University of South Carolina Libraries
1 he 'DO THOU LIBERTY. GREAT. INSPIRE OUR SOULS AND MAIS OUR L1V?3 IN THY POSSESSION HAPPY. OR OUR DEATHS GLORIOUS IN THY CAUSE." VOI^IX. BENNETSV1XLE, S. C., FRIDAY, JUNE'24, I904 Six Hundre In Fire i On Burning Steamer at New York They Perished. MANY CHILDREN VICTIMS Although the Steamer Was Not Far From Shore, Fire and Wave, in Few Minutes Claimed Many. One of the most appalling disasters in the history of New York, tragic in its immensity, dramatic in its episodes and deeply pathetic in the tender age of most of the victims, took place Wednesday in the East r.ver at the entrance to Long Island sound, within a short distance of the New York shore and within sight of thousands of persons, the majority of whom were powerless to minimize the extent of the catastrophe. By the burning to the water's edge of the Gen. Slocum, three-decked ex cursion steamer, the largest in these waters, more than OOO persons, the majority of whom were womer; and children, were humed to death or drowned by jumping overboard ur by being thrown into thc whirl po- >1 by the lurching of tire vessel and the frantic rush of thc panic-stricken passengers. It is the season of Sunday school excursions in New York bay and Long Island sound, the latter one ol the most picturesque bodies of waler in the country. Great preparation;-- had been made for the 17th annual excur sion of the Sunday school of St. M trk's German Lutheran church thc congre galion of which is drawn from the deose population of the lower east and west sides, and the Gen. Slocum had . been chartered to carry the excursion : J8ts.,to Locust. l^f?SL!u!5?,Jf tho jnnuy p '?'"?'I THE NUM1U511 ON liOAKI). It is variously estimated that there were between 1,500 and 2,500 persons on board the Gen. Slocum when she left thc pier at Third street, E,ast river, though the Kinckerbocker Steamship company, which owns the Slocum, otlleially states that the uum ber of persons was 873, that being only one-third of the vessel's capacity. It ls thought however, that there were several hundred children in arms, for whom fares are not usually charg ed on these trips, on board. The scene on the decks of the steamer as she proceeded up thu East #river was one of merrymaking, custo 'mary on such occasions. Tbe mass of flags fluttered in the June breez?, the bands were playing aud the children were singing, dancing and waving handkerchiefs and Hags in answer to the salutations of those on shore or from passing steamers. On the ex treme eastern end of Randalls island, off 135th street, there is a stretch of ^yjiter known as the sunken meadows. AttfnV P?int, just as crowds were watchingV??he Kaily decorated steamer from shore,V^10 ?en" S-?(:um t0?k nre and as the'ages0' the vessel~she was built in 1891-h?c? resulted in the well seasoning of the wo?.d with which she was almost entirely "." ''lt, she was soon a mass of flame, JL. .. flame ls said to have broken out ln^s^lunch room on the forward deck by'"-pe overturning of a pot of grease. Tl?P, wind was high and all efforts to ex tinguish the blaze were futile. FOR NORTH BROTHER ISLAND. At 134th street there are several lumber yards and oil tanks and as Capt. William Van Schalck, in com mand of the Gen. Slocum, started to turn his vessel towards the shore there he was warned that it would set tire to the lumber and oil and s > he chang ed blscoursefor North Brother island, one of the twin islands near the en trance to the sound some half a mlle away, where the boat partially burned was beached. She sank near that place at 12.15 o'clock Wednesday afternoon, two hours and 25 minutes after thc lire was discovered. In the meantime che passengers had become panic stricken and those who were not caught up by the Hames rushed to the rear of the vessel and hundreds jumped overboard inti' the swiftly running waters. It ls alleged that the life preservers were to > se curely fastened to their holdings to be available and stories are told of fran tic efforts made by strong men t > cut them loose but even If they could have been torn down they were too high up for the children to reach. It is also reported that no attempt was ma le to get out the tire apparatus at thc first cry of "lire" though Capt. Van Schalck says that he immediately rang the bells for getting out the appa ratus. According to several state ments no attempt was made to o wer oats or life rafts. Capt. Van Schalck nd his two pilots, named lill ward an Wart and E. M. Weaver, have en arrested. An Old Hiiiner. j* , Meyer Guggenheim, 7 7 year, old, a Imulti-mllllonalre and a great grand J?athcr, lias been made defendant in a Ihreach of promise suit, in New York, "fekmages arc tixed at *100,000. The Dam??or of .?r,o,000,000 ls a very at POT8^Lnerson. tractl verff^._ M"~^k what right men who liv the way?y"nt bolters when ?\a.ve b^en Pei8W"ILsult them to de thlnga did not go t^L bolters when mand that there bc n6^|^ things do go to suit them^m. THE STORY IN DETAIL. Scenes of tho Unspeakable Agent on tho Doomed Sbip. The three-decked excursion steamer General Slocum, of the Knickerbocker Steamboat company, burned to the water's edge Wednesday off North brother Island, East river, at the en trance to Long Island sound, resulting in the death through burning or drowning of at least (500 persons, most ly women and children. Four hundred and forty-seven bodies bad been recov ered Wednesday night and divers were at work tuking bodies from tim hold of the steamer. The remains of many persons who leaped into the river have not yet been found, and it will be many hours before thc list of dead is anywhere near complete. The Gen. Slocum, one of the largest excursion steamers In these waters, left Third street, East river, at 9.30 o'clock Wednesday morning, having on board the annual Sunday school ex cursion of St. Mark's German Luther church, located iu Sixth street. Her destination was Locust Grove, one of the many resorts on Long Island sound. The excursion was in charge of Rev. George C. F. Haas, pastvr of the church. The vessel was commanded by Capt. Wm. Van Schaik, one of the best known excursion boat captains in New York harbor. He has commanded the Gen. Slocum for almost the entire time since she was built In 1891. The number of excursionists on board Wednesday ls variously estimated at from 1,500 to 2,500, but according to an official statement issued ny the Knickerbocker Steamboat company, owners of the Slocum, the number of passengers was 87:t, that being one third of the vessel's licensed capacity. CROWDED WITH M BR KYM A K BUS. The steamer, after leaving her dock Wednesday morning proceeded up the East river, all three of her decks being crowded with merrymakers. Rands played and the great sidewheeler was decorated with Mags from stem .to stern. The Slocum had reached a point near the sunken meadows oi? 135th street, Manhattan, which is at the ex treme eastern end of Lansdalls island, when tire broke out in a lunch room on the forward deck. The biaza was caused by the overturning of a. pst of grease. The headway of the vessel and tn~u|hh ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ spread af ter willi almost hgh.'.-nlng rap idity. Capt. "Van Schaik, in^the pilot house, had been informed of the out break of the lire, and realizing the dan ger to the hundreds of excursionists, decided to send his vessel to shore at 134 th street. At this point there are lumber yards and several huge oil tanks and the captain was warned that to attempt to land at this point would endanger the property and perhaps further imperil the scores of people who had already been frightened into a state of almost uncontrollable excite ment. cn A NUKI) COURSE. Changing the big steamer's course slightly be beaded for north?Brother island, half a mlle away. Ry this time the Hames were rustling by leaps and bounds from the forward part of the ship aft. The great open decks, built for the excursionists, with little obstruction from bow to stern, ottered a clear sweep for the tire. As Hie Slocum dashed forward the llames caught stanchion and cabin woodwork eating ind tearing their way across the ves 3el. The ezcursionits, but a few mo ments before In the full enjoyment of an ideal summer's day on Long Island sound, were driven to the after part >f the steamer to escape the heat, lam?^and smoke that were constantly inoreaslffg* Policemen and deckhands aboard the^-hoat struggled hard to riuiet the panic, but the efforts were in vain. The wild disorder increased as frantic mothers sought to lind the:r children, who had been at play about the decks. The steamer's whistle was blowing for assistance and tugs and other near by craft answered the call. Before any of thc boats could reach the burning steamer, however, the frantic women and children began to jump overboard. The current was strong and there are many whirlpools in the channel. Thc boats that always bound in the vicini ty picked many parsons from the water, but these wr?-- only a small number of those that ? se^n strug gling in thc current. On thc Slocum the ti rut swe. p of thc Hames cut off escape fiorn ttie hurricane deck, where a great many o? Hie women and children wen crowded together, and soon burned away the light wood of the uprights which came down with a crash on those below, lt is thought that most of those on the hurricane deck were burned. CROWDED TilE RAW,. As Hie tire increased the struggle to gain a point of vantage at the stern became frightful. Women and child ren crowded against the after rail until it gave way and hundreds were pushed off into the river. After this there was a steady stream of persons who jumped or were thorwn into thc [continued on page 1 1 Horso Claim Allowed. A dispatch from Spartanburg says Congressman Johnson has received notice through the war department that a Confederate horse claim bas been allowed to .1. A. (?allamore of Greenville county under act of con gress of Feb. 27, 1902. After the sur render or Lee, Mr. Callamore had a horse stolen trom him by the union soldiers. The money will be forwarded by the department In a week or two Congressman Johnson has manyslml larclaims pending., WORLD'S NOTABLE DISASTERS. Thc Burning of the Slocum One of the Most Heartrending The burning of the Bteamer General Slocum, on last Wednesday morning, with a loss of probably more than 500 lives, is outs Of the most heartrending disasters of recent times. The guests of the big steamer were nearly all children and women, going upon their annual Sunday school picnic. Such a catastrophe cannot fail to recall the recent holocaust in Chicago, when at a matinee on the last day of 1903, the Iroquois theatre, just com pleted, was seized by the lire fiend and in less than thirty minutes more than OOO people, largely women and chil dren, were burned to death, arid more than 400 others were maimed for life. Such disasters call to mind the theatre tire of Richmond, Va., in 1811; tlic burning of the Conways brook playhouse in 1870, and the bery destruction of the Paris theatre a few years ago, in which the leading actress and many others lost their lives. While such catastrophes are horrible to contemplate they do not approach the horror of other disasters by lire, Hood and volcanic erupti m. All will recall the eruption of Vesu viu8 in A. D. 79, which burled In saud and lava Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stahlae. The lossof life was ISO.OOO, and the cities have never been rebuilt. Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, suf fered an earthquake in 17?5, which left tho city in ruins, and took 00,000 lives. Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, lost 12,000 lives from an earthquake in 1812. Manila, Philippine Islands, was vis ited by an earthquake in June, 18o;i, causing a loss of nearly 10,000 lives. Certainly the most destructive Ure in thc history of this country, il ..ot in the world, was the Chicago tire of October, 1871. Beginning In a barn in De Ko vcr: street, lt spread witn lightning rapidity, and raged for two days and nights. It swept over 2,100 acres, destroying 17,400 buildings The exact number of the deaths has never been ascertained, but it went luto the hundreds, 70,000 people oue-llfth of the entire population were left homeless, and property worth $190,000,000-one-third of the value of the entire city-was destroy ed by this tire. Boston had a lire in 1872, which de stroyed f>0 acres of the business sec tion at a less of.$7;->,000,000. The Johnstown, Pa., flood in May, 18H9, was a frightful disister. The dam across South Fork, a branch of the Conemaugh river, 12 mUes east of Johnstown, broke, releasing Cone maugh Lake, whose waters thundered down the valley, engulfed Johnstown a'?d . neighboring villages, causing a . .. :u-*-f?riiJ,000,000. ^ y^^6^f^l^i?f^t Gal veston, 'Tex., was the seei?e bf a great flood. A' West;'"lnd'an hurricane, with a velocity of 135 miles an hour, swept over the eiy and Hooded the streets, and in less than, five-hdurs destroyed o 000 lives and property valued at * IS 000,000. More recent still was the eruption of Mont Pelee tm the Island of Mar tinique, French West Indies. On May the 8th, P.?02, the mountains belched forth and overwhelmed inc town of St. Pierre ?it its base wich sand and laja which overran uhe sur rounding country, and destroyed :t0, 000 people. On August 8th, 1902, Mt. Pelee erupted again and 2,f>U0 lives were lost. Fverj one recalls the recent cyclone of Gainesville, Ca., and the buming of the Park Avenue Hotel in New York, each disaster causing so much suffering and the loss of life, in the latter 157. Well Worth Seeing. One of the me>st interesting ex hibits among the many of all kinds at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis is that of the Winchester ttepeating Arms Company, of New Haven, Conn., manufacturers of re peating rilles and shotguns and all kinds of ammunition. The exhibit was in readiness and was opened on the first day of the fair, a fact that clearly Illustrates the enterprise and up-to-date methods of the company behind it. lt is the aim of the Win chester Repeating Arms Company to show at their exhibit the high develop ment which they have reached in the making of guns and ammunition, and one needs only to see the exhibit to realize how near to perfection that development has come. There can be seen the new automatic repeating ri tie all kinds of shotguns, the modern smokeless powder shotgun shells and rille cartridges: in fact everything that can interest the devotees of hunt ing and tra,- and tra and target shoot ing. Don't fail to sec the exhibit at the Manufacturers and Fish and Game Buildings, lt's well worth your while. Killed ii Tyrant. Gen. Bohrikolf, governor general of Finland, was shot and mortally woumied at ll o'clock Thursday morn ing at the entrance tu the Finnish senate at Helsingfors. Thc assassin, a man named Schaumann, a son ol Senator Schaumann, Immediately committed suicide. Bobrikoff wits shot in the stomach and neck, three shots being tired, one of which Inflict ed a Seriems wound. The attack is ascribed to Finnish patriotism. '1 he last recorded act of Gen. Bobrikoff was in March of this year, when he issued a proclamation forbidding t ie people to darken their windows at "unusual hours." People who chose tu go to bed before 10 o'clock at nip ht were subject to heavy lines. This step was due to the neglect of Gie Finns to illuminate their houses In honor of the beginning of the war with Japan. Ll Io Crushed Out. At New York one of the big auto mobiles used to take sight seers about thc city, ran over and killed an elder-, ly unknown man in Broadway Thu I'S' day night while members or the rn? r ry party were laughing and singing. Before the body of the victim could be taken from under the car several of the women passengers became hys terical and had to bc lifted to the ground, while others jumped down and ran way from the scene. FATHER KILLS SON. The Youth Flans to Frighten the ?lder Man hy Flaying Bandit WAYLAID HIM IN LONELY 8F0T And Is Killed Before He Can Cry Out. Father Pluiiftca ? Knife Into Hie Boy's Heart. At Riverside, N. J., Frank Rein ecke, a boy of sixteen, playei that he was a highwayman Wednesday night and did lt so realistically that bis father, whom he held up, plunged a knife into bis heart, killing bim. Intercepting bis parent in a lonely spot upon the banks of RancoeasCreek be suddenly stepped from behind a bush, telling Reinecke, Sr., bo bold up bis bands. The next Instant be was lifeless. Thursday the father ls raving in d^lirum, and it ls feared that be may uever recover from the shoe!:. The mother and sisters arc prostrated, and tbe little community mourns the death of a popular youth. Half a dozen holdups bave occurred at Riverside and the adjoining villages within a month or so, and tbe resi dents have been generally arming themselves. Tbe place is on the Am boy division of tbe Pennsylvania Rall I?S&; but twelve miles from Camden, and large numbers of tramps pass along on their way to and from Phila delphia and New York. Tbe recent crimes have been attributed to these Frank Reinecke conceived the idea that it would be a line thing to mas querade as a highwayman and fiigbten bis neighbors. Ile carried out bia idea and succeeded in making half a dozen staid residents jump fences and scuttle for burne within a week. Thursday night be tried tbe experi ment upon bis fattier, "Walter Rein ecke, a well-to-do insurance agent of that place, whose home ls on the out skirts of thc village, above the banks of tbe creek, in a lonely spot. Father and son started out early In Hie evening, the older to transact some business at. the village tire company's house, of which oigaai/.ation be ls a member, and the boy to visit his young friends, Willie and Laura Kelloek, who live near tbe Reinecke home, on the way Hie youth regaled bis father with storless of recent holdups. When 10::i0 p. m. came Mr. Rein ecke started for home, ile was ap-; prebensive, remembering that bejhad recently bad words with a negro, who had threatened bim. He also remem bered what bis boy bad told him about highwaymen. So be drew a large killie rroni nts pocket.-; -fcpenod - ?tbcf blade .and walked on with senses on tbe alert. YouDg Reinecke bad bton watching for bis father. Ile was peeping out from behind a bush that stood beside the path In the loneliest part of Hie roadway. Tbe trees grow thick there, and the black water of tbe creek is just below, making lt as lonelcy and dangerous a spot as can be imagined. Just as the elder Reinecke reached the shadow a dark tigure stepped Into the half gloom and a hoarse voice cried: "Hold up your bands. Now I've got you." At the same instant the tigure laid fast bold upon Hie frightened .man's coat sleeve. With a cry of terror the father lunged forward and buried '. knife in the breast of the supposed highwayman, who sank to Hie ground gasping, "Ob! Falber!" Tile voice !ot' the hoy recall d the anguished father to a realization of the awful thing that lie bad done. With a cry that was heard far off by neigh bors the distracted mau fell on bis knees beside Hie body of bis boy and besought, bim to speak. He raised the bead of the buy only to lind that he was already dead. Suvtuiii Heavy Loss. A dispa*cb fr. ni St. Petersburg says Emperor Nicholas b is received the fol lowering telegram from Lieu. Gen. Baron Stakelberg. "A battle began at noun around Hie Russian position four and a half miles south of the sta tion of Wafanhoon (Vafangow), the enemy making repeated artempts to dislodge our left Hank. The attak was repelled and we retained our position. The tirst regiment occupying the loft tiank of cur position sustained severe losses, lbs commander, Col. Kbavas tounotT, and Adjut. Sub-Lieu. Pragos laff Nadocbinsy were killed, den. (Jerngros-i was wounded, a sbarpnel bti'let shattering the right side of Hie lower jaw, but be remained On the held." A Woman Ly il ohed. At Lebanon Junction, Ky., Maria Thompson, colored, who Wednesday night killed John Irwin, :i wealthy white farmer, was taken trom the jail Thursday and banged to a tree in the jail yard. She weighed 2f>,"> pounds and Hie rope broke. As she ran away the mot) tired a fusilado after lier un til she fell and was left for dead. The olilcers, however, found signs of life and removed the women to a physi cian's olllce, where it was found Hitit she bad been shot in several places and could rot recover, lr .vin had re proved Maria Thompson's boy who worked for bim. Afterward Maria came into Irwin's melon patch and slashed Irwin until be was dead. Three Killed In Duel. At llryan'svllle, Ind., three men are dead and two wounded, one fatally, as the result Of a pistol tight on the streets of that village Tuesday. The dead are .Limes and Charles Rout and Milton Tow. Janus Tow is fatally wounded and Frank Two is badly burt. The. tight was the culmination of a feud between the Bunt and Tow families. Deadly itot Supper. Tuesday night at a bot supper and dance given by the colored people of Wallerboro, this (hecn, becoming Jeal ous of William Haynes, deliberately pulled bis pistol and shot bim dead. Creen was e.iptured and lodged in jail at 2 o'clock next morning and this fact enabled the otllclals to discover so early that Adams and Stephens bad escaped. # ?llEARS JAIL. _ Adams/ urdirer, and Another Pri soner, Filed Their Way Out. AN^PfEAL HAD BEEN DENIED And Adl^ii WM Awaiting alto-sen Tb? 'Sheri fT and a 'ossa Aro ParBuios ,f? the Escape?. A- dispatch from W?lterbdro to Tho State under date of June 14 sayB quite ?L sensation waa caured lu Walteiupro Tuesday morning when lt was'kutwn that R. A. AdamB had escape^ from Jail. Adams was con victed ipr the murder of Henry Jaques and sentenced last June tobe hanged. His sentenced was stayed pending an appeal ito the supreme court, which appeal was dismissed. Adams was to have ; li ?en resentenced at the next term of court, which meets the first Monday in August. At 2 o'clock. Tuesday morning when Gus Green \ s brought to jail by, Policeman Jolmson a rope of blankets was discovered hanging from the win dow abpye the portico on the side of tho jail)' Upon investigation it was found that Adams and a negro, Jasper Stephens, incarcerated for larceny, had filed through one of the Iron bars and escaped. Deputy Sheriff Henderson imm? diate'" .started In pursuit, but so far no tr?^?s of the escaped prisoners has been found. Adu.u.i ls about 5 feet 10 inches high, weighs about 145 pounds, dark skin, dark hair and eyes, with mous tache and a long, sharp face with very heavy jaw and large neck; fast talking and winks eves rapidly while talking, nervous and quick movement. * WEATHER AND CROPS. - A FoirvIsolated Sections Still Buffer ing from I Iron;; tit. Mr. J. W. Bauer, section director, says 'n his weekly report of the crops, gathered from correspondence: The y/eek ending 8 a. m., June 13, had a mean temperature of 75 degrees, which ls about 4 below normal, due to nearly normal temperatures during thc first four days and abnormally cool weather during' the last three. The cool weather was accompanied by fresh: to' brisk northeast winds and unusually low relative humidity. The sunshine was normal in places and be low tu others. The greater portion of the State had from one to over two Inches of rah* " three days. The upper Sa _y?-' vallee had.less than an inch, "?vhl,. m ^n-? nf York co?'nty and a few' ? toav ar"eas ln otuer sections the droi is UDt>rokeu and crops are suuji.Mng for moisture. Streams are very low and nany wells are falling io'ithe central e^unties. A,destructs wind and hailstorm passed through Plckens county; the track of the hail storm was about half a mile wide an i all crops in thia path were destroyed. There were also damaging wind storms in Spirtan burg and Sumter counties, and hail occurred at various places in the northern and northeastern counties, doing some damage to crops. The weather was generally favora ble tor cultivation of held crops, but with large areas where the ground ? *oo wet to work and where fieldB have become foul. As n rule, corn, cotton, tobacco, tic? and minor crops are clean and well cultivated, and have made marked improvement dur ing the last week. Corn made steady Improvement in all parts of the State, and, although small, is growing nicely and has a healthy color. Earliest corn is being laid by. With few and unimportant excep tions, cotton has now attained full stands, although somewhat irregular ones as to size. The plants are small for the season, but have good color and are growing nicely. Lice are re ported from Abbeville county. Squares have been reported from nearly all sections, and a few blooms have been noted in Orangeburg county. In places fields are becoming foul. Sea Island cotton shared in the general Improvement, and now bas full but Irregular stands and good color. Tobacco impproyed and ls being "primed." Hice planting continues and fche crop is making satisfactory growth. Wheat and oat harvest is nearing completion; the yields of wheat are best in the extreme west ern counties and only fair to poor in the central ones. The oat crop ls best In the eastern counties, where in places the yields are heavy. Late oats show some improvement. Both grains have been housed in good con dition, where cut, with only Bliebt damage from thc rains. It Wan Brittni Murder. Tlie State says Nathan Truesdale, uncle of thc negro killed at (Houri's creek on Saturday week, swore out a warrant before Magistrate Little at Saluda on Wednesday for Sion Miller, Joe Miller and Russel McCormick. Thursday the Millers and McCormick surrendered themselves to Hie sheri fi and are now In jail. The Miller boys are 22 and 23 years old, respectively, and McCormick looks to be the younger of the three. It was stated ' that McCormick did the shooting hut the report cannot be confirmed. The home of thc Miller boys ls not far from where the homicide occurred, while McCormick halls from Lexing ton county. lie joined the Miller boys at Batesburg and was golnu on a visit to his brother, whose home if, in I this county. It ls not known whether application will be made for ball or not. The older of the Miller boys ls married. At tho Top. Thc Columb a State calls attention to the fact that of thc six "star" stu dents graduated from West point tim year, one is inm Virginia, one each from Tennesse'!, Mississippi and Colo rado, and two from North Carolina. They a:e all southern boys except one, and their records are gov d cause for pride in the seotlon they have so well I represented, lt ls really an unusual showing. WILL BE ? CHANGE. Mr. Fred Wannamaker Will Appoint Now Civil Service Board. The Columbia State says: Upon the retirement of Mr. A. P. Wilson from the postofUce to seek health on bis farm near the city a negro named Nix was appointed to succeed Mr. Wil son as secretary of the local board of civil service examiners. The appoint ment bas been the subject of com plaint, and Congressman Lever has succeded in having him removed. - The objection to this colored man may be best stated by an example. Recently a young lady informed Dr. Ensor that she wished to stand the examination for stenographer in the government service. Sbe was referred to the secretary and with indignation she refused to stand the examination when she found that the person to whom she applied and to whom her papers should be submitted ls a negro. This Incident, among others, was brought to the attention of Mr. Lever. It was also brought to his attention that white men as well as women were refusing to go before an examin-, lng board the secretary of which is a negro, and as a result the postofUce was being lilied up with negro clerks and carriers. When Mr. Lever took the matter up with civil service commission, he was told that the commission had de cided to create a southern department with headquarters in Atlanta and with Mr. Fred-Wannamaker in charge. Friday Mr. Wannamaker was in the city for a short while and promised Mr. Lever to give the relief atked fer. It is not known who will be members of the new board, but the? will be employes of the federal government, of course. The appointment of the local examining board has been made by the commission in Washington upon rcCuuiuieudulionH from Coiumoia, and lt ls understood that Dr. Ensor did not recommend the negro's appoint ment, but in a way approved the pro posed appointment when his opinion was asked. Mr. Lever says that the change will not cause Dr. Ensor any worry as the efficiency of the postal service in the city may be promoted thereby. The postmaster employs his clerks and carriers' from a list of eligibles and this list ls made up with the exact standing of every applicant standing examination. If non/ negroes apply, none hut ney be appointed. Mr. Fred Wannamaker, who ',;: to be secretary in charge oi or southern divison of the-civil , . ic. j commission, is a native, and conducted a newspai ing to Washington whe: an applutment in civil service commission tion has been rapldt^PRpSM^BBpW recognition rrom the department "is ? matter of gratifica tion to his friends In South Carolina, Udeer t ile new plan, the local boards of examiners will be abolished In every town in tlie Sti.te in the district. The manager of the division, in this case the hfth division, will have under him a force of examiners. These examiners will be sent to every town or city where examinations are to be held, and at the conclusion of the ex aminations, the papers wijl be sent to Atlanta, instead of Washington as bas heretofore been the rule. UndeV the uew rule, the work of holding the examination will ne greatly simplified.. Instead of each place having Its local board of examiners, an examiner will be sent from the division headquar ters and the examinatioiv papeta from all the Stales in the division will be sent to .'.oianta instead of Washing ton, thus doing away with the con fusion. Caused tl Faiiic. At New York i 1 a panic among the passengeis in a Brooklyn car on the Fulton street line Friday nine persons received severe injuries, most of them requiring attention of physicians. The panic was caused by the blowing out of a fuse while the car was running at a high rate of speed. The front platform and forward part of the car were at once enveloped in flames, and the passengers made f rant ic efforts to escape. Many jumped, others were pushed olf the car and others fell and were trampled on before the the car could be stopped. Nearly every pas senger suffered some injury. Mrs. Julia Caiman, ?4 years old, with a six months old baby in lier arms, was pushed from the car aud received a fractured skull, a broken ankle and severe concussions of the liody. The baby was unhurt and was found asleep in the mothers arms, by an ambulance physician. NM Cause for Alarm. Tlie State says Mr. Keri Berle, the United States Civil engineer and ar chitect, has about completed his ex amination of tlie capitol dome and ex pects to leave for Washington Wed nesday. He will report to the gover nor from there next week. Mr. Berle would not say whether bc would re port the building safe or unsafe, but that does net signify that from the examinations and investigations he has made so far that it is or is noe. It merely means that lie is guarded in expressing himself before lie reports formally to the governor. Ile did say, however, that there was no cause for immediate alarm. He is said to have expressed the opinion that Hie new work is shoddy hy comparison with the old. Whether this will bc brought out In the report, however, cannot be said. * Howard for Adams. Hov. Heyward Wednesday offered a reward of $f>00 for thc capture of lt. A. Adams, who escaped Monday night from the Walterboro jail. Adam Isa white man, who was sentenced last J une to hang for the murder of Henry Jacques. His appeal to thc supreme court bad been dismissed and he was to be resentenced at the August term of tlie court. Negro Child Killed. At Simpsonville Tuesday afternoon Jim Thompson, a 0 year-old negro boy, while playir g with a pistol shot and Instantly k lied a G-months old Infant in the arms of his young sis ter. The ball entered the infant's hoad and grazed the breast of the young negro holding tho ohlld. * JAPS LOBB THREE SHIPS. Tho lioas In Livca fa Estimated at O nv. Tbonaand. A dispatch from Tokio, Japan, Fays all doubt as to the sinking of the transports Hitachi and Sado by the Russians has been removed. Three hundred and ninety-seven survivors of the Hitachi have arrived at M oj I and 153 survlvorsof the Sado have arrived at Kokura. Details of tho destruc tion of the two transports and the full extent of the casualties are not obtainable. A later dispatch says details obtain able from the survivors of the ill-fated Japanese transports show that the Hitachi and the Sado met three Rus sian warship near Ikl island at 10 o'olock Wednesday morning. The Russians fired on the Japanese ships and stopped them, and soon afterward they torpedoed and sank the helpless transports. The captain of the Sado and several other men were captured. More than 100 men escaped in the boats and landed at Kikura. A message has been received here from Hagfsay ipp that the survivors of the Hitachi had drifted north to Shlmonoseki and been saved. The transport Izum ls still missing. f| ia reported that.the transports Hitachi and Sado carried only 1,400 men. If this is true, the loss In lives is probably less than 1,000. The transports, however, luid many horses and large quantities Of supplies on Tu^^t?attier Katsuno was sunk off Moji v ri day nigntas a result of collid ing with the steamer Yamatokan. Both ^vessels were on their way to Tlescu-to rescue the-survivors of the transports Hatachi and Sado. A STEAMER BURNED.; a. j town .at tho tsmo and had no cargo. The vessel was practically new, hav ing been built only' three years ago, and was valued at 812,000. It was in sured for only 83,000, with J. H. Boacwright & Son at Wilmington, N. C. Although the telegram says "total loss," Manager Love is of the opinion that much of the machinery may be saved. The loss falls heavily on Mr. Love-he and not the Chamber of Commerce being the owner. "The Highlander was the first and only boat on the Une the Chamber of Commerce instituted this spring to give Columbia water connection with the coast. The business has steadily Increased since the first trips, and ar rangements had jpst been made for hauling cotton, which would greatly relieve the situation and for which the Caamber of Commerce, had been working for several months. Just what steps will be taken to put an other boat in commission on the river cannot be said at this time, but there is no doubt but that this will be dene as quickly as the Chamber of Com merce can make the arrangements." Many Liivea host. A dispatch from Santiago, Cuba, says the worst storm of a decade began Friday and culminated Monday hight in 14 luches of rain which fell In five hours, accompanied by a hurricane. The lower village of El Cobre has been destroyed. Forty-live persons are known to be dead and scores are mis sing. Bodies are floating in the Cobre river. Twenty bodies have been recov ered by boats patrolling the bay. All the bridges on the Cobre railway are out and many bridges have been lost on the Cuba railway. A train which left Habana Saturday is held between washouts for eight miles inland. A re lief train bringing mail and passen gers was wrecked at Moron. The fire man and mail agent were killed and two of the employes were injured. The passengers are safe. The mines at Daiquiri are crippled and six of thc employes have been drowned. Thc pier has been damaged. The city's proper ty loss is enormous. Negro Cotton Mill Failed. The Columbia State says: "Thc Wilmlnnton Messenger calls our at tention to the fact that thc defunct Coleman cotton mill, the failure of which was lately noted in these columns, was not only operated but owned and managed by negroes. In that case we do not think that the evidence of the negro's failure as a cotton mill hand was as conclusive as in the case of the Charleston mi l, which was financed by white capital and managed by skilled white cotton mill men. The case of the Coleman mill ls, however, equally interesting in another way." In A Cow's Maw. At. Aiken while slaughtering a beef on Saturday, Messrs. Lamer & Thorpe's butcher found a lady's gold clasp bracelet in the animal's maw. The bracelet ls of 18 karat gold and ls a handsome piece of jewelry. Tho cow was purchased with a bunoh of cattle from a Tennessee market. How the animal happened to absorb such valuable food is of course hard to guess. l.itrio by Mule. Over a billion live-cent fares were paid last year to the transit companies of New York city. Fifty million dol larsl Paid in five cents at a time! A veritable confirmation of tho "little drops of water, little grains of sand" teaching. ng Victory, ieft Five Hundred Kas sians Dead on the Battlefield. LOST FOURTEEN OMS. Russians Wanted to Attack Jap anese Left, But Was Fore stalled, Forced Into a Defile and Routed. A dispatch from Tokio, Japan, saya tho Russian hope of relieving the pres sure on Port Arthur by threatealug the rear of Gen. Oku, the commander of tho Japanese forces investing the Russian stronghold, came to an end Wednesday at Tellssu, a point on the railroad 50 miles north of Kin chou and 25 mijes north of Yafangow, when the Russians were out-manoeuvred, en veloped and sweepingly defeated. "They left more than 500 dead on the field and the Japanese captured 300 prison ers and 14 quick-firing field guns. The Russians retreated hastily to the northward. The Japanese charge that the Rus sians violated the Jarangar Hag. Cer tain officers aver that during the fighting a body of Russian soldiers ap - peared carrying a Japanese flag and that tho Japanese artillery, decived hy this flag, ceased firing on that par ticular body of Russians. Official dis patches f rom fche Japanese command ers made Bpecific.charges of this flag violation. Early estimates of the Jap anese loases at Tellssu say that 1,060 mor. -vere-killed.or wounded. . Tho ''Japanese attacking force was tli vHlecl hilo riirhfeand lett coinmsuii ?a;1 [?)?:..< t ! he Kassians Tiao . IV--ww, . ..-.v. Japanese ar y .'?.opened o?'Cthi.:i' Hne;.fipd the ll'" ! il - tinued ?2 hours a'?d ib vt?A' followed by the advance of the Japanese line to . ;. . ' ni extending from Lung Chia ^nng tcrYu Hotun. .darkness, put an end to the fighting. The Japanese dis patched a column to the westward to ward Fu Chau for the purpose of cov ering the Russian right wing and to protect their left and rear. During the night it became ap pearent that the Russians were being re-enforced and so decided to make a general attack in the morning and force the Russians Into a defile back ot Tellssu. When morning came it was discovered that that the Russians held a line extending from Ta Fang Shen to Cheng Tsu Shan, with a force esti mated at more than two divisions. The Japanese planned to envelop tho Russians near Tali3su and they . suc ceeded admirably. While the main Japanese force was moving north along the railroad col ums were swung to the left arj.rl *.- *' right and finally w jn the maun Rum' m | . RU3_ stans In thia ca dis advantage, buOJSyrSOT?'with de termination until 3 owek in the afternoon. At this hour they were routed. The Japanese cavalry continu ed to pursue the enemy and probably inflicted severe punishment. RUSSIANS ADMIT DEFEAT. A dispatch from St. Petersburg says Emperor Nicholas has received the following telegram, dated June 16, from Gen. Kuropatkin: "I have received the following dis patch from Lieut. Gen. Baron Stakel berg, dated June 10, 12.20 a. m.: 'Yesterday I had intended to at tack the enemy's right flank but just as our troops had been assigned for the purpose and were beginning to successfully envelop the enemy's right Hank, the Japanese In their turn at tacked my right flank with superior forces and I was compelled to retreat by three roads to the north. " 'Our losses are heavy, but they are not yet completely known. " 'During the engagement the third and fourth batteries of the first ar tillery brigade were literally cut to pieces by the Japanese shells. " 'Of 16 guns, 13 were rendered completely unseless and were aban doned. "'The conduct of the troops was excellent, a large proportion of them rofuslng to retire until after they had been repeatedly ordered to do so.' " The Russians deny that there was anything in the nature of a rout. Tho enemy had over four divisions in action._'_ Ijynohod by Ne^reee. Nows has reached_La Grange Ga., that an old nergro by the name of Jonah Woods, who lived iu the coun try near Texas court grounds lu Heard county about 25 miles from La Grange, was lynched by other negroes. Wood was a deacon In his church and a pious old negro. It is said he dis covered a number of negroes playing ' 'oraps" and threatened that he would report them to the grand jury. After wards the church was burned down and two days later, while plowing in the fields, he was seized and strung up to a tree nearby. NflftrosB Kills Whlto Woman. News was received Tuesday of the killing of Mrs. Halliday, a white wo man, by Addie Smith, a negro girl, at LoachapDka Monday night. The slayer was caught as Notasulga, a small town near Montgomery. A large crowd soon gathered and fearing violence the sheriff of Lee county took the negress to Tuskegee for safo keep ing. The woman acknowledges kill ing Mrs. Holllday. *