University of South Carolina Libraries
DEVOTED TO POLITICS, MORALITY, EDUCATION AND rO THE GENERAL INTEREST OF THE COUNTRY. VOL. Vi. PICKENS, S. C., THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 1816. NO. 9. C ommunications We le.,r a great deal said about the hard times and its causes, etc. Tiese are very important qu,ttione, and the man who can set the people right on them will conter a great bles sing on the human kind. I will throw out a few hints, as to my no tion of thinigs, more for the purpose of drawing out the views of the wise. I am anxiotus to hear theee topics diecussed. Almost all tell us that cotton has ruined us. I think this a mistake, I admit that it has helped 4to bring a spirit of extrava gance, anjd itidirectly has been partly the cause 4f hard times, but it is not cotton ler.-e ot its self. Where inen iaise ciption they have to turo it into cash before ther use it, and it is a setled face, that niieteenti otit of ? twenty me:; ca. iot or will nlot take proper care 44 cash, out will lav. i8hly spenld it f-r gim-craks and tom utoDirv. But le, Ie H 1t blame ('01 uln 1ur iIplovi1ictnce. Let us see wVha&t it cost to rai,e ciiiiin . Tip cultivate atl 4 acre is worih $6, 150 pounds giam, is wor; b $4.50, an acr e will prodoet 500 1 nni.s; pic I Ig I the cotion is worth $2.50, aito tHi is ,s a the crop is Pfrei gathe ed ty c.61.iren, wll3e ame is wtorita but liuk; we have $13 00 expentse:; 500 1onnes ai 3 cewis $15.00-$2 00 cloar. It is Worth Iaout $6 0U to cubliva-e anl acre of zorn and gathor it Aii acre that will iake 500 polinds cotLon will Ilake, sa% ,wei t o unsl0 corn, at 5U0 celts per bheI,!IL. 5 cents iff tur hauldiig to mnarket-and otite it ir worth it; we iavu 12 buhels at 45 cis, $5 40, $1.61) loas I tmaintai that thi., is a fair c wu i. L-inj :bat will mallke :e( bmehi, coria will make 1,000 poumds of c tton, aud otten 12 or 1,500. W ill . adit, that cottonl fur the last year has beean a better price than cui 0 T, day, u is at a better price. Mena snre:y have reasoned incorrectly, w ho say corn w ill pay better t hani cot ton. The old crope of curin in the West would not sell at '25 cets per bjashel; pl;:ty on hiat.d yet, the new is worth 15 cents. We cannot compe e witha tem In raising corn, meet an.d stock, our climate is ada iedto cotIGon-of course we have sonl e lands taaat will only produce grain. Let us look at some other causes, for our troubles. Our country is full of Northern notions, ip' the shape of dumb watch es, pistols, bedsteads, shot gtne, sew.. ing mjachaines, etc., etc., wahiout end, which have cost millions. Remaem--~ ber that buying what you donat need, causes 3 oua to need that which you cant buy. Look at t he t ime lost hunting, many men, louse $50 worth of time in the year. Let uas have the courage to ac knowledge that we are poor, and live as poour folks, buy your provi8 ions first, y on can get thiem for * cash cheapjer than you can raise them, mind 1 saiy for cashal. Fo.r God's take dont buy on tame, if you do you are goite- gone to the virge of' starvat ion, it not harthier. Somea are buying flour at $14 per barrel, four barrels at $56, give a lien oni corn Crop at 45 cenmts, 125 buselF4O at $56.25 cents--ean you raise your chIildren at that; you wou.ld eat the flour in t wo or three mon)fthis. Al es yoiu bu y ontie is mTer hg in the same proportion. We iNt the world cheat us~ out ort a lar ge pi ota of o.ur hard earninags, Sand ta we go into Messrs. Chamn be lain & Co.'s tax preass, and the3 geOt the hast cent. My taxi reciprs jetst before the w ar, fromt John P>a \en, lan, iontt, asnd Cry,'' show t hat I paid trotn $20 to $30 pe year. Thetn I paid on wv lands and twenty slaves. th., slaves were worti, say $400 per head, $8,000. Novmy tax receip)ts on the same lands, leas the $8,000, are from $125 to $140. What is the matterl A thinly settled and :poor State like ours cant 'pay the salaries that the thickley settled and wealthy North pay, some (f their counties have more wealth than our State. - We are indeted to Governors Scott, Chamberlain and their ilk for these blessings. Men who have property cant keep it, and of conree those who have it not cant have it, for it is consuijaed as fast as made. The taxes of this State, has gone tp from one halt million before the war, to two mil lions since, with one third of the property destrQyed by tie war, at.d Ihis vast amount of money is not pa" ing the current expenset. This is the worst leatiure there is a tremeni dons debt accumulating over us, and no homeseadinog against taxcs. The State debt at the closo of the war wao five million, and now it Is twenty mnilionls. Ouglt not the salaries to be iixed a-ccording to the price of p: oduc not ijt the farmjer be thie 4)[113 sufleier by the depression in pi ices. Every ciizen feels tnat he is in a lite and deat i st ruj gle. You nieed tot expect your neighbor to deal liberaly wit you, he feels that his gOverntncit is starving him aid his childiri, and he is drivenl to it arve his fellow-man-self preser Vation is the Iirt'law of naLure. Tht.re is somie 35,'00 paid th, School Cmuinsi. flers in the State; this woi k oti-it not to cost a cent SIme of tle States pay theil l'ot.111tg, Texas tor une. Our Legislators get $6u0 a ye'ir to 'rder Mati*achu1setts laws printed tOr us, is t lie bi bOr worth the hire? Ilow many farin hands would it take to clear that im twelve m(onti.i Lut all undrstana distinct ly that in the comiig electioni, there is nothing against the black watt be. cause he is blaci<, nor agrainst the Northern tman becansbe of' nis conn try, but stiply a struggle for. an honest and economaical goverinment. To say it was a tight agaius- thieves would not be much too hard a term tur the occasion. And every one who has the soul of manat in him ontgbt to woi k for his State in this tue hour of her need. For Gad's sake throw aside for once that party prejudice that has bliundeud you as blind as bats, and save y our State. If you will nt do it, you are as false as it-li to your selves, your children, and your God. Yes, let all unite once and wor k for that which will redound to the greatest good, and to the greatest number; this platform is broad en ough for all colors anid parties, anid a field wide enough to dispiiy all that is "noble in man or sublime in re ligion." Colored men, you need not fear General Hlampton, lhe is the first Sonatherni mian of any note who spoke publicly in favor of you voting. Bie sides you know he is the couI cf truth and tonor. He pledges you to have a tnine mIontt.S t'chool too, it lie is elected, now you frequently have none. All out' nominees are noble gentlemen, who. ate as tr'ue to their words and countr y asH that Governor Chamnaberlan has taild to cotr ol his party.if he ever wanted te; why try himu agalin. If t hero is not better men in th is Mtate, than has rulied it fo'r the last eighit years, it is tio e Gabrel was blowing his trumpet. I honestly believe that the people will be in open war againas the Staot' authorities in less thnn two years withont a change, men will fight bu fore they will be star'ved. And a starving man is to be drteaded to(o The children of this country will be crying f r brea-l in less thant twelve months without a chatige. D't starve your childre.i to agranadise a few~ thieves. Man.is tie architect of his own fortune, and if we are worthy a bet ter government we can have it, and all who are not worthy had better stan-1 from under. The most of the eviti that have be fallen us are within our power to re move; then be up and doing, all that have the soul of men in you. I pitty the wretch, who has no love of coun% try in his he&rt-cherish this prin cipal, it will command the respect of all men, and is worth handing down to posterity. I have been a little te~ dious, but how can a nan stop, when he sees all on the evb of ruint Yes, it seems that the occasion is sufficenv to make the very stones grow elo quenit and even sware. Let us adopt the motto of the Great Jefferson, that "jesistance to tyrants is obedience to God," with this ad ditition, so is resistance to thieves. As I am a seeker of information on these points, I would thank some friend to set mne right if my notions are wrong. ENQUIRER. Address to the People of South Carolina RooMs SA,rE DEM. Ex. CoMmiTTE- E. COlum1b:a, S. U., Oct. 16, lb76. To the People of the State of South Caro lina who desire honest government, with out -egard to political party or race : his Excellency the President of the Uid'edl Snas did, onl the 17th day of litis motth, issue a pioclama tion wheieby he c, inmanded "all perst,is engaged in t.rlawful and in surrectionary proceedi ,gs to disperse a ud retil e 1 eaceably to their rvspvc tive ab des within tiiv'ee days frm. Vis date, and hereafter aband. it said c-OubinaLions, ad submit ihemtelvvs to toe laws and contaituted author eie3 ot said State." This p-rociaination is based upon tiie statemets nando by Dapiel H. Chan,'berlinl, the Governor of this State; w bich statementd are aimed exclusively against his political op ponents, an~d are pa ovee. to be untrue by the testimouny of every Judge in t he State, every Trial Justice or oihe: oticeer, of thte lasw from whom res p'ense has been obtnined. Every resident s.f ite Sate knowas them to be untrue. Every Repulicant of character or intell gence, or who is not ini ofiieu or se.eking ofice, and many w'ho are in <(flice in the State have expinessed horror aid disgust at the course which the Governor has pu rsuae (. W e say tbis much for our vind ica tion. Never has a people sa.ffered more by dishonor of oflice and die honesty of otticers. Never has suche bald untruth been used for the sup port of a movemaenet which shakes the pillat s up ni which rest the constitu - tioneal temple of a meighty peuple. Our State is but a pet ty poation of the Union, but we call upon our sis ter States of the N orth to remaember that the experiment now being made for "the denominauion of our elect ions by the bayonet and by soldiers as the .rresistible instrument of a revoin" tionary local desp'utism," if success til, will become the precedent before whicee the whbole fabric of A mericani liberty wall fall, aned will be applied to oIlher 8;.ates just as soon as part) exigencies require it. We make this declaration of our inenocenece not in disres;e1 of the Presidenet of the Untited 8 ates, but as an act oef juicace to ourselvesB as A mericant citizens, and( to putt our1 case upon the record for an imepartial trial before the great national tribuu al. W e b*w in ierfcet submnission to the proclama~t ion of hais Excellenecy the President, iid exhort our fellow cin zens5 whom we represent in the pie ent cans ass to yield hell and en taye obedience to every concunand of t b said pr, clamam ion. We ketow that the clubs called "rifle clubs"' are aasocuationas for med for bomne protections; tiaat tiley are not cotnhinations as cliaaged by the Governor of this State; that there are but few that have arms or amunation; that those which have been equipped were so done with the sanction and sometimes with the aid of the Gov ernor, -nnd hMve been reognIz(d bv hiI as useful and appropriate bodies, and not one of them has been accused of disorder. We know that their necessity was occasioned by the reckless distribu-1, tion of arms and amunation among the colored people by the State offi cials; and %e further know that our white fellow citizens were, on the 16th day of this month, massacred at a peaceful political assemblage, where (b% agreement with C. C. Bowen, Republican Chairman for Charleseon County, and Sheriff of the said County, and present at the meet ing, and first Presidential Elector for the State at large on the Republican ticket) they went without arms to meet the colored race-the voters of the so-called Republican party in this State-who were likewise, by Mr. Bowen's agi eement, bound to be without arms; and we know that the politicians who are the authors of all our evils are teaching anong the colored race Ihe use of t he rifle and the torch; we know that our homes i e in peril, and that our women and ciiildren are exposed to the horrors of ruthless butchery and barbarity; but nevertheless, we advise and con iland. so far ts our antlhority goes, that every such "rifle club" against which the misrenresentntions (if tIe Governor of the State are aimed be forthwith disbanded. and that the members thereot be held in future ohly by those ties ot hulanity which bind all good men together; that the iiame f the slub be abandoned, and the officers cetse to exercise their powers. This i. said with the ex press declaration that these clubs are not associaled with or subject to our political control. We repeat that we speak without disr'espect 4o the Pre.ident of the United States. lie acts upon the statemtst made by the Governor of Unis Stare. Butt we say it that we mamy show our unwillin .nes.? to obey without commnitrting anm untruth agauinie ourselves by seeming to ac, knowledge that of which we are not guilty. ' We are not engaged in "unulawf'ul and insurrect ionary proceedings." We cannot "disperse," because we tare not gathered together. We cani not "retire peaceably to our abodes," because we are in our homes ini peace, distur b)ed ali .ne by the politi eal agitat ions created by the Gover nor and his mini..ns. Bunt we m esignedly--.and cheertulh in performuance of'our duty-suspenid the exercise of our inidividual anrd private rights to prevent evil to the whiole people. Relying upon the universal eense af right, and appealing to the Al mighty to sustain us, we exhort onr people to the continuance of subrkis sion to the authorities o.f the govern ment feeling assured that time and patience wmll work our deliverance. Remember that the cam .aign is nlow a short one, and all a':us hope tul that thle 7th dav of iN ove..ber nuext will wit:1ess the full and coim plete( vinid icat ion of our cause t hrough the peaceful instrumeni ality of thie ballot box. A . C IlARK{EI., Chair man. J. 1) KELNNEDY. JoHN JARA'IT' N. JanusB A. Hetrr RtonAan OY'N me, Ju. J. AnxabMrim. A QUEsTI rN.-1f all the white citi zenie of South Carolina were Repuitbs hicains and all the colored citiz,ens Democr'ts, does any one he'ieve tha PdIresid ent Grant's proclamiatin wo,d have been issued;.-- A ew York Hlerald. The President's Proclamation. We urge the Denocrats of South Carolina to the ntinost self-restraint, to absolute peace and non-resistance, no matter under what provocation - 'he real situation in South Carolina begins to he understood in the North and the language of the PreRident's pr. -clanation will not change ooinion [ere. It is very well understood by the people who care to know that there is no insurrection in the State, 11o "domestic violence," no "coin bina. Aions against law," no disorder w batf. 3ver which the Governor, if he chose to do so, could not easily and sun narially put down. What effort has Jovernor Chamberlain made to put lown "insurrection" or "domestic violence?" N-ne at all. If such a state of things has existed as General 3rant is made in his proclamation to pretend, the Governor has had ibundant time to call the Legislature together; but he has not done so. He 3hould have called out the State muil ia, but he has not done so. In short [here are ito proofs of the existence A an 'insurrection' in South Carolina >r of "domestic violence," or of any .ffort of the Governor to find or sup press either. There is a good deal of vsgue talk >f "rifle clabs." Suppose G,vernor filden sliould enroll all the roughs and all the illiterate and i-notaw p)optilation of the State, and none uthers, iii the miliia; should arni them witi State arm; and supp4se then, in the midst of in exciting po litical campaign, he should suddetinly order all the remnaider of the citi zens-the whole of the substanial aMid intelligent class-to disarm, and if they hesitated order whelesale at rests by Federal marshals and call on the President for troops--ifrat wuld be said of sui a proceedingi Ye! that is precisely what Goverior Chamberlain has done and what tie President abets him in. Firtunatel, 31 far the meumbers of the 'rifle clubs' bave quietly submnitted to arrest, I, biet, tue whole plan of the Democrat c canvass necessitates peace and or ler on their side; and this is So cer ain and evidem~n that lhe call <t LDhamnberlai n 1for troo1 s has clearly o other ob)jcCt than the hope to stir a p riot and vioulence. We trust that ,he Democrats will be on their guard and give not the least occasion 6 their own condulLct for the success 4 this base scheme. And we again idvise the colhied men of South Darolina to vote for General IIamp on. le has promised themi equal nst ice, abs.oliute secur:ity and tair )lay, and they may depend on his ord Thke Preiddent's proclamati, nade for- no triue cause, m- iesta-isig hte clear and well understood tac s 'mn dmnost every paragraph, ordet ing lie dispersion of anm inasurrecI ion t hat locs not exist, on pleais which are oteriously w ithiout foundation, and threawening to send to the State not anly the regular army but the mil i ri of thle States, is sur iely too grav e Rnd datnge:ous an abuse oif power toi pass u.moticed by Northern voters. The clause of thle cornstitution, uinder which the Prebidetit shelters himself aind Governor Chamberlain, evident.. lev suipposes the Governor of a State o have attem pted to putt downa disor. lers before lie is entitled to call for Federal help. it su)lpposes thle emler eneniy to be so set ious that lie would -aIl the Leg islat ure together for' con, ;ultat ion hetoreo he appeals to Wash.. nigtoni, it possible; anid fou this Mr. Dhamuberlain has hiad abundance of timte. It suippoiies a' leas' actual and i'torious5 ilIlegal comibtinat ions too powe:101 for haimt to put down; but I le; e is nmot the least prot f of any m.minati. ti whlan.ar, excepjt one of he respecliable3 leo ple of the S ate to de-featt Gs.ver or Chamberlain at the polls. Thet e can be nto plea even oft resistance on the part of the rifle clubs, which are for the most part, if not entirely, legal and chartered or ganizations. Their members have submitted qnfetly to arrest, wherever they have been called on. The plain and disagrecable truth seems to be that the Presideuni, ul the United States has been led to abet Governor Chamberlain in an attempt to create a ri 1 in - onth Carolina for the pur1 pose of coercing the people to re-el. ect him. It is impos.Aible to believe that so seriious and dangerous misu8e of 1ower for partisan purposes will go unnoticed by the voters of the North ern States. Such act&, unless they are promptly condemned by the peo ple, become precedents; and it- the people of the United States should by their neglect allow such a precedent .%s this to become established, it would hang as a menace over every election and would surely be misused in a manner to create general civil discord. No one pretends to doubt that the people of South Carolina have for many years suffered from public robbery and grave naladmin istration at the hands oft men who used the ignorant negro vote to main tain thenselves in power. At last there, as in Arkaias and in Alas bamna, even the negroes, or at lotast the more inteligent part of them, have become weary of misrule; atr the same time, as in those other States, the Republican party has he. comie divided, and one faction arrayt itself against the party candidate, By this split the Democrats reason ably hope to profit and carry tho State. They are using their utmost effurts to do so, and they deserve the sympathy of every opponent of bad government in the .North. But in this rergency, when natural causes give the friend8 of honesty a chance, t'e Federal power is invoked, and succestsful'y, to step in to save Gover. nur Chamberlain from defeat which he dest rves and which the public demands. Surely that is not free or Constiinationial government. What would the people of New York have said if, wheun Tweed and his i ing were about to be overturned, theso had been able to summon Federal troops and Federal maishals to help them, and hand procured a Presideni tial j.rclamuJation ordering the oppo nents of the r'ing to disperse?--NeWv Y.rk Her aid. T1'nE YECLLow FEVER.--From the News we learn Savannah has been attacked by a second( scourge, small p..x-a loathsome disease to ho dreatded equally with yellow fever T1hose who escaped the yellow fever have still to dread the approach of' the small pox. As yet, this dlisease is contined to the locality in Savan~ nah known as Yamacraw, and( the disease being contagious, that port ion of the city is guarded to prevent any one frmom going to other parts of the TIhie progress of the yelhlow fever, as indicate~d by the mortuary rep)ort for the twenty four hours eunding at 6 o'clock P. M. Tuesday, shows a sli;.ht decrease from the day previous the total interments from all causes ot death beiig nineteen, of which thirteen were declared yellowv lever cases. Jay Gould's Tribaue justifies theo muilitary interference with the South Carolinr election on the ground that CJhamberlain is a 'genuine reformenr,' and ueeds the troops. Now, Cham,% berlain iR a fraud, pure and simplei, more dangerous even than the un ma8ked thieves with whom he hmas consorted in South Carolina to rob) the State, as he now uses United States troops to try to overaw its vote. [His reputation as a student at Yale Coldlege was bad among his e ausmnales, anid thme lack of pinciple he& He early exhibited has nover been snoj)lied.-New York Sun.