The Union daily times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1918-current, 1922-09-06
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 6, 1922
BLEASE OR MCLEOD?


for governor of South Carolina. That
candidate, according to all former
experiences, will be the next govern.
or of South Carolina. Blease or Nc
Leod? 1t must be one of the two
To our mind, there are many rea-
sons why Mcleod, not Blease, be
chosen. Here is reason No. 1: Mr.
Blease claims to be red shirt Dem
ocrat, but his democracy is tainted
He is too thick with Republicans,
particularly negro Republicans.
make this statement upon my own
knowledge, not upon charges of a
similar nature made by others. I
know that he wrote to a leading ne
gro Republican of this county two
years ago. The same party told me
a few days ago that Mr.. Blease had
written him again. He refused to
give me the letter for publication,
saying, 81 cannot do that, for Mr..
Blease is coming into our party"
Now, if Mr.. Blease wishes to be 81
Republican, that's his business. But
1 cannot support a Republican who
poses as a Democrat. This is no time
for letting down the bars. More ne
groes registered in Union for the
general election on yesterday than
on any one day during the past six
months. 1t Is rumored that they
will hold a county convention on
next Monday night. What does this
mean? If Mr.. Blease is writing va.
rious negro Republicans Throughout.
the state and the negroes are regis
tering as never before, it looks like
Mr.. Blease, if defeated in the pri-
mary, will bolt and run in the gen.
eral election. Can the negro vote,
along with the lawless element elect
him in the general election? That's
a question, and one that the law
abiding white democrats must answer
at the polls.
Reason No. 2: Mr.. Blease was
governor of South Carolina two
terms-four years. Elected chief ex-
ecutive of the laws, he nullifed the
laws of the state, particularly the
criminal laws. More than 1,7OO con-
victs, many of them desperate GRIM
inals, were paroled, afterwards pard-
oned and restored to citizenship. It
is inconceivable that the juries,
judges and courts of the state could
have so far erred and that Mr..
Blease was right and they all wrong.
He boasts that those he turned loose
are now good citizens, and are be-
having. The facts do not warrant
this statement. Many of his pardon
ed ones have not been law abiding
Besides, he took the office with an
oath to uphold the law, to execute the
law. How miserably he failed in
this may be seen in the fact that he
overrode jury, Judge, court and law.
His wholesale pardoning was moth
ing short of violation of his oath
of office and betrayal Of the law.
Reason No 8: Mr.. Blease has held
the office two terms. We feel that
the Democrats Of the state are in
poor case indeed if they cannot pro-
duce timber for governor, but are un-
der the necessity Of choosing Bleasa
for third term. Even if thought
him good man, which do not, and
knew that he had been faithful on the
two former occasions, would cast
my ballot against him for a third
term. Democrats do not relish the
third term idea.
Reason No. A: Mr.. Blease has
never stood for the whole people.
He has stood by his friends, as he
has often avowed, and he has had
scant courtesy for his political foes.
He now poses as friend to all. Who
believes that? Can the leopard
change his spots? He would be the
same little, selfish partisan he has
always been, If he should again be
chosen
Reason No. g.: Mr.. Blease says he
opposes idealism, and will have none
Of the doctrine of altruism. To my
s.-I l.