THEBATESBURG AD V OC ATE ^ VOL 1. BATESBURGr, S. C. WEDNESDAY, JULY 3, 1901. NO. 25 Jj obk9i - ^s^bb^hhib WORK OF VANDALS. Raid cf 8harman's Army Told cy One of Them. A HORDE OF THIEVES. Letter Written by a L eutenant Just After Burning of Columbia Corroborative of Charges Made. To the Editor of The Stato: Below will bo fourd a copy of the original letter written by F-rst Lirn tenant Thcs Q. Mcyirs, of Gen. Sherman's army whioh counter marched to reach the goal of the' Secession State,'' which he cr ly did after h< mhardmg the capitol fr< m iLo heights of Losing on county, which aro in piain view fro the high points of this city, lyirg *'jnt ac.ro s the river " Upou ih* sc cl.?y hillp were pltii'ed the batteries, th? slieiln of which scarred the capitol, lion in courso of coo-truotitn, andsoum'ed the death knell, as it worv, to tho f?T city on the Cot garfc. This leiter j uts ti c cause of tho burirg of Co unibia whetc it properly belongs. ana places the responsibility upon Gen. 81v raian and bis sub offict rt who wrrc disguised an privates," at.d did the looting." In this connection I may Bay that this communication carries out the idea, so forciably advanced recently, bv Prof. Spabr and Col. J G Gibbos, who have translated and written up on tho tubjeot. Though the lcttor alluded to is from husbaul to wife, and sent "by flag of truoe," I trust 1 betray no oonfiieno', as the letter was picked up by an ol 1 southorn "nigger," and carried to h r "Missus," to know if it wis of value. It is by reason of groat courtesy that 1 have a copy of this letter, saved from tho ashos of Jacksonville, and per force, is of a private nature. There are thousands who havo never heard anything upon tho subject; so with graoious permission, 1 am permitted to givo this information which every true sympa thizcr of a ",'ost causo" will no doubt, appreciate. The information is from privato journah; to tho printing, for tale, of this article is strictly enjoined and all copyrights reserved. For obvious reasons some names arc omitted in the papers sent. 11 ;bert S Sparkman. Juno 22, 1801. February 26, 1865. My dear Wife: 1 hate no time for particulars. We have had a glorious timo in this State. Universal lioenso to burn and y lunder was tho order of the day. The ohivalry havo been stripped 1 q?. moBt of their valuables. Gold forks, eto.",' etc., a'rb a5,,,Dav..lP00Qrt> camp as black berries? The terms of plunder are as follows: The valuablos procured we estimate by oompanics. Each company is required to exhibit the result cf its operations at any given place. Oae-fifth and first choice falls to tho share of the commander in ohiof and staff, ono fifth to field cfficera of regiments, and three fifths to tho com pany. Offioers are not allowed to join iheae expeditions withcut disguising thems3lvi.s as privates. One of our oorps commanders borrowed a suit of rough clothes from ono of my men and was successful in this plaac; he got a largo quantity of silver, (among other things, an old time silver milk pitcher) and a very fine gold waech ftom a Mr. DeSaussure at this place. DeSaussure ib ono of the F. F. V.'s of South Carolina, and was made to ferk over liberally. Officers over the ra: k of captain are not made to put their plunder in the estimate for general distribution. This is very unfair, and for that reason in order to protect themselves, sub ordinate officers and privates keep back everything that they oan carry about their person, Huoh as rings, ear rings, breast pins, etc., of which, il ever I live to get home, 1 have atoul a quart? 1 am not joking?1 have at le-ast a quart of jewelry for you and all the girls, and some No. 1 diamond rings and pits among them. lieu. Sherman las silver and gold enough to start a bank. 11 is share in gold watches and ct ains alone, at Co iurnbia. was two hunarcd arid stvettyfiv'o (275); but 1 said 1 cou.d not go into ptrUtUifciS. Ah tl e- ge neral office is and mtDy j rivites had lt>s or every doto.ip i< u, even io ladus cm r. inertd pocket hinucio: ieI - (I havo u.y eh .re of them t< o ) W u tuck gold and i.ve; enougu rr. m the a d rebels io have nuociut - their infe i ^l ourr< u.y tw e over. Ttiis, ( he cuireicj) wl.e cv r We come acr s it we buru i? v o c n siele-r it utter.y wor.h.ess. 1 wish nil the jo achy ti.ts a: ui has could o car ritu to the eld lt?> S aio, u would u.c< her out in gioiie u-i etjlc, hut a'asl it will bo tea ti red ail ov< r the uort h &i d middle States. 'loco i nogrouias atuic p...iir to slay at heui , panivu laiiy alter thoy louud out mat we omy wanted the utile he duel men, (and to tell you the nut , the )iu g< si ar u best locking wooer.) Sunutiuirs wo tako e ff whuiei famines ai d piania.ion.i of neg.ots by way ol re pay i g thu secession.sis; but the uie.es part o*' th< hj we s.ion icq cam ie ir. ! tim jb in erasing nvi ri?sou. times in other waye. I bha i * rite to you agfliu from Wilmington, Guhuboro, or homo other plaoo in North Carolina. The . order to inarch has arrived and I n ti .t oloso hurriealy. Love to grant mother and Aunt Charlotto. Take oaro of youis-4 and the ohildrcn. Do not show this letter out of tho family. Your affcctiona'o husband, 1 hos. Q. Meyers, Lieut., cte P. S.?1 will send this by llag of truoo to bo mailed unloss I have a ohanoo of sending it to Hilton Head. Tell Sadio 1 am saving a pearl bracelet and oarrings for her, but Lambert got tho necklace and breast pin of tho saiuo not. I am trying to trade him out of thorn. '1 hoHO were taken Iroui tho MiBBca Jatniscn, daughters of tho president of tho South (Jarolica Hcoession oonvontion. Wo found thorn on our trip through Georgia. Tho forogoing is a oopy of a letter found by Miss Plorido Cantcy, of Camdon, at tho Y'aukcc camp, near that oity. It is directed to Mrs. Q Moyors, Boston, Mass., and oorroboratos what was beliovod at tho time, that officers woto citizens' and privates' dress, in order to rob without comprising their Bhoutdcr straps. The following is a letter from Miss Floride Cantcy, now tho wife of tho Kov. Mr. Johnson, rootor of St. Pnilip's church, Charleston, S. C., written to her son, Mr Jos Johnson, whoonquircd of her concerning tho authenticity of tho aforesaid lotter. All these arc in the possession of, and form part of tho journal, of Miss Grace Ktmore, which sho kopt during theso troublous timoB. Charleston, March 29th, 1899. My D^ar Son: Tho letter you wrote of was writcn by one of Shorman's soldiers, atd picked up near our old* home (Uobkiik Hill.) Tho letter was slightly damp from lying on tho ground when brought to mo by a negro woman who had picked it up. This woman had always been consicercd a quiet, good woman, not remarkably bright, and couid not r,S us^ura's nomc: it was the only piioj lakin, as it was left out by mistake when iho real of tho family stiver was oonoealed. Tho letter was I rimed iu the Camicn newspaper, but it has never beeu returned to my possession. 1 would bo glad to have it tow, or at leas: a copy of it. This negro women had been a slave of your grandmother's, and acted then and af terwaids, as it she still bore allegiance to h.r, and you, 1 think, rtiuoujhcr her as she nursed your sister, yoursuif and little John. She was named Cmca, and wa ill d to go wiih us to Charleston, but lur mother was old and feeble and wanted her to stay ia Camicn. la my own mind and that of my family there iB not a doubt of the letter boiog au theutio. I enjoyed your letter, and will write 60014 My love to my oousins in tho house. Your affectionate Mother. WRECKED IN A FOG Ship Sank and Passengers Became Panic Stricken The Orient Stcaui Navigation Company's steamer hnsitania, Captain MoNay, from L iverpool, June IS, off Montreal, having 300 passengers on board, was wreaked Wednesday oight off Cape Bollard. No lo3s of life 00ourred. All the passongors wero rescued. Tho Lusttania was bound round Cape Race for Montreal, with a largo oargo and a ship load of passengers. She mistook her coorde in a dense fog an d miles Lorth of Cape liaoo, before (lay break. The ship ran over a reef and hangs against a cliff. Tho passongers, who are mostly emigrants, wore panic stricken. They Biampoded and fought tor tho boats, and they were overcome by the officers and orcw, who aeoured control after great trouble and a pro lonecd Btrugglo with the rougher olomcnt am org the passengers, who used knives. Tho wouicu and children were brat landed and tho men followed. Tho crew stood b> tho ship. The passengers of the Lusitania had a terrible cxpcricnoo. Tho first knowledge which thoy had of the disaster was wheD, owing to the ship rasping over the rocks, thoy wero all hurled from their berths. Many of them wore bruised and they all hurried on deck in the ir night cloths. A socne of great exciieuicr.t ensued. F.vo hundred persons were clamoring ti oscapo whiio tho crew triei to pacify them and launch tho boats. The male passengers, iu their attempt to se:>3 tho boats, trampled tho women under foot and fought the crew with knives. Sumo of t e more cool headed ol tho passengers assisted the crew in their efforts to get out the busts. The women and children reecnod were almost naked. D.caohcd with spray, tl.cy were puled up the cliffs by the coast people. Seme of tho boats were demolished in the suif while attiuiptug tola', d arm their half drowned occupants h Id on to rocks shivering with the cold until r. bju d. This moruiug ihe unhappy passengers, after bhmrii.g for hours on the iii.1 top, tramped t Vor weary mil s in bur i udcavor to r?.aoh ttio h >use > I il c ii htruic. , wiit-re they arc cjw shtlur ed Previous to reaching tl e cliffi, tho l ass u. eib pa ted ivo hours ? t ic.'rib.o ;? xitiy on ti:o wrevik the suauier Gicbcoc, blitzing tho Lusitauias ^a-i cig I.-, wa-. due litre W vimBusy eight. ia< uji Bscnger who nought the news of vt v niiun iu iji 'lojuii i a a me passeug rs ijU liOtt:d ti.e Lusiiau a dr w Kit ir aiilVve lo cut die boat lashings atd iLria' tied tho c cw of the oiotnicr v?lieu u.ey thoughttho la ttr attempted to iotoifire VtiUi ti.cui in to doing. The Lst mcsrago to the stents of tho Lu:-i.auia litre enys tho vessel is liard ci.d ti; in agri ut d on iho reef ?:.d a hOpOkbS Wii.th. Postofliccs Washed Away. Official aJviot8 to llto postufiice do par.mont show that tbo break on tho Virginia aD nohburg, of the railroad mail service, have gone to the flood district to mike a report on the situation aud uecd in a postal way. Tho postmaster at Cedar Bind Va., wired Wodntsdty that the money oidor fundi, forms, blanks and stamps, together With transit mail from Paiut Lick, Va., wcro swept away by the flood. Cedar Bluff is on tho Clinch Valley division of the Norfolkand Western railroad, in Taziwcll couoty. Tho poe? in istor at Eniiis, Va., also reports his uffi:o swept away. Tho first action of tho po.itcfficc department in furnishing emergency mail sorvioo into tho flood distrmt was taken Wednesday when Assistant Postmaster General Shallcnbcrger au.horized the establishment of a special service to Duhring, via Branwcll and Freeman. IN WAKE OF FLOOD. T The Wreck of Railroads and Bridges Were Complete. ol 01 L GREAT" LOSS TO MINES. m v r< No Ccke Can be Handled for ol Wetks Whisk?y Courage bi ol Caused Loss of 8av- w 9! rai Lives. B( The damage in tbe coal Gelds begins ('<( at Colo 1)a1o, which is 15 miles g west of B.acGcld. At that Dlaoe creat ro embankments supportirg tbo railroad w track have boon washed out. At May berry, from thr; train can bo c; seen fivo homos upset and partially ec demolished. The branch road leading ra from this point to tbo Norf Ik ard ^ Doha collieries has sustained heavy l; damage; the track is wasbod cut in pi Bomo p aocs and covered over in other?, u and tho'-o lott of the lor g row of vaiu ai able company bouses have an unsightly w a;>pcarano6 on acoonnt of material fr washed in their yards. ti Tbo lo'-H here and at L:ek Branch is u $15,0(10. At Lkk Branch the water wa- o very high, and at this plao: d imago to t| tho mam line of railroad begins, ard ex dcHtructron cf coal company property iaorta?c8. c( At E .nis oan bo Been tho remsins of ti a valuable house, and on d :wn below, n, lumber from many buildings is col sc he ed high against bridgo abutments and othor unuiovable structures. At w this plaoo tho cast bounJ track begins ft to cr tirely disappear and al some dis j3 tacco further tho roadbed is entirely g| gono from both traoks. b Tho iron bridgo structures still re- ft main but the a| proaches to eiili.r end j}, in most all oases havo been entirely a washed away, by reason of lumber from demolished houses and other material w being wedged against tho abutments v< causing tho water to flow around. All rc wooden bridges aro gone. Tho Turkey ti (tap ooileries'loss is $20,000, the tip i; pie is slightly damaged and tho ooko rt traoks gone. js Tho delivery and coke oven tracks of the Crcz r and Houston operations aro p most entirely gone. Bridgos and all a] oars aro turned over empty and partially tt loaded, and somoaro demolished. Tho Q Crozer boiler house is wabhed out and e( the damage sustained is $25,000. 8t Tho damage at Houston is $15,000. tI At tho Upland oompany the boiler n house and tipple is partially washed a] away. Along here the camp houses J have betn moved and* destroyed. Bo- bi f re r n n t Kin nn/tt of inn on^ ?!' unvvu butsj V|iw.?.?iwM ai4 ^ ? l'?*i y damaged, nearly over;thing having exchanged position with Lw^\^rftforA!i?^a^^top^V5AWt0&i:S I making and riprapping tver since the high water of 181)7, havo been levelled. Q1 All operations havo had heavy lots and . weeks will have passed before they oan ^ work again to advantage. &I Heavy damage was done at L;nob- ^ burg operations, mostly to tho tracks. Up north Fork branoh a ruiucd house can bo seen, besides a lot of building Q| material whieh was lodged against w North Fork bridgo. Tho water has changed its course at tLis biidgo by re moving the embankment at the east approach. Tho North Fork operations ai all sustained considerable damage. I Algoma lost Iiouscb and tracks and ^ no reasonable estimate can yet be made, K kridgo lost a number of houses, coke t> ovenB and trestles. Tho power house Jjj and their traoks were washed out. Tho tipple is also damaged; loss (20,000. . Greenbrier lost a number of houses and their tracks were damaged. At Kolfo tho tipplo and trestle were ^ damaged. j At lioanoko tho damage to houses, c] trestles and traoks will amount to (7,- # 500. j At Arlington bridges are gono above ^ and below iho tipple and tho loss is estimated at (10,000. At McDowell the traoks aro washed } out and houses destroyed. Gilliams loss is heavy in email (i houses. Indian Ridge lost a number of houses , and the.r storehouses was damagtd Dr. Wotkmans house and office wore ( wahtd away, loss (12 000. AOiianiis tost bo.Acuu lig'it ard ton thousand. Ujit.m creek lj^t (25,000. c i ideAa'.cr lest Le?vily. At Keystone tic streets aro waslu d L, itrcgular aau debris is everyw..uio; h flocr-iof ti c but.ding si nding are oov ^ crcQ with milj nuti walir has bei n ail v v^r the lowu to a CjD->iuCrabio dej'.'i. Ma iug a divo in tho swift water jast as Lookwook was sinking from view. " Mauy similar rescues were made. * Bight bocics havo been fouud bctwicu * Burke and Bikuiau. There is no doubt that many lost their lives through nior* Dl prijscts and from being intoxicated. 01 Uric white man got on a section of side walk and loft town with his arms folded 11 romancing inat no wan going aowa bolow to find out how ovcrythiug wan. Ilia body waa recovered afterwards. Tho loss ai L'ocrUaj ia estimated at tc 30,000 and at Sbawnco at 30,000. ni jfl "How to lvcop Cool" reoipca aro tho re ordor of tho day, and liko a certain w other loDg nought, remedy, have never c jot proved efficacious. Candidly- if a ji Lull bo permitted?tho only way to oi koop oool is not to try. y< THE CRO? OUTLOOK he Weather Condition! Last Week Were Unfavorable. Below is givon the weekly bulletin 1 the condition of the weather and ropa in tbo State iasuod last week by 'ircotor Bauer of the South Carolina motion of the olimaic and crop aerioe of the United StnUa weather bu;?u. It is of spcoial interest in viow 1 tbo gloomy views of tho farmers: The week ending Monday, Juno '24th, ad nearly normal temperature, and OHcd with extremely hot woather, ith maximum tomperaturcs between ?. 1 1AA A ?: - - # ? j uuu ivv. n. minimum 01 oi was OD:iv?d at Spartanburg on tho 18.h. horo was loss than tho usual amount f buoFhino over a largo portion of tbe tato, but generally it was about nori&l. There was a sevcro hail and ind storm in Lexington county on 10 22d. The rains of tho wet k wero local in araoior, bu: were the hcaviost ci tho asou at a few points, 'i ho bravest das occurred gcncra'ly io the Nor h arclina herder cunt cs, where hot 111 lends vv.ro fl odid for tho tilth uio litis year. Cultivation mado good rs gross iu tho oon.-ral and southeast j counti a, tu". oven there loviands 0 still loo wet to I low, while olrohero plowing was practicable o;i oulj oui o- e to three d *ys, and fields oonuuo to bo foul with grass and weeds, t p.iicjs, to su.'h an extint that both ru aud cotton havo been abandoned, id lev land oats havo bccu out and ired for hay on accouat of the grass. Cotton improved blighty where it lU il to wuked, but tho plants oonuuo to bo uas; asouably small, and uoh cf it is yellow. 8omo ooiton is ;aidcd and liao are still in evidence, though Io--h numerous than last crk. Ohoppit g is n ot finished. Mary aid i ase s'lll gr;-s'y aud much cotton being destroyed i 1 oletaiog it of asj and weeds. Some fields havo sen abandoned on acaouat of their iul condition and scarcity of laborers. island made a decided improve tent. Upland oorn lookB well wfccrc it was orked, bat inuoh looks yellow and is :ry small, while lowland oorn is iritricvably injured by excess of mois iro and lajk of proper cultivation, jttoms h*v s not all bico planted or iplantcd. Corn is tassoling low and 1 unpromising generally. Tobaoco is icing cut aud ourod in loroncc county; it is small and poor in I sections, but has improved daring io week. liico is exoollent in the harloston and Williamsburg districts, >mo was damaged by ovorflows and ctpcuaub naiur iu IQO VJ9HOIOQ Gibiot, whilo iu the Georgetown disicts froshcts injured it, and only oout one-fourth the usual amount ot uue rice could bo planted. Wheat uvest ia nearly finished, and l&tof heat was poor owiog to ru9t and j :ab. Oats about harvested. Both rains are sprouting irv the sh^ek to | itW goncralfy goo*S jiclSs. \ Sweet po'ato slips are Htill beting setlt. Somo peas havo boon planted. In laccs melons are blighting, butt a gon-al improvement is noted. Peaches '0 rottcumg extensively as they ripen, poles ooutinuo to drop. Wild plums and berries are plentiful A continuation of dry weather is ceded to improve crop prospeots hioh are still vtry unfavorable. A Little Boy Killed. The Columbia State sajs a deplorable scident ooeurred at the Kpworth erhanage during tbo storm of Wcdnesly afternoon. An old oow shed was town to tho ground, killing one little illow outright and wounding two hers The boys ?nino in number -were in the orohaid gathering lums. Overtaken by tho rain toy want under a ncarb? cowshed igcthcr with two negro men, a half ozen cows and two horBcs. Tho old led was un&blo to withstand tho in'casing forco of the wind and soon after ill with a crash. As soon as tho neroos could disentargle themselves tho rcckcgo was removed. Charlie Slaok as fou^d lying on h?s left side pinned ) the ground by a heavy sill which had -ushcu hu skuil. There were several tuiscs en his body aud his log was ivken. Leo White hsd a long ga h j *n the Lrohcad and iaco to his lip, ociDg out to the bono, and John H. Araer t ai his right elbow disiocatvd. he a^es el iho ujurcd boys were i), 6 cd Id y ars rospeouvciy. The little >,!??- in .rill Ir ? . I I' I : - <-? - ..... ...v nun lll'.u, VliiaillU l"> 9JH, iiao to lacoipnaoago abi u< tbrcc auu a a.l yearn a^o. tiis t jrmur home was in iufcaOj wiure ho auu liss oidcr iroiiici v. a up ;o ilio i.uie of meir iaiutr's eath. Killed Willi an Axe. Jl .v. I'a.i oK Cuauiaoro, one of the 1 Jal pl'dU UtiDt CKlZ.Ub of lilti Holly j>riubs lciuioa, Oojugo County, had im iro . thj cfi-ots of a blow ro JiVtU at tho haontt ol his t?OU lb-law, Uu llaaoh, several da^s ago, with au aj. Aii ihu tfoucio, ii is eaiu was >o ea uy llaacii bet providing lor hio iv . ladiuy. tio iiv.H ai mo homo oi L'. Chamt) rd will) told llill) ho ought > got to woik aid make a living lor ih l'amiiy, lloaoii becjmj fuiious, seifed li axe, and deal*. a deadly blow no the -iuo oi u hack of ibo left car. Ir. l/h^mbi n is v loader of his acolioa, jet t.i and ivsp. c.od. 11 aou has boon i lieuc bolero, his father in law al ayti oi wiug to lui rescue, trying to iako something out o hi ji. Killed by Lightning. A great many wore persona sooms to 0 kiuvd now by lightning thau formerW I.lie stacking wheat on his farm, x in ilea south of 1'iedwount, Ala., on >'ouiioaday. Hubert Coo? aad his Son ero btruek by lightning and instantly ilied While working in a field in ucoln county, Nor.h Carolina, Wod ssday atturnoon, William Huss and no son were instantly killed, and lothor son probably fatally iojurod by ghtning. A Long Sentence. One ol the longest and diroot sen mocscver pronounced upon a or i mini is probably oomained in tho docis>n oi a J udgc in Naples, who infiiotcd iconlly upon an Italian adventurer, no plcadod guilty to and was eonvict1 oi sixty four soparato forgcrios. The idge figured up tho pcnaltios and offially sentenced tho prisonor to 1,088 oars of solitary confinement. ft selling ihoir children for bread, and tho h rrors of cannibalism. Such is tho awful p'o.urj that has rootuiiy been bt ought lo tho attention of tho world fr.>ui boyoad the mouutaias' whiih oncloso tho provinces of Sh&nsi and Shonsi, ia China. Tho first br^tk in tho ailcnoo of do si air, the first signal of distress from tho millions of starving in their isolation csmo in tho form of a cablegram to America from Li Hung Chang, Chinas "Grand Old Man,"?the B;sma ck of Asia. Tlic ca legnm in itself was a strange thing For the first time in that long history wbioh began iu 'ho dawn of lime, China was appealing for aid to the newer world bcyoudthe Great Wall and the great sea N.ver before had tho l:ko occurred. Calamities and wars and pestilences thcro havo been in China during tho loDg, monotonous dynasties, but none that she o jntidered impossible of relief from resouroas within her own borders. All the traditions of her past, ail preoedent and religion, wire opposed to a plea for aid from a foreign power. S?d, indeed, must bo tho plight of tho 2(1,00(1,000, when Li Huns: Chang says to Christian Amerioa: '"Help, or we perish!'' '"Very serioui famine," Karl L; cabled; "spreads over whole province of Shansi. Over 11,000,000 population atfeotcd. Urgent relief ncoessary. Condition wairant immediate appeal." Wu Ting Fang, Chinese minister to tho Unites Siatos, supplemented tho vioeroy'e words with an urgent messago of his own, and forwarded a translation of tho following touohing appeal from the governor and nativo relief committeo of Shansi: , "To Qur Own People and Foreigners: I "This time the famine is moro sorilous than ever, because iu the north are ,'thc allied troops, and in the south we | have several places in rebellion. China I ?o ?o*j- ptur now, and tho people aro in I such a siraightoaod poiiiion that no very Dig assistance can bo cxpooled from them. Since nioro than several months now, the famine has boon beginning in places in this province.' In some villages they are eating human flesh. "All our brothers in the world should bo very sorry for U6, and should know how unfortunato wo are. Wo wish all our people to share somoof your money whioh you spend amusing yourselves, and for traveling, and for dressing and for all kinds of oomforts, to rescue these poor people. It is much better to bave the starving and dying men, women and ohildren hero, than to build a pagoda or tcmplo, or even a ohuroh? because from ten to twelve million people are suffering to death." The two provinces ol Shansi and Shcnsi arc side by side in tho northern part of the Chinese empire, 600 miles trom the sea coast, tiic.r combined area of 107,000 square miles, about that of the .New England States with New York and Pennsylvania; yet, crowded into this small territory arc 110,000,000 human beings, more than one-quarter the entire po| ulaiion ol tho United States. Shansi and Shensi wore onoo beautiful and fruitful. They are mountainous and.iurrowcd by pioture&que valleys. in fact, a literal translation of Stiansi would xe>n "Mountains of the East." For sectaries before western history btgan, tho aenso population cultivated rice on tho terraces on the hi-lsiuoa. S.ianbi is old ever for China. Its principal city, Tai yucn, was the capital ol tho empire wiu.ii Pokin ?ai utw. l.s people were simple, coutonted and pewCvaoio. l>uring the last dcoadc Kuropi an and American civil.z ?tion lias cr.vou an uu uriiig Wcdie luto cite prejudices and bUpi r-ititions of tho mountain prov>uces. Especially was this true ol snan.)i, the nearer of tnc two to the sea coast. Until recently it was tho scene ol tho lbDors k f more than 181) mission alios. Ageuts ol foreign li.ms in Hong Kong ai.u Shanghai nave crossed tiie inouutain passes, and have made a beginning in what will some day be uauouoiculy a large import trade with tho farmers tf tno t' Traced valleys. There are comparatively tew streams in the two provinces, and water tor the r._U . : . - - > -> ? iiuu uuiui 1.-1 iicq uy irrigating been ru .ro quick and goner*, ui than to any previous oalie on the genortsity of Auieri oans. Oao of the first contributions was from President McKiulcy, who, from his special oar oo his jouraey across the continent, telegraphed Lis oomribution along with thai of Mr. John lliy, secretary of sia'.e. A1 read (20,000 havo been oablcd to tho Kelief committee of five mission aries in Tientsin. Tho obitaeies which ltd some persons in this country to fear that tho distribution of fsmiue ro lief in Chica would be a diflicalt ta k have molted away. Shansi's De w governor is a very pro gressivo Chinaman. Ho is a friend of the foreginors, and he recently sent an cffijial csoott to Pekin to conduct the missionaries back to Tai-Yen-Fa. Shcnsi, too, has boon found to bo quite as aooessibio for relief operations as any other part of the empire. TheBO arc tho days when eleotrioity and steam arc knitting tho world to golhor. (20,000 can now be sent from Now York to China almost as easily as to Pmladelphia. While you are reading this a flotilla of small juDks and river boats is prob ably well on its way up tho Yang-tBe river. The flotilla is ladon with tons of rioo. it will follow its windings to ward the southern borders of the two provinoes, and then oontinue up the river Han to a point where its oargo will bo loaded on wagon trains and oarried far into the interior. Thou sands of livos will bo saved, and, as Wu Ting Fangrcocntly put it, "Tho n'-ot w 11 go a long way toward help ing iqo ^ninoso to roalizj the foreignere are not their enemies?"""" Yes, $20,000 will go a long wav in Shansi and Shensi, bat after alL it ia only a beginning. A great deal more is needed before the shadow can be liftod from over the desert valleys. A fund is now boing raised whioh it is hoped may rival the hundreds of thousands oontribated for India. Crushed, heartbroken China today looks to America as her boat friend. There is something pathetic in Li Hung Chang's selection of this oountry for his appeal. Li Hung Chang was tho friend of Qen. Grant. By his instructions, the Chinoee minister every memorial day lays a wreath on the tomb on River side Drive. Li Hung Chang made to us the first admission of his country's suffering. Shall his apporl be in vain? Will tho countrymen of U. 3. Grant givo no heed? No, as Dr. Louis Klopsch says, in a liitlo pauiphlot just issued by the relief fand: " "Lot the dead past bury its dead.' Thcso peoplo, though their skin bo yol low, though their customs be strange, though they live in a different olimc, though they have orrod, and grievously erred, yet arc they our brethren, and we will not desert them in this hour of terrible affliction and distress. "They shall not die if we can prevent it. Their children shall not bo sold for food, for to them they are as dear as our own prattling babes are to us; they thai! not starve, soeiug that (Ld has g:veu us enough and to spare. Out oi our abundance will we assist them, aud, God helping us, wo will do to them as wo wouid, under similar conditions, have them do to us, and thus reducing he Go.den itule to practice, we win give tiicui bread to the (uil tx tent of our individual ability." Saying lives in North China is not an expensive process. Ten Amerioan Cents will pay tho expenses of a small family tor a day and twt a y cents will save a hfo for a week. A dollar is all that is needed to maintain a iamily of five for a wotk and $100 will ktep alive a good siz.d village. All contributions towards this destiving oauso should ho addressed to the Ciitna Famine Belief fund, caro i'no Christian Herald, Biblo House, Now Yoik. A Fatal Collision. A collision occurred on one of the streets of Montgomery, Ala., Wednesday afternoon between a trolley car and hoao cart oaused the death of ouo man and four wero injured. 1 ho tiremcn wore responding to an alarm of fire and were crossing the railroad track when tho hose carriage was struok by tho oar. The strcot had recently been graded at that point and the out was of sucn a nature that noithor party could seo tho other uutil too lato to stop. Tho hose carnage was totally demolished and tho front end of tho oar badly brokon. Tho conductor and motormen wore arrested. A Careless Engineer. A freight of tho Seaboard Air Lino ran into a freight of the .Plant system at the crossing at Bladon, (la., Wednesday morning. It is tho law in Georgia that all trains shall stop at orossing9. From tho ovidenoo it soem9 that 11. E. Bradford, engineer of the Seaboard train failed to stop his train. A crash was the roRult. Bradford was seriously injured and his fireman, Robert Simms, was instantly killod. Nobody on the l'lant system train was hurt. Several cart woro smashed and the Seaboard onginc was wrecked. THE CROP OUTLOOK. y On the Whole the General Condition is Better- C The growing ootton orop made fair progress the last week and is doing well except in the Atlantio States, where exoebsive moisture and laok of _ cultivation havo kept its condition low, " but in those seotions, the orop looks woll. In the oentral and western districts squares are forming and blooms ' have been noted as far north as Missouri, while in southwestern Texts pioking has begun. West of the Mississippi droughty conditions prevail that will soon injure the prospects unless relieved bv rain. Lioo aro causing some apprehension in the Atlantic States, and the boll weevil . ia Texas has caused damage looally. * On the whole, the orop is in a fairly ?| promising oondition. , lu North Carolina frequent showers , with oiouly, cool weataer prevailed uunug Hit) WCOK J'JSC ptSSOl. UltluB ~ ocotirrod at somo place or othor in the Sia;e ou every day of the week, and were quite heavy on the 21st and night . of tho 24 .h, oausiug freshets in the smiller streams; but generally tho a rains were looal in character, and over many oouoties there wera favorable > opportunities for farm work. Cotton id making very slow growth, but looks * well > cultivated fiolde-; grass oontin g uort to bo troublesome; in some coun- j tics lioo have appeared on cotton. ^ Soma early planted cotton is beginning to lorui aquares. in Sou leepers and the private oar of General 'uporintendent Jotter of the Iron louniain railway. Having left this ity ono hour late the train was spaed- k ng westward at a high rate when at a J 01 n i nine miles west the engine lunged through a trestle which had J? eon undermined by the reoent heavy ains. The embankment on both sideB f the little Btream dropped at a sharp egree a distance of forty feot. Owing o the momentum of the train the en- t?| ine appeared to leap noarly aoross the mbankment, plunged into the soft arth on the opposite side and fell baok o the bottom. Kngineer Butler and 'ireman Adams wore thrown from the ab but not seriously hurt. The exreas oar and the first obair oar were slesoopad. The emigrant oar followed y two chair cars went down on the sft side ot the track and the first leoper pitched forward upon the mass f debris, its windows and trucks rero broken, but none of the occuants were irjurei. The remaining ars also left their truoks, but were not adly damaged. It was in the emirant and day ooaohes that most of the eaths and icjuries ooourrod. There was absolutetly no means by rhioh the engine orew oould see the [upending danger; in faot, the engine an out upon the trestle bofore the truoture gave way. The night was intensely dark. For few minuteB after the fatal plunge nd dreadful roar of crashing timbers, deathly stillness prevailed, whioh ras only broken by the ories of the inured. Trainmen caugh^i^hni^an^^^^^^^^^l ems rushed arm houses for assistance. rs, with their wives and ohi?J[*riatearing torches, - hastened to the s^Man. H U1 efforts were bont to giving ilrst id to the injured. Telephone mesages were dispatohed to this oity and very physician was horriedly taken I o a speoial train whioh carried them 1 o the soene. The injured were plaood J bout on oots and evervthinc nonnihlA ' - a r- ?* one to meliorate their coadition. For time after the reeoarera reaohd the soene of the wreck little oould o done in the way of moving the oad. Hundred of tona of twisted iron nd broken timbers rested upon the J ar where the unfortunate emigrants rere orushed. By moans of wrecking derricks the lass was gradually oponed and by ylight nearly all the dead had been amoved to the oity. The Deadly Lightning. The storm whioh struck Pitsburg and icinity Wednesday afternoon was hort in duration, but terrific in power nd disastrous in effect. The lightning nd thundor was practically continuous or about thirty mniutes, the wind atfining a velocity of thirty miles an our and 4G inches of rain fell. The ^ amperature fell 24 degrees within an our. One woman was kill ad instantly y lightning and sjveral other persons lay die from tho same cause, numberass houses and ohurohe9 were struck by ightuing and several pionio parties rera panicstricksn. At SoUih Avenue ark, a pionio party, oomposed of 1,200 arsons, 700 oi wnom were children, athored m the dancing pavilion for beltor from the storm. Lightning truck a tree within eight feet of the lavtlion and set fire to tbe btruoture. .'he picmokers wore panio stricken, romon lainied, ohiidrens oreamcds nd oventne men in the party avo way to their fright. Fortuatoly he heavy rain eziioguisned the tLmas nd alihOQgh a large numoer of the tarty were more or less hurt, in the tamo, none were seriously injured. A imilar panio ensued at St. Joseph's taroohial school, on Mouat Oliver, mere commencement exercises ware ioiog held. Tho hall was filled with children and their parents when lightning truck the building, toaring a portion >f thu roof away. No fatalities rosultd. Jumps from Steamship. Tho oaptain of tho Anohor Line tearner Furnessia, from New lork, v. ^ lune 15, whioh arrived at Glasgow, Vodnosday, reports that Richard Vftlkft- A ItWVOr of Vifflrinia ivcrboard from the steamer Jane 20 ,nd wan drowned. A uipatoh says tiohard Waikc was a resident of Norfolk >nd ono of the most distinguished lawyers of the State of Virginia. Ho loaves i wife and four daughters. The widow >f Commodore Truexton is his sister. Jo was aioompanied on the trip to Europe by his wife and a gontleman riend. His death is the rosult of his .hird attempt to end his life in reoent rears, and ho is the third of his family o die by their own hands within the ^ast three yoars. la 1899 Henry Walke, lis brothor, shot himself in Brooklyn while on a visit to that oity. Littleton T. Walko, son of Riohard Walke, itabbod himself to death in his room it the University of Virginia recently. A Goorgia editor says if any farmer lets the woods grow while it rains, and, does not work fast and continuously while the sun shines he is going to find farming a failure next autumn. -> Idfig This is a good lime of tho year to use whitewash on fenees. :