Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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VOL. 86 EBGEFIELD, S. C.? WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1921 No. 31 JOHNSTON LETTER. - Campaign Meeting, Co-oper a ii ve Marketing Discussed, Seme Damage by Lightening. The first campaign meeting of this County was held here Saturday, the speaking taking place in the au ditorium of the high school. There was a full attendance of the candidates all those for the house of representatives being present. Some that were not running this year were not present. Each speaker pledged himself for the best for his county, and was heard with interest by all present. There was no'; as large a crowd as should have been, and in the au dience was a f ev ladies. The interest in the campaign, in a general way, was not very enthu siastic, and while there, seemed to be a large crowd present for the day, judging for the various groups about on the street, still the gathering at the auditorium was not large. The social side of the day seemed to have been a great success, and in a grove a very appetising barbecued dinner was served. From the crowds at the speaking and at the barbecue pit, we would say that interest was equally divided .between the two. A largely attended and very enthu siastic meeting was held here Satur day in interest of the co-operative cotton market and an organization was effected, this called the South Carolina Farmers' Co-operative Cot ton Market The chief business was in the election of officers, these being: President, B. R. Tillman, of Tren ton; Vice President, A. L. Clark, of Johnston;' Secretary and treasurer, W. E. Lagrone, Johnston. Executive committee: R. B. Smith, of Johnston; Walter Wise^of Trenton; and Joe Payne/ of < M?etmg'- Street. , There followed several discus sions, i the chief being of the j proposed cotton ware house, which the farmers hope to see erected soon. On Sunday evening a very severe , electrical storm visited the town and ? for about an hour, there was almost j a constant light from the vivid flash- , es. There was some wind and rain. There were two heavy clouds from - which the lightening played, and had ^ there been the one cloud, no doubt j there would have been more disaster , from the electricity. A bolt struck a three room tenant house, belonging to Mr. P. B. Wa- . ters. The two families occupying this . were away at the time. The two , room house near by caught, and was considerably damaged before the fire j department got in operation. . The buildings were a considerable . distance from the hydrant, and time was lost by the second trip back to . headquarters for another reel of , hose. Mr. Waters carried insurance on both houses. Mrs. Walter Holmes, of Jonesville, ] is the guest of her sister, Mrs. Joe ' Cox. Mrs. H. N. Crouch and Mrs. L. S. Maxwell have gone to.Glenn Springs to spend a while. Mrs. Maxwell will then go to Hendersonville, N. C., for the benefit of her health. Little Irene, the daughter of Mr. ? and Mrs. W. E. Lagrone, has been sick with fever, but is now improv ing. Mrs. Coleman, Mrs. LaGrone's mother, is spending some time with ber. Mrs. Walter Hendrix and Fred of Leesville spent Sunday with her Aunt, Mrs. J. M. Turner. She was accompanied home by her Aunt Mrs. Kate Crouch, and Mrs. B. L. Adams. Mrs. Frank Lan drum and children, of Florence, are guests of relatives. Mrs. Walter Ouzts has gone to Charleston to visit in the family of her son. Miss Mertys Smith, who has been sick for some time, has gone to the mountains to recuperate. Misses Geraldine and Natalie Kammer, of Blackville, have been guests in the home of their uncle, Mr. J. Neal Lott On Wednesday afternoon, Misses Isabel and Bessie Bean entertained for the Misses Kammer, with a pic nic at Salter's pond. All enjoyed a dip in the cool waters and then a pic nie feast was spread. Mrs. H. w! Crouch and Mrs, L. S. Maxwell have returned from a weeks stay in Augusta. . Mrs. Ida Satcher, of Augusta, has been visiting friends and relatives. Mrs. Leora Wright Simmons has gone to Greenwood to spend August in the home of her brother, Mr. S. P. Wright. From there she will go to Hartsville, to again serve as matron at Coker College. Mrs. P. B. Waters and Willie are at home after a visit to Miss Mary Waters in Augusta. Rev. W. S. Brooke is at Spring field this week conducting a revival. Miss Nannie Eidson, who is at the Park Sanatorium, has written to friends here telling of the need of more beds, for the patients who wait to come for treatment. She asked that the people of Johnston place a bed here, the ex pense of one year being $100. The matter is being pushed and $35 has already been raised. Miss Clara Sawyer has returned from a visit to Mrs. Henry Clark at Aiken. Dr. Huggins and her daughter have gone to Columbia for a visit. Miss Canada, the daughter of Rev. Canada of Edisto Academy is the guest of Miss Rosa Padgett. .Miss Padgett has been one of the teachers at this school. Mrs. Joe Cox entertained the Bridge Club on Thursday afternoon, in a very happy manner. The top score was made by Mrs. Julian P. Bland who was presented with a pair of hand embroidered pil low cases. The guest prize, a set of tea nap kins was drawn by Mrs. Frank Bland and the consolation, a jar of apple jelly, fell to Mrs. B. T. Boatwright A dainty repast was served. Miss Emily Siftley, of Orange burg, is visiting Miss Lillian Mob ey. Mr. M. W. Clark went to ^atesburg Sunday'to attend the funeral of Mr. Kneece which took place "that af ter loon. Mr. Kneece was the father of bis son-in-law, Mr. Eugene Kneece. Miss Carrie Mobley, of Thompson, Ga., has been here for a visit to Miss Marie Lewis. Mrs Charlie Brunson, of Augusta, has been visiting in the home of her brother, Dr. J. A. Dobey. Dr. and Mrs. William Halbeck Framptan have returned to Charles ton, after a visit in the home of the latter's parents Mr. and Mrs. Halti wanger. Mr. Joe Haltiwanger, of Columbia, and Miss Ethel Chapman and > Mr. Chapman, of Clinton, N. C., have been guests in the home' of Mr. and Mrs. J. J. Haltiwanger. Messrs. Albert Dozier and William Haltiwanger are at home from a visit to relatives and friends in Charles ion. The girls Auxiliary enjoyed a Damping party about three miles from town last week. There was an empty dwelling near by where each spread her quilt and pillar, but all the meals were prepar ed out of doors in true camp style. One evening the young people walked to Wards to enjoy the revi val being conducted by Dr. Dorset. Mrs. W. J. Hatcher is at home from Atlanta, having been called to the bed side of her brother, Mr. Dun can, who was ill. She was accom panied home by her niece, little Car oline Duncan. The B. Y. P. U. held an afternoon picnic on Thursday at Salter's pond. There were about fifty present, and each one thoroughly enjoyed the affair. The girls provided a tempting spread, and the young men furnish ed iced lemonade and made themsel ves as pleasant as they possibly could. Mrs. M. R. Wright has returned from a month's stay in Columbia, with Luelle Norris. Miss Pearl Carver is now able to be up again after an attack of ty phoid fever. Miss Helen Wright has .returned from Rock Hill, having taken a spe cial course at Winthrop College. Mrs. Beta Wright is expected next week to visit relatives. Buy a FORD and bank the difference.-Adv. First County Gi Held at Johnston Sat Little Inter About noon Saturday somethi like 140 persons, there being 01 three women among them, gather in the high school auditorium Johnston to hear the men who a seeking the suffrage of the voters Edgefield county give their vie upon the "burning issues" of t day. Probably the attendance won have been larger had the place f holding the meeting been definite announced in advance. The meeting was called to ord by the county chairman, Mr. J. ] Cantelou, who requested all cane dates who desired to address tl meeting to come upon the platfon and the five aspirants for legislatr honors promptly responded. Aft reading the list of candidates wi have qualified for the campaign, M .Cantelou turned the meeting over ' the local chairman, Mr. J. W. Co; who in his prefatory remarks vei truly said that men who are elect? to office, even the best men, can n< give us good government without OT help. There is a duty for every cit zen and the manner in which thi duty is performed will have its effe< upon the character of our laws an their enforcement; The real troubl with conditions today is found in a$ riculture. Our entire system wi have to be changed and we must a] ply our best intelligence toward co: reefing this imperfect system. MJ Cox said our tax system has been irr. proved and law enforcement is gair ing ground but we must give though to other things than politics. J. W. BIed?oe. The first speaker.presented ,by th chairman was Mr. Bledsoe,-arcajq^i date for the Fouse from Johnsto: who said he entered the campaig: with one uppermost principle ani that is to upbuild and not tear down not to throw mud or do anything low Mr. Bledsoe said, "I enter this rac upon no man's demerits but am run ning on my own merits, if I hav> any, and will certainly not do any thing that is low and degrading, will not join any clique or allianc< in order to gain 'otes, but will pu myself into the hands of the Grea Giver. I do not expect to go aroun< hunting votes on Sunday but will en deavor to reflect the principles teach my Sunday School class every Sunday morning." This is a critical time, said Mr Bledsoe, with many taxes yet un paid. Public funds have been mis appropriated in many ways and thc legislature has created too many of fices for pap-suckers. Too many com missions have been created, said tht speaker, including the tax commis sion which does the work the comp troler general did up to that time He expressed the opinion that state colleges are receiving more monej than they ask for. He said he would not take a brick off of any of the state schools but declared that manj of our best men are coming from the denominational colleges, which dc not receive a dollar of public money. Mr. Bledsoe said Wofford College has put more judges on the bench than any other college. He made known his opposition to farm demon stration agents. -Said he, "Edgefield county has farmers of experience who do not need a demonstrator.. Economy should be practiced by cut ting off a little here and a little there. Mr. Bledsoe said we have a good school system but need a better one and in speaking of schools advocated the consolidation of weak schools, making it possible for boys and girls ito be carried through the 10th. and 111th. grades. Give them" that, said he, and they will scratch for a living. In refering to the great number of tax executions now outstanding, Mr. Bledsoe said, "Something must be done for these men who brave the galling winds of winter and the burning sun of summer." He said about half of the men who go to the legislature do not know what that body is doing, spending much of their time in pool rooms and do not even know what is con tained in the bills they vote for. If mpaign Meeting day. Small Attendance, t Manifested. elected, he said he will not miss roll call and will use all the powei that God has given him to protec the interests of the people. In closin, Mr. Bledsoe said, "As your cotto: weigher I have been faithful and wii be faithful with everything else yoi entrust with me." C. T. Burnett. The second speaker was Mr. C. 1 Burnett, a member of the EdgefieL iar, who said we are facing a crit ical time in South Carolina, due t< the deflation following the war. Ou main crop is cotton and the boll wee vii partially destroys that, PeopL have become dissatisfied with thi present system of government. W< need a change of tax system. Undei the present system of government Mr. Burnett said, home owners paj 70 per cent of the taxes. He statec that hidden money and luxurie: should be taxed and not - single mil be levied upon property to support the state government. County'expen ses only should be provided for ir. this way. He urged that people should study to know the men theji elect to make their laws. Mr. Burnett stated that ?he is in favor of making laws so simple that they can be easily construed. He also said lawyers should not be blamed for getting guilty men off when they accept money for defending a client. He expressed the belief that men should be elected to. the. legislature ^7fcb swill have their county's interest at-heart first and then the.state at large. He spoke, somewhat at length concerning tbe; great cost of the Dix ie^; Highway* ;.: the .-consi.TuctxpA^| ?^m^^raSrae'd^?' "htjavy ' bonded' debt to "be placed on tbe county. The speaker said this is supposed to be a representative government' but there has sprung up too many com missions and boards that require an increase in appropriations. In this connection a vigorous attack was made upon the tax commission. A highway commission had to be main tained in order to obtain federal aid for road building but this commis sion was costing too much. He refer red to the board of fisheries as hav ing been established in order to give parasites a job which was costing the state about $10,000 a year. Mr. Burnett said first make reductions where we can and then raise the nec essary amount from other sources than a levy on the real estate. He said the legislature must eliminate the drones that live, upon the taxpay ers. Mr. Burnett said he was the grand son of a confederate veteran and a veteran of the World War and would favor a .liberal support of Confeder ate veterans by cutting down some where else. He said that if elected he would do his utmost to serve the people well and will not come back with any other mantle except one as pure as the snow from heaven. H. H. Sanders. The chairman next introduced Mr. Sanders, a farmer of the western section of the county, who is also a candidate for the house. Mr. San ders said he was no stranger in the town of Johnston, having visited in that community frequently during the 16 years that he resided in Edge field and always found the people very clever and hospitable. Strangers always greatly appreciate cordial treatment. Mr. Sanders stated that he is not appearing before the peo ple as a great speaker, nor does he come as" one claiming to know so much. But he claims to be a man of common sense and sound business judgment. He said he had no politi cal record or past to speak of but he looks to the future and will endeav or to do his full duty. He was prompted to enter the race for the legislature by the very discouraging condition of our people but now is the time for us to work and press forward with greater determination. The speaker said he never holds back or stops for discouragements. Mr. Sanders said he has the high est regard for each one of his op ponents and would quit the race rather than wound their feelings. I is asking for the support of the pe pie in this race on his merits and w appreciate that support. If the pe pie elect him, he pledges himself ' stand by the things that are for tl best interests of the people. . Mr. Sanders referred those wi do not know him to the people this county among whom '.e has live for the past 20 years. He was hoi in the edge of Aiken county near ti Edgefield line and his mother W? born and reared in Edgefield count; Having been a resident of the coui ty so long he feels that he is entitle to anything that any other son of th county is entitled to. Since movin from the town of Edgefield iou years ago he has resided eight mile west of Edgefield in the Antioch se< tion, where he has engaged in fara ing. In conclusion Mr. Sanders said i the people see fit to elect him h will to the best of his knowledg and ability protect and advance thei interests. J. O. Sheppard. The next speaker was Mr. Sher, pard, a candidate for re election t the house, who said he would be un grateful were he to fail to expr?s his appreciation for the 233 vote which he received in Johnston twi years ago. It will be his purpose ti continue to merit this generous sup port. Mr. Sheppard said one of thi outstanding questions of the day ii law enforcement and that he stand? firmly for the enforcement of al laws. Another leading question i? taxes and South Carolina is the on ly state that continues to hold to th? old-fashioned system, but a new daj is dawning. Mr. Sheppard said the new delegation went into office ir 1920 facing a deficit in the countj of $120,000 which was put into s boiid issue. The country's finance.; to-day are on an excellent basis witt the ftxcfiptibn Of un]^i??/j^t?,--;foi which*" the delegation is not* respon sible. He commended our county of ficers for their good work. The coun ty levy was reduced last year by four mills and all expenses have been cut to the bone. Mr. Sheppard said South Carolina has an antiquated tax system and that he along with a majority of the members of the house stood for a reduction of the levy on real estate and placing a tax on luxuries. He exhibited a chart which showed what a great decrease has been made. on the levy on real estate. He said the senate killed the luxury tax and hy dro-electic tax bills which the house passed.. The house made a strenous effort to remove the tax on land al together but the senate refused to concur. Mr. Sheppard called atten tion to the fact that the tax commis sion had placed $175,000,000 dollars of property on the tax books, which has had a considerable weight in holding down our taxes. Mr. Shep pard said if it were shown him that any commission now existing is bad he will vote to abolish it. He said it has been reported that he voted to reduce the pension fund of the Con federate soldiers, which is altogeth er a mistake. The house voted the same amount as last year but the senate reduced this by $100,000. He would vote to cut elsewhere but not to cut the Confederate soldiers' pen sion. Mr. Sheppard called attention to the fact that South Carolina stands at the bottom in the matter of education. By way of showing how the people's money is spent call ed attention to the fact that in 1912 the appropriation for education was $145,000 and in 1921 $1,500,000. He called attention also to the great increase in the number of inmates of the asylum and the imperative need for increased appropriations. The last legislature reduced the state levy from 12 to 7 mills and had the senate concurred in the action of the house a greater reduction would have been made. Mr. Shep pard said in conclusion that he had always stood for the strictest econ omy but was not in favor of impair ing any of our institutions. S. T. Williams. The last candidate to speak was Mr. Williams, the farmer-merchant of Pleasant Lane, who is offering for re-election to the house. He said that 23 years ago he saw the first road scrape equipped and used and that he had hoped that in 10 years Dial's Adv ice Is Secure Coal Now. Washington, July 29.-"Get coal now. The situation is serious and no one knows when the railroad and coal strikes will end." * This was the gist of a statement . issued here today by Senator Dial after a conference with Secretary Herbert Hoover, of the department of commerce regarding labor strikes ' and other matters. At the conclusion of the confer ence Senator Dial was asked for a statement and said he had called-.to see Mr. Hoover relative to the Char leston navy yard matter and the coal and railroad situation. Mr. Hoover, Senator Dial stated, is very friendly to the Charleston yard but as is usu al in such cases he found the head! of one government reluctant to in terfere or give advice to another one "As to the coal situation," Sena tor Dial said, "I strongly urge all . our people who can possibly do -so to procure their coal supplies with out further delay. Many people re member the cold winter of 1917,' . when war was going on and how dif- - ficult it was to get coal for various reasons. Now, with the total output, of coal at about three and a half mil lion tons a month and the railroad' using two and a half million tons of this each month, it will be seen how necessary it is for our people to get their supplies now unless they wist to find themselves very seriously em barrassed later on. "I sincerely hope that some way may be found to satisfactorily ad- fM just .the present difficulties, both as regards the rail and i coal situation, but in the meantime I desire to re peat how absolutely necessary it is to secure coal supplies for both do mestic and commercial purposes. without delay." - . ' ' -? the roads woit?d-be :gxeatly. :imprpv::,;v- . ed but that hi; had not ilound it soii i Mr. Williams said that he wanted to make an explanation to the Confed erate veterans. He is a member of the ways and means committee of the house, in which body all appro priations originate, and it was a greed in this committee that no re-: duction would be made in the appro priations for pensions, but that the senate reduced the amount to $500, 000 from $600,000. He said he re- - fused to increase the salary of the farm demonstration agent for Edge field county last year as requested by Mr. Johnson, the district manager of Aiken, who said he would remove the agent unless the increase . was made. ' Mr. Williams said a politician said to him some time ago that the appro priations for the asylum, peniten tiary and every school should be cut, and he showed that increased de mands upon these institutions made it impossible for them to do on less appropriations. He spoke in the high est terms of the school which has been taken over by the state in Mc Cormick county for the support and education of orphan children. The Cedar Springs Institute in Spartan burg, the seo ol for the blind, had asked for increased appropriations and the needs of this institution should appeal to every man who has a heart in him. Dr. Johnson, the pres ident of Winthrop college, appeared before the ways and means commit-? tee and stated that 1,560 girls had applied for admission into the college but that only 1,287 could be re ceived. Mr. Williams said he has al ways been opposed to Sunday work but that as long as he is a member of the house he will remain at his post of duty until the body adjourns to keep some fellow from having ob jectionable legislation passed during the closing hours of the session, cit ing an instance in which he helped to defeat a bad measure. He stated that he has always voted to save money for the people, having voted last ses sion to reduce his own salary by 25 per cent This alone would have saved the tax payers $17,000. In con clusion Mr. Williams called attention to the fact that we are only paying this year seven mills for state pur poses and that the remainder of our taxes is spent in the county, and the delegation is not responsible for the county expenses.