Governor Murray's 1930 Campaign Slogan

"The Worst Hard Time" page 108: "With a campaign slogan that railed against what he called "The Three C's - Corporations, Carpetbaggers, and Coons." Murray won by a huge margin, 301,921 votes to 208,575."

The election of 1930 saw Murray facing the Republican candidate, Ira A. Hill. Murray did win decisively indeed.

However, I'm curious about the 'campaign slogan' quoted. I've been trying to locate some contemporary mention of that slogan or campaign material, but haven't had any luck. His hitchhiking campaign across the state was mentioned, but the slogan was "The Poor Man's Friend."

The only place I find those 'three c's' mentioned was in a Lewis L. Gould review of Progressive Oklahoma: The Making of a New Kind of State by Danney Goble in The Journal of American History Vol. 67, No. 3 (Dec., 1980), p. 714....where Gould writes, "If he does not always develop fully the less attractive side of this movement for social change, expressed in Alfalfa Bills' denunciation of "Corporations, Carpetbaggers, and Coons" as opponents of the Constitution, Goble lays out the relevant information for the reader with admirable fairness."

Now...that seems to indicate that the 'campaign slogan' was not a slogan of 1930, but rather was relevant during the time of the Oklahoma State Constitutional Convention in 1906/07.

The book reviewed is not at an area library, so I've done an 'inter-library loan' request. Hopefully I will be able to read a copy of the book to see the context and its sources.

While speaking about the Constitution....Murray did make his segregationist beliefs clear however saying....

"We should adopt a provision prohibiting the mixed marriages of negroes with other races in this State, and provide for separate schools and give the Legislature power to separate them in waiting rooms and on passenger coaches, and all other institutions in the State … As a rule they are failures as lawyers, doctors and in other professions. He must be taught in the line of his own sphere, as porters, bootblacks and barbers and many lines of agriculture, horticulture and mechanics in which he is an adept, but it is an entirely false notion that the negro can rise to the equal of a white man in the professions or become an equal citizen to grapple with public questions. The more they are taught in the line of industry the less will be the number of dope fiends, crap shooters and irresponsible hordes of worthless negroes around our cities and towns … I appreciate the old-time ex-slave, the old darky -- and they are the salt of their race -- who comes to me talking softly in that humble spirit which should characterize their actions and dealings with the white man, and when they thus come they can get any favor from me. (Applause.) When a negro says to me: "Set 'em up," or taps me on the shoulder as would an equal friend I would want to land on his shins; but when he comes to me with his hat under his arm humbly saying, "Cap'n" or "Boss" give me a cigar, I would give it to him if it required the last cent that I had with which to purchase it, and this class of darkies can get all the favors I can possibly give … I doubt the propriety of teaching him in the public schools to run for office or train him for professions, but his training should be equal so far as the appropriations of funds are concerned to that of any other race, but he should be taught agriculture, mechanics and industries that would make of him a being serviceable to society …"

His segregationist stance isn't in question...just curious about the slogan. Perhaps it worked so well, he recycled it.

Another quote credited to Murrary.... (yes, I know...times were different) According to a Time article in 1932, "Now the Negroes, the Indians and the poor white trash of Oklahoma have a Governor," exclaimed "Alfalfa Bill" upon his election, and the 172,198 Negroes and 92,725 Indians of Oklahoma knew he meant it."