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Abbeville Press and Banner Established 1844. $2.00 the Year. Tri-Weekly. Abbeville, S. C. Friday, Dec. 24, 1920 Single Copies, Five Cents. 77th Year NO LOSS OF LIFE REPORTED j IN LATTER COUNTY BUT I TOWN IS ALMOST CUT OFF FROM COMMUNICATION WITH OUTSIDE ?CHILDREN HURT AT SNELUNG Barnwell, Dec. 23.?A cyclone that struck the little town of Snell ing, five miles west of Barnwell Wednesday afternoon about 4 o' clock completely destroyed the resi dence of W. C. Birt, killed his wife and seriously injured his three chil dren. A funeral party from Barn well, on its way to Seven Pines church, near Snelling, was caught in the path of the storm and the tops of several automobiles in ine procession were torn off. An over coat, fur and hat were blown off of one woman as she sat in her car. Large pine trees were snapped off as though they were pipestems. Members of the funeral pa^ty say the roar of the approaching cycione eould be heard for some time before they felt the full force of the wind, and that the noise was like that of a heavy freight train in rapid mo * tion. It will probably be a day or two before the full amount of dam age is known. Laurens, Dec. 23.?Laurens was swept by a cyclone this afternoon and a number of unroofed buildings broken windows and blown down chimneys were left in its wake. As " far as can be ascertained tonight, no one was injured when chimneys crashed through roofs or by broken glass or other debris. Telegaph, telephone and electric light poles and wires were blown down in all parts of the city, and tonight Laureifs y is without com munication with the outside world with the exception of long distance telephone lines. The storm broke between 3 and 4 /o'clock and for ten or 15 minutes " ?? the wind Diew wren i. ex-nut iui?. The large frame structure housing the glass.works of the city was wrecked. The roofs were blown from two stores in the city and the chimneys were blown down into a number of homes. At the home of Mrs. A. H. Sanders the chimney | crashed through the roof apd ceil-1 ing into the rooms of the lower | floor. A chimney was also blown i down into the home of Dr. R. R. Walker at Watts Mill, this likewise crashing through the roof. For tunately no members of the two 1-ouseholds were in the rooms into which the debris fell. A store build ing was also wrecked at Watts Mill and a number of residences also un roofed and more or less damaged. The roof was also blown from a residence at the Laurens Mill, It could not <be iearnea aere wj-i night if damage had been done be-1 yond the city. The storm came in from the southwest and as it had been raining practically all day, few people were in the streets when the timbers and glass were hurling through the air. Eufaula, Ala., Dec. 22.?A torna do passed ten miles north of Eu >. faula at 1 o'clock this morning, up looting trees and demolishing a number of houses but no reports of loss of life have been received, al though ttelephone wires are down and telegraph service is being con ducted under difficulties, making receipt of details slow. WANTS THE HOME PAPER Mrs. I. G. Savage, formerly of Cal houn Falls, but now residing at Mill port, Ala., was one of the first of our December subscribers to renew her * *1' Cll?^ +V*of cVl D fSUDSCnpuon. one vyiuco knau ouv cannot do without the home paper, - and that the Press and Banner, like wine, improves with age. Mrs. Savage is soon to visit her mother, Mrs. Pheiffer, at' Calhoun Falls. May Not Finish Nitrate Plant Ten Million Dollars Needed to Com I plete?House Members May Yet i Seek to Restore Measure Despite Action. | Washington, Dec. 23.?The sub j committee of the appropriations com mittee of the house this afternoon re jected the petition of the board of I engineers that $10,000,000 be appro priated for* the completion of the I $100,000,000 project at Muscie snoais in northern Alabama. Last night the subcommittee tentatively agreed to recommend the appropriation, but during the day Republican leaders interfered with the result that the tentative agreement was hurled into the discard.- Unless the house acts favorably despite the action of the subcommittee, it is feared that the nitrate bill in charge of Senator Smith of South Carolina, under the provisions of which the Muscle shoals plants would'be operated for the production of fertilizer, will be seriously jeopardized. The fertilizer trust has entered actively on the warpath against the nitrate bill with the plea that its en actment would destroy its business. Senator and representative from all states were inundated today by tele grams from constituents 'engaged in retailing fertilizer, urging that they vote against the bill. The tide was especially strong from Georgia and South Carolina, the four senators from which states are committed in j favor of the bill. n:_i a.*, n.t.vitlv Senator Dial, of South Carolihaj promptly answered his telegrams ji with the explanation that while he, objected as a rule to the government*! i engaging in any business, the Muscle 11 shoals proposition meant such per-|] nr^nent benefits to the argicultural ] classes of the country that he felt j impelled to support necessary legis- 1 iation in its favor. I: The Republicans, in desiring that 1 the stupendous construction be stop- ( ped before completion and after a 1 sum as great as $90,000,000 has been spent, entertain the idea that the 1 government should dispose of the < plants to private corporations. In asmuch, however, as consumers : woull not profit from fertilizer sold j' by privaffe corporations, farmers op- j; ' ? ? mv _ ! i pose the KepuDlican suggestion, jlub plight of the project is indicated by ' absentees being recalled to Washing ton prior to the conclusion of the ; holiday period. At Muscle shoals on the Tennessee ' river the government, during the war, undertook to construct plants. 1 for the filtration of atmospheric ni- 1 trogen to form the basis of explo sives and thus make this country in- ' dependent, in the event of another war, of the Chilean nitrate beds. It was a part of the general scheme to 1 construct a dam across the shoals 1 capable of generating more water power than can be generated at any r other point wholly within the United States. That which put the necessary 1 legislation through congress was the knowledge that in time of peace ' these plants would be capable of pro ducing .the highest grade of fertilizer which could be obtained by farmers nf Mnrl roocflnoVllP ohflTVPA. |i 7 * v" o "? ^ The plants are constructed. The dam is nearing completion. The cost ' has approximated $100,000,000. And | now the Republicans would abandon the project because its completion will entail additional expenditure of money. MINISTER KILLED BY AUTOMOBILE Winston Salem, N. C., Dec. 23.? Rev. John R. Herndon, pastor of Waughtown Presbyterian church, a suburb of this city, was instantly killed by an automobile this morn ing. Two negroes in the car which struck the pastor never halted. They escaped, but officers are searching for them. Mr. Herndon leaves a wife nad two children. PENSION BILL THAN FOF Washington, Dec. 23.?Carrying $14,000,000 less than was appropri ated for this year, the annual pen sion bill was reported out today by the House appropriations committee. The total in the bill is $265,500,000. House leaders have agreed to con sider the measure tomorrow with the expectation that it will be passed be fore adjournment tomorrow evening^ for the Christmas recess. Thei)ill was drafted by a sub c'ommittee, headed by Representative Cannon, of Illinois. The estimated pension disbursements in the bill a9 given by the committee, follow: Civil war $251,612,192; war of 1812, $21,145; Mexican war, $840 439; Indian wars, $2,168,195; Span ish-American war $5,844,3bu; wona USUAL CUSTOM 10 ; BE CARRIED OUT AT INAUGURATION President Wilson Plans To Accom pany President-Elect Harding From White House To Capi tal On March 4. Washington," Dec. 2'.?President Wilson plans to accompany Presi dent elect Harding from the White House for luncheon as is the usual -J 1- ? ?. ? ?V?? /*/ CUSlOm Wlltixi a I itrw umci. cjicuuuavc is inaugurated. Joseph P. Tumulty, secretary to | the President, said today that Mr. j Wilson had outlined to him yester-; day his plans with regard to inau guration day. And as is the custom, Mr. Harding will call at the White: House just before noon and will be received by the retiring executive, rhey then, under present plans, will ride down Pennsylvania avenue to the capitol, where the President elect will take the oath if office and deliver his inaugural address. The new and retiring President will lead the usual parade up the avenue to the White House where Mr. Wilson will entertain Mr. Hard i ing at luncheon. Immediately after ward, President Wilson will retire to his new home on S street to take' up life as a private citizen after [ eight years in the White t House. The continued steady improvement in the President's health, according to Secretary Tumulty will make the contemplated visit of the President with President-elect Harding to the capitol possible even in the event of the most intemperate weather. Mr. Tumulty said oday ha when j he visited the President yesterday i he found him in better spirits tnan at any time since he was taken ill more than a^year ago. The Presi dent and his secretary discussed a variety of topics bnt Mr. Tumulty said the executive did not bring up the subject of the treaty of Ver sailles and did not indicate in anyj way what disposition he was prepar-i ed to make of it. The President said in the course of the talk that he was not greatly interested in the writing of memoirs for an autobiography as it was a form of literature which had never greatly appealed to him. It has been generally understood that when Mr. | Wilson retires from office he will take up the preparation of a history of the world war. 28 BELOW AT MONTANA t Washington, Dec. 23.?Frost is probable tonight as far south as the interior of Central Florida, the weather bureau announced today, and freezing temperatures may pre vail to the Mississippi and Alabama coast. Considerable low temperature east of the Mississippi river follow ing a drop to decidedly below nor mal throughout the west where at Havre, Montana, a temperature of 28 below zero was registered this morning. ? V . IS LESS I PAST YEAR war 36,734; regular establishment $4,476,215. During the year the number of pensions decreased 32,237 and the sub-committee said this accounted for the cout of $14,000,000 as com pared with this year's total. The sub-committee estimated that in addition to the $265,500,000 car ried in the pension bill, the govern ment during the next fiscal year would expend an additional $309, 985,490 in war ^risk compensation, maintenance of soldiers homes, med ical and hospital treatment. for war veterans and vocational training. It also estimated that by. the end of the coming fiscal year the government will have paid out $5,830,815,7.17. 04 in pensions since jl919. secrfy houston mm a two billion deficiency Two B.llion and One Hundred Mil lion This Year and One Billion and a Half Next Year Says The Treasurer Washington, Dec. 23.?Gross defic iency in national fiscal transactions of $2,100,000,000 this fiscal and $1,500 000,000 for the next fiscal year was iorecast today Dy secretary xiousiun .n testimony before the Senate Fin ance Committee which is considering the soldier bonus bill. The secretary said federal finances were in such ihape that'new sources of revenue must be found and no new burdens added to the treasury. Considered a^de from the public debt, Mr. Houston said, the ordinary receipt for this year should exceed ord.nary expenditures by about $800 000,000 and next year excess should be $556,000,000. These sums, how ever, are inadequate to take care of the interest on the public debt, which .s about $2,200,000,000 annually Mr. Houston said, as well as the interest on the current floating debt and the total laid aside annually for retiring cne publ.c debt. "We will start the year of 1922-23 with a deficit of $1,500,000,000, said Jfr. Houston. "We face, in addition, the fact that many sources of reven i - -i?_? ?:n 4-~ ue are declining su we win .nave iu look around for new sources to tap without placing greater burdens on ;he treasury." Asked as to what sources of rev enue were declining, the secretary said principally the excess profits tax but that the productivity of higher groups of income taxes also was fall ing off. He cited internal revenue fig ures showing a steady decline in tax payments by those receiving the lar ger incojnes of the country. Mr. Houston warned, incidentally against "tampering with the sinking fund." He declared the present ar rangement for retiring the great war debt was "sound and workable," and should be allowed to continue in force. THIS MULE PROVED TO BE A POOR MILCH COW Raleigh, itf. C., Dec. 23.?A thief had been sneaking into the bam at night and stealing milk from a cow owned by a Johnson county farmer. The planter determined to put an end to the culprit's depredations. A few days ago the cow was transferred from her regular stall and a young mule was substituted. One night la ter, the farmer was aroused by a ter rific racket in the vicinity of the sta ble. He grabbed his shot-gun and ran to the barnyard, but the thief had es caped', leaving a battered milk pail a small stool and a hat in the mule's stall. The visits of the intruder have ceased. Pageant Was Big Success Small Crowd Present on Account Of Bad Weather?Young Ladies Will Repeat Pageant Next Tuesday Evening The pageant given by the Young Woman's Auxiliary in the Baptist church Wednesday evening was most impressively rendered, and was great ly enjoyed by the audience present. Because of the inclemency of the weather, the number present was not as large as might have been, the church being not more-than half filled with people. Numerous requests have f?nmo fhnt tVio nrA?pnt-.flt.inn h<? rp. peated, and the young women have consented to repeat the pageant on Tuesday evening. The service will be gin at seven o'clock. The pageant was a presentation of "The Holy Night," and twenty-five or thirty young women took .part. The music was furnished by Miss Ruth Howie at the pipe organ, and a select choir. Joseph, Mary, the shepherds, the wise men, angel figures, and rep resentatives of the . nations of the earth were represented by young women of the auxiliary. The costumes were brilliant, and the parts were specially well rendered. The whole was a striking visualization of ' the scene in the manger when the shep herds came, and the visit of the wise [ men, and the final triumph of the Christ among all peoples of the earth. The church should be filled next Tuesday evening at seven o'clock when the pageant begins. I STOLE MONEY DISPLACED IN WINDOW OF A BANK Scranton, Pa., Dec. 23.?New cur rency displayed on two illuminated Christmas trees in windows of the First National Bank at the most prominent business corner of the city attracted thieves just before day break today. They hurled stones through the windows and gathered up the bills indifferent to burglar alarm loudly clanging over their heads. Police hurried to the scene and picked up the men with their pockets bulging with the new bank notes. One was Tommy Cawley the other refused ta write his name. Both are deaf mutes. ITALIAN TROOPS ESTABLISH CLOSE BLOCKADE OF FIUME London, Dec. 23.?Italian govern ment troops commanded by General al Caviglia and Admiral Millo have established a close blockade of Fiume by lnd and sea, and it seem ed possible today that fighting might be represented at any time. Not only has the city of Fiume been isolated from the outside world, but the Islands of Arbe, San MaTcoa and Veglia. Conditions of recognized gravity have arisen since Captain Gabriele said today that fighting w might be expected at any time. Not only has Rappallo. In answer to an ultimate I aoTif. he General Caviflrlia, he nas declared he will fight against enforcement of the treaty until his demands aTe met. GOOD ATTRACTIONS AT OPERA HOUSE ( THE COMING WEEK Manager Verchot, of the local theatre, has booked two of the best road attractions touring this -section to present performances at Abbe ville during next week. The first show, "Dardenella", which is to ap pear on Monday, comes highly re commended by managers all over the circuit and the theatre-goers of our town may expect an evening of fine entertainment. "The Trail of ;he Lonsesome Pine," which is to appear here Thursday evening neeas no comment as this great play has been having quite a successful run1 for a number of years. L. 0. Beauford was in town today on business. HOUSE VOTES FOR FORDNEY MEASURE BY BIG MAJORITY POLITICAL SWEPT ASIDE ON FINAL VOTE, 41 DEMOCRATS COMBINE WITH 154 REPUBLI CANS IN PASSAGE. " Washington, Dec. 23.?Over the protests of a defiant minority, the house tonight adopted the Fordney emergency tariff bill by a vote of 196 to 86. The vote was taken at 8:45 o'clock after eight hours of de bate. Political Knes were swept aside on the final vote, 41 Democrats and one DtiAklKi+lAwipf 1 ATM nrliV. 1 K. A X A V/illLf iHV/lilO V CUUiUlliillg VTiWIl 1C? Republicans in supporting the meas ure while 14 'Republicans linecf up. with 72 Democrats against the bill. It was evident tonight before 'the vote was taken that supporters . of the measure designed to protect some 20 odd farm products for a ten months period had the situation well in hand. But Representative llenry T. Rainey, Democrat, Illinois, lead ing the opposition, opened a bitter attack which increased in intensity, as the debate wore on. Paragraph-by paragraph, . he as sailed the measure while the Repub licans with loud roars of "noes" sent his. proposed amendments down to defeat. A few Republicans supported him in his attack but a score of his own party turned from their tradi tional stand against a high tar.lf to join the majority. / Opposition speakers charged that the measure would send the cost of living higher and branded it as class legislation. Defenders of the bill on the other hand said it would save the agricultural industry. v n ci j Iiaoiuj vrawu* Cha'.rman Fordney of the ways and means committee which reported the measure in opening debate declared the measure was not scientific and admitted it was hastily drawn, but asserted that it was the best that could be had at this time. Representative Gardner, Tex&s speaking in support of this bill, said he felt it was the only way in which congress could extend the relief so urgently needed by the farmers. ReDresentative Madden. Republi can,, Illinois, however, assailed his colleagues for "opposing the way to a renewal of prohibitive living costs." Pointing his finger at the majorty leader's desk, he said: "You men will make two lamb chops cost $1.30 again and you will make our suits^ of clothes cost 100 J per cent more." Representative Garrett of Tennes j see said he saw "in this bill a de j termined effort to divide the Demo ! cratic party, to make members of ! that party turn their bkck9 on every principle of taxation for which the party has stood in its whole his tory." "I can not believe the Republican leaders seriously hope to get this bill passed." he added. "I am convinced it is a fine piece of political strategy. In his attempts at amendment Mr. Rainey sought to show that the bill in the most part carried higher rates than the Payne-Aldrich tariff. He also warned of retaliatory tariffs and embargoes by other nations. In this cdnnection an amendment by Representative Olney, Democrat, Massachusetts, to admit wool in transit' from Australia and South America at the time of passage of the measure at prevailing rates of Juty was voted down. Blow to Manufacturing Representative Walsh, Republican, Massachusetts, in opposing the rate jf seven cents a pound on cotton manufactures, said the cotton indus try of New England were at a stand till now, and predicted that an ad litional duty would result in further unemployment through the abandon nent of plans to reopen mills. Mr. and Mrs. James Gibeirt, of Spartanburg, are visiting Mr. A. E. Gibert. t