T**e LEDGES. TMIRLUW S. CARTER, EDITOR AND MANAGER. <88UK1> WKDNKSDAY AN D 8ATITItl>AY SATURDAY, .TANUAUY 21st, 1904. ML- KUBHUJUPTION $i oO PE?? YE A H ti.a .# ...... i uu pii? / 1 11 VJ 111 UllUIV in very gratifying and speaks well /or its management. ? Batesburg Advocate. Blessed few editors lmvo any hsnk, and about tho same con I e said of their bank accounts. It would bo gratifying to us if we had a bank, whether it male any showing at all or not. Wo would attend to its management.?Chester Lantern. The Lancaster Ledger quotes Mr Jno A. Bridge*, of lieath Spring, as saying, "I am going to reduce the acreage in cotton on my farm this your 25 per cent, and will use only lmlf the amount of fertilizer I used last year." Twelve acres to the plow i> what Mr. Bridges has heretofore planted but this year ho proposes to plant only nioe. Mr. Bridges is a successful farmer; ho is also progressive. When he decides upon a plan he has a good reason therefor. It is not uifiiculi to fathom his reason for the reduction of his cotton acreugo this your. It will give hiui opportunity to raise more of other things and at the same time gives him the cotton ho ruiseB more us a surplus, out of w hich ho will have to spend a great deal less, and which will cost him much less for production. Clearly something needs to bo done to relieve the situation and raise the price of cotton, and wo can think of no bettor plan where by it may be successfully done than by the one Mi Bridges proposes to follow. If there could be a general agreementiauiong the farmers of the cotton growing states to adopt this plan they wuold unquestionably experience some vory gratifying results within a very few yours. The individual farmer who raises his supplies at home and cotton as a surplus, is much bettor off than one who raises cotton exclusively and expends it all in the purchase of supplies.?Kershaw Era. The record of the comptroller general's offico diows that there were reported from the first of March, 1904, to the first of December, 1904, 274 fires in this State, the value of property involved, amounting to $416,806,214. The record shows the cause or origin of the fires to be as follows. Nine were reported as incendiary. Eleven suspected incendiary. Nine from lamps exploding. Twenty-one carelessness. Twelve rats and matches. Thirty-five defective flues. Three defective electric wires. Three from lightning. Jb'ivc accidental. Two from gas jets. Ten, sparks from engine. One hundred and fifty unknown. AM AGEI) LADY DIES OF FIUOIIT. Manning, Jan. 18.?Mrs. Hannah Levi, widow of the late Moses Levi, died suddenly last night, aged 74. A few nights ago she nebcived a fright from a thief entering the Levi mansion and stealing $75 and other valuables. Seeing tho thief as ho escaped, she never got over the shock. Todav hor daughter-in-law, Mrs Louis Levi, formerly Miss D. Ansona of ^Chicago, who has been ill some time, died also. The double funeral will tuke place in Sumter Friday. * * [For The Ledger. TilK LBGISLA rURbi Editor or Ledger: ? A number of new bills are now before the Genera1 Assembly conveyiug every conceivable aud imaginary subject. The following are some of the measures: Bill to require a uniform price for cotton seed and cow pens in me ouuo Kiueu. Mill to require all persons bo fore taking u lien on tho crops of another for advances to first obtain tho consent of tho land owner.-This bill ought to bo killed. Tho seed cotton bill prohibits the sale, without a license, of seed cotton between August 15th and December 20th. Tho licenso to bo fro n $1.00 to $500 nnd granted by tho County Board of Commissioners, upon the recommendation of a certain number of citizens residing in tho sumo township with the applicant. Tbero is opposition to the bill, but we hope to pass it. The tneusuro to require all commeicial fertilizers to bo branded with tho number of pounds of constituent parts was unfavorably reported by the committee on agriculture. But tho measure will be brought before tho House for consideration. The trespass bill dispmses with tho requirement to post four notices and advertising in a newspuper against trespass anil before hunting, fishing, etc , on tha lauds of another tho consent of the landown or or proprietor must first he obtained. The road law is now being prepared. \Ve are trying to give Lancaster county a satisfactory law. 1 favor a general roa 1 fund, n township fund, working the roads by contract, abolish" road overseers, etc. There is a bill to re-circuit the State and providing for two additional circuits. The bill will probably pass. .Josh Ashley proposes to abolish tho Immigration Bureau and introduces a bill to this effect. Senator Blease of Newberry introduced a Resolution requiring a searching investigation of the Dispensary from the comencoment of the system to the present. Tho resolution provides for tha ap pointment-of throo memborsofthe House ami two members of the Senate. The investigation would be of more practical benotit if three good Pinkerton Detectives wore employed. Adjutant and Inspector General Frost recommends the establishment of a State armory. A bill to accomplish this end has been introduced. Armory to cost $0000. Some of the other measures are as follows: Bill to sell certain Stato lands, make seduction a crime. Abolishing the Citadel, Execution oi criminals in the penitentiary, Prohibiting child marriage, Re ducing tho hunting season,Compul sory education, Requiring the sheriff to called delinquent taxes without costs. To assess property at its actual value, an?l two hundred or more other bills conveying every I 1 /I ? ? ? -1 1 ' Lijwugiii, uccu, wind UUU UCllOO Ol tbo people of South Carolina. A concurrent resolution introduced by Senator VVarren has been udopted to hold the election on Thursday, Junuary 2G: Two circuit judges, to succeed Judges, JCrnest Gary and D. A. Townsend: a superintendent of the penitent tiary, to succeed Capt. D. J. Grif. fith; three members of the board of directors of the nenitflntiari/ - > J > to succeed John G. Mobley, A. K. Sanders and M. O. How I and; one trustee of the colored college at Orangeburg, to succeed Cole L Blease, resigned. J. Harry Fester. Jlioy 10, 1905. John Clegg Charged ' ftith Son's Harder. Verdict of Coroner's Jury in the Greenwood Mystery. ? Father in .1 ail A.wailing Trial. V #* Special to 1 ho Slate. Greenwood, dany 18. ? The coroner's jury which adjourned Monday to uieot again today to finish hearing the evidonco in the mutter of Scott Clegg, whose death was reported Monday, brought in a verdict this uftornoon that he came to his death from a gunshot wound at the hands of his own father John Clegg. The verdict was expected in viow of developments after Monday's hearing. [ The unfortunate tragedy has been the topic of conversation ever since it happened. Ry some sympathy is expressed for the father, because of the fact that it has been shown clearly that he was drunk at the time, in fact, he saemed as phrased by some to bo 4'perfectly crazed." Whether he caused the death of his son by diunken carelessness or by the impulse of a sudden blind way of drunken passion will be for a jury to decide. John Clegg was at once arrested and is in the county jail to bo tried for the murder of his own son. The testimony heard by the jury Monday, given by Clegg and his son, was to the elFect that the hoy was shot while they were on their way to Greenwood, and that they did not know who did it. I'he jury heard from other witness C6 that the little boy said Sunday uight after thoy had arrived here, that his father had shot his brother, and that this was said in the presence of the father. The little boy's changed testimony today was in substance that his father pulled out the pistol to shoot at something on the read and then (his dead brother and himself) caught hold of th* pistol and in some way bis brother was shot. Witnesses living along the road testified that thoy saw Clegg undheard his awful cursing. Ono man, W. P. Rhodes, repeated his oaths, but could not swear whether it waa directed at the hoy or at the horse. All ot the testimony showed that John Clogg was as wild and frenzied as a man could bo made by whiskey, and that as a result of this awful stute he caused the death of one of hie own children. The boy's mother has been dead for several years. cuj - r i 3UU0WI1, trumpaihcr. President Will Have Nothing tc do With Scheme. Will Not , Sign a Bill to Reduce Southern Representatives. (By W. W. Price.) ' Speciul to The Record. Washington, D. C , Jan 17.? Representative Crumpacker, ol I Indiana, the leader in congresa ol > the agitation in favor of reducing ' the representation of the South in eongress, has been informed by I the president that it will be use? less to proceed along that lino eithei in this congress or the ' next as he opposes anything of that sort. This will settle tor years to come, probubly forever, any serious party effort to cut down the representation of the South. Crumpacker and others, to satisfy their constituents and to save their political skins, may agitate the matter ut the next session and make some speeches, but the majority of the ^publicans of the house and senate will be glad to escape bother about the matter,and fall back upon tha atti tnde of the president. The inauguration of Governor Hoyward will take place on Wednesday, Jan 25. J EFtii I BAI THE HEfl J Successors to 1: TILE CO.. whi i ' settle with the ceased. A We are her our share of th lings will indue ing renovated & Mercantile C our place more have devided o ies first, oil the ment second; d the fourth roor We would ca we have many For T as we want to chasing our Sj In moving our Sho decided to place them on these shoes are not old g as DREW-SELBY,GODMAN ' CLOTHIN I \ And if prices you to take adv You can have i inent for ac^tim delay but comt We would lil have in the ws prevents our d finn nvi/1 iron **) I 11V1I (tliu J \W1A *T i IN SHA i And can make feet satisfactiai otis New Year ronage, we are - Till Lan ? ^ wo , t?>t ?riii i gm N T ION IGAIN SE T H-J 0 N E S ^ ^ ^ V A/V ^' ^ V, ^ ^ [EATH BAN Kir* eh lias been liquii estate of J AS. I e for business an< e trade if low pric ;e the public to st the stores of the yO., gives us more convenient for ur stock into dept corner; gent's lu ry goods third, i n. ill your attention great inducement Sip Np.y iTliSrS 11V k ^ V.'tl' A Bill & ") make a clean s\ ning Goods. es, a great many of the boxes a bargain counter, aud let tin ;oods but right new and some and other makes. 16 WE HAVE IN . j will move tho g Ml i*l i I' ? ?* II ! ?? nn?! I nil I? SEKERSI COMPANY. Hi & MERC AN latedin order to ML HEATH, de< I intend getting es and fair dealick to ns. IlavHeath Banking room and makes business. We irtment, grocerrnishidg departind millinery in to the fact that jS to offer y Bays vecn before mir _ * a were broken, and we have em go at first cost. Now of the best we have, such ABUNDANCE. ods, it in up to at reduction sale hi our establish*t. cash, so do'-'t } CIS ISO. c about what we being so rushed ask is an inspccare J8INESS, ill give yon per yone a prosperore of your pat(IHIIIU _ JUiII lllll* .C.