Putnam County herald. (Cookeville, Tenn.) 1903-1922, 1920-05-13
WIRT'S OPENING SHOT

Following Is the opening speech ot
E. L. Writ in his campaign for gov.
'ernor, condensed in order to save
space, as paper is so scarce and ex.
pensive at present:
Fellow Citizens: l am candidate
for the Democratic nomination for
governor for two reasons-personal
and partisan. In entering the race
1 am conscious of violating no law of
God or man. l am born American
citizen and have right to go before
the people asking for any Office they
in their sovereign power have to be-
stow. In plain words / am a candi-
date for governor because 1 want to
be-
In entering this contest 1 have vio-
lated the rules of the game of poll
tics as it has been played in Tennes-
see during the past few years. l was
not solicited by friends all over the
state to become candidate, nor was
pressure brought to bear that forced
me to enter the primary. did not
go to Nashville, take expensive
rooms in the best hotel and invite
the professional politicians and the
statesmen out of a job to advise me
what to do. I did not go through
the ceremony of. laying on of hands,
nor allow the political wiseacres to
annoint me with their holy oil, ex-
tracted from the left hind leg of a
rattlesnake, and guaranteed to elect
if taken according to directions.
No-I simply announced my candi-
dacy by having published in few
daily newspapers a two-inch state
ment of that fact together with few
of the vital matters I should discuss
during the. campaign. From that
time to the present l have not offer
ed further word, yet my platform
is being discussed throughout the
state. The Governor has made for
NAL announcement, opened headquar-
ters and began flooding the dear peo-
pie with literature seeking to explain
certain things and defend the mall
odorous record he has made. The
initial stage of the campaign has
been very satisfactory to me.
Before passing from these personal
remarks l desire to sound a note of
warming. Already the vile tongue
of slander has been directed toward |
me. Probably in every county there
is small coterie of character assas- |
sins, evil minded, foul-mouthed crea-
lures, who for hire or from other sim
lister motives. are willing to play the
role of political polecats and human
hyenas, seeking by whispering lies as
black as hell to injure me with the
people. In the hope that the wag-
ging tongues of these wretches may
be stilled I shall admit for the per-
iod of the campaign that am
thief, atheist, drunkard, gambler,
and so on. Every
mans private life and character is
sacred to me, and to every gentle
man. But enough of personal mat
ters.
I am candidate for partisan rea-
sons. Honestly believing, as in my
opinion, do a.. large majority of
Democrats, that the record of Gov.
Roberts and the general assembly of
1919 was such that the party must
'epudiate both or suffer ignoble de-
eat in the November election, we
loped that some man would enter the
contest against the Governor. For
months one gentleman after another
ook his way to Nashville, went ,
through the process l have mention /,
ID and took his way home sorrowful- .
Y, declining to make the race. One ,
Ifter another they gave many and :
Ialid reasons why there should be ]
nore than one Democratic candidate
)ne by one they plead lack of funds,
dearth Of time, or fear OF the power :
ul machine the Governor has built :
p.
Has Tennessee democracy fallen
pom such lines that any of these ex-
uses are sound? Must fortune be !,
pent to win a Democratic nomina- !,
ION? Why should not any citizen .
i've of his time in an effort to bet
sr the condition of the people? Has !.
1e Governor political machine
owerful enough to defeat any and 9
Il opposition? If he has, God pity :,
ennessee.
None of these fears have any ter ~
)r for me. have no fortune to ~
pend; my time is my own, and de- :,
, the machine.
So I am opposing Gov. Roberts for :,
artisan reasons, in an effort to free :,
le Democratic party from sinister \,
,ntrol restore the state government :,
the people and prevent Republ- =,
IN success in November. =,
The issues involved had better be ~
titled within the party by means Of - ~
discussion of them through the :;
'imary election plan of nomination 80
wisely provided. than for the par ., ~
to go into the fall campaign Sc 80
Dusly divided. A free and candid ~
scussion of these issues between -
smocrats cannot fail to clarity the
tuation, and Is the only method by
4 IL T.