Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1922-09-26
CANTEY ON POLITICS
Former Candidate Tells OF What lie
Thinks OF Things,
PEOPLE NOT INCLINED TO LISIIN
Campaign o. Abuse Eas Had Bad tf-
fset-Blease Better Sport Than Nc
Leod-Lansy Fine Fellow, But Of
farad Ncthinu


fset-Biease Better Sport Than Nc
Leod-laney Fine Fellow, But Of
fered Nothing.
J. ]. Cantey of Summerton, in the
Charleston American.
AS a candidate for governor at the
recent primary, l not only tried out an
experiment, but 1 learned some things
which may be of interest to your read
ers. At the commencement OF the cam
paign 1 assumed that in view of the
fact that the people of South Caro-
lima are great newspaper readers, that
they had become worn and weary with
the county-to-county campaign,S and
that possibly candidate could be
elected by merely publishing his plat
form, provided the platform contained
constructive ideas. Therefore, de-
ternined upon publishing my platform
in the State and the News and Courier
with the view of remaining in my Of
fee and cleaning up all of my legal
engagements in connection with the
summer term of the court for Claren-
don county, and devoting myself SOLE
ly to an active campaign in the Pied
mont section of the state. From the
commencement of the campaign to the
end / held to my original ideai with
the view of testing out the experiment,
the result being that was politically
buried 10000 fathoms deep, although
LEADING periodicals ali over the coun-
tiy. ni,ic the New York Times deolar-
OF that had the best platform OF
OF the candidates for governor. AS
Young lawyer / had been put through
the fiery furnace of poverty and had
secured good from the experience, end
therefore when + actively entered the
c;.1lIcign preached at every county
seat, which visited, a politico-morai
doctrine, determined If 1 could to save
the civilization of old South Carolina
from the ravages of deflation, the boil
woeyil infestation and Bleaseism, which
regarded as species of bolshevism.
1 had not been out among the people
more than a few days when l dis
covered that large proportion of the
reople We're lined up behind Bleasc,
who was intentionally deceiving them
by appealing to the best, in vain at
tempt to make the people throw of
the burdens of civilization and at the
same time elect him. On the other
hand, discovered that Mcleod had
captured the majority Of the anti
Blease faction by reason of his stale.
ness as politician, his personal POM
posity, his lack of constructive ideas,
and his ability to relate an amusing
joke. The county-to-countyc campaign
is in some respects great institution,
makes for democracy, and affords
fine opportunity for a good man TO teach
and uplift the people, but at the same
time it has some dangers, has a ten
dency to force the people to elect q
candidate simply because Of his fire.
quent running, and fixes the mind of
the people on the trotting capacity of
the candidate to solve the economic
and political problems which confront
the people, The only two candidates
in the race for governor who had con-
structive platforms were Coleman and
myself; both of us had college and uni
versity training, without being sicklied
over with the pale case of political
staIeness, but both of us were buried
politically, because we did not attend
as much as half of the county cam
paign meetings and because thc sole
thought Of about one half the people
was to elect Blease and the sole
thought of the other half was 70 de-
feat Blease, while Coleman and my
self solely bent on saving South Car
olina 1t is true that Laney is fine
gentleman; his campaign speech was
an interesting and instructive resume
of what the last session of the legisla-
ture had done in the matter of equal
i2ing taxation, but Laney offered the
people nothing looking towards the fu-
ture and his campaign speech dis
PLAYED an absence of constructive
ideas l think the campaign which
Pollock and jennings made against
Please several years ago was great
misfortune, because these gentlemen
confined themselves to dealing in per-
sonal vituperation, which had ten