The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, June 08, 1877, Image 2
The Elealon Jury.
At half-past 0 o'clock, all the attorneys for the
defence being present in ceurt, as well as the
prosecuting attorneys, tho Chief Justice ueut a
deputy marshal to bring the jury into court.?
They were soon brought fotth. When they had
all taken their soats and answered to their names
as called by the Clerk, Chief Justice Waite said:
Gentlemen, have you agreed upon a verdict?"
Geo. W. Williams, the foreman, replied that they
had not.
The Chief Justice next inquired whether they
had agreed upon the guilt of any party. A situilar
reply was made by the foreman. The foreman
was then asked whether &ey had agreed
' upon the innocence of any one of the accused.?
George llush, the black jury leader, said that
they had agreed upon the innocence of one parly
named in the indictment and none others. .Mr.
JJmchouse said that I hoy had not agreed
upv/u ..UJ , ...... ouv.. ? ."is ?
?d, but no vote hail been taken upon it. That
as fur us bo was concerned, lie was in favor of
acquittal from the outstart as to all the accused,
and that he would continue so to theend ; further
lie said they might remain there for twelve
.months without changing the vote of one man.
The Chief Justice then instructed the jury to retire
to their rooms and consider further; that if
they could agree upon the inocence of one or
more, or as to the guilt of any one of the accused,
they could make such a verdict, and report upon
-tlio others as disagreeing.
Mr. Williams enquired of the Court whether ,
they must bring in a written verdict; the Chief
Justice said not; that in sucli a case as the one
before them it must be made orally. The jury
then returned to their rooms, and after an absence
of a few seconds returned into court, when
Mr. Williams, tbc foreman, uuuouuccd that the
jury unanimously agreed upon a verdict of not
wuilty as regards Mr. Abner W. Atkinson, bu?.
jrjrtr ' m Jia 1i Utii
1 Hrv?nilJ3 1*11 "'"H
v The Judge then ordered a mistrial to enter in
J lie cause as regards the balance of t lie defendant.*,
and dismissed the jury from further at-tendance
upon the Court.
The names of the jurors in this case were Geo.
W. Williams, foreman, (icorge Lever, K. J. Limeliouse,
Linnsford llarley, Joel Copes and M. F.
2'ighe, white; all of whoso polities, excepting
Mr. Williams, tended in the past toward Republicanism.
The other half of the jury were George Curtis,
M. II. liolloway, Cato T. Stewart, J. M. Clinton,
Addison Walkei, and Isharn Greenwood, colored
or black men.
The first of these, George Curtis, who was the
leader of the negroes, a kind of foreman, is a
foreign negro. This fellow is a constant contributor
of trash for Daddy Cain's sheet, the Missionary
Record.
M. II. liolloway hails from Marion County.?
He filled the office of School Commissioner in
that county under the Republican administration.
J. M. Clinton, a violent negro from Lancaster,
is the son of Radical Senator F. A. Clinton, a
member of the present Senate.
Cato T. Stewart is a regular corn field hand,
lie is a trained juryman, having acknowledged
that he was one that sat on Ku-Klux trials.?
Tlii* accounts for his being here, as old Ku Klux
Korbin auvw his man. *
Addison Walker another ignorant corn field
hand, is likewise a trained juryman. He sat on
the Ku-Klux cases also.
Tsham Greenwood is adiscipleof Daddy Cuin. '
Hp rlfthm In l?n n ininiutnr i?f I Ik a I !aui\aI ?'
a sundry shop in his retreat. He was the only j
negro on the jury who was inclined to listen to j
the reasoning of the intelligent white men, and
would hare voted for acquittal had it not been '
lor Curtis.
At the inception of the ease, when the jury
were drawn, considerable speculation was had !
as to the probable standing of the jury, and from ,
day to day as the case went on, it was apparent
that the negroes would cling to color, tleorge
Curtis showed clearly on his face that he had 1
gone there with the determination of convicting, |
und did not tvuver an inch during the tedious (
trial aad arguments. His face during the argu- ,
incuts gave the expression of a heart made up
nnd hardened for conviction, and his being shut 1
up at night together with the other negroes ac- <
1 *" ~ "taunts tbr trio color tine drawn. ' |
The case, as the public are aware, was handed
<o the jury on Friday, ut half past lUo'clock? '
After an elaborate charge front the Chief Justice
?such a charge as any unbiased person could
dot fail t* agree upon n verdict of acquittal without
hesitation, us the Chief Justice dwelt at (
length upon the ease only being based upon circumstantial
evidence, and tnat in order to find
the accused guilty they must be convinced bey* 1
end a reasonable doubt. Not withstanding this,
when they entered their room mid a vote was
taken, tho division line was formed at the jump
and stood 0 to 6?black again-1 white?all of the
negroes voting for conviction, and all of the <
wanes ior nc<|ii111:vi. l(epcatc<I votes were had,
wiih llic same result, and at'ier thirty three hours
trial the whites were unable to change a single
vote. Curtis, it is said, offered a compromise,
which was that they would all agree to an acquittal
of all the accused but the two Bowers.?
As a matter of course the whites would make no
such compromise, and the negroes stood up for
conviction of all. The negroes said they would
remain there for any length of time so long as
they were fed and received three dollars a day
for so doing.? Journal of Commerce.
I'lantixo Wiiitf. Skix ox a IIi.ack Max.?
Thcro is a coal-black negro man in our vicinity
who will soon have a beautiful white stomach ?
a stomach covered with as pure white Democratic
skin as ever grew in Kdgetield. This no doubt
sounds both ridiculous and alarming, but we will
explain. Some weeks back. Dr. Waller II ill and
I>r. Wallace Bland cut off from the stomach of this
negro a huge tumor weighing many pounds, and
upon the large hare spot left by the operation they
have plauted numberless little stars of skin nipped
from their own arms. These stars have taken
root and are fast spreading out to meet each
other, so that, as we have already said, the black
man will soon have a beautiful white Democratic
stomach ? at all events on the outside. Science
is wonderful, and in this case noble. Skin is
nbout all the Radicals and negroes have left us,
and to he thus generous with it is certainty very
magnanimous.?Abbeville Medium May, 23..
Diversify.?After tea we proceeded to interview
the Squire on his mode of farming. We
asked what was his spsoialty or market crop.?
Me replied, "I have no specialty, sir. 1 sell
from this farm every article of production, from
on egg to a horse." "To-day," said he, "I sold
in town aheef weighing over six hundred pouuds,
and I sell a number of beeves every year. I
have not bought a horse in twenty-five years,
always keep front six to ten on the farm, and soil
one or two every year, of my own raising, at good
prices. I sell bacon, pork, flour, wheat, oats,
corn, mutton and lambs every year, uad actually
(he said with a hearty laugh) tho old woman,
here, lately has been selling chickens and eggs
in addition to iter usual sales of butter, sweet
and Irish potatoos, cabbage and turnips.?Ha~
Iti'jh Obscrcer.
t 'tnisd Clover.?The proper time for curing
clover is when nbout one-third of the blossoms
have turned brown. Clover should be exposed
very little to the sun in the process of curine.
Tut it down (not wet,) and haul it to tho place
for slacking as fast in* it is cut; commence at ,
once ami lay one.foot of wheat straw at tite.boj- j
totn on poles. <>1<1 rails, or brush, then one foot
of clover as fust as battled, alternating [be lay- '
era to tbe top of tbc stack, tvbich should bo of f
straw: thus put up/in very short time it be- \
coinrs peneniy cured, ana not tiMMe to spoil in
feeding to slock of all kinds. The straw is eat- v
en us greedily as tbe clover, nnd fho clover is ^
kept of a bright and beautiful color all tbe time, v
Always use a ladder in stacking bay.?.V. C. fl
Farvur.
t<
Tiik Last ok tub IIaici'ki s.?New York, May n
2'.?.?Fletcher Harper, of the firm of Harper tl
lb-others, died this morning of gin-trie fever.? j?
He was the Inst surviving member of tbe firm ,
of four brothers who founded this well
known publishing house. At the time of bis 01
death he was in his 72d year. in
?hc efRcchl? ?mon ?im?s. 1
R. M. STOKES, Editor." *
UNION, FRIDAY JUNE 8. 1877. ]
TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION.
1 Opjr, one year, in aUVanck, $.1.00
2 C'iiiUm one year, " " 5.50
ft " " ? " 11.00
10 " ? " < " 20.00
ADVERTISING.
On* square or one inch. Aral insertion, - - - $1.00
Each subsequent insertion, ------- 75
Liberal discount made to merchants and others ad vcr- .
llslng for six months or by the year. .
Obituary Notices o( ten lines or Isas, iofOrted free. /' ,
" " o*r ten lines, charged as Advertise
ments. [
20 per cent additional for advertisements onions!
not to appear in consecutive issue*.
The l ii ion Tim cm For Male. t
BEING anxious to retire from the Newspaper g
business, I offer the Times for Hale
Two industrious Printers, or a man competent '
to Edit the Paper and attend to the business of 1
the office, with an industrious Printer, could t
make a handsome living out of it. It will he j,
sold at a fair price and on accommodating terms.
R. M. STOKES, "
Editor and Proprietor. Ii
May 11 18 t
Haiy- No rain yet, and the crop prospects ore 1
vcry gloomy. The wheat is turning out well.
t
?OX- The Insurance Agents are promptly on *
! hand adjusting the losses from the fire. a
Mrs. Shodair, after making such a nar- I *
row escape, is now buck again in her store, ready ^
to supply llread, Cakes, Itc., to her customers.
- - ?
' Pf)fiWv JS ?maU XmncU Keys found In tbo v
iiiimtf iipiwft' iitrfiJTirl'jx^\l>
left at this office, which the owner can get by w
calling here for them. h
_
As a natural consequence, the fire unsettled
everybody und everything in town for W
two or three days, and it hnsbecn impossible for
us to pay our usual attention to getting out a "
paper this week.
c<
If you want to see a regular "muss* 1 r<
molly," lake a peep into ltice, McLure & Co.'s, h
J. II. Rodger's and J. T. Mill & t'o.'s. stores.?
The goods look as if a dozen little and big tic- hi
groes had been stiring tlieiu up with sticks. ol
" * m
Weir On the 1st inst., terrific fires were raging (|
through the timber Innds of Michigan, which ,j
threaten to be as destructive as the fires in that c,
State of 1871. Villages aro entirely surrounded jr
by fire and nil communication with them is cut Q|
off. Settlements of Lumbermen have been en- gj
tirelv destroyed?not a bouse is left standing >(
in one town. Tbewbole of Hurrou County is lj(
beleaguered with tlauies. S|
The Legislature, at last accounts, was nt
a dead lock upon the appropriation bill. The
committee of conference could not agree upon tc
inserting or expunging the 5270,000 interest *
luusc, so a committee of free conference was appointed.
The per diem and mileage of members ''
is also a bone of contention. The difference is
between $'? a day, and $000 or $800 for the 8t
two sessions.
?. ? th
"Cherry Kipe." Our little friends, pi
Misses Mamie nud Lula Lay, of t.'ross Keys, flr
will accept our thanks for a bucket of nice ripe cc
.'berries. We hardly knew that Cherries were in
ripe and here cotnes the "first of the season" be
from two sweet liiile girls the blooiu of whose pi
:hccks would rival the cherries themselves.? ca
Such fnvors are the green and cheering spots in it
I lie oasis of an Editor's life, but they arc doubly dc
cbfceaiag In the consciousness that he is rcmcm- th
bored kindly in the social circles of his sub- of
scrihcrs, particularly by the young and pure of of
heart and thought. ar
As it seems impossible to get up a firo
I'ompany in this town, the next best thing, ic ni1
our opinion, is for the Town Council to pass an ar
ordinance forbiding the erection of wooden m
i?.;i.i;n?o r\n \i?;n ei>?.i
......v..U?., .... ........ U..V... ?-V O..V.. ........ .I.K3 Wj
linvc proved a nuisance, causing the loss of im. so
meuse amounts of property, ami the Council f,l(
certainly hare the power to nhate and prevent t|,
one nuisance as well as another, and to protect jc
Lite lives and property of the citizens of the
town. In uiost other towns such au ordinance
is rigidly enforced, and we cannot discover any 5,.
materia! difference in the Charters of Uuion and
jthcr towns, that would prevent the exercise of
such a power.
fear A new way of getting up a Club for a
County paper has lately been discovered : Ten
men get together and throw in twenty cents "
tpiccc. The paper is ordered to be addressed to
one of thciu. They "take turns" in sending to ^
the I'ost office for it, and on the day of its arrival
they all meet together and one of the Club
reads the paper out loud to the others. They r?
zl.so take turns in reading. The one that roads
keeps the paper, so that the family of each subtcriber
(?) gets a paper to read every ten weeks.
The plan is found so economical in time and 1
monoy that in one neighborhood they are trying or
to gel ten more to join the club so as to reduce
the price to ten cents each and make the labor
nr going to the Post othce and reading the pa*
per come lighter on all.
Where the Bnrnt-Out Can be Found.
J. F. Mullinax has opened bis Boot and Shoe G
Shop in the room over Spears j: Col ton's Store.
Thus Nelson's Tailor Shcp is now in the room rc
in the secoud story of Spears & Colton's building.
bi
J. T. Hill & Co., hare rented the Store formerly
occupied l>y W. C. Harris & Co., in
H. F. Hriggs ha- rented the building in rear
of Spears & Colton.
W. McNeace now occupies the Beef Market $
Building next to \V. L. Palmer's Stables.
The Express office and Frieghl Agent is in st
Mr. W. A. Nicholson's Building.
F. H, Counts' office is in B. F. Bawls & (Vs su
Store.
jJaJC" During the past week we have received
many very kind assurances from fr ends in
almost every part of the County that they would r*
make efforts to increase our suhacriDlion list
All request us not to givo up the paper, but, as
jne of them expresses it, "do as we hare to dc,
ive on hope, if you can't get credit on a lien, 7
or there is a better day near, when Hampton * 1
;ols his government in.good working order."?
Veil, friends, we appreciate your very kind
rords to us, but can assure you all that we have
een almost living on hope for six months, and v '
rc have but a very small quantity of even that un
imsy article left, liesides, we arc compelled
have a change of diet, and the I'apc." Maker "* "
ud Printers say it is absolutely necessary for ^ '
lem to have something to truton the hope wc
ive been feeding them on. You see the point.
jn't you ? Don't defer the consummation of
tr hope too long, or w e shall all get too sick to 1
stun paper. anc
rhe Fire Fiend 1ft Union Again.
1100,000 DESTROYED 19 2 1-2 HOURS.
Railroad Depot and Shops Qonel
26 BUILDINGS BURNSED!
A MATCH DOES THE MISCHIEF.
Sunday, (lie 3d day of June, 1877, wlUjiWg
>e remembered by the citizens of Unioi^ji^pk^
if (he hotter! find saddest days they ^eer?j(Mi
>erienced. ? ?
About half part 12 o'clock, while four-fifths
if our white inhabitants were at Church, the
Ireaded alarm of fire was sounded upon Main
trccl, and by the time many could nrrive upon
be spot the wooden building occupied by W.
t. Hriggs A Co., adjoining Hill & Co's. large
irick building, was one sheet of flume and the
?oxing under the caves of thelnttcr building on
ire the whole length, and in a quarter of an
lour the whole inside of the upper story of
hat building was one roaring mass of flame and
moke. The wind was Mowing hard from the
louth-west by west, and the scene was truly
errific. Large flakes of firo were flying in tlie
iir, alighting on the parcheil roofs of stores
nil dwellings, near and far, threatening destrueion
to every building ami fence in its course,
>r miles. The shingled roofs of the houses,
rotn the long continued dry and hot weather,
ere like tinder, and it required the most active
rntchful ciorlionsupon tt\? roof ?Ta.
iVdFU Ululrh}^ G*
indward, and in a few niinutJb the ^oden
ouscs of Mrs. K. D. Humphries, I*liilli|S~l>iinn,
. F. Briggs (a new one) ami Thos. McXally,
ere one sheet of raging, howling flame, while
lere scented no hope thnt the brick buildings
clow, from Spears & Cotton's to Foster &
'ilkins' and the wooden block below them,
mid possibly be saved. Thnnks to the slate
jof and substantial build of Spcnrs & Cotton's
oiisc they all escaped.
The flames then leuped, as it were, from the
timing stores to some small buildings in renr
T Col. Young's and the Harris stores and dctolishcd
tliem like loose cotton. From there
toy took thehuilding known as the "longhouse '
ten the Davis and McXencc bar rooms and
rcry other building upon thnt block and laid all
i ashes. But before flames had full possession
T these houses, the cry came that the Railroad
tops were on fire ; nnd here commenced such a
:cne of terror nnd destruction as we have never
cforc witnessed. The ronring flames, the dense
nokc, the terrible luat from the midday sun,
tc howling of the wind, the blindiug dust ind
tc flying flakes of fire, all combined to strike
rror and alarm to the stoutest hearts. It was
scene of horror.
The weather was so intensely hot that, allough
the fire had only lasted nn hour, the
oplc were completely exhausted and many
out tnen had fallen and been taken frotn the
reels. Iu less than tire minutes from the time
ic tire first struck the building the whole upper
irtion of the shops was one howling mass of
imes, and the air around so hot thnt none
uld go near enough to enter and sate nny of the
achinery, tools, or materials iu it. The luni r
around the shops, threeenrs on the tract, the
at forms in front, rear and ends of the depot,
ugiit almost simultaneous with the shops and
was impossible to enter the depot. Soon a
>nse stnoke issued from under the tin roof, of
at building;, ami nil liopj of saving it pr any
' Its contents was gone, My the tiine"Tlie roof
the depot fell in, the workshops, cars and all
'ound were completely in ashes.
The March of destruction ended at the depot
iops. It commenced at half past I'd o'clock
id by 3?two hours and a half?the bare walls
id chimneys of twety-four buildings alone reained
to tell of its ravages. We haTC never
itucsscd so great destruction of property in
short time. This may be accounted for iu the
ct that a month's dry hot weather had made
e buildings as diy and inflammable as a powir
house.
IIOl'SES OKSTnOYKH.
Wooden Mouse, the roofs and wood work of two
ick buildings belonging to Tlios Mcnally.
XT X..SI.1S r i? X. it
.nil inu-aioijr uuiiiuug 01 IV. r. nriggs,
Three wooden buildings of Phillip Dunn.
Wooden building of Mis E. L). Humphries.
Wooden building of W. U. Priggs & Co.
Two-Story brick building of Hill & Gulp ?
i tho first story of this building was mil &Cb's
rgo store and Gibbs & Go's, Drug Store. In
e second story was the large town Hall, Thos.
elson's Tailor Shop, J. P. Mullinax's shoe
iop, Hill & Co s Counting room and skopitig
oms.
One small wooden building in roar of Friedtrger's
store.
Two wooden buildings belonging to Spears &
iltou?one occupied by charley Jcnkini, Colcd,
the other unoccupied.
Wooden building of Mrs. M. A. Fant.
Small building occupied by colored people.
W. McNencc's barroom and Ten-pin alley.
W. R. Davis' bar-room belonging to John
odger.
The Long House, belonging to the estite of
iles Sharp.
Small wooden house in rear of David* bar
iom.
Railroad Depot nnd Shops, and two snail
Hidings occupied by laborers.
Work Shop of Tinsley & Richmond, telongg
to Dr A. W. Thomson.
MISSES AMI INSl RANTE.
R. F. Briggs. Loss, $2,000. Insurance,
1,000, in Philadelphia Fire Association.
Phillip iHinn, Loss $4,500 in building and
ock.
fcrs. E. M. Humphries. Loss $800. FUly iuired
in Manhattan Insurance Co.,
IV. II. Briggs. Loss, in building and Stock
>,000. Insured in N. V. Home, $1,001; Virnia
Fire and Marine, $1,000; Furmvile Insunee
and Banking Co., $1,000.
Oibbs Si Co. Loss $2,500; insurance >2,(K)0,
North America Insurance Co.
Hill k Co. I?oss $20,000; insurance $8,000
Manhattan, $3,000; Georgia Home, 2,000;
agara, $-'1,(100.
Hill and I'ulp?Brick building. Low $15,0
; insurance $8,000. j
Kpcars & Col ton, two wooden buildirjjs"*" Loss
00. insurance $400, in FarniTille Insurance j
J Banking Co. (
Mrs. M. A. Fan I, wooden buildhg. Loss i t
,*?0 ; insurance $<">00, iu Fariuvillc Insuruucc ^
Hanking Co. 1 (
IV. A. McNcace. l.os? Slock $ 1 ,(00 ; build-j
;s $2,001). No Insurance,
lolin Hodgcr, Baris bar-room building. Loss [
>0. No insurance. T'
A. K. Bui is, Sleek Los? > "l O. No iiisur u
c. c
)
Long House, belonging to estate of Giles
8horj>. Loss $1,000. No insurance.
Railroad Depot, Shops, Cars, &c., estimated
loss from $2f>,000 to $30,000. No Insurance.J |
Resides the shore, which were totally destroy* ^
d, Mr. Schoppaul, Messrs. Rice, McLurc & Co., (
Jss. II. Roger, Spears & Colton, J. T. Hart and (
Graham & Graham lost henrily from the removal
of goods from their stores. The first four
insured.
gfc'i'hos. Nelson, Tailor, lost a fine Sewing Mainline,
a number of garments nud all his tools.
J. P. Mullinax,"Bootmaker, lost everything in
his shop.
O. P. Jacobi, Watch Repairer and Jeweller,
lost about $1,000, including all his tools, a quantity
of clothing and Furniture.
Phillip Dunn lost & stock of Groceries, but as
Mr. Dunn is sick at his residence out of town
wc cannot state the amount of his loss.
The whole loss cannot fall much short of
?100,000, with only nbout $35,000 insurance.
Among the losses was the Passenger Car of
the Ilnilrond mulct going thorough repairs and
intended to be ready for the excursion to the
Mountains over the Spartanburg and Asheville
Hail road on the 11th. A turret had been built
on it and in every other respect it would hare
been a vory handsome Car. The workmen had
displayed their utmost skill in tanking it a credit
to their own skill and. mVlroad shop.
,XU? origin of the fire is attributed to the
careless throwing of a match among some loose
by J1j igg* & store,
after lighting a cigar. He saye h?r had not
left the store ntoro than fifteen minutes when
the alarm was given and the house was in flames.
The most remarkable feature of the fire was
ilie saving 01 trie row ot wooden buildings below
Foster & Wilkins' store. We can only account
for it from tlie fact that the brick stores above
were so much higher than the wooden ones, that
the wind blew the sparks over them and on to
the houses in the block below. Hut there is no
doubt that they too would have been destroyed
but for the extraordinary exertions of Mr. J.
II. Rodger and many others, whose names wo
cannot learn, who, notwithstanding the intolerable
heat from both the sun and and fire, reniaiiicd
on the roofs during the whole time and
applied water from bi ckcts. The buildings
are old and as inflamablc as any iu town and
their being saved appears miraculous.
By this fire Union has suffered a loss that cannot
Lc estimated in dollars and cents, and will
be seriously felt for many years. At no time
hns the people been less able to boar it. The
depressed condition of the whole community,
from the awful stagnation of business, with no
money in circulation and the exorbitant price
asked for money by those who have it, combine
to put the prospect of rebuilding to a very distant
day.
fi*ay" We had the pleasure, last Saturday, of
meeting Speaker Wallace and Representative
I'eakc, who visited their homes, for the first time
since the present session commenced, on leave
of absence. From appearances we should say
that Legislative work agrees with them, for they
have uot lost an ounce of ilesh. They gave us
many points, unknown to us before, upon the
trials and tribulations the democrats of that
hotly have undergone, in 'bringing inorder out
chaos," wit It a stubborn partisan Republican
majority in the Senate to harass, annoy and delay
the progress of souud legislation. We can
Well ni?Orritaii<l their peculiar position -CtiM *
respect. All the efforts that the democratic house
might make to pass good laws and establish a
sound, economical and honest government, can
and have been either delayed or thwarted hy
the Republicans in the Senate, it took all the
tact and ingenuity of the democrats todoar.y gcod
work at all. They had to move slowly and cuuliouslyjwith
any measure they wished to adopt,
hence the leugth of the session and the small
amount of work they have accomplished. We
arc confident they have done all it was possible
for them to do, under the circumstances, Ihey
seem now as full of enthusiasm for "Hampton
Home Rule and Reform," as they were during
the campaign, and if they don't vote exactly as
we think they should, we believe they net upon
the conscientious belief that they vote for the
best interests of the State and the democratic
party. We will have our own opinions, but we
don't presume to say our judgment is superior
to that of a mnjority of the Legislature.
While we have complained?jusllv. we think
?of the management of the Spartanburg Union
anil Columbia Railroad, we have a great attachment
for it. It has received the fostering enre
of this county from the time the first move was
made to build it, and it is natural for our people
to have a more than ordinary likingfor it. In its
prosperity we took pride, inthe advancement of
its interest we contributed our money, and in its
misfortunes it has our sympathies. During the
past week it has met with two very serious losses
by fire, amounting, it is supposed, to over
$30,000. First the depot at Strothcrs, with all
its contents, was consumed ; supposed to bo the
work of an incendiary ; then the terrible Brecon
Sunday, sweeping away its work shops, with all
its valuable machinery, tools and materials, the
fine large depot, containing a large quautity of
merchandize, fixtures, old records, &c.?the
actual value of which not at present known.?
We sincerely sympathize with the owners iu
their severe losses.
Johno a Rifles.
The following are the Officers of the Johnson i
Rifles, elected lust Saturday night :
CART. F. M. FA UK,
1st Lieut. J. I*. Mullinnx
2d " I). Johnson Jr.
3d " J. II. Rodger
1st Rerg't. II. M. Grimball '
2d ' .Ins. C. Sartor i
Hi! " James Munro
4th " R. R. Rawls
1st Corp'l It. W. Tinsley
2d ' C. T. Hands '
3d " T. K. 1'almer i
4th " Jos. D. Arthur
f>th " A. R. Stokes
Chaplain Re*. II. (!. Clifford
Surgeon Dr. J. N. Moore '
Sec't & Trens. S. S. Stokes I
Total .Membership, f>4. ,
Jtay We arc pleased to state that a large maoriry
of the colored people worktd faithfully i
it the fire last Sunday and did valuable services i
n saving dwellings and storos threatened by I
he flying sparks. We cannot nnme them nil, (
nit most of their names are recorded And they (
vi11 he kindly remembered, whenever npportu- t
lity offers to benefit theiii, by the white citi/ens. t
Vmong the ini>ut conspiouous workers, of them f
ill was Mary Davis, who we arc told, worked <
sonfully, in carrying water und removing goods (
intil so overcome by the heal she had fo he >
arricd from tho street. r
And no one who has any ncqunntinncc with
English literature can doubt for n moment as to
how usury was regarded there.
Under the fostering influence of her laws
ngainsl usury, and her homestead Invr. which
Georgia gave to her people as soon as she attained
the right of self-government?which she
did sooner than any other State in the Southshe
sncediW attained a nra-eminent nrnsnpritv.
For tho Time*.
SOUND VIEW8 UPON THE INTERE8T8 OFTHE
FARMERS AND PLANTERS.
Union Countt. S. C. 27th May.
Mr. Kihtor : 1 nsk, with some hesitation, a
place iu your paper, which is always on the side
of right and justico, to give expression to certain
views in the interest of the Farmers and
Planters of tho State.
The views expressed by "S.,M as to the distressed
condition of the plantiug interest in
South Carolina and the much needed rcmody
therefor,--imp. communication addressed to the
Journal of Commerce, of a recent date, are, 1
think, entirely correct, and I will plunge at
once into the middle of the subject, by saying
that the presscnt stagnation of trade throughout
the ctuntry is, in some degree certainly, altribu
table to the fact that the agricultural districts
around many of the towns and villages are in a
state of collapse. The farmers and planters
are reduced to the minimum of expenses, viz:
what is barely sufficient for subsistence ; and as
the agricultural classes arc largely in the majority
here, trade is necessarily stagnant. The unjust
discrimination in freights on certain railroads,
though doubtless bearing some relation
to the matter, ly no means accounts for the very
marked falling off of trade, in certain towns.?
As was said bj* S. in the communication above
referred to, the mercantile classes, by the enormous
per centnge demanded on all articles of
domestic Consumption, have killed the goose
that laid the golden egg.
> It is time that the merchants, though often
tanning considerably risk in their transactions,
might fairly havcasked prices in advance of those
which ruled in ante helium days ; but from one
hundred per cent, on provisions to three hundred,
was much more than a fair profit, and can
be designated no otherwise than as extortion.?
Moreover, with such security as valuable land
to back the consumer, the merchants were tolcr
ably sure of getting back their money. I.ikt
Dogberry, they have had their losses, but thai
they have prospered, on the whole, in spite o
losses and risks, is a well attested fact. I, fot
one, do not grudge them their prosperity, if ii
had been attained while following the "Cloldcr
Ilule," but prosperity built upon the total ruir
of numbers of their fellow-citizens, is not to b<
envied.
Suppose they had been content with a fail
profit?risks taken into the accounts?upon theii
investments, there arc'numbcrs of now ruined
men who, with home rule, a minimum rale o
taxation and the labor system in a better condi
tiort, as it 60011 will be, .Iwould soon be able, i
the} still held their lands, to retrieve their for
tuncs, and place Their families in comfort^aud
independence. But it is now too lute. Thai
spirit of extortion, in some cases fulscly called
"splendid business talent," which has reveled
in South Corolina during the reign of carpet
bagery, has wound up these unfortunate men
just one or two years too soon, and their cnsci
uru uuw uu|icii'9S.
In reference to the subject in hand, it would
be ns well to inquire what relation the laboring
class proper bears to the matter : The farmer;
and planters reduced, almost, to the lastextrem
ity, tlie condition of the laborers, is one degrei
worse, if this be possible. He and his famil3
are in n stale of semi-starvation throughout tin
year. Is it strange that the white laboring
classes are becoming bitter, sis I think they arc 1
They hive a vague feeling of wrong and oppress
siun, which, defined and organized, would be.
xtonia tnnt startling thing called Communism.
Is it to be wondered at, when the provision merchant,
getting his grip upon the laborer and atwags
dictating cotton as his principal croj>, sells
him provisions at J100 per cent, and at the close
of the second or third year takes not only his
corn nud cotton, but sells the poor man's cow,
the only comfort left to his family, and takes
even his cotton seed and rough forage, the refuse
of his crop? Shylock must have the pound
of tlcsh from just above the heart, though the
life-blood follow the knife.
Under the Jewish despensation, usury was
expressly forbidden, ur.d is repeatedly spoken
of in the Old Testament Scriptures as being on
a plane with crimes of the most abominable type.
And just here we recommend, to those who have
Hutlicient cntcrest in the matter to do so, to read
the first portion of the nth Chapter of Kehemiah,
WW J..VUV .jj .? V-.?.1V OIII^UI.II Ij tuilltnitlll Willi
the condition of things just now prevailing in
South Carolina. Usury was distinctly forbidden
to the Jews?God's choson people?uuder pain
of His express displeasure. "He is the same,
yesterday, to-day aud forever." Christianity is
Judaism ennobled and purified." All civilized
peoples owe all that is most conducive to the
welfare and happiness of the human race, in
their relations as individuals, communities, and
nations, to the spirit of Christianity. It is allpervading,
all-enfolding, so to speak, like the
very atmos| hero we breathe ; though ils^ influences,
like that of the atmosphere itself, is enjoyed
by thousands who take no cognizance
whatever of the source of the blessings which
they enjoy. Nevertheless, it exists in all its
wonderful power. No candid person will deny
that the whole tenchiug of Christ; which constitutes
Christianity, is directly opposed to usury
and extortion. Is it possible, ns has been asserted,
that the Legislature of South Carolina
has no right to legislate against a form of oppressiotuivluch.
ijjJ:rcctly_l?pposcd to the spirit
of Christianity !
In France, during the reign of Napoleon Ho.
naiiarte. who ulaced himself in n. ilwiinri niiiiMiin
of friendship towards the Jews in his Km pi re,
he sent n Commission to them with 12 inquiries,
which ho askori of them to answer truthfully
ami fully, relative to the views which they held,
of their rclutiou to the Government under which
Ihey lived, and as to the extont to which the
?pccial foatures of Jowish polity wore observed
amongst themselves. The eleventh and twelfth
rpicstions related to the subject of usury. The
answer was, that Jews had no hesitation in dealing
with the "Gentiles" in what a Jewish authority
considered a "shameful and dishonest
traffic." The answer goes on to say, that the law
forbidding usury towards a Jew, was intended
for a people "who formed a Stale, and had a place
wnong the Nations."
In Kt gland, we are told, the laws against usury,
have been repealed. However that may be,
ind we are not poeted upon this point, they ccrainly
existed until recently, and the legal rate
>f interest there was w hat would have been contiderod
absurdly low here, when our old law
igainst usury was in force. Wo think it was
ibont five per cent. Has not Kngland been for
icvcral centuries one of the most prospeinus
loiiutries in the world 7 Her government -one
if the best certainly, if not l/ic h<*t?never
teeuis to have doubted for a moment as to their
iglit to legislate upon the price of money.
? i r*'-r*?'
which is, as yet, unrivalled amongst the Souttiern
States.
I will now refer, Mr. Editor, to the resolutions
of the Chamber ot' Cotnmcrco of Charleston*
against the rcestablishnicnt of the law against
usury, addressed to the South Carolina Legislature,
and recently published, in the Journal of
Commerce: With perfect respect for the high
character of the gentlemen who compose the
Chamber of Commerce, I, nevertheless, beg leave
to say that the doctrine of "the natural right
of the individual to untrammelled Irecdom in
the conduct of money and Commercial affairs,"
is a rather startling one. Certainly the Supreme
Court of the United Slates knows nothingof this
doctrine, for, a few years since it decided, foD
lowing in the track of the Declaration qf Independence,
that "the rights of life and personal
liberty were the natural rights of man.'^f We
hear of no other natural "rights," Bave these,
form this the highest legal tribunal in the hind:
In the excellent editorial of the 16th of May,
of the Journal of Commerce, entitled tho "Legitimate
Sphere of Government," we arc told that
"Protection to property, protection against injustice,
protection of the weak against the
frong, is the legitimate sphere of government;" -? ,m~^
and Jeremy Bentham, the great English political
economist, tells us that a good government should,
aim at making such laws as will enable tho poor
1 man to provide a subsistence for his family.?
Just now the farmer iu South Carolina is in ur'
gent need of such protection and such a law.? M
Should the capitalist, in the exercise of his "un- ^
5 I rn tnm.il 1 Art f -.I ?> - J---*
,.MU.U.V?VV? IIVVUVIU 1U IIIU WUUUUCl UI lliuiicy
1 anil Commercial affairs," trespass, at might
^ sometime* happen, upon his neighbour's right to
" provide an honest subsistence for his familyr
1 how then should the case stand ? Is there not
1 a law needed, which should step in just hero
1 and say, (to quote again from the editorial above
' alluded to ) "thou shall not ? The doctrine of
"the natural right of the individual to uutramnicllcd
freedom," &c., it strikes me, Mr. Editor,.
. is, so to speak, too broad anil too long. The
gentlemen of the Chamber of Commerce of
Charleston are men of the highest character, as
wo have said, but there are men of money,
here anil there, who are not, and wilfully uiisiu.
tcrpretiug the above resolution, and citing it as
authority, they will base upon it exceedingly
. crooked practices, in the use of money.
. As to the doctrine, also, announced in the
resolutions of the Charleston Chamber of Commerce,
at the meeting above referred to, that
| the "Legislature has no more right to legislate
upon money tliau upon land," we merely ask,
j has it not been the practice, heretofore, of all
civilized governments, to legislate upon their
j circulating medium, as they saw fit and as the
necessities of the times and the people deuian[
ded?
] There arc those, perhaps, who will think, that
the statements of the wretched condition of the
agricultural classes in South Carolina, aro too
J extravagant. "They have," they say, "no
knowledge of such a condition of things ; they
are constrnincd to believe that the statements are
t.,~ u;~l.l.. ~..l ? ' U'i.l ?* -
>?i?i6>i; wiuuivu. ?iiii pin*iiuii wnnu patina
upturned, with the self-satisfied urbane smiles
of men willi whom success, whether in business
or argument, is a foregone conclusion, they demonstrate,
t > their own entire satisfaction, th.".t>
the whole tiling is a figment of the brain oil
some "lean and hungry Cassias;" or, if it in
truth, "the people have nobody to blame buti
themselves."
Wrapped in the comfortable consciousness of
"much goods laid up for umuy years," they aro
totally unable to realize such things as honorab'lb
poverty aud blameless misfortune. "Clothed in>
purple aud line linen, and faring sumptuously;
every day," they arc unaware of any duty
which calls to them in the shape of I*azarus sitting
at the gate, in need of all things. Doubtless,,
if Lazarus ever attactcd the attention of Dives,,
the latter regarded the wretched man with u>
mixture of pity and contempt, and sagaciously
reflected that the man must have been greatly
to blame to bring himself to such a horrible coa.^.
liUbUr
There aro~fitrf&r?ds, nay, thousali^p of mem
in South Carolina, who can neither be bought
nor browbeaten, nor wheedled, whom all the
?WU-ntS?n. ? 1 -<
mw.hinmviio, i voumm ivu.l ituu aioiciueuis, Hi U1I
the Capitalists of (lie State, cannot blind to the
plain facts of the ease, and wo hope they will
innkc themselves heard, as they have the power
and the right to do, in demanding the re-establishment
of the law against usury. In this ease,
the "voice of the people would be tho voice of
God." With this law again in force, 8outh Carolina
would be, indeed, redeemed, regenerated
and disenthralled ; without it, God holp tho
poor. J.
fitay* While we sincerely sympathize with alL
who lost propcrerty by the fire last Sunday, particularly
those who had labored hard for what
they, obtained, we cannot help feeling more deeply
for thoso iudustrious and worthy Mechanics,
J. P. Mullinax, Thos Nelson and T. 1*. Remaster*
Their losses severo, because it took from
them tho tools by which they earned the food
and clothing for their families. In particular
was that the case of Mr. Remaster. His loss was
$500,?$100 worth of Carpenter's Tools, the
sash,blinds, doors, paiats, paper roofing and 500
feet of lumber, intcntcd for a new house he Is
building as fust as his daily earnings will allow. ^B
All this lie had purchased and paid for, by strict ^B
economy and correct habits, out of his monthly
wages as carpenter in the employ of the Railroad
Company. We know of no more worthy
or industrious n an in this county, and while we
know he docs not ask for charity, we think he ia
entitled to the help and encouragement of those
who can extend relief.
0kjy Samuel Oibble, democrat, has been
elected a Representative of Orangeburg County,
by a majority of 112, over 1>. A. Strakor, Radical,
who the present House refused to allow to
(nkc his sent, for cou.empt.
Tiie rn.r.RMs Reach I'ort.?Liverpool, May
2'>.?The disabled .steamer, t'ity of Brus.sela, arrived
hi this port this morning at 10 A. M., after
a passage from New York of thirty-eight
lays. The passengers have landed. AH aro
woli. Deputations from the Liverpool t'atholio
Societies, went out in two tugs to welcome tho .
pilgrims. A large crowd cheered und congratulated
tho pus-orger.s on the lauding stage. The
pilgrims were conducted to the Adclphi Hotel,
to he entertained hy the Catholic t lull. A To
deiim is to he sung at the pro-Cathedral The
pilgrims will then proceed ditectly to Home