The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1922-08-31
Is Senate Likely
to "Fire'' Tolbert9

Under the heading, MAY Reject
Tolbert-Senate Likely to Rebuke
the President" the Boston Trans
script on August 21 carried the fol-
lowing dispatch relative to the ef-
forts of Senator Dial to have ]. W..
Tolbert's nomination as marshal for
the western district of South Caro-
lima rejected:
The senate appears about ready
to administer sharp rebuke to Pres
ident Harding for unfit appointments
to public Office. The presidents
readiness to listen to political BOOM
ers and to play the game of the Re-
publican machine has led him into
a great many unfortunate situations.
Tolbert of South Carolina.
The senate now, with little more
leisure, appears determined TO scan
the nominations with unusual care;
and in the case of Joseph w. Toll
bert to be United States marshal for
the western district of South Carroll
ma, it bids fair to support Senator
DIAL, of that state, in his fight to
have the nomination rejected. Toll
bert is the member Of the Republi-
can national committee for that
state and it is understood that his
appointment was recommended by
the headquarters of that organiza-
ton. Consequently the fight that is
being made to secure withdrawal of
the nomination or rejection of the
nominee is one calling for lineup
of the Republicans in the senate
against their own party organization.
Tolbert is the Republican referee
for South Carolina, word coined in
the time of Roosevelt when that
president, distracted by the pulling
and hauling Of corrupt southern Re-
publicans for appointment to Office,
selected what he believed to be the
squarest men he could find to pass
upon southern patronage. The
scheme worked fairly well, although
of course it caused it's heartburnings
and Mr.. Harding has adopted it.
Selling the Pastmasterships.
His selection of Tolbert in South
Carolina appears to have been par
ttcularly unfortunate; so much so
that Senator Dial has felt constrained
to lay before the senate the personal
record of the referee and candidate,
backed with affidavits, and these are
now being studied by sub-commit-
tee of the committee on the judiciary
consisting Of Senators Shortridge, Of
California; Ernest, of Kentucky, and
Ashurst, of Arizona. In addition,
Senator Dial placed in the Congress
sional Record the story Of Tolbert's
operations as chief distributor Of pat
ronage for his state, with the re-
suit that the nomination has been
held up, and, unless Mr.. Tolbert can
clear himself of the charges brought
against him, the full committee bids
fair to recommend rejection, for the
good of The Republican party.
Once before, at the instance of
Senator Dial, the senate has reject
ed one Of President Harding's ap-
pointees in South Carolina, fact
which encourages the belief that it
will follow its hand in the Tolbert
case. 1t appears that in Orangeburg
county, Tolbert appointed as sub
referee for that district one B. J.
Mixson. The term of the lady post
mistress in the town Of Bowman was
expiring, and she informed Senator
Dial that Mixson had demanded $500
of her as the price Of her reappoint-
ment. She refused to pay the mon-
ey and communicated with the jun
ior senator. Meantime Mixson had
been nominated to be postmaster at
Orangeburg, and so violent was the
opposition to his confirmation that
the postofice department sent two
inspectors into the state to investi-
gate the case. They reported back
that it was true that Mixson had
made this demand of the postmis-
tress, but suggested in their report
that as he was likely soon to receive
a federal Office himself, and there
fore 20 on the federal salary list, no
doubt there would be no repetition
of the offense. The senate was not