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Scraps anil |atts. ? The Washington Post of Sunday has the following: "Directions have been given to the consuls in Cuba to repair to Havana iu order that they 1 may be able to leave the island without danger in case of war. Arrange ments have beeu made for General Lee's safe withdrawal if such action 1 becomes necessary. The American newspaper correspondents in Havana are also to be given the utmost protection and thev will be allowed to leave with General Lee." ? The American warships at Key West have commeuced maintaining a sharp lookout for their safety. They do not propose to be slipped upon any more if they can help it. A tug boat attempted to pass by the flagship New York last Saturday night. The New York signaled the tug to stop and give an account of herself; but the tug did not understand and failed to answer the signal. Theu the New York fired a 4 pound shot across the tug's bow, and those on board came to the conclusion that it would be a good idea to stop and explain matters. After it had made a satisfactory explanation, the tug was allowed to go oti. ? The Chickering geneial bill declaring that enlistment in either army or navy will not deprive veterans of pensions for previous service, has been /agreed on in the house committee on / invalid pensions, with an ameudment. f The following amendment was adopt/ ed : "And all persons who served in f the Confederate army during the late Civil war, who shall hereafter serve in ^ nt-mv nr the navv of the United States for at least 90 days, shall he entitled to^he benefits of the act ol June 27, 1890, and pensionable thereunder if shown to be unable to perforin manual labor and dependent thereon for support." The bill was immediately favorably reported to the house. ? George T. Augell, president of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, on last Saturday, sent President McKinley the following telegram : "If I were the president of the United States (which 1 am certainly most thankful that I am not) I would not hesitate to say to congress if it becomes necessary, and to the whole civilized world, that from the present condition of negotiations with the Spanish government we have, in my judgment, no more right to force Spain into a war and kill perhaps 50,000 of the young men compelled to serve in her armies and navy, than a pirate has to commit murder on the ocean or a highwayman to commit murder on the land." ? A dispatch of Saturday to the Lewiston, Me.. Journal, says : "Hudson Maxim, a brother of Hiram Maxim, the inventor of the famous Maxim rapid fire gun, has just invented a gun that iu its awful destructive force goes far beyond Hiram's. It is called the Maxim aerial torpedo and is designed for coast defense aud naval work. As its name implies, the torpedo is fired into the air instead of being shot along the surface of the water. Iu fact it is nc?>rt ihp as anv cannon or mor tar. The gun fro n which it is fired has a bore of 20 inches. It will throw a ton of dynamite a distance of five miles, and if the torpedo strikes anywhere within 200 feet of a warship it will shiver it to atoms." ? A Washington dispatch says : "We are now spending money at the rate ol $2,000,000 per day, and the receipts average only about $1,000,000 per day. If this pace is kept up for three months longer, there will not he much more than $100,000,000, including the gold reserve, in the treasury July 1. In view of this prospect the president and Chairman Dingley, of the ways and means committee, have heen consulting about what ought to he done. The president went over the figures with Mr. Dingley and advised an increase of taxation. He suggested an additional tax of $1 per barrel on beer and a small tax ou tea and coffee." ,nl ? ' - r\ t Itu mnct 1 U1S aiSO IS Hill ncno yji iu^ uivoi indubitable character. We commend it to the attention of all those cheerful idiots who think a war would he "great fun." The "increase of taxation" will not stop at tea, coffee and beer, as a few people of middle age and retentive memory can readily testify. ? The following is an abstract from General Woodford's cipher telegram received last Thursday and translated Friday morning. General Woodford informs the government of the United States that General Blanco has revoked the bando retage to the reconcentrados in the western provinces of Matanzas, Santa Clara, Habana and Pinar Del Rio ; that the Spanish government has placed at the disposal of the governor general a credit of $600,000 to the end that the country people may return at once, and accepts whatever assistance to feed and succor the necessitous that may be sent from the United States in accordance with the plan now in operatiou. He proposed to confide the preparation for an honorable and stable peace to the insular parliament, without whose concurrence the Spanish government would not be able to arrive at the final result, it being understood that the powers reserved by the constitution to the central government are not lessened or diminished, as the Cuban chambers will not meet until the 4th of May. The Spanish government will not, ou : ? ?.>?i t< ciictionuirm of lin-;. ua j'ill l J V/I'J^VV 1 \J U CUC|/vuuivu W ..ww tilities if asked for l>y the insurgents from the general-in-chief, to whom it will belong to determine the duration and the condition of the suspension. ? St. Louis Globe-Democrat : With Cuba goes Porto Rico. In tlie talk ol Cuba and Cuban independence, mention of Spain's other possessions is seldom heard. In the councils of the revolutionists the neighboring island is not forgotten. When the Cuban republic is recognized and the Spanish army withdraws, the soldiers of fortune who have been making the cause of Cuba their own have no idea of settling down immediately to the pursuits of peace. They expect to transfer the scene of war to the island of Porto Rico. The destiny of Porto Rico is that of a part of the republic of Cuba. The island is a little less than 40 miles wide, and is about 108 miles long. The principal city has a population of 24,000. Like Cuba, ir Porto Rico has high hills or mountains r< in the interior. The population is v about 800,000, half that of Cuba. If S1 the new government of the republic aj shall adhere to the present sub-division of the six provinces into as many states, Porto Rico may be considered large enough for two or three states. ^ Porto Rico is almost as productive as Cuba. Its foreign trade had reached ? nearly $30,000,000 when the war in t the neighboring island disturbed con- n ditlons. There will be a revolution in it Porto Rico within a week after Spain s< evacuates Cuba. b tl i?hc \|orkmllc ?nquirrr. kr w YORKVILLE, S. C.: u . tl WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6, 1898. i ? That was a mean trick that somebody h played on the Associated Press about the alleged arrival of the Spanish torpedo flotilla at Porto Rico. The whole coun- v try was startled by the statement, and it might have done serious harm. It would '' be well if there were some legal means of v punishing such offenders. . 11 ? The Enquirer is in receipt of a copy of Senator Tillman's tribute to the late si Senator Earle; but the paper is rather t] too lengthy for publication in full in j> Thk Enquirer, especially in view of n the present demands upon our columns, ti However, the tribute is a magnificent ? one, well worth reading, and those who care to have the full text of it, can get it . in full by writing to Senator Tillman. fo ? The Washington correspondent of The News and Courier corroborates the ^ statement that was made in The Ena ql'irer hist Saturday to the effect that it had been decided to intercept the Spanish torpedo flotilla. Captain Crowninshield, Captain Barker and Commander j Clover all recommended such a move, g and it was practically decided upon ; but ^ afterward there was a change of plans, and the Associated Press disoatches only o refer to the matter as a "rumor." m v ? The patent outsiders have learned d that the Maine report has been submit- d ted to congress with a message from a the president. They all had the full " text of these documents last Saturday, 0 and our Negro contemporary, The Mes- P senger, of Rock Hill, was abreast with '? the best of them. The news business, c by C. O. D. express, is thriving; but ^ somehow most of the more intelligent 8 white readers are becoming too far advanced for that kind of thing. They v appreciate up-to-date news a great deal more. 1 I > i o ? The only important news item relative s to war developments in the papers of last Saturday morning not published in Thk Enqiirkr Friday evening, was the statement that the Spanish torpedo llotil- ? la had reached Porto Rico. The statement was made at 12 o'clock Friday a night and was alleged to havecoine from p Madrid ; but a dispatch to Thk Enquir- f Kit on Saturday afternoon said the story p was not true; that the flotilla had not n gotten further than the Cape Verde is- j, lands. The statement is corroborated in j the morning papers of Sunday. ^ ? Thk Enquirkr received on last Sat- . urday, a copy of the "Message of the ^ president transmitting the report of the naval court of inquiry upon the destruction of the United States battleship Maine ^ in Havana harbor, February 15,1898, to- ^ gether with the testimony taken before g the court." The message is in the shape , of a book of .>00 pages, and includes not q only all of the testimony; but photograph- ^ ic plates of the wreck of the Maine from ^ every possible standpoinf. The message ^ of the president has already been published in full, and there has also been ^ published a statement which gives a ^ lairly good idea of the contents of the j testimony. ? The Columbia State has a correspon- n .1 ? i ir;n ?.l,n wou eviitontlT cut V U trill 111 1H/VIV Hill " u? umsf V..?.v...v out for a newspaper man. The average s country correspondent has not got much v of a nose for news. When something k really startling or sensational happens, h he is usually so excited that he forgets to h send it to his paper until maybe it is too ? late to be available as news. Hut it is not a ttiat way with the correspondent referred v to. The tire at Hock Hill broke out at ? about 12.30 Sunday morning aud contin- '< ued until about 5 a. m. The State of Sun- v day has the full progress of the disaster up to 4 a. m. Had the correspondent d been a trained newspaper man, there " would have been no occasion for surprise; il but since ho is only an amateur, there is e evidence of the fact that he certainly keeps his wits about him. R ? Although, as is usually the case with { prudent business men, most of our Rock h Hill friends are well insured, the result n of the terrible lire last Sunday morning is c a heavy blow. Coming as it did just as / the spring mercantile season is opening, n and with the big houses full of new goods, 'l il is not likely that their losses are fully 0 covered by insurance. Hut this is not all. c Most of the available store rooms in the a city arc already occupied with busy peo- h pic, and there is no other way for it than tl that most of those who lost their business tl houses will also be forced to remain idle tl during one of the busiest seasons of the e year. The result, of course, will be a i heavy loss for which there can be no s| compensation. There are some few, too, e who have sustained losses without any e insurance whatever. These have our sin- ti cere sympathy, lint upon the whole the o disaster will be a beuetit rather than oth- b erwise to the town. The burned build )gs, though all quite creditable, will be | jplaced by others more modern, conenient and imposing, and before the immer is over, the city will be hustling long even at a more lively rate than be>re the fire. -One of The Enquirer's corresponents on an afternoon paper telegraphed a Monday that the Associated Press had degraphed the management of the paper ot to allow any more specials to be sent om the office. The information was unewhat embarrassing; but we have een wiring other sources of news. At Kno tn lio u-riHon WA HD lint. 1C unit; lUin UUO vv I'V ?i > ivkv?) ft w v... ..v. now yet whether we have succeeded, he reader can tell l>y the dispatch itself, 'hich, if it conies, will be on the third age. If it is not there, we have been nocked out for this issue; but it is not >r long. During these exciting times ur readers expect the news and we are oing to get it for them or know the resin why. ? The morning dailies got pretty badly iken in with the story of the arrival of lie Spanish llotilla fleet at Porto Rico, t turned out to be a regular April fool >ke, and how it started nobody knows; ut now since it has been exploded, il ioks like the editors should have known ->o much to be thus taken in. Thearrial of the flotilla last Friday night would ave made the trip a record breaker, the ke of which is impossible. It now deplops that the flotilla has been nine days i reaching the Cape de Verde islands rom the Canaries, and at the same rate f speed they cannot reach Porto Rico for ome three weeks yet. The distance from tie Canary islands to the Cape de Verde ilands is about 900 miles, and the last amed islands are only GOO miles nearer > Porto Rico than are the Canaries, hich are nearly 3,000 miles away. ? The Columbia Register, of Saturday, ? ? A/)iirvri'a1 A on 11 nr?ifl tor v nf on a niA/ziiJ{^ UUl CUivvitai \?^ ? 'resident McKinley. The president is harged with having proved a traitor and artered away the honor of his country, nd withal the editorial is suggestive of lie days of T. Larry Gantt. We are not irepared to admire McKinley much. Our rincipal objection to him is our belief in is subserviency to Mark Hanna, and o on; but we do not think he has sold ut yet. If we were expecting to fight an rmed enemy, and were without weapns; but had some coming, we think we rould try for at least a short delay. We o not think that the president has yet lone anything suggestive of the traitor, nd we don't believe he is going to. So *r, he has been more prudent than some f the rest of us. The necessity for this irudence has been so great that he is realy not entitled to much credit for exerising it. We would all feel powerful ad if we should get a terrible licking imply on account of being too hasty. So et us give the president a little time. If far is a good thing, its quelitv is not ikely to deteriorate on account of a litle delay, land whether now, next week, r next month, we feel sure that after it tarts, it will be wonderfully interesting. CHANCES OF WAK. There is a disposition on the part of nany of our people to belittle the seiousness of the probable war with Spain, nd who afl'ect to believe, in the first ilace, that Spain would not think of ighting this country; and in the second dace, that if hostilities actually break >ut, the United States will blow theSpansh navy out of the water in less than hree weeks. We like to think of the United States s being the greatest nation on earth. It s. Its resources are almost inexhaustiile. It has more means than any other ountry. Its citizens are quickly eonertible into soldiers, and with a very ittle training in addition to their inherent uilitary tendencies, they make the best oldiers on earth. Except the Americans, English soldiers stand higher than those f any other nation. Our men met Kngishmen time and again between 1770 and 781 and whipped them often. Packenlam's army at New Orleans was eomiosed of veterans who had just overhrown the great Napoleon at Waterloo; ?ut when beset by the raw militia under ackson, they were mowed down like ;rass. The American soldier has never net his match but once, and that was rhen he was pitied against the American oldier. Then he fought at long range nib artillery, at short range with mus:ets, he charged into the teeth of open latteries and took them or died, he fought land to hand with the bayonet and lubbed gun, and showed his heroic conrge under every possible condition. The rorld never saw anything like it before, nd except it be exhibited by the American soldier, we don't believe the world nil ever see anything like it again. If they have to come here to do it, we o not believe the whole world can whip s. Wo do not believe that any foreign rmy, however strong, could even after tl'ccting a landing, invade any part of liis country 100 miles inland and hold its round for three months. And our navy, too, is made of the very est material. English sailors are said to ie the best in the world. They arecomuonly reckoned as such; yet when it nines to lighting they are 110 match for Americans. We have "met the British nore than once and they were ours." 'hey never have gained an advantage ver an American vessel or squadron exept where they had overwhelming odds, nd not often then. Paul Jones nailed is colors to his masthead, from which liey could not he taken down. That was lie immortal precedent from which comes lie unwritten law that no American naval ommander must ever strike his colors, iawrence died with "Don't give up the hip," and 110 American naval commandr has yet dishonored the example of ither Jones or Lawrence. Not only liis, there are in the navy today hundreds f gallant o dicers who would gladly die efore they would Jlinch. We are fully cognizant ot all these things. Wo fcelieve them from the bot- ] torn of our heart, and in our faith and pride in the honor, glory and heroism of American manhood, we yield to none ' who acknowledge allegiance to the stars and stripes ; but, all the same, it is well * for us not to deceive ourselves. There are some things that it will be well for us to remember just now in order that we 1 might better understand the situation. This war, if it comes, is to be principally 011 the water. Of course it is possible that we may be mistaken ; but that is what we think. Spain has about as many ships as we have and a number of them ow in at ns nnwnrful as are anv of OLirs. In this day of hard shooting guns, tre- 5 mcndous explosives, and other means of J destruction, while brains and courage count for much, they do not count for i everything. There enters into the prob- < lem a large element of chance. While we believe our chances are the better, still 1 it is possible that Spain may eventually ( annihilate our navy, and then what? , Without ships to defend our ports, we ] will be at a terrible disadvantage. The t Spaniards could go to New York, prepare to begin firing and demand tribute of a billion. We would have to pay. Then | they could move to the next exposed port < and make the same demand. We would i have to pay again, and so on around the ' coast. It would do for us to say, "Oh! J but we could build or buy more ships." Not a bit of it. It takes a year or more | to build a big ship, and in time of war j other nations are forbidden by interna- I tional law to sell us. We would either have to submit to such terms as Spain j proposed, or submit to the destruction of ( some of our finest seaport cities. But we hope none of this will come to | pass. We really do not believe it will. I However, as we tbink, we bave 9bown it is possible, and in tbis view of tbe case we can see one reason why tbe administration may bave been proceeding so slow- j ly at a time when congress and the country has appeared so impatient for tbe fray. That tbere is a "peace at any price" crowd we have no doubt, and that President McKinley may have been under the domination of this crowd is possible; but of one thing we feel pretty certain. In view of all the circumstances the president has not been proceeding too slowly. This country is much better prepared for war today than it was six weeks ago, and if it can get that much more delay, it will be still better prepared six weeks hence. Spain may be a little better prepared than she was six weeks ago; but not much. Comparatively our increased advantage has been tremendous. We have not written this in order to frighten anybody, and in it there is no spirit of criticism ; but we have written it because we believe it to be true, and under all circumstances, whether they are pleasant or not, it is best to face the facts. SOUTH CAROLINA NEWS. .South Carolina Moftquito Fleet. Governor Ellerbe has been advised from Washington that it would be a good idea to have all the merchant vessels on the coast put under examination, with a view to forming them into a mosquito fleet to protect the small towns aloug the coast. The governor will do the best he can to .......... ah? iho i.omimmomlnlinn The W1IIJ UUl; Hiv vvvujuj\?v.m..w... ? governors of Virginia, North Caroliua, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi ami Texas, have been similarly advised. After the Lynchem. News and Courier, Saturday: A special dispatch received by The News and Courier last night stated that several arrests had been made at Florence of persons believed to have been participants in the murder of Postmaster Baker. It was feared that in the war excitement the pursuit and capture of the Lake City lynchers might be overlooked ; but the quiet work of the detectives is beginning to show results. It is hoped that every man connected with this atrocious crime will be caught and punished. Change of MarrthalMhip. News and Courier, Thursday : Marshal Lawson D. Melton took charge of his olhce yesterday. Mr. Jno. P. Hunter, who has served the government for more than four years with credit and ability, formally delivered the keys during the morning, and had everything turned over to his successor in shape to be started on the new quar- ' ter without the least delay or trouble. llfPlrt tif/\r? urno o f VtlC 1*1 il I Sliai VyJttJ bUU ?T t*o Mb uio desk immediately after the transfer, and will hereafter look after the big part of the office work. Mr. Paul Moore, who was in with the Hunter administration, has been reappointed, and he will render valued service to , Mr. Melton and bis deputies. It is understood that E. B. Sligh will be appointed chief field deputy. Mr. Hunter is preparing to return to his old i home at Lancaster, where he will continue to look after his farming inter- ] est. During his stay in Charleston, he made many warm friends, and they all 1 regretted to see him leave. Mr. Heury J. Hicl&on, Mr. Hunter's chief-field j deputy, will remain in Charleston. MURK-MENTION'. ! The work of stripping United States I warships of their woodwork, in order to i make them ready for battle, was in pro- < gress all last week. The committee i on naval appropriations, on last Friday, l reported a bill providing for an appropri- ' ation of ?2,.'$00,000. The house decided to < double the recommendation and made it < $4,000,000. The monitor Terror arrived < at Key West last Saturday night. A dozen or more representatives of Kngligh i and French banking houses in Cuba left ] Havana hurriedly on Saturday under or- i ders from their superiors at home. \ A Havana correspondent of the New : York Journal has been arrested and 1 thrown into Cabanas prison on the charge 1 of complicity in an attempt to blow up a 1 Spanish warship. The Hying squadron was still at Hampton roads on Mon- s nay, and the understanding was that it t would remain there for the present. t The New York legislature has appropria- \ led $1,000,000 to put the state on a war < footing. The state of Ohio is preparing i to do the same thing. Orders were i issued from Washington on .Saturday for t the wreckers to suspend their efforts to save any more of the contents of the < sunken battleship Maine. E LOCAL AFFAIRS. ? . t INDEX TO NEW ADVERTISEMENTS. a i. C. Strauss?Requires thespaee of three t columns to tell you about the portion of <i his stock of goods which has arrived. j irist Cousins?Talk to you about pearline, Heinz pickles, onions, new crop cab- ; bage, California oranges, buckwheat 1 dour, and hoecake soda. c Mrs. T. M. Dobson?Announces that mat ters in the spring millinery department t at her store are booming, and that she is prepared to supply the ladies with s hats of the most correct styles, trimmed a in the handsomest manner by Miss a Rhea, whose fame is not confined to this i immediate locality. ABOUT PEOPLE. The condition of Treasurer Neely is ilowly improving. He is now able to sit ip; but does not hope to get to work yet for several days. Columbia Slate: Mr. C. C. Garland, ivbo has for quite a long time been the 3fficient representative of the Columbia Water Power company in this city, leaves oday for Rock Hill, where he expects to remain for several months*. Mr. Garland ias during his residence in Columbia made many friends here. He took a ively interest in everything pertaining to ;he material advancement of the city. WAR VS. BUSINESS. Noting the tig piles of recently arrived ' boxes before the store of Mr. H. C. 1 Strauss during the hist few days, com- ' ineucing last Friday, and having heard that Mr. Strauss's recent talk had been ' construed in some quarters as meaning ' that he had come back from the north ' empty handed, the reporter had another talk with him. When told about the impression that had gotten out, Mr. ' Strauss said : "You reported me correctly in what I 1 ?aid ; but some people have read it wrong, ( that is all; but it don't make mucb diner- ' ance. They are getting straight. "You see I was not intending so much 1 to tell you about my stock, as I was to tell you about the panicky feeling that was prevailing in New York. But I did not get frightened and leave on Wednesday, like the other fellows I was telling you about. I did not leave until Friday, 1 and was gone as long as I often remain. "But I did not buy as many goods as I intended to. It is true that times are 1 hard this spring and money is scarce; 1 but all the same my own business has 1 grown wonderfully during the past year and it takes more goods than ever. As I told you before I left, I had made up my mind to buy a mucb larger stock of goods than ever before. I believed I would need them. If things had been in their normal condition, I would have ! bought twice as much as last year. But under the circumstances I deemed It best not to be in too big a hurry. I only bought about the same quantity of goods I had last spring, and as I said, madear- 1 rangements to get what else 1 might want as I need it. 1 "Oh! yes, I'll be there all right," Mr. Sirausssaid in conclusion. "My stock will do its own talking to ii large extent, and my prices will do the balance. Don't you worry yourself about any bad impressions, if you piease." The big stock of new goods that Mr. Strausss is packing away in his shelves and piling up on his counters is certainly not suggestive of a panic; but rather of a very optimistic view of the whole situation. SWEPT BY FLAMES. The town of Rock Hill sustained a terrible blow last Sunday morning. Fire broke out, it is thought, in a Negro barber shop at about 12.20 o'clock a. m., and within five hours afterward fully half the business part of the town, including sev- : eral of the largest mercbantile establish litems tit lite cuumy, wan iij tunics. The first news of the great disaster reached Yorkville at about 10 30, Sunday tit orning. The operator at Rock Hill Itad been working all the morning to get the news here; but for some unexplainable reason, no communication could begotten through until the hour named. Mr. H. H. Reard at once turned the message over to The Enquirer, and after it had been properly bulletined for the information of the people, a reporter set out for Rock Hill on a bicycle to get full imformation. It was about 12 o'clock when the re- i porter arrived. At that time the fire had already run its course, and the burned district was only a scene of crumbling ruins. Most of the citizens who had been fighting fire during the night had left the scene and returned home for a much needed rest. Rut already crowds of visi- i tors from Fort Mill, Charlotte, Pineville, > Leslie, Tirzah, Newport and other surrounding points, had begun to arrive on j bicycles and in horse conveyances, and the badly disordered streets were soon j crowded with strangers. Later in the day there was also a large number from York- i ville. 1 During the day, from different citizens of Rock Hill, and with the intelligent . assistance of The Enquirer's bright young correspondent, Mr. R. M. London, i the reporter managed to secure about as I complete and as correct a story of the " 'u'itli ita rlianQh'rvna CUIUIU^IUUWII, l?(gctubl "IVU tvo u.wukiwww results, as it is possible to present up to ! tbis time. The fire originated in a collar just underneath the New York Racket store; but just how is a matter of uncertainty. The facts are these. The cellar was divided into two compartments. In one was < a large quantity of wine belonging to the Morrison estate, and the other was occu- i pied by a Negro barber shop, run by Bob i Hope and Brown Workman. The barber i shop was a notorious loafing place for Negro idlers, especially at night, and the principal diversions were drinking, gain- < bling, and occasionally a little fighting. 1 It is a theory of some people that possibly I during the night a lamp was knocked 1 nver in the barber shop or a match was i thrown about carelessly; but as to this I nothing is known definitely. Those who i were about the shop at the time have 1 nothing to tell which throws any light 5 npon the matter, and there is no evidence. ' The only thing that is certain about the ( jrigin of the tire, is that it was discov- ? jred by Policeman Rivers at about 12.20 1 j'clock. * The alarm was given at once, and it .vas but a few minutes until the fire company was out in full force. Within a . ery few minutes more, the tire engine < vas down to business with a lively 1 stream; but already the flames were t jursting from the door of the New York i iacket store and the case was practically lopeless. i From the Kacket store tne names spread both ways with relentless certainty, u notwithstanding the utmost efforts of the c iremen and citizens generally. There vas plenty of water for the engine ; but > >n two or three occasions something got * vrong with the hose, and soon the tire I .vas so hot that the stream turned to steam t he instant it struck the tlame. c The proprietors of the different stores < sndangered soon realized that the destruction of their property was certain, s nd set themselves to work to save what t hey could. One and two horse wagons c ,nd buggies were brought into requisition, c he vehicles were loaded with all manner if goods and carried to places of more or c ess safety. Several of the big general i tores had just gotten in their goods, and c n some cases the packages had not been ipened. These packages, of course, were c >asy to remove without damage; but in t he case of many of the goods that were s aved and carried to backlots, the steal- t ige was on a large scale. The Negro, as ' i rule, is the best firemen in this section. < L'he better class fight like good fellows, < ind without even the hope of reward. 1 lut there is another class that looks upon < m occasion of this kind as one for good I itealing. Hundreds of Negroes were ob- I o?-fnrl uolontincr ahnM and clothing to f it and carrying them away. In the ex- ] iitement and demoralization, however, \ mch a thing as attempting an arrest was I lot thought of. I Along about 2 o'clock there was a ter- i ifie explosion. It is supposed to have :ome from the J. B. Johnson Company i Irug store, and the theory is that it was < hie to the combustion of gases of some I cind. At any rate the concussion was s ike a discharge of artillery, and the al- ; eady hot plate glass in the buildings on he opposite side of the street was shiver- I id to splinters. A number of people | ibout were badly cut with flying pieces >f glass. Among them were Captain A. i R. Hutchison, Messrs. C. J. Key, George I D. White, and a Negro woman. The woman was seriously hurt. Her scalp was . ut into, and it was with the greatest difficulty that the physicians kept her from bleeding to death. Another serious acci- , lent occurred to Mr. Fred D. Marshall, i who was run over by a runaway horse i ind badly bruised. Other explosions occurred in the A. E. Smith A Co. building and in Milling's und O'Neal's stores. The explosions in the A. E. Smith building were caused by about 10,000 military cartridges, and in the other two buildings by large quantities of fireworks left over from Christmas. After it was seen that the flames were getting beyond control, the Rock Hill people telegraphed to Charlotte and Chester for help. The Charlotte engine carne on a special train?but too late to be of service?and the Chester engine was stopped at the depot before it left that place. The fire continued to sweep all before it until about 5 o'clock a. m., when its progress was arrested at the store of Frew Bros. The building was separated from that of A. E. Smith & Co. by an alleyway some 10 feet wide. It was owing to this fortunate circumstance only that all the brick buildings on that side of the street were not destroyed. Although the flames did not cross the street, the buildings on that side did not escape unscathed. How plate and other glass windows and doors were broken by heat and the explosion has already been stated. Besides this, the metal coping woa multoil nff tliA front of the Roddev building, and the rosin was extracted from the woodwork of other buildings all along the line. The damage in this way was considerable; but fortunately it was fully covered by insurance. Following is a statement of the insurance carried by the different losers: W. L. Roddey?$5,000 on opera house, and $2,200 on ,J. B. Johnson Company d rug store. J. B. Johnson Company?$5,400 on stock. True A Klutz?$G,000 on stock. J. W. O'Neal?$1,200 on stock. Hugins A Co.?$2,100 on stock. Mrs. Minnie Ratterree A Co.?$000 on stock. A. J. Evans?$2,000 on stock and furniture. A. E. Smith A Co.?$2,000 on building and $10,000 on stock. R. T. Fewell A Co.?$3,800 on building and $17,000 on stock. George Beach?$500 on stock. C. S. May?$4,000 on stock. S. T. Frew A Co.?$750 on stock. C. W. Frew?$4,500 on stock. W. G. Reid A Son?$2,000 on stock. J. H. Milling?$1,000 on stock. A. Friedheitn A Bro.?$27,500 on stock and $12,500 on buildings. August Friedheitn A Co.?$7,500 on stock. Dr. I. Simpson A Son?$500 on office furniture. C. W. Frew?$1,500 on stock and $4,000 on building. John R. London?$2,000 on building. The Carolina hotel building was dam aged about $2,000. The loss is fully covered by insurance. A. H. Green & Son?damaged about $250. F. E. Brodie lost about ?125. Insurance 5300. Dr. J. M. Hunter and Dr. W. W. Fennel lost their oflice furniture, etc. No insurance. R. M. London sustained losses to his job printing plant. Covered by insurance. J. J. Hull lost about ?100 worth of uninsured printing material in the opera bouse. He also sustained damage in The Herald office ; but covered by insurance. The entire plant of the Rock Hill Messenger was destroyed and no insurance. A quantity of jewelry in Mr. George Beach's safe was damaged. Messrs. R. T. Fewell ?fe Co's. books and valuable papers were saved out of their vault intact. A. Friedbeim & Bro. were squally fortunate. From the best estimate the reporter is able to secure, the total loss foots up ibout ?175,000, and the insurance will be in the neighborhood of about ?110,000. The hist big fire that occurred in Rock Hill, previous to this, was in the spring )f 1887. It was at that time that ull of the large buildings on the opposite side of die street were swept away. Then all 1 losses were fully covered by insurance, or more nearly so than at present, and it was >. jut a short time until the burned build- < ng were replaced by others larger and < jetter. The result, no doubt, will be the tame again ; but this time the loss is leavier. in fact some 01 iue property >\vners are hard hit. But they will come igain. The business men of Rock Hill ' lave as much nerve, courage and grit, ' iiul enterprise as they ever had. ( A DANGEROUS CHARACTER. I The Negro Matt Byars, who plead guilty 1 >n Monday to aggravated assault and jattery and resisting arrest, and was sen- 1 enced to three months in the chaingang, ' s a dangerous character. 1 As many people remember, he was con- I ricted some years ago of the murder of IVm. Bradford, near Hickory Grove; but 1 ilterward secured a new trial and was ac- > juitted. 1 It was believed by some that the fellow i vas half wilted, and not responsible. He ,vas convicted principally on hisown eon- ] ession; but under the circumstances s here was reason for believing that the < confession was merely an idle boast, born s >f ignorance. ' Previous to his trial for murder, he had l loveral times been charged with house ireaking and larceny, and was subseIuently sent to the penitentiary for that dine, The fellow has been on the Chester ihaingang, and he is charged with a ininber of petty larceny offenses in this :oiinty. Mr. Hugh Jackson, of Clover, a few lays ago, told the reporter a story like his: While living in Bethel township lomelimeback, Byars was infatuated with i Negro woman who had a small child. Hie child was a source of discord. A ircus come along and the woman dedared her intention to go. Byars told lier she could go; but could not take the diild. She said she could not go without he child, anil Byars said be could fix hat. Next day, the story goes, a pistol <bot was hoard in the room occupied by Byars, and upon investigation the Negro was discovered with the dying child in tiis arms. lie said it was accident, and for some reason the matter was not fully investigated. Guard Gulp, of the chaingang force, ' remarked in the presence of the reporter :>n Monday night, that Byars had been talking about his most recent ottence and said that if he did not get more than a year for it, he would be well pleased. From all the information the reporter has of this Negro, he is an unusually dangerous menace to any community in which he is permitted to run at large, and in dealing with him the officers of the law have an especially grave responsibility. CIRCUIT COURT. The circuit court for York county convened in Yorkvilleon Monday, his honor fudge Klugh presiding, and after the reading of his honor's commission, at once got down to business. Of the grand jurors Mr. M. M. Wolfe was excused from further attendance on the present terin on account of serious illness. The new grand jury was then organized as follows: Geo. A. Cowan, foreman ; A. B. Curroucc, J. E. Clinton, Kelly Imnan, J. W. Dimlap, J. W. Leech, F. B. Black, John C. Robinson, If. M. Allison, VV. U. Rigger, J. Hope Adams, M. Hratton, R. L. Campbell, G. L. Suggs, A. J. M. Burns, R. L. Seogglns, G. M. Carroll. C. M. Whisonant was excused as a petit juror. The balance of the panel is as follows : M. J. Wallace, Sam Kennedy, D. J. Smith, R. L. Devinney, L. G. Wilson, W. McCnlp, D. L. Black, T. B. McClain, Jesse Moore, G. D. Flanagan, B. F. Scoggins, Robert Whisonant, C. C. Hoke, W. S. Alexander, W. J. Brison, W. C. Petty, W. T. M. Beard, T. B. Belk, S. T. Ferguson, J. W. Dobson, W. M. Carothers, F. A. Thomas, S. E. McFadden, M. L. Ford, J. B. Heath, R. K. Lowry, W. J. Waters, W. D. Moore, J. L. Williamson, J. A. Shillinglaw, T. M. Whisonant, D. M. Ford, Jr., J. H. Simril, J. C. McCarley, T. M. Dobson. The first true bill reported by the grand jury was against Joe Williams and Richard Gilson, charged with arson. The trial was set forWednesday. The case against Joshua Moore and Josiah Moore, indicted for assault and battery with intent to kill, was no] prossed by the solicitor. So also was the case against Bud Irwin and James Irwin, indicted for riot. Sheriff McConnell and Thomas Worthy were convicted of larceny. McConnell was sentenced to pay a fine of $10 or goto thechaingang for 20 days. Worthy was sentenced to pay a fine of $15 or go to the chaingang for 30 days. '* Jerry Rankin plead guilty to the charge of housebreaking and larceny and was sentenced to pay a fine of $15 or go to the chaingang for 30 days. In the case of Green McCluny, indicted for assault and battery with intent to kill and carrying concealed weapons, the grand jury returned a true bill on the j i j second CUUflU Luui/iuuy pieau kuiii; auu was sentenced to $15 or 30 days. Thomas McClure plead guilty of housebreaking and larceny and was sentenced to $3 or 10 days. One of the cases against Edward C. Caton, indicted for violation of the dispensary law, was nol prossed, and in the other case the defendant plead guilty. The court imposed a sentence of six months on the chaingang or $200 fine; but suspended the sentence until November?, 1898. In the meantime, Caton has been released on a $300 bond. Win, Byars, alias Matt Bvars, plead guilty to the charge of aggravated assault and batt ?ry and resisting an officer, and was sentenced to pay $25 or three months on the chaingang. James Bennett plead guilty to the charge of burglary and larceny and was sent to the chaingang for the period of 18 months. Demps Massey was convicted of burglary and larceny and sentenced to the penitentiary for five years. Hampton Mobley was convicted of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, and sentenced to the chaingang for 12 months or pay a fine of $100. John Ooley plead guilty of larceny and was sentenced to the chaingang for nine months. The case against Lowndes Jackson, indicted for assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, was nol prossed. Bud Apostle plead guilty of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, and was sentenced to $25 or three months. He paid the fine. Monroe Rawlinson was convicted of burglary and larceny and sentenced to the penitentiary for six years. The case against James Garrison, charged with violating the dispensary law, was nol prossed on condition that the defendant would leave the county when discharged from custody, in which tin iu homer Imlil on account of a charire of housebreaking and larceny. When the court adjourned for recess on Tuesday, it was engaged in the trial of Lucius Steele, Alex Lee and James Benson, charged with larceny. Steele had entered a plea of guilty. The jury went nut on the case of the other two. LOCAL LACONICS. So Sales. There were no auction sales last MonJay, salesday for April. \ Well-Known Citizen. Mr. J. A. Hope, a well-known citizen jf Sharon, died at his home yesterday of paralysis. He was aged about 70 years, i'erdict of Guilty. There is a little joke on the grand jury, instead of "true bill" on the tirst prcsentnent oil Monday, they wrote the endorselient "guilty." Until January lnt, 1890, For #1.42. Thk Twice-a-Week Enquirer, filled ,villi the best and most reliable up-to-date lews, will be furnished from the date of his issue until January 1st, 1899, for $1.42. for Three Mouths. People who are not able to take The IOnqitikkr for i? whole year, should subicrihe for three months. The price is >nly 50 cents. It is the only paper in this ection from which they can hope to (jet >oth the local and general news, rite Bicycle .Matter. The town council has the bicycle mat