Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-09-06
HOWARD STIRS FLOYD
VOTERS BY GREAT SPEECH
Gets RouSing Receptions at
: Rome, AdairSviIIe and
Calhoun

OdlIlOuHl
ROME. Ga, Sept 5.-If Floyd coun-
ty stays in the Harris column next
wednesday it will be a distinct sur
prise to more than 400 citizens of Rome
who packed the courthouse here last
night and cheered to the echo the speech
of William Schley Howard.
Mr.. Howard came into Floyd county
knowing that it is claimed to be Har-
ris stronghold and anticipating re-
ception that might be anything but
friendly, but after he was met at the
hotel by several leading citizens of
Rome who told him that he stood
good chance of carrying the county,
after he was introduced to that crowded
audience by the solicitor general of the
Rome circuit in a speech that simply
tore the hide off of Harris and the
Rome press, and after he himself had
delivered one of the finest addresses or
his campaign, his supporters freely
predicted that the majority of voters in
Floyd county will flock to Howard as
the only man who can defeat Senator
Thomas w. Hardwick.
Mr.. Howard reached Rome after MAX
ing two other speeches Wednesday, one
in the morning at Calhoun, Gordon
at Adairsville. Barlow county. At both
places he was given cordial hearings.
The crowd which filled the Gordon
county courthouse, estimated conserva-
lively at 800, seemed to be ION the
fence" in the senatorial race until Mr..
Howard had finished his speech, when
several score citizens shook his hand
and decided they are going out to win
the county for him. In AdairSville he
spoke in the open air from a platform
on the main street Both here and at
Calhoun the audience was composed
largely of farmers and they appeared
to be for him to the last man, espe
cially after he had thrown the strong
light of publicity on Senator Hard .
wicks several votes against measures
designed to benefit the agricultural in
terests Howard supporters in Adairs-
vile stated that with his speech there
yesterday and with the speech he will
deliver in Gainesville next Saturday
afternoon he win clinch Barlow county
easily.
Big Crowd in Rome
Mr.. Howard found a rather peculiar
situation awaiting him in Rome. Har-
ris sentiment here has been strong and
the Rome Tribune-Herald has been one
or the most partisan supporters of Mr..
Harris and one of the bitterest papers
in it's attacks on Mr.. Howard. Conse,
quently, he expected neither a large
crowd nor a warm welcome. In botn,
however, he was agreeably disap-
pointed.
The Floyd county courthouse wau
filled to the last seat when Mr.. Howard
was introduced shortly after o'clock
by Claude Porter. solicitor general of
the Rome circuit
iC a r0la 70 to INT
duce to you tonight man whom you
know by reputation WELL" said Mr.. Por-
ter, land right here l want to tell you
that a week from tonight we shall know
him even better as the next junior SEN
ator from Georgia"
A whirlwind of applause stopped the
speaker. Never in the history of Geor-
gia," continued the solicitor general,
has a campaign been waged under such
conditions as the campaign for the
United States senate is being waged to-
day. 1t is mighty hard for us to put
spirit into any campaign when all our
hearts are in France. But there are GER
tain principles involved in the campaign
which will be principles long after the
war and the campaign are over. The
personality of a candidate for office is
really a very, very small thing. But the
principles involved herein are the same
principles that made America great and
the same principles which have made it
possible for the United States to be
represented on the western front today,
dealing a death blow to autocracy.
Il say and 1 say it knowingly full
well the weight of my words, that there
is on in Georgia a movement to create
a political autocracy in this state, while
at this moment our boys are fighting to
crush aUtocracy over there. With the
world afire with the spirit of Democracy
and with the soldiers of America laying
down their lives in the name of Democ-
racy on the fields of France, there is
an insidious effort under way in Geor
gia to take from you and me our free
dom-given rights to vote for whomever
We think is right and whatever we think
is right. That is the very principle our
boys are fighting for and the respon-
sibility on their shoulders to mankind
is no greater than it is upon ours to
maintain it over here.
MY friends, / wanted to support MT.
Harris; but 1 am like ninety-nine Geor-
gians out of hundred, I wanted to
support him, but 1 didn't know why
wanted to support him. 1 have yet to
hear a man in Georgia say, 4 am going
to vote for William J. Harris because
want to vote for him.
The Rome Caucus
Personally, I have nothing against
the men, the politicians who are sup
porting Mr.. Harris. love the politi-
Clans but Lord l hate their tactics. A
short time ago, gentlemen, a little eau
Gus was held in a certain newspaper
office in this city. The men who at
tended that caucus said to one another,
How are we going to keep William J.
Harris from being defeated; we must
get an Atlanta newspaper to support him
and we must get letter of Endorsement
from the president, that's all that Will
save him.
"And as the result of that caucus a
committee was appointed can give
YOU the names, Jack Mccartney, Ed
Maddox and John NJ. Vaniivsr-to go To
Atlanta You know the result. They took
this thing to that great man in Wash
ington, bowed down as he was with the
worries of the whole world at war
and they put it up to him this way
Mr.. President, you've got to sign this
letter or Thomas w. Hardwick viii be
elected
Gentlemen, as soon as l saw that
letter in print, l smelled a rat And IL
didn't take me long to unearth the true
facts as 1 have just given them to you.
And from that day to this my sworn
duty to my president, my loyalty to
democracy, my devotion to my country
and to my state have demanded that
repudiate such political trickery." An
- lasted for several