The Abbeville press and banner. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, February 16, 1916, Page PAGE FOUR, Image 4
The Press and Banner
ABBEVILLE, S. C.
Published Every Wednesday toy
THE PRESS AND BANNER CO
WM. P. <?REEXE. Editor
WEDNESDAY, FEBY. 16, 1916.
HIGH TAXES.
There has been some discussion
as to high taxes between the editor
of the Medium and the local editor
of the Associate Reformed Presby
terian, in which the one charges that
taxes are higher than they should
be, and that the amount which the
tax-payer is called on to pay is constantly
increasing, and in which
the other says that taxes this year
are lower than in 1911.
We think that both are correct in
a way. But we call to the attention of
the editor of the Medium that the
taxes for the last three years are
higher than at any other time in the
last forty years except the one year
referred to. In that year the levy
was one-half mill more than the past
year. But in that time there has
been a new assessment of the property
of the county for taxation, and
in a great many cases the assessments
were raised, and a man today,
while paying on a smaller rate of
taxation, may be and sometimes is
paying more taxes than in 1911.
Taxes may be raised either by raising
the rate, or by raising the assessment;
and by raising the assessment,
the tax-payer may have the
rate lowered and still pay more taxes
than formerly.
For the information of the people
of the county, we have published on
the front page of this issue, a statement
of the tax levies for the past
forty-two years, in order that the
people may see just how taxes have
grown, and how much more they are
paying now than forty years ago,
even though at that time there were
charges of gross mismanagement of
the county affairs. In 1890, the
Reformers came into power, winning
their fight on the assertion that taxes
were too high, that the government
was in the hands of "plunderers"
and the state "permeated with incipient
rottenness." They have
in large measure been in charge of
the government.
But during all these years there
Was little difference in the amount of
taxes levied for current expenses in
Abbeville County.
The first year that the current expenses
of the county called for a levy
of as much as four mills was in
1910, when the levy was increased
to that amount. In the following
year, the levy increased to six mills,
and we paid in addition one and onefourth
mills for past indebtedness,
the county being forced to borrow
of the sinking fund commission the
sum of twenty-thousand dollars to
pay past indebtedness, which represented
money spent in previous
years over the income of the county.
In 1912, we paid four mills, and
since then we have paid five mills
each year for current expenses, and
in tVip four vears we have naid the
additional aggregate levy of five and
one-half mills for past indebtedness,
amounting to about thirty-three
thousand dollars.
We undertake to say that the
county of Abbeville can be run on
as small a levy as in 1873, 1876,
1890 and other years. The county
was then almost twice sa large, it is
true, but we believe the figures will
show that prior to 1880 the entire
taxable property of the county was
only about six millions of dollars,
and that the county was then run
for something like twenty thousand
dollars, including the pay of officers
in that part now included in Greenwood
County. In 1876, there was
only one bank in the whole of Abbeville
County, we believe; there
was no railroad except the Southern;
there was not a single cotton mill;
wnv nn All mill Tkoca rAfrtnva firtnc
are now paying to the county of
Abbeville more taxes than it took
to run the whole county prior to
1880. We spent last year something
more than fifty thousand dollars
in one-half the territory where
we formerly spent only twenty thousand
dollars. Why the difference?
We will undertake to tell you next
week.
COLD FEET.
If the delegation in the General
Assembly lack the nerve to do away
witn ine cnain-gang in Auoevuie
county, they might at least discontinue
it until the next election, and
allow the people to say whether they
desire to continue it.
There were a great many people
who thought the people still wanted
the Rural Police system, but when
the people got a chance at it, they
showed that they had it sized up properly.
We believe the chain-gang
system would meet a like fate.
A USELESS OFFICE.
We have not seen the Bill of th(
Senator from this county with re
gard to the office or position of Coun
ty Superintendent of Education, bu
we understand that he proposes ti
have the county re-surveyed and di
vided into school districts, and tha
each district shall elect a member o
a County Board of Education, an<
that these representatives of th
districts shall employ a man as coun
ty superintendent, much as a princi
pal or superintendent of our cit;
schools is employed, to have charg
of the schools o^the county at a sal
ary of twelve or fifteen hundred do]
lars per year.
The system might be an improve
ment on the present system i
theory, in that a man competent t
teach, and therefore to give ir
struction, would be employed, whos
business it would be to visit th
schools, offer suggestions, and pei
haps assist the teachers in the genei
al management of the schools, bu
in practice the scheme would amoun
to nothing.
If effective work is to be done, th
schools should be left alon<
Every community is able to an
should manage its own school affair.1
The time for a teacher to learn hoi
to teach is before he or she begin
to teach, and not afterwards. W
have summer schools where teacher
and prospective teachers may lear:
[the art of school management an
the art of imparting instructor
Besides this most of the schools an
? i-- At 1_ _ .1 _ i.
colleges give xo mose wno uesire t,
teach instruction along these lines
Therefore, there is little netid of ,
superintendent, who would travc
around among the schools, and read
them once or twice a session. A
most he would only scare the pupil
to death that many times by hi
visits.
The office of county superinten
dent of education is an entirely use
less office. The duties of the offic
may be performed by the Treasure
of the county, who collects the taxes
and who can apportion them amonj
the several school districts;. Th
warrants are drawn by the trustees
and should be paid by the Treasure
without the useless intervention o
a County Superintendent of Educa
tion, ana tne Treasurer snouia Keej
the necessary books. There is no
thirty days work in the office in thi
course of the year and the salar;
paid is entirely out of proportion ti
the work done.
We know that it is the theory o
the law that the superintendent o:
the county shall visit the schools
but this is and always has been far
cical. The visits if made monthl:
would amount to nothing as th<
work in the end is dependent wholl:
on the teachers.
If the delegation wishes to be o:
service to the schools, they may d<
so by abolishing the office of Count:
Superintendent of Education, ant
giving the money paid him as a sal
ary to the schools of the county
What the schools need is not a super
intendent, not offices and officers
but more money to employ capabl<
teachers, and with which to run th<
schools for longer terms.
THE LILES LAW.
The General Assembly has finallj
passed the Liles Bill, and the sam<
has been sent to the Governor foi
his approval. By this Bill any per
son convicted of selling1 liquor wil
be sentenced to the chain-gang in
stead of being allowed to pay a fine
A person guilty of storing or trans
porting contraband liquors may b(
fined for the first offense, but foi
subsequent offenses, a chain-gang
sentence will await him.
The law is along the right line. Ii
is now up to the officers of the lav
to catch the liquor-sellers. Thej
abound in the land and mast b<
caught. If the present peace offi
cers around Abbeville cannct catcl
those who are selling liquor here ir
_i _ j.: r i Z4. ...:n u ~ ?
vioiauuii uj. law, iu wm ue iieuessiu j
to get officers who can.
RESPECT LAW
BECAUSE IT IS LAV
The Progressive Farmer.
ti IL:? ?i.u^ -c
It is inis spirit, uic spirit ui uuw
ing to the will of the majority, of ac
cepting frankly the results of ou:
processes of law, however disagree
able they may be to us personally a
any time?it is this spirit on whicl
rests the foundations of civilizatioi
and safety. He is usually a childisl
weakling and a contemptible mai
not to be trusted who will not abidi
by the results of the game, playe<
according to the rules?he is "not i
good sport" and men rightly desips<
him?and the same thing is true o
the citizen who will not honestly wai
for and accept the verdicts of jurie
and courts and elections, these beinj
the established rules set up by th<
people for the settlement of cause
and cases.
Take this standard of judging th<
"civic genius" of your county an<
see how your people stand. Are the;
willing to abide by and accept thi
verdict of law, and are they fiercel:
resentful of any man who, unwilling
to abide by law, becomes instead "s
breaker of the public peace?" Thi
is a good test of a people's progres:
in civilization.
TIMELY POINTF.RS FOR ...
ORCHARD AND GARDEN 3
IF
February 12 to 19. yj
(The Horticultural Division of
t Clemson College will be glad to an- |i
a swer your questions on orchard or ?
garden work.) Jy
For early bearing there is no U
t better peach than the Mayflower. g
f Do not neglect the planting of J
d spring Irish potatoes. U
e Spray all fruit trees for scale in- ^
sects before the buds open. 3
I" If you failed to plant sweet peas U
i- in fall, you may plant them now y
y and expect fairly good results. >1
e Order a small quantity of seeds
, of vegetables that you have not |i
tried before. You may like them 3
L- and a variety will never do harm. |j
If you contemplet top-grafting ||
j. apple trees, secure the scion wood g
now while it is dormant. Bury the 3
n twigs in moist sand until they are y
0 ready to be used. 3
i- Have all the hardy spring vege- 3
e tables on hand so that you may U
lose no time in getting them planted q
when conditions are right. 3
Does your orchard now contain U
- all the kinds of fruit that may be m
^ grown in your locality? If not, -2
, you should plant, during the next JJ
lt few weeks, those that are lacking. m
Blackberries grow wild in abund- 3
e ance in South Carolina, but would | ]
it not be well to have a few bushes ||
d of the cultivated sort in the gar- sj
den, where they could be conven-'i
' iently gathered? ja
v Beware any agent that tries to I
s sell you something to put in the |
e trunks of your trees to cure blight a
It is understood that several pow
s ders for which this power is claim- |
n ed have been put on the market. Id
F. J. Crider, Asso. Horticulturist
j Clemson Agricultural College |
d s
0 KNOW YOUR COUNTY AGENT. J
5- I
Clemson College, Feb. 10.? The
county demonstration agents; of the |
hnvp all returned i:o their
h counties with new ideas and new SJ
t enthusiasm as a result of the semi- U
s annual meeting of agents recently q
held at Clemson College. They are 3
s launching the work of the new crop U
year and making plans to carry out y
i- the policies decided upon. |3
P'or many reasons, this is the J|
best time of year for farmers who ||
e do not know their county agent to
r get in touch with him. If you do
not know who your agent is, find (|
_ out from y.our neighbor, then take "
the first opportunity to become ac- 3
e quainted with him. You will find U
>? him glad to make your acquaint- 3
r ance, for part of his business is to
? know the farmers of his county U
Having got to know your county Q
" agent and having found out how Sj
E> to get word to him when you U
t need him, use him in any way that
you can. He is the servant of the "j,
county and will divide his time
V among its people as well as he
> can.
f r kttfr from MR W. C. BENETi"
f '
? Cashiers, N. C., 11 Feby., 1916.
- Dear Sir:
j If you have any spare copies of
this week's (Feby. 9th) Press and fjj
Banner, you will do me a great kind- 3
f nessi if you will send me 3, or 2, or U
even 1. There is so much in the rt
f paper about old Abbeville, I want to if
} send the Press and Banner to my U
widely scattered brood of sons, who rt
f all proudly claim Abbeville as their 5T
1 birthplace. My own copy starts to.
day on its journey across the ocean rt
to "22nd General Hospital, British 3
* Expeditionary Force, France," "J
" which is all the rigorous censorship U
, permits me to know of the where- R
i abouts of my son, George, army sur- Jf
; geon, and British Captain. He will U
enjoy Manse Hollingswor :h's reminis- ft
cences, (he may even find his fath- ZT
er's letter interesting) and even the U
local paragraphs and advertisements rt
will give him pleasant entertainment Si
behind the trenches "somewhere in W!
France." rt
i Let me tell you a curious war in- 3
r cident: A Scottish magazine pub- If
. lished my war ballad, "That Little ^
j Contemptible Army," both words and |?
music, last June. The September S
' number printed a letter from the bat- "fj
. tie front which told that after a UC
. Scottish regiment had stormed and K
nontiiMi) cnmo riormun trPnfVlPS. the 31
' writer, a lieutenant, found in a Ger- U
r man dug-out, a copy of that June ^
,r magazine. I wonder if the Teutons
liked my song. L?
t Yours very truly, ! ?
W. C. Benet. lift
; i#
1 BILL ESTABLISHES !U
- DE LA HOWE HOME j?
! Asylum and School for Destitute
White Children in Abbeville
County. S
r |f
The bill by Messrs Moore and Rob- U
inson to establish the John De La S
Howe industrial home and school "J
J for destitute children, carrying a LC
State appropriation of $10,000, was
given a second reading in the house
- yesterday morning, with practically U
- no opposition. The management of ip
l- the institution, which will be located ST
\l.K?,.:ilo /?/>. nf<r An. LE
- on JII'UpCI ill .TTOOlUt V?UIIV ^
t sign ted in the will of the late John |?
i De La Howe, is placed in the hands *
i of a board of trustees to be selected "J
i by the general assembly. !|?
l Tie school will be operated for.S
e white boys and girls between the "J
1 ages of six and 1(3. who are destitute; U
1 and who have neither parent nor;ff
2 guardian to care for them or whose; "J
f parents or guardians are unable to U
t care for them. An inmate of the . [?
s home shall be kept there until 21 | IT
? years of age, unless sooner dismissed ;U
b by the trustees or a judge. The bill jj>
s requires that each boy or girl shall Sr
work at least four hours a day and If
e shall be instructed in such branches |r
i of useful knowledge and arts as may JT
f be suited to his or her years. jf
e |X
7 A boy is always a boy, but a man
? isn't always a man. Jjf
i No man can be happy unless he |?
s tries to make others happy.
s The happiest woman, like the hap- J#
piest nations, have no history.
.. Our Furn
Cai? E'livtiioliinrro fUf V,
iui i uiiuaifiifgd uiai n
OUR STYLES are not like t
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i Clothiers.
3
We'll show you many tli
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ties you'll find in most <
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i
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Furnishings can never b
new and fresh.
]
j Come Here for
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