LE'S RECORDER ers PUBLISHED FOR TUB ELEVATION OF OUR RACE, AND 15 AN EXPONENT OF REPUBLICAN PRINCIPLES. Founded in 1893. OLUMBIA AND UNION, S. C., SATURDAY MORNING, JANUARY 13,1900. NO. 18. K Governor Mcsweeney to the State Legislature. jfVERAL INDUSTRIAL PROGRESS. - ? Congratulai;s the People of South jolina ft.cause of Their General pr0Sp-rit> - Recommendations. Fellows ssai a* gai As?< ai' -;- Exe ii- : fifi opening jar BI ii CK a '.j^J.*- '.. . DurisS Matt?? ' ti IRK eallH . tareroor substance of tLe an . ansmitted to the Gen rf South Carolina by ;. M. B Mcsweeney at >sion ot that body Tues :ir Genera] Assembly: p.tst year the heavy hand v is laid upon the chief ex ie State, and the people o mourn the death of their . . n long illness. Govern IffW'Hiaai ri. Elleroe died at his home ::-->. on June 2. 1S09. Marion < ir il cf honors, and coainiaTi Hies, he Holding f?overr.or - the respect of his country - tethered to his fathers. ; . position of Lieutenant . : which I had been elected, jnj o' . ag the Constitution, I took tte oath f office as Governor on the jrd da? ' June, l??*?>, and immediately $emfu ?aa the discharge of the fcties pen lining thereto. Si3' thinned your ranks, and together to deliberate and lavs for &he people under mo3t >u.> circumstances. I trust that your deliberations you may be I y a single purpose-'the welfare ?ipiness of the people whom you ie honor to represent. However, .y diner, as differ you will, your ed wisdom and high patriotism, ra: [connti Iferit: [State ire ! I are un ar.;! . . tearij rou < Bake au>p: : al! guide : 2nd L kare ;. fOQ (combii am sfre. will result in the passage of fiich laws as will rebound to the good af ali the people. In the accomplish mem cf this purpose I stand ready and iaxio to aid you and co-operate with voa in io fir as my power and ability tia" s >. EVIDENCES OF PROGRESS. In cotton manufacturing. South Caro lina lesas all of the Southern State?, and stands second only to Massachu setts :? the number of spindles and sec end io none in equipment. If the prog r?*s of the past year augurs anything fort*; future, we shall soon lead ali other- in tins important Industry, and instead of furnishing any of our staple ere? for export to other places for man;: . wc will be large import ers y . :tton from other States to sup ply :. ?ocal demand. During the past year eleven new mills have 'been or gan^. ; Q;I,! are in process of construc tion, r s< nting a total capital of $3, 27?."f Sixteen old mills have been en- j forged, representing an increase of their ? capita! stock of $2.429,000. This not i only means a large addition to the j wealth of the State and an increase of j the taxable property, but it means veal:!; put into active service and em ployant for many of our people, in railroad building, as I have al ready st3ted, there has been very de .dded activity. 237 miles have been com pleted and in actual process of con struction. This represents an outlay of at least $23,000 a mile, or nearly $6, md when completed and re fcraei for taxation even at a valuation cf IlO.wXi a mile will add $2.370,000 to :he taxable property of the State. t la cotton seed oil mills, the lumber keines? and other branches of indus try, there has been very maTked activ ity. For the exact figures in all of these fcw enterprises I beg to direct your at tention to the full and exhaustive re port o- the Secretary of State. A study * these figures and a realization of the Bater; ii progress upon which the State has entered, should be cause of jjneere congratulation to every true Carolinian, and should move you as ?Presentatives of the people to do all U: rou < an IQ foster and* encourage ?is Progress, and these institutions ^industries, which mean so much for PL?ia?e' 1 ^ave thought proper thus -r;cfly to direct your attention to these w&Stantial i vidences of progress and f.;7^'; a* an encouragement* and an .'" to our people to the accomp gf51 ':'} ( rv(?n greater things which r^lly within our grasp, if we will J? plK forth our hands and lay hold ..?.iges and opportunities "?t thickly surround us on every side. . , FINANCES, itake Measure, also, in congratulat ??t{0u?2 ?bc condition of the finances ij*e State. The State Treasurer has ay. l0 meet all af the obligations ?1 ; 6tr* Promptly, and also the in ?2..?? public debt, without the ;^:*y of raving to borrow any rfl or overdraw his account, and ?*s a balance in the treasury. TAXATION. Constitution says that "AU taxe? ??? Property, real and personal, shall u??o the actual value of the ^il"?X"a' as the same shail be a?" (?>r, - a?l assessment made for Hito! General Assembly shall pro rito l?,v -or a uniform and equal Ufa,: of asse^, mont for taxation." It ii. .^tiia- very }ittje if any property "?^p f?? uxa^ion at its "actual of ri'T " ': were' t?e taxable prop. Wra htue S:re would be a great deal ! L lQ*a it jSj and the rate of taxa * t^r J? considerably reduced. Tc 1 ?ould o0 ftj^yer, mat is not a matter o? Ktet co^cern, for a certain ?Uh* has ^? be r*is?^ tc t-J expenses of government, and ??we valuation Mere high th? .8? b? VP?Uv^; jrft ia th* wi tt e f liri: n ueh d< ? 1 SSO ces s i m 3 n ss amounts to the same thing. T_ tion that concerns the taxpayer have a uniform value of assess whether it be the actual value or half the actual value. The burd taxation would then fall equally the taxpayers in proportion to the erty they own, but if one man's erty is assessed at its actual valu another man's at one-half its value, the one either contributes than his share to the support of government, or the other does measure up to his duty in this ma The main desideratum is to s< such a mode of assessment as will a uniform valuation to all prop subject to taxation. That such res are not obtained now, I am s Whether it is the fault of the law its administration, I am not prepa to say. We have Township Boards Assessors and County Boards of Equ ization, but the manner in which as a rule, discharge their duties the time they allot to the discharge these duties does not secure a unlfor valuation of property for the purpo of taxation. Nor, indeed, could they it under the present plan if they ga more time. They may secure an appro imate uniformity for valuation in ea; county, and, so far as county purpose are concerned, that might suffice, bu the average in the counties varies au the burden of taxation does not fal equally on the several counties. I hav no fully matured plan to submit fo your consideration as a remedy for thi evil, but I am persuaded that if som plan could be devised by which the! Constitution could be obeyed and all property assessed at its actual value.; the burden would bear more easily and equitably upon ali taxpayers. As th law now stands, the County Auditor i required to go Into each township am take returns of property, and then thcfl township boards meet and go over thesaf returns and then they are gone over by the County Board of Equalization. I submit for your consideration the ad visability of requiring that the Const!-* tu lion be carried out and all property assessed at its actual value, and that the County Auditor take returns only?| in the townships, and that the town ship boards be required to attend while these returns are being made, and if any question arises as to the valuation of the property, it could be settled by the Auditor, the Board of Assessors, and the owner of the property. These I township boards should be men of abii I ity and character, and snould be in po ! sition to determine the actual value of j the property. I believe that some such j plan, if properly carried out, would ma j tonally increase the taxable property I property of the State and go far to I wards equalizing the burden of taxa j tion. There is need for something to be ; dode along this line. This subject of taxation is one thar ? more directly concerns the people than ! any other with which you will have to I deal, and it deserves your most earnest consideration, and in whatever you do, you should endeavor to make the bur den bear equally upon all the properly of the State. By comparison of the figures in the Comptroller General's report, you will see that the taxable property for the fiscal year commencing January 1. 189D, is $3.185.1 S3 more than for the preced ing fiscal year: Total taxable property for the fiscal year commenc ing January 1st, 1S99... $176,422,253 I Total taxable property for the fiscal year commenc ing January 1st, 1SS8... 173,237,103 Increase. $3,1S5,1S3 PENSIONS, j A generation has passed since the j "War Between the States." The South I ern soldiers who fought for a cause i they believed to be right laid their all upon 1 : e altar of their country. Greater ; sacrifice and self-denial were never more cheerfully made in any cause or in any country than in this struggle by the Southern soldier. They displayed a fortitude and a heroism that will fur nish themes for the poet and the histo rian for all time to come. They lost in battle because of overwhelming num bers and resources on the other side, and without repining laid down their arms ?id returned to their homes and began with a spirit of cheerfulness rarely seen to rebuild their lost for tunes. PEN Ali AND CHARITABLE INSTI TUTIONS. The Constitution of the State imposes upon usjthe duty of caring for the in- j sane, bljad, deaf and dumb, and the poor, an4 says that institutions for thi3 purpose thal] be fostered and support ed. The Bc^rd of Regents desires to sug* gest for four consideration the better t cf the system of county s and the consideration o? of "settlement," by which better established who onay ciary support in the State ur law should also be more ealing with inebriates and the criminil insane. During the pre valance of ; n epidemic disease, it is al so recomrm ided that for the protection of the patie ts in the Hospital the right of quaranti ie against the infected ter ritory be er rusted to the Governor, the Chairman c the State Board of Health, and the Pn i dent of th* Regents. The growfi of the institution has been so gr?a that the necessary repairs for ordinari wear and tear have be come a coniderable drain upon the developm! poor houi the mati it would claim bent Hospital, specific in und. The Board estimates maintenance that in orde to keep up these repairs and make s aie of the improvements recommende will require about $10, OOO. An itei ized statement will be found in the Superintendent's report. P; S'lTENTIARY. At your la: session, a resolution was adopted orde ng an investigation into the affairs c the State Penitentiary. That invest^ tion was had and a re port of the c mmittee was submitted to me. as dir ited by the resolution. have submittl in a separate message the action talla by me on this report, and beg to dirct your attention to it, and also to til report of the special t committee performed upon it efficiently and see from an examina conimittee. Tl the duties lai well, as you w tion of their The present Penitentiary, uperintendent of th* D. J. Griffith, took charge on thel^th of March. AJ? ex amination of hi report will show that the affairs of ?fe Penitentiary have been managed S a very satisfactory ^^^n4 t| Of tb? !tt*tt< ound it necessary to do much re* ag on the buildings at the institu and on the farm, and there is i more work that is necessary to one. When he .took charge tue re turned over to him by his prede >? $114.35 in cash, and he found it ^sary to commence buying provis to support the inmates at once, and Search loth to the haves-ting of ew corn crop, he waa compelled to bushels of corn and meal. It not appear to me to be good busi judgment, with the farms that are ed by the State, to lte forced to so large a quantity of corn and , when they could and ought to be ? on the farms. I am glad to be to state that the superintendent a his supply of corn made during >ast year will be sufficient to sup ine institution during this year the new crop comes in. There was large crop of oats made, some over 4,000 bushels having been foe Sprintendent says: "The rricultnrally, has been satLsfae ?nsldering the late start and isadvantages under which the as done." The cotton crop will to .nearly 600 bale3. has been no serious sickness the prisoners except a few meningitis, from which there eral deaths. EDUCATION, with the material progress come to our State, there has vely interest in the education |onth. Not only has this been in our higher institutions of but the country schools and y schools throughout the been greatly improved. In nt like ours the education h is of paramount imporc legialation that will foster ge our common schools re your hearty approval ment, for you may foster olleges as you please, the s that a vast majority of can never avail themselves training. Intelligent cit 1 telligent voters. Educated intelligent citizens. When ey in education you invest will give you ever increas ed cain neither be lost nor To secure efficiency in our ools three things are of por tance: First, you must ans with which to op?rale you must have educated .ted teachers. Third, you llfeent and efficient County nts of Education. IR INSTITUTIONS, may have been the differ ence^inlon as to the wisdom of es tabl g ?j?te Colleges, the policy of :his matter has been flxei, *tituticns are here and are od work for the State, and he enrolment of students, mand for them. To puil r to give them niggardly uld be a backward step hat no true son of South d be willing to take. It is estion whether or not the engage in higher educa been settled. To make tate institutions is to re ess and development of re should be no conflict ncminational college and ge. They are both doing them then:, w&Ic *\ Caro vo BO lo i Staten tion. i war oj, tard i the s,r betweelieve i less jud t popula measin lie peop :y to re: engender vould r n itt m ne that i alee hold ?ad ittpr 44 ess to trust have a tenden bitterness and and I blieve s of the State fltevelopnbt It seems to d be go i judgment to present *w and amend Prohibit sn ia very nice iinwillin won! ifes an feeling e pro&r* be practicable. Local option would bp sven worse than prohibition. To have prohibition in one county, a license system in an adjoining county, and the dispensary in another, would create no ?nd o' confusion and trouble through out the State. I would recommend for your consid eration the abolition of the State and County Boards of Control and that the duties of these officers be devolved upon other officials. You should elect i State Commissioner of high charac ter and gocd business judgment, and ?ive him sufficient compensation to "onwnand the services of such a man. He should be given more authority and discretion, and required to give a good and sufficient bond and ne subject to removal by the Governor. As an ad visary board to Uie State Commissioner I would suggest the Comptroller Gen eral, the State Treasurer and the State superintendent of Education, with such powers anti duties as in your wisdom you may think proper to confer upon them. In place of the County Boards I would suggest that the County Super visor, the County Auditor, and the Mayor of the county seat town, if a dispensary be located there, if not the Mayor or Intendant of some town in the county in which there is a dispen sary, constitute the County Board, and that they serve without extra compen sation. These changes are suggested not on?> because in my judgment they would improve the administration of the law, but on the ground of economy. I would also suggest that the law be so amended as to bring violations with in the jurisdiction of the Magistrates, so that all cases might be promptly und summarily adjudicated. STATE MILITIA. It is gratifying to note that marked improvement has been made in the status of the State militia under the present administration of the Adjutant General's department. The number of companies in actual service has been considerably reduced but there has been an Increase in efficiency. You are aware that for severa.1 years past the support of this department by the State has been very meagre, and really insuf ficient to meet the demands required in maintaining a creditable and an effi cient military organization, thy. BIENNIAL SESSIONS. The advisability of biennial sessions of the Legislature has been frequently called to the attention of the General Assembly by ray predecessors. That we have too much legislation, we all ad mit. For changes in our laws aa would be better. Many States have adopted biennial sessions of their Leg islatures. The State Constitution pro vides for annual sessions of the Legis lature and the declaration of Rights declares, "The General Assembly ought frequently to assemble for the redress of grievances and for making new laws, as the common good may require." I submit the matter to voa for^our care ful consideration, inasmuch as there has been some discussion of this sub ject and tome demand in certain sec tions for biennial sessions. As you will see, in order to change .would require an amendment to our Constitution. I invoke upon all your deliberations the guidance of an all-wise and over ruling Providence, and trust that what ever you do may be done with an eye bingle to the good of all the people of the State. M. B. MCSWEENEY, Governor. THE MARKETS? Prevailing Prices otf Golton, Grain and Produce. niARI^OTTE COTTON MARKET. These figures represent prices paid to wagons: Strict good middling.71-2 Good middling.7 7-16 Strict middling.7 5-16 Middling.71-1 Tinges.71-8 Market-Quiet and steady. NEW YORK COTTON MARKET. Cotton futures quiet. Middling up lands 7 0-16; middling gulf 7 13-16. Futures closed steady. Highest. Lowest. Closing. January.7 23 7 17 7 1 @16 Februarv. 7 22 7 15 7 15@16 March .7 26 7 18 7 19@20 April. 7 30 7 23 7 22<5>23 Mav .... _ 7 32 7 25 7 25@26 june. 7 30 7 21 7 2627 july. 7 35 7 27 7 28@29 august. 7 34 7 28 7 27(8)28 September .... 6 86 6 85 6 83@S4 Oelber.6 76 6 74 6 73@74 November .... 6 71 6 70 6 69@TO December. BALTIMORE PRODUCE MARKET. Flour-Dull, unchanged. Wheat-Steady; spot and month 59% to 70; Southern by sample 65 to 71; Southern on grade 66 to 70. Corn-Steady; spot and month 36% to 36%; Southern white 37 to 37%; Southern yellow 38 to 39. The Passing of the Crocodile, To say that the crocodile has seen his best days is but feebly to express the rapidity with which he is lapsing into the class of extinct animals. As n fea ture of modern Egypt he ls perhaps rather a curiosity than a plague; and the traveler has to get far beyond the regions of the Delta before he can begin to hope for the chance of being introduced to one. Crocodile stories are no longer told; in fact, it is safer to trust to the sea serpent Nothing can make the crocodile attractive, and even the man with the camera is shy of treating him as a subject-whether for personal or artistic reasons is not quite clear. Possibly, the crocodile resents being focussed as he formerly shrank from confrontation with a mirror-an ordeal which often led to his dying of chagrin, as was supposed, nt the sight of nis own ugliness. Moreover, the experienced photographer is wise in 'taking no risks" remembering tnat the crocodile's tears are only a natural solvent which the saurian applies to the tougher form of animal foo Trained Men and Volunteers to be Called Out. 65,000 MOORE TROOPS ARE NEEDED. Mr. Bajfour Says the American Revo lution is the Only War England has Lost-She Has Suffered Disasters. London, by Cable.-The War Oflice has neither contributed any light on the situation in Natal since Sunday nor allowed the dispatches of corres pondents to get through. Consequently the public impatience finds vent in a discussion of the conduct of the war. The Morning Post demands that the forces afield, afloat and in preparation shall be increased by 65,000 men. To this end it urges tihat all the trained men the country possesses, militia and volunteers shall be called out, assert ing incidentally that although the atti tude of the other powers is correct in the diplomatic sense of the word, an invasion, if attempted, would be sud den, and that now is the time to appre hend contingencies. The Daily Mail says it understands that the suppression of another general commanding in South Africa will shortly be announced. This may have relation to General Buller's hasty sum mons from Davenport. It is reported that he came by special train to Lon don yesterday and held a long consul tation with the headquarters staff. This seems to indicate that his advice which only recently was in extreme disfavor, is about to be utilized. The critics range up and down the entire field of war transactions, finding fault especially with the lack of trans ports for the troops who are ready to depart, and with the concealment of news, averring that the censorship in South Africa embraces the mails; that the reports of correspondents are be ing mutilated and entire letters sup pressed. The admiralty is seeking transports and is reported to have char tered the American liner St. Paul, which was inspected previous to the chartering, and three Liverpool steam ers. The government's defense, as put forth by Mr. Balfour, at Manchester, has produced a disagreeable impress ion upon the country. The Standard, the Times, and The St. James Gazette join in the almost unaimous metropol itan and provincial disapproval of \hQ government's explanations. Great Britain's lossss since the war began are fast approaching 8,000. A War Office compilation of casualties, issued last evening, shows a total of 7,213-1,027 killed, 3,673 wounded and 2,511 missing. These do not Include 140 who have succumbed to disease, nor the casualties at Ladysmith last Saturday. The Daily Mail says: "With charac teristic bad manners, the Transvaal authorities have refused to allow Mr. Hollis, the American representative at Pretoria, to care for British interests. This is Unprecedented in modern dip lomatic history." S. A. L.'s Liberal Offer. The industrial Department of the S. A. L. announces that they have __e following breeds of fullblooded roos ters: Light Brahmas, Black Lang shans, and Black Monorcas, which they uropose to lean to those who are located on the line of the S. A. L. sys tem, for the purpose of improving their breed of chickens. These roosters will be loaned to parties for a term of nine ty days, which time will be ample to get the breed of same. It is important in order to get a good pure breed of chickens to let the roosters above men tioned exclusively run in a pen with not more than fifteen hens. Those de siring the service of any one of the above named roosters should apply to J. Strang, Assistant Chief In'd Agent, Portsmouth, Va. Applications will be recorded and served as they come In turn._ Pulitzer's House Burned. New York, Special.-The handsome residence of Joseph Pullitzer, publisher rf The New York World, at 10-12 East Fifty-fifth street, was destroyed by fire Tuesday and two women servants were suffocated or 'burned to death. The total loss is estimated at about $300,000. The insurance is $250,000. The victims of the fire were Mrs. Morgan Jellett, the housekeeper, and Miss Elizabeth Mont gomery, a govern es si 20,00o Witnesses. Frankfort, Ky., Special.-The ses sions of botftt houses of the legislature were uneventful. Former Governor Bradley, chief counsel for Governor Taylor, denied stories that troops had been brought here in citizen's clothes and that Republicans had arranged to import here large ?bodies of men from over the State to Intimidate the legis lature. He said: "We will summon 20,000 witnesses, whose evidence is to be taken for use before the State contest board, and many of them, I suppose, will come, but there will be no effort at intimidation. I take no stock in the talk about "bloodshed." Race Riot Feared. W>AJ,1S?WWBr 1809. New York, Special.-The United States Engineering and Mining Jour nal, In its annual statistical number, says that the preliminary statement of mineral production in the United States in 1899, shows that the total production of metals in the United States for that year was valued at tho place of production at $413,738,414, as compared with $314,253,620 in 1898. Wants $100,000. Chicago, Special.-Miss Etta Thomas a niece of General Joe Wheeler, has be gun suit in the superior court against Wm. H. Fahrney, a prominent West Side society man, asking $100,000 dam ages for alleged breach of promise to marry. It ls alleged that Fahrney, who is treasurer of a large patent medicine manufactory, and reputed to be weal thy, has been engaged to Miss Thomas for over five years but tftat recently he broke off #he engagement on the ground that his parenir desired him to marry another woman. Lily Whit?^cket. New Orleans, Special.-At a eosiS? ence of Republican leaders of the par ty (sugar planters' branch) at the St. QbaTles, it was resolved to put out a straight Lily- White Republican ticket If the'sentiment expressed can he do pended upon, Wr. Thomas J. Wood ward, of this city, will be nominated for governor. The Lily 'White State central committee met in the St Ohar. ks bots! tot the purpew of calling ^ .foi* myv&vi