Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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^ ? . * % rT t THE LEXINGTON DISPATCH. ' & Bepresentatioe Newspaper. Boners Lexington and the Borders of the Surrounding Bounties Like a Blanket. ______________________________? . ttttt / ' ; . LEXINGTON, S. C., WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1909. 15~ 4 j?'. M |THe HOME NA . I OF LEXI . 1 ISSUES $25,( m We will make lo&nB to our patron fl a.-.' = "" 1 " I DEPOSIT eminent < *B I^egJ. - s 'Tjii,.. .-J=L ? >i+-*k ?-> - ... ?. . uJis. l i .$. . .- - .. SAttUfiL S. CEORCE, Rreaidorii ' ALFRED J. 1 s K ' t * " i i V . > 4 J I Bank of : : > CHAPI The Bank That This bank aims to give you goo " #A? ?nn_^fttmish Hraftj f lV/i jv/ur IUIU&9U v?*w* w . always glad to assist you in bnsii: i 8 with this bank, which makes a ] positora. Oar certificates of dep Wo cordially invite the farm en 8 their banking with ns. | J. 3. WESSINGER, President. wMBHHflHimmm == ^ M MEW BROOI rr Sg Iftfe Want your business. U if "* ttr y*ar inbsey wHh us imtH you n ? jf J. G. CU1CNARD, jg Vioe-President. I There comes a time in evt 3 pointer?a helping hand to g / I I THE FIRST NATIONAL 9 I B is the pointer" that will hi \ I worries if you will begin tt * fggg? NOV IS THE ] / Cultivate the I The following are just a few reas< account: 1st. It provides you with an acci money paid out. 2nd. It gives you confidence in yoi 3rd. Your bank account, however fund which will mean peace plenty Deposit your money with us wher the community in which you live. * The Bank < R. L. LYBRAND. President 4 AAA 109?. Lexington Sj # LEXINGTON, Capital, Surplus and Undi 5 per cent, interest paid being computed semi-annually received.' Commercial accounts also; Ample facilities for hand] account will be appreciated. Safety deposits boxes for r< w. p.: > <k I " ? - -i' i I ? ^ G] w. zx 10)20 MAIN HTREI Solicits a Share BBHiHaaHE TIONALBANlS INCTON. 11 >00 IN MONEY || s and depositors on Rood security. B j >ney in this bank. The TJ. S. Got* b prill see that it is taken care of. m ^B FOX, Cashier. &RL F. OSWALD, Asst. Cashier. B HMMMM Chapin 1 N, S. flL : : : I Accommodates I d services. We cash out-of-town g or sending money way. We are gj less matters. Make your deposits EJ joint of good treatment of its de- C osit bear interest at 5 per cent. B ) as well as the business men to do 5 J. F. HONEYCUTT, Cashi er B KLAND, S. C. M \ our desire, to -please. Leave JR ieed H. We pUy Interest four ? l. s. TRorri, ^ j|j1 jryone's life when he needs a B ;uide him to his destination. | RM nf RITFSRIIRIi I 4 U11I1.U U1 U111LUVUUU | 3lp you -over future financial | le use of its Savings Depart- 3 riME TO BEGIN! labit of Saving. )ii8 WHY you should carry a bank 1 irate and consecutive record of all or judgment. small, will be the start of a reserve and a contentment in old age. e it will be in active use and benefit >f Swansea. B. E. CRAFT, Cashier. 1909. dyings Bank, - - S. C ivided Profits $30,000.00. on savings deposits, interest . Deposits of $1.00 and over given special attention. ling your business, and your Bnt, $1.00 per year. ROOF, President and Cashier5 LOBE DRY GO iMioasrCTnrois ST, ' of Your Valued Pat BRIDGE CONTRACT UNDER SUSPICION. Representative Harrison of Greenwood Claims That Wyse Ferry Bridge Will Cost $7,000 Too Much. Under the above heading The Columbia State on Thursday published the following interesting article on the steel bridge for which contract l.i. ^ i was lev oeyerin wee&s ?kv; Is there graft in bridge bnilding? Is there an understanding among bridge builders that certain territory i9 to be allotted to each? Is it true that bids submitted in such respective territory are merely "complimentary?" Is it a fact that after contracts are let, alterations are made by which the successful biddergets a large percentage of profit? The above questions have for months been puzzling some young engineers of this State, men of unimpeachable integrity. The fir9t issue was made yesterday at Lexington, when Hon. Wade C. Harrison of Greenwood appeared before the grand jury and charged that the county is being mulcted to the extent of $7,000 in one bridge contract, the total value of which i9 $18,600. In ether words, Mr. Harrison submitted for others a proposal to duplicate the work for $11,000, and in prov 1- - 1 d.IiU U ~ ing I11S gVUU l <111.11 no uucicu a verified check for ?1,000 as a forfeit. The grand jury complacently heard I the statements, but had taken no action up to last night. It is expected j that developments will follow today. 1 Following the great flood of last August, some young engineers saw that many thousands of dollars must be spent at once in replacing the bridges washed away. Purposing to engage in legitimate business, they decided 1 to try to get as much of this work as possible under legitimate competition. In visiting several localities they were astonished at the conditions prevailing at the awarding of contracts upon the basis of alleged competitive bidding. .. t There was a spirit of camraderie among the bidders, which was in itself suspicious, and some openly mUVt KinkinflP onH AfPfli*. UtlUUlCU UlUC/lO TTiMU V&AVIUQ wuv? vmwa ing bribes to county officials. Gradually these novices began to get the idea that it was useless to submit bids unless they "stood in" with the inner circles, for should they be so fortunate as to submit the lowest bids they would later find that all sorts of obstacles had been placed in the way of their getting material. This matter came to the attention of Mr. Harrison. He has quietly been making observations for several months and has had the assistance of others who have been as sincerely interested, and the result has been that they think they have a clear case. Mr. Harrison will at a later time submit to the general assembly some affidavits which will give support to his bill to have all proposals for bridge contracts reviewed by a competent engineer or board of engineers. Mr. Co9grove in the house and Dr. Crosson in the senate have bills along the lines of the reforms advocated by Mr. Harrison. Some time ago Mr. Harrison was informed by Mr. Thos. W. Cothran of Greenwood that.Mr. J. W. Burgett, a bridge contractor, could give some valuable information with reference to the letting of a bridge contract in Lexington county. Mr. Burgett later in person confirmed to Mr. Harrison the statements made in Mr. Oothran's letter. Mr. Burgett furthermore confirmed these charges in a conversation with Senator Niels Ohristensen, Jr. Mr. Harrison had a conference with the new supervisor in Lexington and made photographic copies of the rec- ! ords in the matter. Yesterday the j l grand jury of Lexington county notified Mr. Harrison mat his presence i was desired. Accordingly he went to 1 Lexington and invited Senator Chris- ' tensen to accompany him to confirm certain statements. These were in effect as follows: " That a bridge was to be built by Lexington county over Saluda river | at Wyse's ferry, about nine miles northwest of Columbia. That Mr. I Burgett conferred with the former su i pervisor, G. H. Koon, and that tho , j supervisor stated 4'he expected some- i I thingoutof it." Burgett accordingly 1 | raised his figures on hauling Irom 1 ' $160 to $500 and let the supervisor have the hauling. Burgett claimed that he submitted the lowest bid $15,400, but that the Carolina Engineering company of Burlington, N. C., got the contract for $18,000. Burgett stated that his agreement with the supervisor was that Burgett was to submit a bid in blank "and the supervisor agreed to put the figures on the bid when he opened it." He Ui<tiLUS Liiai bins w an uuno auu uian was the lowest bidder. When this became known to Mr. Harrison he advised the Southern Highway Bridge company of Greent wood and they made an investigation, I and later submitted a report with a I bi:l?accompanied by a check for $1,000 to guarantee good faith?in | which they agreed to build the bridge J * IODS COMPAK r. je., ronage. Polite and Pr< for f11,952. The singular point about the transaction with the Carolina Engineering company ia that they submitted a bid of $18,000 on 542 feet, while the others bid on 600 feet, and Burgett claims to have submitted the lowest bid by $3,000 on 58 feet more than the contract was let for. Under date of December 23, 1908, T. C. Carter of Burlington, N. C., general manager of the Carolina Engineering company, wrote regarding changes in plans for bridge for which contract was let 16 days before and says: "Along with these papers. return tho old blue prints and specifications which you have, so as - to avoid any confusion between the furn r>r?nt,rnr?f.o V ?T V VVM V* MVVWt | There is much in the transaction that is interesting and it may be that Mr. Harrison's appearing before the grand jury at Lexington yesterday may result in wholesale investigations throughout the State. The charges are serious. If true, the grand jury will know what to do. If unfounded, ex-Supervisor Koon has redress against Burgett for defamation of character. ? Court Proceedings. When we went to press last week the case of the State against Noah and Gideon Burkett, two young negroes from the lower part of the county charged with assault and battery, was in progress. The jury returned a verdict of guilty, and they were sentenced to three months on the gang or to pay .a fine of $40. The fine was paid. j " Kain Adams, a negro, was convicted cf highway robbery and wa9 senI tenced to 9erve two years on the [ gang. r . B. F. Rushton, who was convicted of forgery in his absence, was sentenced to serve eight months on the chaingang or to pay a fine of $50. Rushton is a young white man from Saluda county and it was alleged that he secured money from the Citizens' Bank of Batesburg by forgery. Allen Gillian, a white man from Saluda county, pleaded guilty to the charge of forgery and was sentenced to serve a period of 12 months on the gang and to pay a fine of $25. W. W. Harris, a negro preacher and school teacher from the Datch Fork, 'was tried for "Assault and battery with intent to kill, it having < been alleged that he shot another negro at a school closing some time during 1907. He was convicted and sentenced to pay a fine of $200 or serve six months on the gang. On Thursday at noon the case of the State acainat Thomas Craft, the young white man charged with the murder of Garfield Hutto at the home of Mildred Brown in the sand hills on the night of December 26, last year, was begun. There were many witnesseson both sides and the trial consumed all of last week and Monday of this weekJ The case was hotly e<>n| tested, Solicitor Timmerman being assisted in the prosecution by ex-S* nator Sharpe, while Messrs. Graham & Sturkie appeared for the defendant. The case was given to the jury on Monday evening at 6:55 and at 8:40 a verdict of guilty of murder in the first ; degree with lecommendation to mercy J wa9 rendered, which means that i Tom Craft will spend the remainder J of his life in the penitentiary unless the supreme court sets aside the ver| diet of the twelve men who passed upon the case. Presentment of the Grand Jury. j To^ the Hon. Charles G. Dantzler, Presiding Judge: We, the grand jury of Lexington county for the year 1909, submit the ! following report of our work during j this, tne Feoruary term of court: [ We have passed upon all bills of in| diotment submitted to us at the pres1 ent term, and returned tkem to the ! court with our findings endorsed : thereon. j A committee of our body has made | an examination of the court house I and jail, and find both in good condiI tion and neatly kept, j Six members of our body appointed as a committee by our foreman visit! ed the county poor house and farm. This committee reports verbally that I it finds the tenements occupied by colored paupers badly kept, there being considerable stench and fikh in and about said building. All other KnilHin nru r\f tlliu l i i at i t n t i r\n TV'S UU^iUlllgO Vl UU1Wr inuwi w\? %** w < v. i sonably well kept, and tbe inmates, j three white and tive colored, very well i fed, clothed and cared for by the offi- I cials. The roof of the steward's house is badly in need of repairs, also the steps to some of the buildings and fencing ar? und the institution sh >uld receive attention. VVereeommend that these matters be called to the attention or the county supervis >r at once. Thi9 body has appointed our foreman, A. L. Hook, and Charles J. Huffman and Isaiah Hallman, as a ot-vcw.i'il mtmrnittuo PYuminp nil iVih various offices, together with the bond of the officios and to report upon the same, and ask that the\ be allowed to employ an expert to assist | them in the discharge of this duty, j said export to receive the customary j fee lor iiis services. We note the article that appears in The State this morning under the heading, "Bridge Contract Under Suspicion." This article refers to the i IT, iG-EE, C OLUMBIA, 8. C. ompt Attention. October I8tf faggf * OOLLAR is worth only half as muc ' 1 there is at least twice in t X. Put temptation out of you cash in \ Citizens Bank Is) 1 BATESBUBG, ^ sa^er ^ere an.v way .fJ JJ" ITS box. Start your account have. Make it a rule to c ' fis(p\ ' / A Pay a^ kills ky check. Y I ^ ^or yourself every tim( We pay interest on tim* I n. x auNrv.n Vr*a ' P? 11 " ~ "" A." 0. JONEi wmm r^-i w* m. c matter of the building of a steel bridge JPB across Saluda river in our county and the execution of the contract for the n same made some weeks ago. This article is misleading in some 1637 JM respects, as this grand jury did not notify Mr. Harrison that his presence u was desired. Nor was any one else unsurpa notified to appear before us in regard 10 to this matter. Three gentlemen voluntarily, as far as we know, asked corau leave to appear before us yesterday Pin? and discussed in our presence several A Store matters in reference to the contract specti for the building of the bridge referred vail, to. , fied. After hearing these gentlemen our jury took no action in regard to the visit matter. Watches This Jury will undertake to perform We itfl fnll dlltv in t.he nrpmiapa when- Wtiet ever in its judgment sufficient infor- wish mation i9 Secured upon which to predi- any ' cate action. UmbrelU We thank ydlfcr Hoiror and the va- 1 rious officers of the court for the val- 1,11(1 ? uable instruction and assistance given Fans are us in the discharge of our duties at the whit< preeent term of the court. paint A. L. HOOK, Foreman. " sonai Feb. 4, 1909. Sllverw: this ling Fork Township Asks Admit- ^ tance. good The agitation in Fork township, Lex- likev ington county, for that township to be Jewelry annexed to Richland county has taken fully very tangible form in that a petition its 2c asking the governor to order an elec- to sp tion on this subject has been presented Eyes th? to Gov. Ansel. pulot The petit ion was presented by a com- ticiai mittee from Fork township consisting Free. I of Messrs. J. S. Huffman, chairman; T. tures B. Huffman and R. B. Barr. These paint gentleman, together with many oth- ister era, have been hard at work in the mat- Dec. ter and are very enthusiastic abont chan< the annexion. They announce that oner out of 160 qualified voters few will Al/pn oppose the annexation. The election MVfclt will probably be ordered as soon as 133the necessary arrangements can be made. WBHB Fork township includes school dis- ft a_: _j._ \t a a j ac .1 1 ? a rr trims hub. auu 'io , uue icruwrjf au* . joining Columbia township. Theciti- ?1Uj zensof the township, in advocating the 9 annexation, say that among the excel- in lent reasons they have for such a de- * sire are, the change will give better school facilities, taxes will be lower and that it is decidedly nearer to the Richland court house than to Lexing- "If ton. These citizens as a unit trade in know Columbia and many furnish Columbia Qu citizens with a large amount of garden truck. anoth( One of the strongest arguments ad- Wh< vanced by the petitioners 19 the dif- genera ferencein thedistancce. The maximum eler's distance from Fork township to Lexngton court house is about 17 miles good c and to Columbia it is ad<>ut 7 miles. Tha It is necesary to pass through Co- I fc-0Q lumhia to reach Lexington by rail gg from 1 he Fork township. g counts r ? f in <1 ?t i.inrl in H 11 \ji r~n\j iiwr i %rau in nul vjiuj jji m i\IlQ Fork townshipbut elsewhere since the g aggination commenced. The outcome of I J tlie election is awaited eagerly and in au<* a Fork township the situation is tense. you a chase. Juror Drops Dead in Court. Spe< Yorkviile, Feb. 8.?Quite a sensation was created in the court house this morning. Mr. J. C. Hill, a substantial farmer and esteemed citizen of ~ Bullocks Creek township, who was a I til 1 juror at. this term of court, walked into the room and in a few minutes after sitting down he fell over into the arms of a friend and expired before a phvsician could reach him. - Anr v ... 1439 Xvotica To Taxpayers- B??.u. Auditor W. D. Dent will be at New ? Bro? Irland Friday and Saturday, 12th Mr. D. and lo b, for the purpose of takinp: citizens : tax returns. Please bear this in mind town Mo , and be on hand promptly. and left 1 % IN HAND h as one in the bank. For he temptation to spend it. ir way by depositing your nnl>Anl?i?niv ui Dfliusuury, : : : S. C. than in your safe or cash today with what you leposit all your cash and ou'll find you have more } you balance your books. } deposits quarterly. 5, Cashier. " ARTER, Asst. Cashier. Lirery ['HE JEWELER tain St., Columbia, S. C. ssed opportunity is given here id attractive articles for gift ises, and Dispatch readers are illy invited to do their shopat Avery's. Full of good things awaits inion and attractive prices preso none may go away dissatisCan mention but few things Lis place. For fuller details Avery's. of all styles, sizes and prices, prefer to sell the finest, but her its flOO.CO or $1.00 you to spend you get good value time. ess make useful gifts for women n? i_ i i i * iiBii. nneiy mounted in goia diver from "So $25.00. \ ? essentially feminine. ' Daiuty 3 and black designs, and band ;ed effects. Prices very rea-~ ale. ire from leading factories, and stock comprises goods in stersilver from Tea Sets to Tea ; with all the spoons, forks and ) family. The silver plated s for common every day use is rise complete. in all forms comprise a careselected stock and whether i cents or 25 dollars yon have end you can find it at Avery's. uvcu must snuis attention by a graduate op2. am giving away a few pic?a reproduction of a $12,500 :ing. To get it you must regyour name at this store before 25th. It'6 free?there is no 30. no drawing for it. .Ask any n the store about it. !Yj The Jeweler 7 Main St., Columbia, S. C. nesty I Jewelry 1 it came from Sentz's, you it's all right," is what one .r customers remarked to jr the other day. m you bay Jewelry, you illy have to take the "Jewword for it" whether it is ir not. t's just where our reputa)r honesty and fair dealing I furthermore, we will al- 3 give you your money back sk no questions any time re dissatisfied with a pur;ial attention to mail orders, lll.ES It. 8BNTZ, JEWELER, I Main, Columbia, S. C P. Yonre, one of the best in the Pelion section, was in nday and called in to see us bin dollar. 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