Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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S IPR>LE T - TO TE E NEWS AND IIERAJ), WINNSBORO, S. C., TUE JANUARY J4,1902 S.. C. AT m Text of the Documer McSweeney to A Comprehensive Reviev Various Department During The Year--R Gentlemen of the General Assembly: . The organic law of the State makt lay before the General Assembly at ent departments of government, and gestioas as may seem to him wise a . The past year has been a remarkal events have marked the record. Tb var State have not had the usual ret them the present year is going to b hey are looking hopefully to the fu -ent and progress of the State in mi torward, I sometimes fear that the. expense of the rural districts. It ha tUers o, the soil that the. sinews o and of troubTi have rested. The str . ople rest with the home owners. n to eneourage home owning wil Imm of our State and to the stabilit Sinee your last session the Nation weight of a grevious sorrow, caused I Us Chie Executive, a blow aimed no ing citizen of the land, and at the fr ehosen by the American people as t society and the victim was only an to an act like this is one of the dange at no time has the shability of our for shown than at this critical period, fo alted and beloved he may be, is nece *elfare of the people, and the fair tr( to show to his associates the efficac: the preservatidn of that law which I Within the past year three of you Fairfield; Hon. G. J. Redfearn, of Chi well-have been called from their lI the innumerable hosts on the othe: There will be many matters of imp< add In all questions coming before yo tterests of the people, whose servan1 w. aid and co-operation. *6 long as fiends in human form c iomen they may expect swift and s gency courts or any other remedy w! hen it is known the right fiend is I mefit is to stop the crime. FIN Te following statement furnishe tion of the Anances of the State i BL 19C4: Cash -Receipts for Fiscal Year E0 ash Balance, Dec. 31, 1900 .. .- .. Baek Taxes.... .. .. .... .... . eneral Taxes 1900 .. .. - ....... eneral Taxes 1901 .... .... ... 1airoad Assessments .... .. .. ncome Tax....--.-------. Fhes, Office Secretary of State. icorporation Fees .... -. .. .. .. -innual Insurance i2cense Fees .. Graduated insurance License Fees .. vilege Fertilizer Tax .. ...-..--. ds-bcrrowed on Notes of Govel urer).. ...--.-.--.---.----. isurance Sinking Fund .... ... Ofat- Permanent School Fund... State Special School Fund (Dispensai lemson Bequests (interest on deposi Mtorrill Fund from U. S. Government Cmmissioners Sinking Fund: Loans returned.. ..-..--.--. Interest on Loans ...--. Ag ent Commissioners Sink lag Fund (Sec'y State}). 5un,kig Fund Reduction Brown 4% per cents, Loans returned .. ...-..-.. Interest on loans and deposi Phosphate Royalty ..... anspensary, S. C..-.--.----.--. Ra fands-sundry accounts.-..-..-. -'(ash Payments for Fiscal Year E1 Salries.-....--.-.--------.---. ~gsative Expenses .... ..-..--.--. Ucatinal- Charitable and Penal College: Privilege Fertilizer Tax .. Morrill Fund .... .....-.. Interest Land Scrip and Per manent Fund. ..--. Glered Nor. Ind. Agr. and Meeb. CC Appropriation ..-----. Morrill Fund .....-... Interest Ls~nd Scrip . masm...-.--.-.--.-.--.-.--. Sate Permanent School Fund.. Otate Special School Fund (Dispensar 06mpletionl State House (paid Sin .lug Fun d Commission) ...... Soth Carolina Inter State and WC SIndian Exposition.-..-..-..-..-. Loans (notes of Governor and Tre: urer).--.--.--.-----'.'.--. Pubite Printing.------.----.---'. Maintaining Militia .....----. Quarantining State .. .....--. Gommissionlers Sinking Fund. Stking Fund for the Rteduction Brown 4% per cents.: Lcans .. .....--.---.---. State House Ccntract .... Investment (S. C. Brown 4 per cents.) .....--. Imetnlg M.onument c:1 Chiekamaug5 ispens-.ry. S. C.: Account proper..-.. Transferred to Gool Fund iterest on Public Debt.. ..... Miscellancous A ccounts ...-..-..-.. na~lk Balance Dec. 31, 1901.-..-..-. t Transmitted By Gov. The Legislature. r of The Work Done By The s of The State Government -commendations. s it the duty of the Chief Executive to ea-h annual session a review of the differ to make such recommendations and aug 7i, proper. de one in many respects. Many stirring e tillers of the soil in many sections of uras for theic labors, and with many of e one of sacrifice and self-denial, and yet ture and not complaining. The develop mufacturing- enterprises goes steadily e enterprises are being built up at the s been largely among the owners and f strength in our State in times of peril ,ngth of a State and the patriotism of a Whatever can be done by wise legis I be so much contributed to the patriot r of our institutions. his been bowed down beneath the )y the dastacdly blow which struck down t at him but at you and every law abid se government of which he had been !e head. It was a blow at organized naldent. A sentiment which gives rise rs which threaten our Nation. And yet, m of government been more clearly the life of no one man, however ex sairy to the continued prosperity and a:ment given the murderer but served r and the dignity, and the necessty for LO sought to overthrow. own members-Hon. E. B. Ragsdale, of ms:ce-field, and Hon. J. B. Bates, of Barn ,bars here on earth and have gone to join ' shore. irtance to command your consideration, i, you should always bear in mfnd the s you are. To this end you will have h ,S uring the bg jZ of have been prevented -f pogasib n inue to commit outrages upon our ummary justice, and I doubt it emer 11 stop the administration of such justice ound. The only way to stop the punish ANCES. by the State Treaseer shows the con Lt the close of the fiscal year, December ding December 31, ISO $ 626,912.05 6,325.75 . 9,368.53 ... .. .... .... 219,213.82 5,744.32 ..... .. .. .. .. 780.49 ... .. ... -. -40,583.71 50.00 12.475.00 . .N 13,543.76 84,073.43 145,000.00 3,064.97 2,0.1 100,000.00 ~s) 33.96 25,000.00 .$ e2.546.41 .2,905.24 . 4,381.69 3,833.34 .93,560.91 ts 15,841.18 . 25,120.5G 34526 1,968.083.40 1,371.51 $4,018,686.92 dng December 31, 1901. $ 150,722.93 41,869.68 Estitutionls --301,592.98 ..$ 88,139.64 .12.500.00 .. 9,266.36 19960 ..$ s.000.00 ..13.790.62 5,754.00 ___________27.544.62 101,733.97 - 2.444.50 100,000.00 - 15,000.00 st 31,019.42 85,425.42 16.918.30 6.771.85 11.27S.0. 4i,273.59 ..102,270.00 ..123.1G4.37 %k 90.760.28 316,194.65 .. 4,626.28 ..2,005.297.45 ..100.000.00 2,1O'5.297.45 270.643.79 40.670.93 237.743.25 $4.018.686.92 it beca noeossary in order to meet the currelineunses of the State gov ernment, for' Treasurer, by author- i ity of an Act le General Assembly, to borro" $70,XThis loan was ne gotiated at four cent. per annum for thirty and sixtvs' time and has all been paid back. .rder, however, f to meet the interest O. State debt, I due January first it wAcessary to r borrow $110,000 additionazis action t was made necessaiy by the- that a t< very small proportion of the i had been paid at the close of the t In my message of the last tw,.5A I have upon each occasion called ' attention to the subject of cart bonds which, by the Treasurer's port, appear as part of the old debt o the State, but which are now, unde the Act of IS96, no longer fundable b; the Treasurer without the action 0 your honorable L;odies. From you: .iournals I learn that my message upoi the subject was referred to a Joln Committee which reported theron, bu which report was not adopted by th Senate and no action taken thereon hi the House of RepresentatiYes. Th 'raasurer calls attentlon to the bond1 and says: "I find on the books of tilii department certain bonds as part o the debt of the State entered as 'Ol1 Bonds Not Fundable (Act of 1896) 3lu Railroad Bonds $37.000.' These bondi were issued in 1859, and matured it 1879. By Act of 1896 the Treasurer b forbidden to pay, consolidate or fun. any coupon bond of the State after th4 expiration of twenty years from the date of maturity of such bonds. I an in doubt as to how longer to report these bonds. If they are no longer fundable why carry them longer as z part of the debt of the State? But while on the one hand the Treasurei can neither pay nor fund them, on the other he has no authority to write them off the books." This letter was referred to the Attorney General for his opinion, and in reply he submits a full and complete opinion, conclud Ing as follows: "I am of opinion that the bonds in question constitute as existing adjudicated part of the debt of the State, and as such can only be disposed of by some Act of the Legis lature." Thus confirmed in my opinion and views upon the subject by the legal of ficers of the State, I cannot do other wise than repeat my recommendation of last year, viz., that the claim of the bank to be permitted to renew and fund these bonds is valid and just and should be allowed. it is not den'd that the State owes the bonds to some one. ThcJ7 are cairied us Part Oflt jebtyL I ' ...I-. I I Wd1 Treasurer, as owing to some on-e.. The Courts have all decreed the bank to be the owner no one else can now claim them, as all persons but the bank are barred under the Act of 1896 from doing so. I repeat, in the face of these facts, it will be little short of repudiation if we continue .to refuse to allow the receiver of the bank to fund them. EXTENSION OF TIME FOR PAY, MENT OF TAXES. It is best that the tlme for the pay ment of taxes without penalty should be fixed, and it should be understood that there will be no extension. In view, however, of the stringency of money with our farmers, and in conse. quence with almost every other branch of business, and in view of the fur ther fact that the time for the pay ment of taxes has som often been ex tended that our people have come to expct It, after consultation with the Comptroller General, and by virtue of authority given us by law, the time for the payment of taxes without pen alty has been extended to the first day of March., 1902. TAXATION. The question of taxation is one of the most important and difficult prob lems that will confront you and one of the most profound in political econ omy. It has been a difficult problem ever since government has been organ. ized and taxes laid, and never yet Aa! a system been adopted which is en tirely eoquitable and just and whic~r has not been open to fraud and eva sion and inequality. It is easy to lay down a theory and a principle tha will be just and equitable, but when it comes to putting in motion the ma chinery that will carry out in its pra tical operations that theory and tha will apply the principal to property the question becomes a vexed one anC difftcult of solution. The Constitutiox provides that all property shall be as sessed at its true value and therefor< bear its share of the burden of taxa tion. This principle was laid down L3 Adam Smith, the celebrated Scottisi philosopher and political conomist in the early part of the Eighteentl century, and by all writers on politica econoyb before and since his day Equal and just taxation, levied on ai property proportionately and in ,ac cordance with its value, is the produc of the highest justice, and when don' to meet sirmply the demands of govern mnt, economnicaly administered. i nvr burdensome. On the other hani unequal and unjust taxation Is ai ways burdensome and has been th cm~sc of Irany of the wars and :rnucl of the strife all through the histor: of the azes. It is ncecsary to raiso a certain amount of money to meet the expense of the State government and this mus he done by taxation. It makes itti difernre to the taxpayer whether lh lvy is high or low. The gestion tha conecrns him i' the assessment or val n~ation placed upon the property to h Itaxcd, and weether cr not it is value at the san-e ratio as other property When the politician boasts of hav n: redced the tax levy he is only trytn to fool the peojle- Tne levy must b a,.- '-az to realise a sufficien Rai 3um to meet the a Will be large or s T he valuation pi 7 tnd the amou In I nade by the Legis of I o reduce taxation . >ropriation. of co 1- thi I:'ed in the Const re rec ,e more income i an- rep aised, but that ject -ge, for scarcely > an iscrease in e re- As Under the pre County C irns .are ma.. w $ship uditor. There meets tiv )ard of - Assess Audito!r C. the Sourt Houz dertakes in La taken the retu e or two cei oover all of t ty Board by IThen' there - meets at PC 0. Ization,- vver the re- ist turn use nty in one or de two d done in some whato anner and c- P11 complis hing in secur ing an e ment of prop- th erty. The-re in the state in which so nd is assesed C at one-third or 'ts actual val- b ue, while other essed at its F1 real value. In fac may be two F adjoining plantatio, one wdorth v twice as much as eesse'1 for St under r By r'acre. n V taxati r ~ l Si many it is t rule to a ales- i stock at so much head, e of the fact that horse ma e 1a worth two or three. mes what ano t t1 is, even in the same County. And -- this is what To 1p Boards of sessors and the'. County Board of Equalizatlcn un da as equaliz'ng property for * This' eertain y Is is not the pup for which thesa Boards are creat And yet it Is im- ce possIble for a To p Board to meat in and spend only o 'ay going over the in returns that have een made, and get l them equalized. It is also as impracti- In cab:!e for a Count3 Board of Equaliza- th tion to meet and in one or two days equalize the asagents upon all the th property in the County. Much more dt could be accomplished If the law were a' amended so as to require that ths as County Auditor shall, after notice in in the public prints, take returns in each Si Township, and shall not take these re- as turns except while preent' in the to Township. In case any taxpayer re- a3i fuses or fails to. make return while the Auditor is present I& the Town ship, -the Audito and the Toa Board shall be aired to property, and the owner luation is ship Board Of , couakting f three discreet .iders, residents dia of the Townshl -ho shall meet with th the Auditor to ve the returns and assess the pro ..That this Board i shall be appoint y the County And! tor and recei mpensatiQn for its ly service. That af rs shall be made in public in the ence of the Auditor be and the Township oard, and that the ct owner of the pro ty shall be reqnired ra to answer the qu tions as now pro- st vided by law, and ake afidavit as to w the correctness * -Is answer. If the to Twnshlip Board inks the return Is too high or too lo It shall be its du- th ty, in the presence of the owner of the 0: property and the uditor, to raise or lower the return I order to reach the cl true mark et value. f the property. The Cnairman of thes . Township Boards ti shall constitute t County Board of t Equalization, and- this Board shall rc meet at '- - House and go over al the retur County -with Uie tU County d hear complamis o and ap eeision to be sufl- Vw Fject to e State Board. The ti into a shall be appointed fl by the a provided by law, so as to nd indcrpeudentL asg it is pesa .- way I. believe much will be ga ne toward having all ~ property assessed uitably. The lhon est taxpayer we~Ad much prefer to re- b turn hIs property t its true value, if by doing so he wo Id bear n'o ,nore 13 than his just porti, n of the burden, b and the man who desires to evade t1 should be made to ear his part of thie , burden by having is property return- ri edatts true valuP There is no qu ti-on that so much C demands your e St, your careful,a 'our though , nd yur diligent r consderaior, . and that much con ti cens every' citizen of th common- b wealth as this qu tion of taxation. It has receivdd the tention -of every b Legisltor'who has ad the ipiterests of his people at hear since taxves have o been levied and go -rnment corganized, F and yet there is n subject in which c there is thore room for reform than I that of equalizing t xation and placing b upon the bo-oks for ax:ation that prop erty wilich is now vading the o-fficers of the law-.' There has been a gratifying Increare t in the taxable prop rty during the year 1 - just closed. In fa t, the increase ,ise greater than for an *one year for sev- t eral years past. Is, of course, has made an increase i the amount of taxes collected, but your- appropia ions were larger t the last sessionI 1than the year befo e, and but for the increase in taxable alucs there wouldi 1have been a defi.it nd the appropria tions could not ha been met out of t the income for the ear. Instead, how ever- of having ne hundred n cighty-nline million dollars of t.aa,>? property we should have near fourt - hundred million. The following co parative figures i for 1900 and 1901 a e taken from the - Comptroller GCener 's rcport: 19 0 1901 1 SReal-........$1021 3,427 $103,258,440 roa -, . 2, 830 50,030,424 Iroads .. .o----- - 'ota . $179,514,530 $189,333,107 1 bese fzures show a tOtal increase a a lie taxable valacs for the past y. ear 9,61S,577. t or further information in regard to ; department your attention is di- 1 ted to the excellent and suggestive t ort of the Comptroller General. SINKING FUND. a n my last Message to the General r sembly attention was called to Qhe .V t that at that time $241,030.84 of the 9,202.23 of asssts of the Cunula- t e Sinking Fund for Reduction of S. Brown 4% per cent. were on deposit banks, and although drawing 4 per it. interest were unsecured, except the credit of the banks wherein de 31ted. This condition no longer ex s and there is now of this fund so posited in banlts only $59,358.-1, Lich will soon be drawn cut to com Ate the State House loan. This has en accomplished during the past ar by the loan of $123,164.37 under e Act of 1900 "To provide for the mpletion of the State House," end the purchase during the past year the Commissioners of the Sinkiu ind of S. C. Brown 4/2 per cent. ads and stock of the aggregate face lue of $78,012.00. These bcnds and ocks have been under the law con rted Into S. C. Brown 4% per cent. ock issued In the name of the Com issioners of the Sinking Fund, and though purchased at a premium, be g 4% per cent. bonds, will until ma irity pay almost, if not quite, 4- per nt. on the price paid. Under the rust this is an ideally safe investment, ng made in the very bonds the fund reated to retire. e deposits in banks, unsecured ex the credit of the banks where pt ted, pay only four per cent. dep d this rate of interest is terest, y time to decrease, should ible at the demand for money at terest tres decline. e money c 1st, 1901, the assets of On Decembe -nking Fund for Re e Cumulative own 4% per cent, Lction of S. C. 5.52 invested Eo nounted to $420, to five per cent. to yield from four the ordinary terest. The assets c 9,397.22. The king Fund are now king Fund sets of the Insurance S buildings r State insurance of publi iounts to $3311.22. - GOOD ROADS. been During tke past year there ha the general a aken:ag throughou I on the question d in every been manif iImprovement o wys. There is no q hoor rectly and more ge ted i e great body of our M12 iuth has possibly been this matter, and the t Iting from her negligenc to be seen. For the past few years th en a great influx of 'peopl ir towns and cities and these pidly built up at the expenze o rrounding country. This is an lich if possible should be remedi r It is to the people of the country, td not to the towns and cities, that; .e State .must principally look for *e preservation of her institutions. ae of the prime causes of this great w of population into the towns and ties is to be found in the condition our public highways. In most of counties in the State during cer in seasons of the year some of the lds arc altogether impassable, and 1 communication and traffic with e cities and railroad points is cut f. Such a condition of affairs must, ork great hardships, especially upon! te rural districts, and the people of ie rural districts compose thg great .ajority of our p)opulation. Leaving out of consideration alto ettier the evils resulting from the. mndition of our roads, however, and ooking at the question from a purely asiness standpoint, good roads y, and are one of the st investmecnts which -cani a made by a County or State. der our present metho'ds- of. road ulding, it is necessary to rebuild ie roads after every washing rain, hhle if we built good, permanenlt mads, the cost of keeping them in re-I air would be a very small item in amparison to what our present roads re costing. in fact, the saving in; ot having to work the permanent >ads so often, would in a very short me pay for their building. This has een found to be the case wherever ood, permanent roads have been From the Seventh Annual Report t the Commissioners of Public' ods for the State of New Jersey. ne of the leading States in the Good odcs Movement, the following is iken mcrely to show in what respect ood roads are held by the people who ae used them and know of their ad anages: "The people seem to be so ronderfully impressed with the idea hat by good roads the value of land rill be increased. transportation hepened, travel and business at racted. school houses and churches iiled, and civilization advanced, that hey are praying as earnestjy for hem as for great riches. Consequent thte prcssure for new roads is so reat It seems almost impossible to old the people back. They are so ny'ous that they are not willing to oniine themselves within the limit f tate and County appropriationls. he are constantly insisting upon uiing ahead of the State appropria ion in order that. they may enjoy tem no." It as been estimated that in forty sounties in T'liana where good roads rave been. built. "the average increase n th selin'g price of land, due to ex stiiggIimproved highways, is %.43 10- acre. The estimated average in 'reae per acre that would esult ro Improving all the public reads converting the mOsmO )ads into improved h:.ghways is [,14G per mile. The estinaated aver ,e annual loss, per 100 sEcres, from :or roads is $7.2S." Cn th1e basis of iis calculation the ave-rage annual >ss from poor roads is seventy-six nts per acre. It will be seen that le loss from poor roads would soon ay for the building of the good roads nd after replacing the amount paid Dr their construction, the good roads ill continue to pay. Of course, it cannot be expected hat South Carolina should do as auch as some of the States have one, but any action which may be - aken, looking to the betterment of >ur roads, will be of great benefit and n the long run will actually sae noney. Most of the worl dcne by our haingangs upon the present roads Is limply thrown away. The building of public highways is Ls much of a science a3 railroad )uilding, and in order to auild roads will require money, and in order to secure money there will ave to be provision for raising it by taxation. The Good Roads Convcnt-on, which was recently held in Greeaville, passed resolutions requesting the Legislature that oach county be given the privilege to determine by election the right of such county to levy a tax, not to exceed two and one half mills on the taxable property of * such county, if so much be necessary, in order to build good roads, and that such counties as des:ce to do so begiven authority to issue bonds to construct and maintain their public high was and be authorized to Issue bod - - upon so deciding by county election. A resolution was also passed at this convention requesting the legislatarr - - to enact such laws as will encourage the use of broad tires, and also that the County Chaingangs shall be put to work exclusively on building good, permanent roads. These suggestIons are practical business propositions and will work great benefit to the State If carried out, and I recommend I that they be followed. It is most gratifying to note the in terest which has lately been taken by the people of South Carolina on this subject. Most of the counties of the State are awakening to a reanliztIOU of the importance of the subjct.aad much is being accomplished. In. this connection the work which has been done and is now being done by the Southern Railway In this direc tion deserves commendation. and no doubt much of the good which has.ra suted from this awakening Is due partly to its efforts. Any action looking to. the bett ment of our roads which, -la -7Wgr dom,-iou may see tt a e ecessitues o a thoroug y -eq ped volunteer service,- and why ceved it but right and just that T's. national gbvernment should maha ample provision therefor. It Is pleasure to report that the iner of appropriation has e'nabled me tha - current year to supply almost the en tire service with modern accoutre ents. And during the coming y-r d before the expiration of my 1: term of office I confidently i ve every company in the SteF ple4ely and modernly equipDr -egular army, with the exce? e 'magazine rifle,' the in of which will have to be ccount of the price. IN s~b ewith I may add that Ms States that the Krag and would be issued bn perity ing the milit14;) pewiy t generals and negect yservice in '~he that will I conm of arm terests no omagazirp development mdafter-8 material gro at the There is no ranit small child con o mills is injuriouse cally and mentally. recreation, play, ex chool, things so nece. growth and healthy the child body and chil lug but labor and toil sunrise until after dark, Is by the laws of nature to child mind and the child cause It is In direct confiet laws of nature. and will have flence and effect upon the el ship of the future. Even looking ;t the situation frb a cold business point of view, It I etter that we should not have child labor. In a good many instances the mill owners themselves have realized this fact, and have prohibited child lar br in their mills. Looking to the fu ture, they know in order to hale skill ed labor In the grown up man and wo man, it Is necessary that the child of te present shall not- only not be dwarfed physically and mentally, by lose confinement and labor during the tender years of youth, but that It shall have all the advantages offered/ by the schools of the community. In some cases the parents who work in the mills are required to Eign a con tract to force their children between certain ages to attend the public scools provided. There are mill towns in this State which are models in ev erything that goes to -make an' ideal community. The mills contribute l.gely for the education of~ the call den and in some of these communi tics you will find as good school buiild Igs as in any of the larger towns a'nd ciies. Besides, the mill owners pay teir part of the school tax, which gs into the general fund and, the most pleasant relations exis, between the mill owners and the operatives. The fact that the mill owners, who arc in the best possible position to juze by experience, recognize by scch action the importance of edu cing and caring for these children, is a strong argument in favor of the neessity of a law prohibiting child l many instances, however, these ;uls are not required, and the nill owners, lindlng child labor chea~et. andlooking only to the present, sub