Keowee courier. (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, September 15, 1860, Image 1
^~r /:7yJW5, f r f t 1
*
. ' ' ' ,- , , - - , _ c
"TO THINK OWN^SELF BE TRUE, AND IT MUST FOLLOW, AS THE ^^ ^ NIGHT THE 1)AV, THOU CANST NOT THEN BE FALSE TO ANY MAN."
BY IIOB'T. A. THOMPSON. P1CKEN* COURT HOUSE, S. C. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 1860. VOL. XII. NO. 7.
The Game of Life. s
IIY KM/A COOK. !
With eager hand Ilopo deftly weaves
Tho mantles that our prido would don,
While busy Anger'i) Curo urtrearcs
The garments as we put them on. ->
Wo rear our palaces of joy, '
And tread them will* exulting shout.
Till, crumbling round, 'tin plainly round . :
Soiiio coi'ner-Hlonea have been left out,
And thus wo play the game of Life,
Shadow ami substance ever blcndinar:
'Mid (lowers of l'eace and toors of Strii'o 1
Gaily beginning?sadly ending.
The maiden greets Iter swain to-day,
Thoy j-'*r to -morrow and she tlouts him ;
Now she helloves whate'er he'll -?ay,
A month has gone??l?9 ! she doubts him ;
The lover hangs upon a plnnce.
With glowing trust nnd earnest sueitig;
Next- year he rouses from his trance,
And scorns the one holntc was wooing.
And thus wc play the gain* of Life,
Our droanis di&pcll'd. our plans defeated,
And when we've lost with pain and cost,
still stand. as ready to be cheated.
The cooing infnnt'B*rosy mouth
Aptly receives tlio swecten'd portion ; | ,
When waves are calm, anil winds are South,
None see tbe death-rocks in the ocean."
Tho ricli man toils to "gather up."
Moaning to bask in Fortune's clover,
And while lie pours into bis cup,
Perceives not it is running over.
An;l thus we play tbe gninc of Life,
Now si.nply snared, now wisely brooding.
Now bribed by smiles, now spreading wiles,
Living deluded and deluding.
The Poet trattles to tho stars.
I'hllosopbers dissect ilie thunder,
Dotli. both nro stopp'd by crystal bars.
Ami stanil o tsldo Jo watch aud wonder;
AVe moralize on bftttlu-plains,
Where blood has poured, anil fame was won.
AVe turn and see (lie baby's jrlee
Over bis mimic sword and gun.
And thus wc play the game ot Life,
"L'wixl lioly Thought and fearful Deed.
Some only slay to work and pray,
.\nd some but live for Crime and Greed
Our foot of elny trip up each other.
war wings <>< etlior seek the sky ;
Wo hrenthc?ivo ore?i*11i 1 1 lollow < mot lice.
Yet nono t'lin tell us ' Now')" r.i Wliy?" .
Our hvAVlt* like clocks, koc]> licking fV-i.
*Vo climb iiml Inugh. wo lull tui-l wo op ;
Till, lived of guessing, ul the Inst
We solve llio riddle in :i sloop.
And tliu# we jiluy tliejfhme of Life.
!ii motley gurb.i ol'Orief nnd I'le.-isuro,
Till wo ure dressed in that green vest
Por wliioli tlm sexton lukes mi- inonf:
/ *? r\ n r\ 'i i ii in ii i > i--j
^ ^ iR'J JMJ v!j NJ y ' W ^ !j i 4^ X'j ,
FOR TIIK KGO WKK OOt'lllKll.
T!i? Lamar System of English Grammar.
No. 2.
.K\ Editor: It Ivs boon shown in a previous
article that Mr. L.\.MAit lias used his
ilUnritiny knife, upon the Verb, bisecting it
at the auxiliary junction. transforming the
auxiliary into a principal verb, auJ the principal
into a perfect participle?reducing the
nuatber of tenses to three, and destroying the
l\ix*ivc Verb entirely.
Now, sir, we lay it down an an incontrovertible
proposition?and challenge nnv nr ?ll nf
tlie advocates of Mr. Lamar's system of
Grammar, or Mr. LamAr himself, or Ivim mid
nil combined, to show to the contrary-?that
tho Knglish Verb has six tenses, because it
bus six different forms by which " ait action,
state or being " may bo affirmed uf its subject,
each indicating different times, as it relates to
tho subject and time of the speaker; that
these different inflections, modifications or variations
ot tiie verb are caused by thouiffmuiii
relations that the time of the verb bears to
the tunc of tho speaker; and that these different
variations arc culled the Tenses, signifying
in Grammar the times of tho verb, not
that the term tense literally means time, jjut
becauso it is derived from Undo, tho literal
Aigniflection of which is, to stretch, extend or
vary. Hcuee, the stretching, extending or
variation of the vorb to show it* different times.
Wo will in tho next place, give tho reader
one of Mr. Lamar's model sentences :
14 lie has Written."
" Parsing.? lie is a pronoun, of fht third
person, singular number, masculine gender,
and subject, of has. lias is a verb in the present
tense, third person, singular number, and
agrees with he; written is a perfect participle.
and refera to he."
Now, is not this aunrenudv rid5onion*?
outrage upon common sense?an insult ottered
to t!io intelligence of the age, to attempt to
tlirunt such nousensioal stuff us this down the
throats yf the people; and then, to cap tho
climax,, lmvo the brazen, unheard-of effrontery
to call it Oram mar,?yea, Philosophical
{rramni'tr, " founded upon reason and common
sense," whon every ono oan sec, nt one
.single indirect glaneo, that it is u perfect burJoirjiie
upon M common sense," ana " founded
i), mi the veiv quintessence of nonsense !"
Now, we tnko the position, that it is a
Urammatical impossibility, in at leant a fourfold
seuso, for < writtenin this sentenco, to
ibe a participle.
Ii? the firot place, Mr. Lamah's own <1>-J)ini>tion
of the Verb, is proof of the highest pox Htblr
order, 'that " writtenin this sentence,
should not bo parsed or " ditiptwod of" ho <i .
prtjciplo; foi; his definition of tho Verb is,
ijn tlvoao words: " A v:rb in a word thJBt cx'
uivju/u /Jim /m/iiib "" - - *' *' - '
_,r,.T... ...? ol WlJHiy ?/ t'l" HllOject
f" and cannotovery one se<\ who h?s dis'oriiniu?tivc
qualities autlh-ient to diNtiogaiflh.j
Lmuar'n I'rnotiool Grammar'' from Mooje's i
iMnjjnctlo Toifgrapli, thifc it ije written " und
not " Amthat expense * the action of, the.
*uhjei:ty' in this, his model sentence; and
that, tlwrofors, " written " should h^ parsed
n yrb, bocauso it performs t!io vow idonbi- i
-cul oflico that Mr. Lamar tolla us th<a verb h
porformfl. It is an impossibility, in tho aooorid
plao?< bocauso this form of th<??orb, Whon ,
iised n participle, always boa a pansive nig-11
ttifldHtim), and consequently cnnnot possibly P
lid u*?d in :iu active fi?Daft na "written" i?, ' .
in 'U'm* .Me?it4>u9p. iinposaibiUty in J i
the. |))ird plnoo, because it obliterate* tho lino j
1 pf dmuarvntiou between tho Vorb and PartiHrf
,v I
ciple, making tlic participial existence of this
form of the verb depend cutircly upon J'uvm,
when, in reality, it is not the form that infuses
into it its pnrticipljd existence, but tho
manner in which it is expressed of its subjeet.
Whenever this form of the verb is affirmed
or predicated of its subject so as to
constitute a complete proposition, it is then a
verb and cannot possibly be any other part of
Bpcech ; because it docs the very thwig that
the whole Grammatical world, and Mr. Lamar.
besides, inform us tho verb does; but,
nn - * * '
v. vuiiviuit, vrijviiutur iiiim lunu oi me
verb is assumed of its subject, so ns no.' to
constitute a complete proposition, it is then a
participle, and e .nnot possibly be any other
part of speech ; because it- performs the very
identical office that the whole Grammatical
world and Mr. Lama.11 besides, toll us tlic
Participle performs. It is an impossibility, in
the fourth and last place, because when this
form of the verb assumes its participial life,it
has a passive signification, and its time is
always that of the principal verb in the sentence
; and hence, as Mr. IjA.MAR makes
"has" in this sentence the principal verb,
and in the present tense Absolctc, it follows
as clearly and unequivocally, according to the
1-iAMAit system, as that two and two make
four, that thin combination or tonso of the
verb does not mean what those who use the
English language as a vehicle for thought,
imagine it docs, and is only, after all, a superfluous,
tautological expression, and when
pruned of its redundancy is only equivalent
tO " Iff U'l'itf!*."
W.e will, in our next, give Mr. Lamau'a
Rules, which he has given to enable the student
to know when to use his discarded tenses,
. I ?!.-! L li'i- 1 J 1
.T iuniuy niuir uusiiruity UQU impracticability.
Wkston Hays.
1
From the Charleston Courier.
To the Hon. Edward Q. Palmer.
It is in behalf of the people of South Carol
inn that you arraign the Officers of tho Company
in the columns of the Edgefield Ailvcr 'iw.
the South Carolinian, and, I presume,
in other public journals, od the charges of a
violation id" the charter of the Company, and
of bad faith for having expended the funds of
the Company beyond the limits of the State.
I have fdUowu that other Railroad Companies
i:i S'outlW'arolina have, by u subscription of
, i., i t,. .. ! u..:i 1 /' : ... . t
.-I' ? X ' i ?< i Iinininu V- II11 ?:i ll iu?, 111 IIUS
Ht it". inn] oift of it, aided in the construction
of other roads than their own, and it has not
oceur?od to any person that in so doing tliey
bad violated their charters or noted in bad
faith. !>ut I will proceed to show that such
expenditure i.s authorized by Legislative reports#
uud enactments, and that even if it
were not consistent with the charter of the
Co up my, the State, as a stockholder, has
sanctioned and confirmed what the officers ol
the Oo np iny have done. Some latitude must
be allowed to the defence. My purpose is not
to assert and to argue in reply to your charges,
out to prove them to bo gro.'ily unfounded.
In tho statement of the ovidonco I will bo aa
brief sis may bo compatible with this purpose.
Tho I>1 no KitJjre Railroad Company w;is incorporated
in 1852, and by tho ?amo Act tho
State gavo aid to the cntcrpriso by engaging,
on ccrtain conditions, to guarantee tho bonds
of the Company to the amount of $1,250,000,
which bonds were to ho scoured by ti first
mortgage on the rond. It is unncccssnry to
auvert to tne conditions of that aid, because it
was not accepted by the Company. In 1858
tho Company entered into a contract with Anson
Bamrs & Co. for the construction of the
entire Jsiuo ividgo iioau i'rom Anueraon lu
Knoxvillc. Tho con tractors undertook to do
all tho work and furnish all the materials necessary
for the complete construction of the
road, at certain fixed prices for tho work and
materials, for which payment was to bo made
to mom monthly, one-half in cash, one-fourth
in stock, and the remaining fourth in bonds of
the Company, which wore to be secured only
by a mortgage of the road. The aid granted
by the Act of 1852 being considered by the
contractors to bo insufficient to enable tho
Company to perform their part of tho contract,
they inserted a stipulation that, unless
more satisfactory aid wag granted by the State
t.lliw fllmiiM of - ?
j w..wmiv? k/v nv iiuvi \ J iu mmiiiiuuh lliu uuii truot.
Tho Company Accordingly p '.itioncd the
Legislature, in 185H, for mord effective assistance.
In the petition nil tho terms of the
contract with Anson Bungs & Co. wero fully
set forth. The estimated cost of tho road in
South Carolina was stated to bo 82,500,000 ;
and of tho ontiro road, from Anderson to
Knoxvillj, to bo 87,500,000. The moans of
tho Company to accomplish tho work,
wcro exhibited to bo : Tho subscriptiou by the
City of Charleston, $1,040,000 ; private subscriptions,
$151,000. Tho Tonnesaeo subscription,
$500,000, aud tho Stock and Bonds
of tho Company to bo taken by Bangs & Co.
in payment of one-hnlf of the estiinuted cost
of the road. Thenc assets, amounting in the
wholo to $.">,450,000, left a deficiency, when
compared with the estimated cost of the ro>.d
from Andorgon to Knoxvillo, of 82,000,000.
The petition prayed that tho Legislature
would supply this deficiency by a subscription
of 8750,000, :? cdditior to tho prunranty of
Donds provided for by the Ailt of 18^'*. The
petition whs referred to tho impropriate Committees
in tho two Housoi-, and a oill was reported
granting aid to tho amount prftyed for
by the Company. After A very full discussion
of tho hill upon its merits, tho bill was
passed in tho Semtto but lost in the llonsc.
In tl?.i progress of the bill oortain tesolu
tions wero adopted by the Senate, calling for
information rcspncting the amount of tho
sut?criplions in South Carolina and Georgia ;
tho number of individual ubscriber*, and tho
particuliVs of the contract with Anaon Jiangs
& C\?. The Prosident of the road,- Mr. Henry
Oourdia, reaponded to tho inquiries, and
i;;^ i i? .i- V.
toy au<?uiuuiii* wm\ rvjiurtcu oy tno wQmmiiiee
of Finance nnd Bunks to tlio Senuto, The
toi'iuii of tho contract with An?on *r
Go-> for iU?eom;t motion of the rontl frotn
Autlersou to Kuoxvillo, were fully sot forth
by the President.
The application for additional aid was renewed
in 1854. I cannot obtain a copy of
the petition, if any was presented ; but it is '
probable that the petition,, bill and proceedings
of the preceding session were again
brought forward, til the meantime, that is
in July, 1854, a meeting of the Stockholders i
was held in Charleston, to which the President
and Directors made a report. They '
state iu it that Mr. Lythgoc, the Chief Kngi- |
noer of the Company, with his assistant", had
made a final location ot' the road in South Carolina
and Georgia, and also, in part, in North
Carolina and Tennessee. The resources of
the Tennessee Company were shown to have |
been largely increased by a liberal grant of;
aid by that State, while the means of the
Company, so far as rotated to this State, tleor|
gia and North Carolina, remained the same as
they were at the date of the former application
to the State for aid, viz : the. City Subscription
81,040,000 ; individual subscriptions
?151,000 ; Contractors Stock and Bonds
83,000,000, and the State Guaranty, under the
Act of 1852, gl,250,000. The Kcport recommends
that the application should be renewed
to the Legislature for additional aid to
the amount of one million of subscription,
and a guaranty of the Company's Bonds for
one million more. The charter cequires that
the Company shall make an annual renort. to
the LogfJInture, mid it may be assumed that '
the Ooiup\iny accordingly did submit ih<it report
to the presiding ollieurs, and to the mem
born of both houses. ?
The Committee of Ways and Mean*. Ly j
their Chairman, the lion. >1. fz.-.vd M;J;llet<
| made a favorable report on the ap;>l:o:;t:on
The report brings to the att"ii?inn o! t
! House that " tho Company had eomplet ! ,
its surveys " and ' located their entire line,''
which "set at rest all question respecting lh'
practicability (if this great work. Hut, although
practicable, it is difficult and costly.? :
Although costly, it will fall far short in costliness
to those, great railway lines which connect
New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore
| with the trrcaf and fertile valley of the West."
I " The whole line, of railway proposed to bo
broujxht under the control of your memorialists
will, when completed, bring Charleston
into coumvtiou with Knoxvillc. The connection
of i\no.\Vlllo, by completed and projected
lines.oi railway, will open to the South- (
l west, Northwest, ynd- Northeast, boundless '
| fields of enterprise to the commercial spirit of j
I i i>..? - ? >
v/ii II IU.1IUH. 1IUI I1UL Ml UWetl lOUgCr Upoll
merely material ami commercial interests,
jour Committee venture to suggest that there
are social and political considerations of vast
moment, which should urge us to aid this en!
tcrprise, even should its achievement involve
1 a largo expenditure of money." The Committee
recommends that the hill should l?o
< passed, with some unimportant amendments.
It was passed under the title of " An Act to
authorize aid to the iilue llidge Railroad in
South Carolina."
1 No comment is necessary to lead the dullest
mind to a conclusion. The petition of (
the Company, the replies of the President to :
'he inquiries of the Senate, the report of the |
President and Directors to the Stockholders in
I July, 1851, and lastly, the report of Mr.
Middleton, from the Committee ol Ways and
' Means, all make it manifest, beyond doubt or
II contradiction, that the Legislature was fully
I ~c ii.. J- -
Himiuuu 01 iin; uesign ana purposo ol tho
Company, with tlio funds that could bo ob- j
taincd in South Carolina, and contributions '
which could be obtained in tho other States
til rough wiiitdi iiio loau w?6 !vC..iCil, to construct
the entire road from Anderson to Knoxville,
and that this purpose was as well known
and understood by the Legislature as it was
by the officers of the Company. The cost of
tho entire road was exhibited to the Legislature,
and the delioicncy of tho means of the
Company compared with tho estimated cost of
tho whole road was presented to show the necessity
of State aid, and the measure of nec1
cssary assistance. Aid was granted to the
1 measure of tho Company's .vants to complete
the entire road, and it is an imputution of
1 consummate stupidity and folly in the legislature
to affirm that they restricted the cx
,.< . :.i ?i i - - ?
pvixuvuio ui mo hiu which was granted to inc
construction of tho road in South Carolina.
Tlio completion of the road in South Carolina
would bo worthless towards tho accomplishment
of thoso great advantages of h free and
quick commerce bctweon South Carolina and
the regions West of the mountains, which nre
strongly set forth in Mr. Middlcton's report.
It was expressly to secure those advantages
by tho completion of the*road to Knoxville,
that tho Legislature granted aid to the Rluo
Ridge Railroad Company in South Carolina.
Rut to put it in n still stronger light, if that is
possible, the absurdity of the supposition that
the Legislature intended to restrict tho expenditure
of tho aid granted, within die limits of
South Carolina, it is only nocessa'/ to advert
to tho facts f. osented in the memorial, that
ihli nA?f i\f #l?r? 1. ^ 1
v* VIIV IUHU 111 UIMUIt V/illUlina
was $2,500,000; thnt under the contract
with liau?8& Co. one-h;df the cost would bo
paid in the Stock and Bonds of tho Company
secured onl) by a mortgage of tlin mud. Ho
that the Company required only 81,250,000
to meet tho cash payments, and that they ac
tually exhibited to tho Legislature cash resources
to meet these payments hi the amount
of tho City subscription, $1,049,000, and of
individual subscriptions for $151,000 more,
of which two-thirds was made in-South Carolina.
It is preposterous to supposo that with
tho oxhibit of oost and resources, which the
Pm,,?onn 1- lU- T . .1 ? ?
vuh.jiixij iiwuu ui ihp jjugiHiuturc, inoy suouKl |
ask aid U) construct tho road In South Carolina
; find it is inconcci**blo that they nhould petition
for two millions more, and thut the Legislature
should havo given a moment'8 hoed to
.such a petition.
If anything more were needed to establish
the authority of the Company to expend the r,
aid granted hy th* State beyond the limits of J
P,v"?t!:'C.iVcli!:^, !t rlftbp'fwitf V> the elnuKo l
providing for the gu if.'tntV by the St:ito of I
KoHds of the Blue KHgfi Railroad Company
in South Carolina. It wan made a condition
of thnt guaranty that the Companies in all
the States should first execute a mortgage "of
the whole estate, property and funds which
they then possessed, or might afterwards acquire,"
to secure the payment of these Bonds.
It cannot be credited that the State would
have made such a demand, or that the Companies
in the other States would have listened
to it, if the money to he obtained on those
II.....1- .....o -i:~> > - ' * '
< no >u uu UXUIUSlVUiy 10 UlC
construction of the road in South Carolina.
it was also provided that the mortgages
which have been mentioned " may also secure,
without any priority or preference, other
Homls of the 151 ue Kidge Railroad Company
in South Carolina, to an amount not exceeding
?1,500,000. Provided, that nothing herein
contained shall be construed to prevent any of
the said Companies from applying any of the
proceeds of the loan so made by them, and the
installments which may bo paid in on the stock
of the said companies for the purpose of con
structing, equipping and working their respective
roads, and tor no other purpose whatever,*'
except tn pay the interest ami principal on
the Bonds. " Any of the said Companies"
can only mean those, iri (leorgia, and North
Carolina, and Tennessee, for when the Legislature
gave aid to the lilue Ridge Railroad
Company in South Caroliffn, to complete the
road from Andersen to Knoxville, they could
not have intended to frustrate the express purpose!
of the aid l>y forbidding that it should
be expended out of the limits of South Carolina.
i l;iiv<? I ius shown that before the aid was
V' i b\ 11:? Ac'. of 1 8.VI, which set the
ri on linn _ ound, the memorial of the
' U'il!, had fully, and completely
i111? i , i itnre or' the design and
p'Mj t'o-iipuny to build tlie l>lue
Hin i 1;.-i fi i Anderson to Knoxville
Willi mi . u ' . i- is o u!<l b<: obtained in South
Oil roll in .. mi i other States. The memori;il
nets out tii?' surveys by the Engineers of
the (Company, i ic oust of the road in South
Carolina, and the entiro L*ost of the road to
Knoxville, the amount of subscription in the
several Stales, the contract of the Blue Kidge
Railroad in South Carolina with Anson
]}an?s-& Co. for tlio construction of the entire
road, it also exhibited the sufficiency of
means to finish the road in South Carolina,
but a deficiency of 82,000,000 for the construction
of the entire road, and asks aid to
the amount of that deficiency. The Committee
of tlio Senate, made an imjuisition into the
facts stated in the memorial, and reported the
result to that body; tho Committee of Ways
and Means in the House recommended that
the prayer of the memorial should be granted,
and reported the Hill to " authorize aid to the
Blue Widge Railroad Company in South Car
olitia," jiikI .strongly urged upon the consideration
of the I!uu.si; tho importance of the
connection between ('harleston and Knoxville,
to complete which aid was prayed hy the me
uiorial.
After this summary liow ntt mIv gr undle?-.<
must your charges against 11??* oihenrs of the
Company appear to l?e to every reader.
And your own letter to Mr. tJar\ numi
festa how groundless your charges arc to your
own consciousness.
I n rccoiumending the Statcsvillc connection,
you contrast it with the IJlue llidge ltoud and
urge the adoption of the former route, " as
passing through a much richer, and penotra
uii^ u> itre very region or country where the
IJlue llidge is attempted to be built at an
enormous cost to the State." By " the very
region of country" you do not mean "the
Georgia Line;" you mean that region of
country which is to bo reached by the completion
of the Bine Ridge 1 load to Knoxville.?
You have forgotten to " note the words, to
the (Jcorgirt line;" and when you have, in
your argument, passed by the charge of a violation
of the charter in spending money beyond
the (ieorgia line, light is admitted to
show that the Western terminus of the Blue
Ridge Road is at Knoxville. This road is
" attempted to be built ut an enormous cost to
the State." By whom is it attempted to be
built at an enormous cost to the State, but by
the Blue Ridge Railroad Company in South
Carolina'! You have forgotten the charge
that-tho charter of that Company is restricted
to the (ieorgia line, and that the olliccrs of
the Company grossly violated their charter,
? ?,j *i. - i
?nu niitcu 111 diiu i.iiiii in applying any p<irt. ot
their funds to tlie construction of the road beyond
the Georgia line. If the charter is restricted
to the Georgia line, and no money
can he axpended beyond that line, how came
you to argue in favor of the Statesville connection,
against the lilue Ridge lload, that
the former " penetrates the very region of
country where the liluo Ridge Raid is attempted
to be built at an enormous cost to tho
State V
i have before noticed your short memory in
your statement of t he excess, of cost above the
estimate, and of your short reading, in not
seeing in Hie Act of 1854 the repeal of tho
" lit!' section" of the Act. of 1852, when
tho latter furnished an argumetitin support of
yobi- charges. And ? havenow noted another
injtimco of this freak of memory. Indeed
(hero 801'idh to bu with you an opaque section
in that faculty of the mind, whieh revolves with
yojir argument, and obscures atono time facts
in relation to tbo Blue Kidgc Road, which
would oppose your conclusions, and nt another
time admits them, when they favor your purpose.
It would be better if that opttquo section
wcro stationary. Then it would not betray
you into inconsistences.
nnving thus, 1 think, refuted your charges,
I will refuto also the mischief which you
specify ns the consequcnco of the gross violation
of the charter, and of the bad faith of
the officers of tho Company, viz: that tho
funta which have bftdn expended in tho construction
of tho road beyond the Georgia line,
would have finished tho road in South Carolina.
r? v.tM.inn** ~C #1? 1 J"! " -
??? vi mv in nm
(Jonipnny, nt?d of the purpose for which funds
were contributed by individual Bubseribcrn,
1 1 ?
by the City of Charleston, and by the State,
! the officers of the Company have directed tho
j construction of the road with a view to its
i completion from Anderson to Knoxvillc.?
j They have urged forward the work on the
j tunnels and masonry, which are the most costly
and tedious parts of the work, leaving the
: light grading almost entirely suspended after
: Bangs & Co. were dismissed, who had done
! nothing else. As the progress of tho work
was reported to the Stockholders in detail,
I this nolicv of the Directors was. in almost. ?>v
J cry report vrliich they made, communicated to
the Stockholders rfnd to the Legislature. In
order to give the largest publicity to the pro|
ceedings of the President and Directors, their
i annual Report to the Stockholders has every
year been published in all the daily papers in
Charleston, and in pamphlet form sent to the
Mayor and Aldermen of Charleston, to nil the
Stockholders, members of the Chamber of
: Commerce in Charleston, and largely distrib|
uted among the citizens of Charleston and of
| the State. As required by the charter, copi
ies have been officially presented to the presij
ding officers of both branches of the Legis|
laturc ; and, besides laying a copy on the tai
ble of every member, one has been mailed to
; their residences before the session of the Lcg|
islaturc, in order that they might have time to
i re;id it before they went to Columbia, and be- j
came distracted by amusements and elections,
or engrossed in business. You cannot or
should not, therefore, have been uninformed '
of the views of the officers of the Company, j
They have constantly avowed and published, j
as they now do, that if the IJlue Ridge Hailroad
is finally to terminate at the Georgia line,
in the midst of the. Blue llidge Mountains,
the addition it would make to the commerce
of South Carolina, would fall very far short of
compensating for the cost of its construction,
j On this subject I will make a quotation onlv
from the report of 1857 :
" A specious exhibit- of progress may have
I been presented in the grading uf the rond, if
! it had not been deemed unwise so to apply the
resources of the Company. A little reflection
must make it apparent that if the road
were to terminate at any point of the, line
short of Knoxville, or the navigable waters of
the Tennessee at some other place, the road
would not compensate for its cost. The construction
of tin? road has been accordingly directed
to the accomplishment of a connection
between Charleston and Knoxville. The
great obstacle to this important end ispresenI
ted by the 151ue Kidirc Mountains. If the
line of the road to the Rabun Gap presented
only ordinary difficulties, the Blue Ridge
Road would have been undertaken and finished
long before this time. When the moun- I
tains are crossed the extension of the road to
Knoxvillc will be a certain consequence."
I suppose every intelligent person in the
State will concur in the opinion of the officers
of the Company, that if the Road is to
; terminate at the Georgia line it would not
compensate t >r it-: nost. The insufficiency of
j funds to finis', the rond to the Georgia line,
which you spcci'Y as tho mischief resulting
irom tiic i;; 1 <1 uct of t!i<> oHicers of the
'yii!|?;ii> v is. tin n. on inis<-1 ticf at all.
At tlii' iia/.'ivd of hf-in ' tedious I will fur- !
tlicr vindicate tin; officers of tho Company |
from your charge of bad faith. L understand
had faith to bo a violation of some trust or
confidence reposed, it may be in the transaction
of business, or in tho intimate relation
of the parties. The bad faith you charge is
comprehended in the first part of my definition.
If a commercial attorney or agent
I should engage in transactions boyond the scope
of his authority, and not inform his principal
of such transactions, but.conceai tl:jm, that I
would be bad faith. But if lie. fnllv nnnrinrtrl
Ilia principal from time to time, as often as he
communicated with him, that he was engaged
in transactions which were beyond tho original
scope of his authority, and his principal did
not disapprove or make any objection, that
would make valid and bona fide the transactions
of the agent, of which his principal has
been so informed.
The officers of tho Company ave the agents
of the Stockholders. These consist of the
I Stnto of Wlillfll nnrnliliil flln f'itiTrtf" Clin.lna
I - > v"~ ~'v " ^7"
ton, and the corporate and individual subscribers.
The members of the Senate t nnd
House of Representatives arc the "agents or
proxies of the State for the Stock which it
holds in the Rlue Ridge ltailrond Company.
Even If it were admitted that the officers of
the Company had violated the charter by the
expenditure of money for the construction of
the road beyond the Ceorgia line, yet if I
show tlmt this expenditure was communicated
to the Stockholders in every Annual Report
of tho officers, the ehariro of hud fa5t.li is ro.
polled.
It would be tedious to quote from the report*,
but I affirm that in every report since
October, 1855, when I was elected President
of the Company, the progress of construction,
and-, of course, the expenditure of inoucy for
work beyond the Georgia lmo, hns boon exhibited
in detuil.
No disapprobation lias bqen expressed by
tbo Legislature, nor by any other Stockholder,
to the present titno, though in the report of
1858 the expression of a want of conhdenco
was suggested to the Legislature and other
Stockholders, as the means by which the further
expenditure of monov would be arrested.
Bangs Si Co. wore dismissed in April, 1856.
In the report, of 1857, you will find the following
passage:
" The Directors have no motive nor Vsire
to delude the Stockholders (in the number of
whom, by the State and City subscriptions,
all tho oitizen# of tho State are comprized)
into a fruitless expenditure of mortey, whon
the I'residont was heard at tho Bar of the
House of Representatives, at tho last session,
on a petition of the Company, then under
consideration, he cxpliaitly stated thnt, by
tho failure of Hangs Sc Co., to perform their
oontftcti tho portion of the cost of tho road
for which they contracted to itjcftpt payment
in Stock, as woll ?s tho diOe^ncp between
the payment to them in Bonds at par, and
Jm
the prices nt which tho Bonds may bo Bold
by tlic Company for the payment of the cost
of the road (thcwholcsum estimated at 82,000,000,)
would have to be supplied. He represented
that aid'could bo expected from the
States of .Georgia and North Carolina, the
former nf wliinn lion n rivnl r<?nl nnnir.lnt.>J
and the latter has expended a largo amouut,
and is expending more towards the completion
of a competing road through itu own limits;
that moro aid might bo hoped for from Tennessee,
but that SoutV Carolina should bo
prepared, in the last resort, to supply the
deficiency, lie further advised that unless
the people of the Stato were prepared to do
so tliey should at once stop any further expenditure
upon the road."
In the report of 1858, you will also find
this passage :
"On this subject (of aid to the road) tho
Company can approach the Legislature with
confidence." "Two years ago the Legislature
was apprised that the road could uot bo
?? >
vv?..ij/ivi.v;va imivoo no cDiisiruetiun wax assumed
by the State, and a suspension of tho
work was advised, unless the State was prepared
to provide the sum necessary for its
completion. If a resolution had then boon
passed declaring a want of confidence in tho
enterprise, tho work would have been suspended.
Since that time a million of dollars
have been expended, fruitlessly, if the State
does not grant the Company's petition.?
From tho inaction of the Legislature, (lie
j Company was justified to infer acquiescence
in the claim of which they were notified ; and
certainly the directors were not authorized to
arrest the construction of the road."
I have thus, as I hops, vindicated the officers
of the Company from your charges of a
violation of tho charter and 1 ad faith, and
have on the latter charge even exceeded the
limits of a strict defence, in order to exhibit
the conscientiousness and caudor in the execution
of their trust. I repeat, that in one
respect I do not regret your attack, since it
has furuiscd an occasion to present to public
attention the conduct of the officers of the
I Company in a light which, I hope, will be
I satisfactory. Your accusations havo produc
j ed no irritation. My only regret is, that you
should, on such groundless charges, have npI
pcared as the public accuser of the ofticcrs.'?
! They had hoped for more charity from you,
I and even a wanner and more gracious sentiment
towards them. If, in the course of
! this defence, I have used any expressions
j which may seem to be wanting in respect for
I you, I did not so intend. I have long csi
teemed 'your good sense and generous temper.
But T fear your anti-Blue Ridge furor
has prevented them both, so far as that enterprise
is concerned.
I Edward Frost.
Brkckiniudgk in Virginia.?"We copy
the following from the Richmond Enquirer.
It gives cheering news :
" The true and gallant States' Bights Whigs
of Virginia are rallying to the support of the
Democratic party, and attesting their earnestness
by subscriptions to tho Enquirer and
by the purchase of documents. From our
country correspondents we learn the utter
hopelessness of the Douglas divisions in more
than tlirpn.fniirllio r\t ir:_
, .v^.vuu Wi V??V V/UU1111CB Ul V 11*
ginia.
" Since tho adjournment of the Charlottsviilo
Convention the great work has been
nobly begun, and from thin time onward will
continue until Virginia sends greeting, in
November, to her sister States, that she has
again, as so often in the nast, overthrown tho
(Mtnmiftfl of tho South and their deluded and
I mistaken allies.
" Mr. Douglas* stumping visit to Virginia
will do much good to the Democratic party.
| Tho ofliee of President is hold in such high
esteem by tho people of Virginia, is regarded
so far above the stump, that disgust and contempt
has ever attended those who sought to
degrade it to tho vulgar level of aa electioneering
tour.
" it is an unaccustomed sound for DcmoI
crfits to Vmnr t.Vloiv nnrfv 4Vinr?/l?. '
- - - ...v.. j/..? vj niviiuo iiiunvij nuu
villified as Mr. Douglas is doing, while he has
no word of condemnation for Lincoln. lie is
doing faithfully the work of a Black Republican
emissary. lie utters no uncertain sound.
The defeat of the Democracy, and tho triumph
of Lincoln, are objects which cause him to
stump the country. In nono of his spoeches
has he uttered a sentiment against Air. Lincoln?in
all, lie has shamefully and falsely
assailed the men whose support he but recently
sought. The people of Virginia nro not
blind enough not to soo that Mr. Douglas'
couduct is giving aid and comfort to Lincoln,
and "his friends in Arirginia?true aud faithful
sons of tho old Stato?will never follow
him, leading, as he docs, to Black Republi- *
canism."
Murdkr in South Carolina.?An inOUCSt
was hold on Snndnv nic^M. nn
r ? J ~ """j
of Isaiah Golding, who was stabbed by John
Williams on tlio 19th instant, nnd died on tho
26th.
It appears that 'Williams had been killing
cattle unlawfully on'tho plantation of lion. J.
II. Hannnond, when Golding'sson saw him
and told on him. Whoroupon Williams beat
hi Hi uuulj Ccldhsg, I've father, reruonstrsted
with Williams, und struck him, whon ho
wont off a short distanco, and his son, J.
Williams, Jr., gave hiui his knife, when ho
turned upon folding and ntabbod him in the
i-cgion of the heart, inflicting a mortal wound.
Both tho Williams wcro arrested, and are now
in jail.
The verdiot of tho. Coroner's jury was in
uccomanoe witn the nbcve facts.
[Awjutta Dupatch.
An Irishman was once indulging in tho
very intollcctiml occupation of Bucking ogga
raw af d rending a newspaper. By roiiio
misehnnoo he contrived to bolt a live qhickcn.
Tho poor bird chirping as it wsnt down
his throat, and ho very phlitoly obsored,
" 3ir> the powers, mo ffaiiifrjflfpi rmolrr a little
too late 1" r