The Union daily times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1918-current, 1922-09-06
A Harding Tolbert Democrat


Joseph w. Tolbert, Republican boss
of South Carolipa, received q letter
last year, dated May 21, 1R21, siRn-
Cd Cole L. BIease,1. on the ausst4an
Of patronage IN this stats," and
saying that "as far as I have been
able to learn, very little credenOe Is
given to the Campbell-McLaurin
talk; in fact, it is looked upon as
joke by those who have any influence
and who know that these men can
not break into the Democratic ranks"
Continuing, in his letter to Mr.. Toll
bert, Mr.. Blease said:
n can certainly state that you
have been. lifelong Republican;
that you have gone through strsn-
uous times and that your life has Of
ten been at stake, and that through it
all you have been tried and true; and,
| ii, after all these years of service and
devotion to your party the Republi-
cans would now kick you out, I can
hardly think that they would have
much of an opportunity to get any
one here to follow them, because the
people here would realize that no
matter how devoted the services they
might render, their labors would not
be appreciated. I can hardly see
how, after a thorough investigation,
it could be possible for you to be
turned down as the leader of the Re-
publican Party in this state, and as
for the forming of a new party with
Campbell or McLaurin, or both, such
talk is myth, a farce and plain
damned foolishness.
| "You are at liberty to read this
letter to whom you please, or pub
lish it if you wish, as l presume
Everybody knows that l speak what
1 think regardless of consequences.
have written you freely as you re-
quested me to do. / am Democrat; :;
not a Wilson so-called Democrat, but
a Jeffersonian Democrat, who re-
joiced at Harding's election and the
downfall of idealisn."
But isn't it strange that Demo
crat who 'rejoiced at Harding's
election" (Harding being the candi-
date of the Republican Party), who
would not say that he had voted or
had not voted for Mr. Cox, the regu-
larly chosen candidate Of the Demo
cratic Party, should have been select
ed as the adviser of the head of the
Republican Party in South Carolina
about the distribution of official pat
ronage in this State2 That seems
to be the role in which Cole L. Blease,
twice nominated and elected Govern
or by the Democratic voters of this
state, has placed himself, regard
less of consequences" Is it not
strange that this man should be per-
mitted to be candidate for any Of
flee at any Democratic primary cleo
ton in South Carolina? All the can
didates for Governor at the primary
election held August 20, except Mr..
Blease, when they were asked wheth-
er or not they had voted for Mr..
Cox, said promptly that they had
voted for him. Mr.. Blease said that
his father (and we believe he was
a very good man) wore red shirt
under Wade Hampton In 1875 and
that anybody who said that he (Mr.
Cole Blease) had ever done one act
that was .disloyal to the Democratic
Party was a damned liar.
There is not the least objection to
Mr.. Blease running as candidate for
Governor or for any other Office n
South Carolina as a Republican; but
since he has been rejoicing at the
election of Republican President
and comforting with Joe Tolbert
about the distribution of the loaves
and fishes in this State it would
seem only proper that he should GO
with the crowd to which he belongs