeal and said nothing about
4 Nobody had been seriously hurt:
anyway. A bloody nose comprised
about the entire casualty list.
The Anderson Tribune heard OF the
affair and undertook to take the
newspaper correspondents of Colum-
bia to task for suppressing the news
I would have paid no attention TO
this. except for the fact that I had
Ibeen noticing that The Tribune was
publishing good deal of inspired