Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1979 The olitP ical Speaking of Oscar Branch Colquitt, 1906-1913. Dencil R. Taylor Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Taylor, Dencil R., "The oP litical Speaking of Oscar Branch Colquitt, 1906-1913." (1979). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 3354. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/3354 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INFORMATION TO USERS This was produced from a copy of a document sent to us for microfilming. 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ANN ARBOR, Ml 48106 18 BEDFORD ROW. LONDON WC1R 4EJ, ENGLAND 793198$ TAYLDRi DENCH* THE P O L IT IC A L SPEAKING OF OSCAR BRANCH COLQUITT* I 900«»i9t 3o THE LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY AND AGRICULTURAL. AND MECHANICAL COL00 P H0Do9 1979 University M icrdrilm s International 300 N. ZEEB ROAD, ANN ARBOR, Ml 48106 THE POLITICAL SPEAKING OF OSCAR BRANCH COLQUITT, 1906-1913 A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of Speech oy Dencil R. Taylor B. A., Northwestern State College, 1956 M. A. in Education, Northwestern State College, 1962 May, 1979 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my graduate committee, consisting of Drs. Waldo W. Braden, Chairman, Gresdna Doty, Fabian Gudas, Francine Merritt, and Harold Mixon, for their concern and guidance given me during my doc­ toral studies. To Dr. Braden, I owe a special debt of gratitude for his kindness, patience, encouragement, and scholarly advice. I would like to express appreciation to Dr. Chester Kielman, Head Archivist of the University of Texas at Austin Archives, and his staff, particularly Victoria Reed and William H. Richter, for their gen­ erous and helpful assistance in the research aspect of this study. In addition, my thanks go to Georgette Gerlach, Inter-Library Loan Librar­ ian, Midwestern State University, Wichita Falls, Texas, for her d ili­ gence, concern, and assistance in locating numerous sources of material for this study. I am also indebted to Mrs. Hal R. Ray, Sr., Hal R. Ray, Jr., and Robert L. Pemberton for proofreading my manuscript. Finally, it was through the supportive influence of my wife Pat that this dissertation was completed. Her concern, her understanding, her encouragement, her faith in me, her long hours of labor and, yes, her persistence, blended together, forming a relationship that can only be described as an act of unselfish love. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................................... ii ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... v Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................... 1 2. SPEAKER BACKGROUND AND PREPARATION .............................................. 9 FAMILY ANCESTRY ................................................................................ 10 EDUCATION............................................................................................. 14 EARLY EMPLOYMENT................................................................................ 16 CAREER AS A JOURNALIST.................................................................. 17 CAREER AS A LAWYER........................................................................... 18 EARLY POLITICAL EXPERIENCE ........................................................ 19 SPEECH TRAINING ................................................................................ 27 3. COLQUITT'S GUBERNATORIAL CAMPAIGNS .............................................. 32 CAMPAIGN OF 1906 ............................................................................... 32 CAMPAIGN OF 1910................................................................................ 47 CAMPAIGN OF 1912................................................................................ 66 4. AUDIENCES AND OCCASIONS................................................................. 78 AUDIENCES............................................................................................. 78 OCCASIONS............................................................................................. 96 5. COLQUITT, THE SPEAKER....................................................................... 107 INARTISTIC IMAGE ................................................................................ 108 ARTISTIC IMAGE .................................................................................... 130 ii i iv Chapter Page 6. THE SPEECHES.............................................................................................. 158 NATURE OF COLQUITT'S POLITICAL SPEECHES ........................ 158 SPECIFIC SPEECH PREPARATION .......................................................... 161 BASIC PREMISES.................................................................................... 173 LINES OF ARGUMENT................................................................................. 179 USE OF EVIDENCE...................................................................................... 205 USE OF MOTIVE APPEALS.................................................................. 217 EFFECTIVENESS.......................................................................... 226 7. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS ................................................................... 233 BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................................... 244 APPENDIXES........................................................................................................................... 252 A. CAMPAIGN OF 1906 ..................................................................................... 252 B. CAMPAIGN OF 1910..................................................................................... 255 C. CAMPAIGN OF 1912..................................................................................... 259 VITA......................................................................................................................................... 263 ABSTRACT This study makes an in-depth analysis of the political rhetoric of Oscar Branch Colquitt who rose from the obscure rank of a tenant farmer's son to the governorship of Texas. Limited to the 1906, 1910, and 1912 gubernatorial campaigns, the study specifically discusses 1) Colquitt's background and speaker preparation, 2) his three cam­ paigns, 3) his audiences and occasions, 4) his methods of establishing a political image, 5) his specific speech preparation, basic premises, lines of argument, and use of evidence, 6) his motive appeals, and 7) his effectiveness as a speaker. The study is based on primary mate­ rials located in the Colquitt Papers, housed at the University of Texas at Austin Archives, including manuscript, typescript, and printed infor­ mation. Other primary sources are the official Colquitt Letters, the Railroad Commission Papers, the Colquitt Scrapbooks, newspapers, and official legislative records. Speech texts used in this study consist of