Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1921-10-26
Valuable Paper on Edgeheld
County in 1876 by MIR.
Francis Simkins.
Continued from third page.)

that total of four times as many
votes as voters were cast for Repub-
aican candidates.
In Edgefeld and Laurens Coun-
ties, the counties of later contest,
Che face of the returns revealed eX-
IRENE Democratic activity. The It's
sue ballot was resorted to; large
hands of armed Georgians and South
Carolinians, before whom the ma
jority election officials were helpless,
rushed from poll to poll repeating
in some instances the boxes were car
ried off by violence. At Edgefeld
Court House an armed patrol prevent
ed negroes, massed the entire day at
The polls, from voting. In the even
ing the terror stricken county board
of canvassers were forced to sign the
returns. The result was a Hampton
majority of 8, 134. in a county in
which the census of 1880 gave the
blacks sixty-five per cent of the pop
ulation. The aggregate vote was g.
$50 more than the vote of 1874 and
2.252 in excess of the manhood that
The census of 1875 gave the county.
But for the vote in Edgcfeld County
Chamberlain would have had a right
.sui majority on the face of the re-
turus of S6,62O to S2,521; Charles
ton had gone for Chamberlain by
1000, and what was more important
had the Edgefeld delegation been Re-
publican instead of Democrat the
way would have left open for the de-
elaration of the election Of Chamber
lain by joint session, as the Republi-
cans would have then had a clear ma
jority. The law vested in the legls-
lature the right to canvess the returns
for governor and lieutenant govern
or. AS the situation turned out the
Edgefeld delegation under the lead
ership of Martin Gary, senator, and
j. C. Sheppard, representative, was
able to force itself in the legislature
in spite of the bitter and dramatic
fight made by the Republicans over
the lawfulness of the Wallace House.
The real bone of contention through
out the entire legislation session was
the Edgefeld and Laurens delega-
tions.
1 shall not detain your attention
with even summary of my long
discussion of the events which trans
pired in Columbia from election until
the final eviction of Chamberlain in
April and the assumption of power
by Hampton. Suffice it is to say that
Edgefeld men were the leaders in
the struggle and that Hampton did
his most valuable service for South
Carolina in restraining the extreme
tendencies of the "fire-eaters."
In summary / think have clearly
proven: First, to Charleston is due
the credit of initiating the desire for
reform in 1876 in the sincere and pa
triotic backing that her leaders gave
Chamberlain as reformer. And /
do not think it fair for up-country
people and politicians, as they have
done, to accuse Conner and Dawson
of any but the highest devotion at
all times to what they considered the
best interests of the white people of
South Carolina. Second, to upper
South Carolina under the leadership
of Edgefeld is due the credit for the
initiation of the Straight-Out move
ment. Third, the effective blow of ter
ror into the hearts of the black ma
jority and the effective consolidation
of white opinion was struck by Edge
field men at Hamburg. Fourth, the
Democratic conventions of 1876.
Fifth, the Hampton progress around
the state had little real effect upon
the trend of the campaign; victory in
those days being due to the policy
of demanded division of time first in
augurated in Edgefeld and to the
work of the rifle clubs in which the
men of Edgefeld took the leading
part. Sixth, the Intervention of troops
caused largely by the extreme rene
dies taken by the men of Edgefeld
did not in any way jeopardize Dem
ocratic success. Seventh, the vote of
-Edgefeld made possible the consti-
tuition of the General Assembly on
the basis of Democratic majority
and the consequent declaration of the
election of Hampton. Eighth, it was
Edna6o1d MON that took tha leader