Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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ters, and loved ones bow their heads In sorrow. Your ministers tell you of the fire and of the wrath to come, but I , tell you for all present purposes Co? lumbia Is HELL. The System plan. Its servants tat? cute. Behold, Oonmlsa caught In the propt?v,.,| Asylum deal. In which we saved four or five million dollars for the tax payers, see mir $7 "?">?? beauty when caught rohhing Luther Kell> See bis great Semlnole I'll tion of The State paying him thous? and;*, but when exposed we find him ss ever swinging to Hampton's coat tails, and yet Wade Hampton voted for John T. Duncan, and said that ?ver> honorable man should hav* done so. My Independence I have never re? linquished, and I own no master, hut my God. I believe that he has a work for me to do, and that you are going to Join hands with me for its accom? plishment. I have recently fought and won for you, wdth the invaluable aid of good men, a victory for the tax payers of South Carolina which In? volved millions of dollars in that Asvlum deal, and more recently our Capital City, that place so appro? priately described by Sherman In his definition of war. poor, robbed and graft ridden Columbia, has been aroused to the smashing of Gon sales and the Ring's slate. I bring you a gospel of hope and of better days to come. Surely, the past has served out to me the black? est draught ever pressed to the Hps of. mortal, besmirching the fair name of which I had the right to be proud, and driving from my Impoverished board to the generous care of kin? dred my wife and children, for whom did duty call I would yield up my life. The unsupported word of a perjur? ed and repurjured negro, was all sufficient for a willing and subser? vient Court, aided by character wit? nesses, who, with one exception though bent on being rid of me as an obstacle in their crooked work, nevertheless failed to give that pos? itive answer which the rule requires. I am not here to discuss myself, but I will say that a fouler slander was never charged to man, than that pressed against me by my enemies The Court knows it now. the court knew it then, but later seeing their false affidavit charge did not kill, thev sought to end my agonies by declaring that agreeing to pay a fine was practicing law, and that we were In contempt. The court ordered us to pay a fine or suffer Imprisonment. We again did its bidding. We deem It better to suffer injustice thsn Impose It. We would not like to be pressed Just yet to give our opinion of the Individuals of that Court, while we strive hard to re? spect its constituted authority. We ?eek not to destroy, but to reform. We know our constitutional right of free speech, and dare to exercise It. The Soverlgn voters of a free country constitute our final court of all. and to you I appeal for the good of mankind, to save your in? stitutions in their integrity, and so man them as to deserve the respect and o)m dfc R.I honest men, and the r? ,'ard of all. Our moral pace? setters strike at bad personal hab? its, but o t as If there was some? thing gaered about money getting. The master iniquities of our thus aFt connected with money-making, and there vou are hands off. Vou deal in platitudes about good roads, good s< hools. good liquor, and good Lord knows that we all want all the good that comes our way and some of us are OVOn will? ing to go to meet it. Now those of you who have noth? ing more important to discuss than how yog will take yours, may handle that. while I show our people tie needs of the hour. i arlaa to say that as Governor i .rn ready t<> approve such laws as I may deem vicious, and If your legtalatore paaaes i prohibition law, I will sign It and do my best to en? force It, though I have little hope of its effectual enforcement until Con? Kress relieve;, us from that lnter ?tate com mores law, I hat permits the shipping of liquors into prohibition territory. If the law remains as at present, I shall not makj It a farce by tho manner of Its enforcement, i ?V em It a crime to raid the poor man's club and lea\e Untouched the rhh man's liquor drinking estab 'iihments. Such i far-e breeds contempt for Ulf law, and the officials in charge, Mid creates a spirit of anarchy. I am after the fellow at the top. Cut out the alternative of fine, and leave it so that the Judge can and must impose hut the one sentence of imprisonment, and with a few of those higher up. In the toils, you will ?ee the poor man allign himself with those enforcing the law, and if In the meantime you will teach and il? lustrate the evils of alcoholism in every school) you must have s people ready to respect and enforce jour laws My hopes are for the young, and all of us know that then art many older ones who will never change their habits until the devil gets them. Boffin at the top to compel re? spect for the law, and you will have a people ready to aid you In its en? forcement. The organized and syndicated en? terprises and corporations with their promoters stand above all legitimate business, and claim for themselves rights which permit them to lay trib? ute upon the rest of humanity. Their money-getting pinches one class, and oppresses another, but let them dare oppose, as an Instance, a high financial fraud like our won reful Seminole Securities Company, and then mark how fares the as? sailant of sin. Let a man denounce your great decoys and mark them as deserving the Penitentiary, and straightway they move heaven and earth to suppress him. They are able to gag c ritics, hobble or appoint their own investigators, subsidise the press and muzzle the law. And another has well said: "Drunk with power in office and club, In church and school, In legis? lature and court, they boldly make their stand, ruining the Innocent, shredding the reputations of the righteous, destroying the careers and opportunities of their as? sailants dragging down the pastor and scholar, publicist and business from llvllhood and influence, unhors? ing alike faithful public servants, civic champion and knight errant of conscience and all the while gather? ing Into loathsome captivity the souls of multitudes of young men. Here is a fight where blows are rained, and armor dented, and wounds suffered and laurels v on. If a sworn champion of the right will prove that he is a man and not a dummy, let him go up against these." C? C. Featlierstoi?e. I am against whiskey .out-and-out, In all Its forms and phases. I al? ways have been and always expect to be. I stand for a sober Christian manhood in South Carolina, some? thing WO cannot have in all of its strength as long as the whiskey trif flc exists. Local option is tolerated by true Prohibitionists, not because It is right, but as a means to an end; the end being to get rid of the traffic in toto. It was my good fortune to stump the State In advocacy of Prohibition in 1898. a time when the old State Dispensary was in the zenith of its power. I fought for what 1 conceiv? ed to be right, and went down In de? feat because i was opposed to the Dispensary. Reoognlslng in that campaign its practical strength, to dethrone the Dispensary and secure Prohibition I have favored local op? tion as a means to that end, and have been doing all In my power to build up a healthy anti-whiskey sen? timent. I have worked In seasons and out; I have spoken In nearly every county in the state. I am thankful that I have lived to see, and have tak? n part in a cam? paign Which has rest lted in the whis? key traffic being swept out of every county in the State save six. In my judgment the time has come for it to be swept out of the entire State, j and I am in for the war. I stand for a prohibition law which will be provided with the necessary machinery to insure i\s enforcement ami, if elected Governor, I will en* foree the law, or exhaust the power! Of the Executive Department in tin attempt. A Business Administration. A good deal Is being said about wanting a "business administration." All right: That is what the Prohibit lonlsts want, ami are competent to render I dislike to be personal, but I invite a dose and careful Inspection of my own career as a business man. I did not inherit money; I am not a rl<h man, but an Inspection of my i areer will. I think, reveal the fad that I am free from a failure along line. Education. On educational matters, I am in hearty accord with the well-defined policy of the state. 1 believe in edu? cation to the fullest extent. Good citizenship demands it. and must have it. The State is absolutely de? pendent upon the quality of its citi? zenship for good government; and the quality required cannot be had without education. Espei tally am I in favor of per? fecting the public school system, the ?chool where at least three-fourths of our children will get all they will ever have of education. And I am most heartily in accord with the High School idea. Ou?* Col? leges are, to a great extent, doing High School work. They could short? en the college term and do better work if the students entered better prepared. Especially are High Schools needed in rural districts, for there they would put High School education in reach of children of parents of modern means?parents who cannot afford to send to college. Our young people must not only be developed along mental and mor? al lines, but along physical as well. They must have sound bodies. This idea has never received the at? tention that it should in our com? mon school system. Improperly constructed buildings, want of proper attention to the laws of sanitation and hygiene and the failure to provide a system of medi? cal inspection have brought about a condition of affairs extremely detri? mental to our young people along physical lines. I am most heartily in favor of a sv?t,.m of medical In? spection In our common schools, to the end that the above evil may, to a large extent, be overcome. Our people, and especially our young peo? ple, need education along these lines. The power of our Board of Health should be enlarged and our people should receive the very best instruct? ion possible looking to the preserva? tion and building-up of physical health. In connection with schools and es? pecially the rural schools, the pres? ent tendency towards industrial train? ing should be encouraged and assist? ed. Good citizenship must in large measures rest on the ability of the people to utilize efficiently and econ? omically their natural resources. Our principal resource being land and the destiny of the State being agricul? tural, the farmer boy and girl should be taught to make the most of the farm, so that It shall be a desirable home and that farming shall be a prfitahle calling. Town schools as well should have industrial training, but I emphasize it as to the rural schools because in thinly peopled districts the stimulation of school growth is a harder problem. Training the hands of the boys and girls to do necessary things with skill, In parallel lines with their moral and mental training, is the shortest and easiest way to make good, happy and Independent men and women. Taxation. The question of taxation has always been a troublesome one for govern? ments to deal with. No system that is dependent upon tinite men for its enforcement can ever be perfect, or perfectly enforced. The chief trouble with all systems is the difficulty that exists with reference to equalization. So long as every citizen pays upon the same basis of valuation no injury Is done. Hut to secure this equalization has been the trouble ever since gov? ernment was organized. The man who can solve this question will solve the most difficult one connected with governmental affairs. There is one thing with reference to taxation, however, upon which all property-holders are agreed, namely: We do not want to pay any more tax? es than are necessary to good govern? ment. It cannot be denied that the tendency in modern times is towards extravagance in individual and In governmental life. It Is easy to make a large appropriation and spend the hard earned money of the people. A halt must be called. Taxation has gotten to be a burden upon our peo? ple. If 1 am correctly informed, we are now paying more State taxes than we have ever paid. < it course, it must be borne In mind that increase in population and progress along other lines call for the expenditure of more money In order that the efficiency of the public ser? vice may be maintained. Hut is it not true that the increase of taxable val es shown on the books from year to year, ought to be amide to meet the increase in our expenditures? It occurs to me that such is the case, and there should be no further in? crease in the rate of taxation. I am in favor of economy: I am not in favor of impairing the public service by niggardliness. In this connection, I want to say that I am in favor of biennial sess? ions of the General Assembly. Once every two years is often enough. 1 am also in favor of fewer elect? ions. In my judgment all States and County officials should be elected for a term of four years. A change In these respects would bring about a considerable saving to the tax pay? ers and would prove beneticial along other lines. Law Knfrooemcnt. The last thing which I desire to touch is the enforcement of law and order. The sorest spot in our govern? mental life is the weakness of our j people along that line. They must be ! taught to respect and obey the law. Herein lies the only safe-guard to life, liberty and property. Govern? ment is worthless if t does not pro I tect these. How shall the enforce j ment of law and order be made more efficient? I answer: First: By better discipline in the home. Second: By getting better men in the jury box. Third: By inflicting punishment commensurate with the offense. Fourth: By a refusal on part of the Chief Executive to pardon men who have been convicted. It will do little or no good to convict men of crime if they know they wdll likelv be pardoned. The pardoning power should not be employed save in rare cases. Conclusion. There are numberless other matters to be given due attention in the Cam? paign. But these five questions are fundamental: Prohibition, adminis? tration, education, taxation, law en? forcement. In conclusion, let me say that, if elected, I shall endeavor to perform my duties fearlessly and impartially; that in their discharge I shall know no section, no man, nor set of men. F. II. Hyatt. " This is the first time I have ever appeared before the public for a pub? lic office. This is the firs time I have ever had the search lights of my friends and foes thrown upon me. 1 have hesitated to come before the people and ask them to give me the highest office of the State; but I come knowing that if I am elected Govern? or of South Carolina, I am qualified to give you a good business man's ad? ministration. As to the question of prohibition. 1 have been a prohibitionist all my life, was born that way and have lived that way, and have advocated it on all occasions wherever the opportunity presented itself, simply because I be? lieve it to be the best solution of the whiskey question. I believe It is best for the State, not only from a moral sandpoint, but from a financial stand? point as well. At the same time, while we realize that this is a very import? ant issue and one that ought to be dealt with with the strong hand of the law, there are other questions of great importance. I believe that this State has reached the stage when she ought to give special attention to some of the following things: As you know, it is a conceded fact that the State of South Carolina has made and is making great strides along the line of education and I am in favor of giving the colleges of the State liberal support; but at the same time when we realize the fact that only ?bout five per cent, of the boys of this State ever attended college, I believe that the time has come when it is abso? lutely necessary to look after the schools in the rural districts more closely. Clemson College is doing a great work for the agricultural interest of the State, now let us have in the grad? ed schools an agricultural department ami teach our boys how to raise more per acre and how to raise corn, cot? ton, p? as. potatoes, etc., what to put in the soil to produce a crop. We are then teaching them botany, chem? istry, etc., in a practical way along with their other studies. I believe In the liberal support of the rural schools, but we should be careful how We issue bonds and pile up debt for the present and future generations to pay off. Let us pay our teachers more and ?mploy only the best. We cannot af? ford to do less as the hoys and g'rls are the chief assets of the country ay \ 1 and in a few years will tak?^ our places. One of the most important thhngs, ? in my judgment, Is to see that ye have an equal distribution of taxatio that the rich as well as the poor pay their taxes; as the tax levy is the ^ fertilizer which is applied to pro ' duee the fruits of government just as fertiliser issued to produce the fruit of the plant, j I believe in an economical adminis j tratlon and in having only such offi? cials as are absolutely necessary to run the governmeint and aid in de? veloping the State. It is generally conceded that good roads go hand in hand with education and I think every effort should be made to develop the roads through the rural districts of the State. Some twelve years ago 1 was elected Presi? dent of the Good Roads Association of South Carolina, and at that time we had but little order and no con? certed action. Since tha* time with the assistance of the various County Supervisors and County Commission? ers, and other men who were inter? ested in public highways, we have successfully organized in nearly every County in the State, and we are build? ing roads throughout South Carolina. The development of the road system in South Carolina has enhanced the value of the acres which are along or ? near these roads. South Carolina ? sands in the front rank. I do not claim the credit for all this develop? ment, but I have had the honor of being President of the Association since the development has been going on and have done all I could. I was raised on the farm and know ( what it is to pull the bell cord. I know the condition of this State as well as any man in it for I have visited people in every section of the State. 1 know the condition of the farmer, <. f the business man, of the men in every line of work, and know? ing the ger^ral condition I believe I am as well qualified to manage af? fairs and to apply the remedy, If need be, as any man in the State. I am in sympathy with the man who works whether with his hands or with his brain. What success I have had in any line has been through my own efforts. I have never hesi? tated and < condi hesiti time an Tec igo when cotton dropped from fifteen cents to six and seven cents, I with other men of the State fell in line and went all over the State of South Carolina and through the entire South and we did what we cou'.d to aid the farmers to organize -4 in order that they might be able to ' get a living price out of their cotton. While treasurer of the Southern Cot? ton Association, of South Carolina and that of the entire South also, I with the Honorable E. D. Smith, Senator F. H. Weston of Richland, the Hon- - orable R. I. Manning, L. I. Parrott \ of Sumter, professional men, farmers and men in all lines of business all over the State and members of the Southern Cotton Association and of the farmers station, succeeded in forming an organization which taught every civilized nation that the South j was producing about seventy-five per J cent of the clothing of the world. The farmers of the South were also taught to realize the position that they occupied in the production of cotton; and by the concerted action of the various lines of business we were able to put cotton back above 0 the bread and meat line. By so doing it is generally conceded today that the South is the most promising sec? tion of Country in the world. I predict that South Carolina in the near future will be one of the?^ most prosperous States in the Union, f We have the soil and we have the climate, we have the brain and we have the energy to make it the garden spot of the world. Inasmuch as I have helped to organize the good roads movement as well as to help A the farmers and other industires of 1 the State to reach thteir wonderful development, I believe that if I am elected Governor of South Carolina, with the business experience that I have had, and the co-operation of the good people of the State, it will be ^ possible to make some reform, If j needed, to put the State of South I Carolina on a cash basis and to re? duce her indebtedness, and the rate on interest on the State's debt and have schools second to none in the country, and thus to place this grand old State at the top of the ladder where she belongs. I wish to say that I am no stranger among you, the people have known me in the past. As I have said be