l. m. grist's sons. publishers, j % Jamilp Beurspaper: .for the promotion of the political. Social. Agricultural and Commercial interests of the jDcopIe. Jtb^SSom'Sr?.mllcbnto*4'""' ESTABLISHED 1855. VO RIC \r 1 L L I<1 S. O.. 1<'I{J OA V, SKPTK.MBKR 11. li>08. NO. 73. 4- 4* 4* 4* 4* 4* 4* 4- 4-4- 4* 4H | AS1 J By ETTA 4 4 4 *b ^ T 4 4 -f? 4" CHAPTER XXXV. The Last. That feverish, restless life had indeed gone out. Rose Hillyer was no more. As she lay in the darkened drawingrr?r?m at Windmere. more beautiful in death than in life, her hands full of lilies, a smile of unearthly sweetness frozen on her lips, Mrs. Ellicott came and wept bitterly over her." Paget Fassel came, haggard and speechless. I kissed the flower-filled hands, and staggered from the silent presence, as though he had received a mortal hurt. Bess Hillyer came, sad and pale, and left on the fair face a kiss of pardon and a tear of sorrowful love. Last of all. Lepel Ellicott came, with a face like a mask, betraying nothing that was in his heart. But how can resentment live in the presence of death? He, too. forgave her, and remembered her sins and follies no more. They carried her back to Cape Desolation, and laid her to rest in the old Hiliyer tomb on the sanay roausiae, where, on a certain summer night, years before, a gay yachtsman, Andre Gautler, had first looked on the girl's fatal beauty. The play was played out? the curtain had fallen on the tragedy of another life. * "Time driveth onward fast." Again the old Common was green with spring. Birds twittered in its budding treetops. A brave show of hyacinths filled the florist's windows. Through the narrow Boston streets an east wind blew, bringing the freshness of the sea with it. From a trailing gray cloud came a sudden pattering of rain. Edith Fassel, making a leisurely tour of the shops, on some errand for Aunt Latimer, looked up In dismay at the sky. and down at her new spring costume, fresh from Felix. The carriage and Aunt Latimer were several blocks distant. For one moment she stood, with the big drops pelting smartly upon her; the next an umbrella interposed betwixt her and the downpour. "Permit me." said Nigel Hume. The two had not met before for weeks and months. She gave him a smile like April sunshine. "I am very glad." she said, "to see you again." "Do you mean that?" he asked, in a shaken voice. "It is hardly polite to question such a plain statement." "I did not think." he answered, with a touch of bitterness, "that Miss Fassel could say anything as kind to a rejected lover." At the corners of her classic mouth a suspicious dimple appeared. "Did I ever reject you. Dr. Hume? I think you have reversed the facts of the qase. It was you who rejected me." Edith!" "That day at the Symphony you went away before I could answer you at all. Had you remained a little longer" Pale with astonishment, or some deeper emotion, he caught the words eagerly from her lips. "Had I remained, what would you have said to me, Edith?' "The truth?the whole truth, and nothing but the truth!" she answered, her words mingling softly with the patter of rain on the fabric over their two heads. "From the first I was frightened at the power which your strong, honest, uncompromising nature wielded over mine. You were unlike any other man of my acquaintance. I recognized your sovereignty only too soon. You set up something between us. and called it my wealth and your poverty, my pride and position and your obscurity, and all the time behind the wretched barrier I was silently loving you. When Mrs. Ellicott urged you to become my suitor, and you refused oh. I was hurt and amazed, but I loved you the more for that. Your own pride was tenfold more cruel than mine, for it would not let you sue for me as other men did"? "Edith?darling! Stop a moment! I p cannot believe my ears. Have I been such a dolt?such an idiot?all this while"? "You have been very blind. Nigel, and very proud?in fact, the proudest, blindest creature that I ever saw in my whole life." Overhead the April rain splashed and scurried, but under that umbrella the very light of heaven was shining. Three months later the two were married. *- "I forgive your past obstinacy, Nigel." said Mrs. Ellicott to her nephew, "since you have don<* exactly as I wished you to do years ago. For l Edith's sake we must have no more family Jars." Long before his union with Miss Fassei the old dame had become thoroughly reconciled to her nephew. Indeed, her gratitude for Lepers restoration know no bounds. "What do I not owe to you!" she cried. "You have given me back my son?you have heaped coals of fire on my head. Nigel?henceforth your place must be next to Lepel's in my heart." In Edith Hume's life one sorrow only remained?her brother Paget. "When Mignon died," she said to her husband, "his heart received its death wound. He will never think of love i again." "Time works many cures." her husband answered. Rut Nigel Hutne knew that his wife had spoken truly?that Fassel would walk the remainder of his earthly way alone. ******* Two more years passed. Down at Cape Desolation autumn winds were howling over the cliffs, and the sea foamed high on the sunken ledges. In Berry's grocery the same old fishermen gathered at nightfall to watch Captain Ira measure out i the tea and sugar, and to spin the yarns which, by frequent repetition. !* 4* 4? 4* 4" 4' 4? 4? 4* 4? 4? 4* 4* BIBLE ! t J * xz-^ J ?f? k W. PIERCE. J J9#f,4*!fi*f?ef"fa48*t3?fs^4s *1' had become "flat. stale and unprofitable." Only one of their number was missing?Caleb Hillyer. who had been laid beside Rose in the family tomb by the sea. "Whatever is the sailor gal going to do now?" the old fishermen asked each other, one September twilight, as they lounged about the grocery, waiting for tne evening siage. rave on ai me cove with Martha Bray, or go off into the world to seek her fortin'?" "I take it she's spent about all her money on her relatives." growled Captain Ira. "In course, she's got to leave tho cove!" "Bess might ha' married well last year," remarked Hiram Duff. "You all remember the Portland gentleman that come down here to shoot birds?him that war one of the owners of her father's old ship. Middle-aged, but rich, Marthy Bray told me. He hunted Captain John's darter out. and fell in love like a flash. But Bess she said No, which was shortsighted of her. If she'd taken him. you see, she might ha" lived in ease to the end of her days. And now Caleb he's up and died, and what's to become of her?" "Bess was never the gal to look arter her own interests!" sighed Captain Ira, regretfully. The arrival of the stage put an end to the conversation. Only one passenger scrambled out of that ancient vehicle tonight, and so swift and agile was he that by the time the fishermen reached the grocery door he was already striding off toward the cliffs. "Who's that 'ere?chap, Tom Duff?" said Captain Ira to the stage driver. "Dunno. I didn't ask his name. He came from the train at the terminus? sot inside, and read a book 'bout all Jhe way." Through the chilly, grewsome gloaming the unknown was walking rapidly off toward Hillyer's Cove. The breath of balsam firs blew upon him from the land, and the smell of lirint. fmm thf> vast mvsterious sea. He reached the beach, which stretched before old Caleb's small domain. The cottage door stood open. In it Martha Rrav's silhouette was visible against a background of mingled fire and candle-light. \ The cape woman seemed gazing out for some one. Presently our wayfarer heard the rattle of oars in the rowlocks, and a boat came gliding round a sunken ledge. Bess Hillyer, in a black gown, her sleeves falling away from a pair of statuesque arms, beached the dory, and advanced to meet her visitor. "I did not suppose," she said, in grave wonder, "that anything earthly would induce you to visit this place again." "Then you did not know me," answered Lepel Ellicott. "I was in the west looking after some mining interest. My mother sent me word of Caleb Hillyer's death. I started .at once to find you. She begs you to come without delav. and make your future home with her. I am to remind you that you are of our blood, and that my poor mother has been deeply grieved by your refusal to accept any favor at her hands." She looked at him steadily. He was stalwart and handsome enough to please any woman's eye, but on his face the marks of past tribulation were plainly visible. "Your mother is very kind." said Bess Hillyer. "and I am not ungrateful: hut it is best for me to deDend upon myself. Mrs. Ellieott does not need me. and the owners of my father's old ship." coloring faintly, "have [written, since I'ncle Caleb's death, and --for my dear father's sake. I suppose ?offered me a situation in their private office. I have accepted it, and tomorrow I shall start for Portland." By this time they were walking to the cottage?they had reached the old porch where Andy Gaff once sat mending Caleb's nets. Lepel Ellieott seemed deeply moved. "Portland!" he echoed, in a displeased tone. 'Tnless the purpose which brings me again to Hillyer's Cove is altogether vain. Bess, you must not? shall not?go! I need you. if my mother does not. Believe me. I have profited somewhat by the hard lessons of the past. Do I not belong to you. and you to me? Take the rest of the life which you cared for when it was not worth your care, and make what you will of it. Bess." She had loved him long in sadness and silence, through good and through ill. but had never thought to hear words like these from his lips. For a moment she stood dumb. A great round moon, rising above the shoulder of an eastern cliff, shone into the porch, and showed him the, glitter of tears on her pale cheeks. "Bess." said Lepel Ellieott. "will you come to my mother, as the wife of her s< ?n ?" "Since you ask it. I cannot refuse." she answered, faintly smiling. By and by Martha Bray looked out from the living room. "Supper's waiting." she announced. "I thought I heerd a strange voice here. Gracious Lawd! Is it Mr. Andy?no. T mean Mr. Ellieott??beg parding. sir. It's hard to reconcile the two, sir?the past and the present." THE END. t- The Indian empire has the cheapest postal service in the world. X A German scientist has proposed to the king of Italy to extinguish the fires of Vesuvius by flooding the volcano with sea Witter through tunnels. T' At St. Augustine. Fla., the owners ">f a hotel are able t?? beat its rooms with water which rushes, almost boiling. from an artesian well. !i What is claimed to la* the tallest chimney in th? worhl. r>fis feet high, is being erected for the Amalgamated Copper company, at fjreat Falls, Mont. t */I'lie string of heads of light that sometimes is seen for as long as a minute after a Hash of lightning, is due to the incandescence of the air. THE CARE OF COTTON. Important Matter Urged Upon fhe Attention of the Farmers. Hon. B. Harris. President Farmers' Educational and Co-operative Union, Pendleton. S. C., and Hon. E. D. Smith, President S. C. Division Southern Cotton Association, Columbia, S. C. Centlemen: The time for picking cotton having arrived, has it ever occurred to you to look into the question of damage brought about by a lack of care for the staple from the time it is ginned to the time of marketing? Having lived on a plantation for twenty-one years, and at present owning and operating one, as well as being in the cotton business for the past ten years, I thought possibly that my observations along this line might tend to show the great amount of money lost to this cotton producing country. I desire to impress upon the farmer the necessity of caring for his cotton after laboring * -*? -n *.1 1-~ i 4. na.ru an nit? year iu matte n, anu nineby lessen friction between producer, buyer, and manufacturer. A large portion of the farmers, as well as the carriers, treat the staple as though it were coal, allowing it to lie on the ground for months after ginning subject to climatic conditions, which results in rot and country damage. When the cotton is ready for the market it is picked up and offered for sale, the damage, as a usual thing, being disregarded until subjected to the buyer's inspection, who. In protecting his interests, will either dock for the damage or have the cotton picked, resulting in great loss to the farmer. Unquestionably it is to the farmer's interest to store his cotton in a reputable warehouse, thereby protecting himself from loss from fire as well as damage, and in addition he can secure warehouse receipt for same, which is prime mercantile paper, and can be discounted at any bank, allowing the farmer to sell his cotton when he desires to do so. My object, however, is to impress upon the farmers to house their cotton as soon as it is ginned, whether it be in a warehouse, or in their barns, or dwelling, thereby reducing the element of damage to a minimum. To my mind, one of the most important things the Farmers' Union and the Southern Cotton association could handle is the caring for cotton after it is ginned, and up to the time it is marketed. Having personally handled, during the past ten years, about 300.000 bales of cotton of all grades and staple, this cotton being shipped here from Texas and Oklahoma on the west, to North Carolina on the east, I do think I am in a very fair position to speak ntelligently of the item of damage, largely caused by carelessness. In addition to the rotten cotton on thousands of bales, varying from five to as much as three hundred pounds per bale, all of which has to be picked off before settling for and which is caused by allowing the cotton to sit on one end or He on one side in the mud and rain for months before being offered for sale; there is another element of damage which is not so easily detected. but which has a far more reaching effect on the buyer, as well as the mannfnptiirpr. T rpfpr to what is called country damage. When cotton is allowed to stand in the weather after being ginned for any length of time, although the owner may turn it about from side to side to keep it from rotting, the staple of the cotton on the outside of the bale is affected just in proportion to the time it is allowed to remain exposed to climatic conditions. To illustrate, a bale of cotton ginned and packed December the first and allowed to remain in the weather until the first of March, will have about half as much country dam age as the same bale would have if it remained in the weather until May the first, and when the manufacturer opens this bale, he will find that the cotton sticking to the baling and extending inward is practically without any strength of staple, and as a result all of this affected cotton will go in waste or be found in the shaftings overhead. Should the buyer detect this country damage, the farmer, is the loser; should the buyer not detect it. the buyer is the loser; in any event, dissatisfaction is the result, all of which could have been avoided by housing the cotton. The amount of country damage varies in proportion to the time the cotton lies out in the weather, and will vary from three to twenty-five pounds per bale. T have 11.000.000 bale crop produced, the producer, the carrier, and the compress together, allow 250,000 bales to be destroyed by rot and country damage, and when you figure this at ten cents per pound it amounts to $12,500,000, all of which could be saved to the producer, the buyer, and the manufacturer, should they exercise the proper precaution against damage. Three years ago a farmer brought twenty bales of cotton to the wareh.nivjf* for stornsre in March, which had been out In the weather since It was tinned in the fall. Some of the bales were so hadlv damaged and water sagged that they weighed one thousand pounds per bale. I asked him why he allowed his cotton to get in that condition: he replied, that he was so busy making preparation for another crop that he had not cared for what he had already made. When this cotton was conditioned for market, he had about ten bales of merchantable cotton left out of the twenty. A bale of cotton ginned dry and housed until marketed will hold out better than one allowed to remain in the weather subject to climatic conditions, and will not possess the element of damage, and will also retain its strength of staple, even to the bagging. Travel where you will, and you will see cotton sitting at railroad stations in the mud and rain, or you will see it lying on the ground around farm houses, where it will remain until ready for market, and when marketed, the bagging will be so rotten that you can not handle the cotton. Owing to the seeming negligence displayed in tlie care of cotton after ginning. the buyer, when purchasing1 a lot of cotton, has to take into consideration the element of damage, or he would rather send his classer to receive the cotton, thereby establishing the amount of damage before payment is made. Where you find a section of country where great care is taken with the cotton after ginning, and before marketing, there you will find cotton sought after by the buyers, and everything else being equal, a premium will be paid for same. The manufacturers will pay better prices for cotton free from rot and country damage, because his percentage of waste will be decreased. The point I desire to impress is; take care of your cotton, handle it as though you thought something of it. ]f you cannot put it in a warehouse where it is insured and you can use the receipt, put it in your barn, or shed room, or anywhere to keep it from climatic conditions until you market it, and by doing this every pound will be spinnable and no dissatisfaction between producer, buyer, and manufacturer will result. There are some places in South Carnlinn whprp warehouse facilities are adequate, but are unfortunately not utilized. My own experience is that four lots of cotton out of every five shipped from places where cotton is not warehoused are badly damaged, due to the fact that it is allowed to sit on one end for weeks and months In the open before it is offered for sale, and as a result, heavy claims are made, and yet the best character of cotton, so far as body and staple is concerned, Is produced at these places, and would be very much sought, were the element of damage eliminated. In conclusion, I would strongly urge that this matter be brought to the attention of all concerned, and thereby save twelve and one-half million dollars per year to the southland. Very truly yours, Jno. D. Frost. ORIGIN OF VEGETABLES. Where Many of Those in Daily Usage Were First Grown. The potato, which was already cultivated in America when, the conti| nent was discovered, is spontaneous in Chile. It was introduced in Europe in 1580 and 1585 by the Spaniards, and almost at the same time by the English, who brought it from Virginia, where it had appeared about 1550. The sweet potato and the Jerusalem artichoke are also supposed to come from America. Salsify is found in a wild state in Greece. Dalmatia, Italy and Algeria. According to Olivier de Serres, it has been cultivated in the south of France since the sixteenth century. Turnips and radishes came originally from central Europe. The beetroot and the beet, which have been greatly improved by cultivation, are considered as the same species by botanists. The beet, only the stalk of which is eaten, grows wild in the Mediterranean, Persia and Babylonia. 'Garlic, onions, shalots'and leeks have long been cultivated in almost all countries, and their origin is very uncertain. That of the scallion is !.?/%?..? If ori?Au'i! onnntu nonnclv UflUT All'm II. 11 1,1".... in Siboria. One finds chives in a wild state throughout the Northern Hemisphere. The radish, greatly modified by cultivation, probably had its origin in the temperate zone, but from what wild species it is derived is not exactly known. The lettuce appears to be derived from the endive, which is found wild in temperate and southern Europe, in the Canaries, Algeria, Abyssinia and temperate western Asia. Wild succory is spontaneous throughout Europe, even in Sweden, in Asia Minor, Persia, the Caucasus, Afghanistan and Siberia. Cultivated succory is probably a form of endive which Is thought to have had its origin in India. Corn salad is found wild throughout Europe, Asia Minor and Japan. Cabbage, like all vegetables which have been cultivated from remote times, is believed to be of European origin. The artichoke is the cultivated form of the wild cardoon, indigenous to Madeira, the Canaries, Morocco, the south of France, Spain, Italy and the Mediterranean islands. Asparagus had its origin in Europe and temperate western Asia. The origin of the egg plant is India, that of the broadbean is unknown, as also that of the lentil, the pea, check pea ana nani'ui. i iic moi namcu ?.|/ pears to have come originally from America. The carrot grows spontaneously throughout Europe. Asia Minor, Siberia, northern China, Abyssinia, northern Africa, Madeira and the Canary i Islands. Chervil comes from temperate western Asia, parsley from the south of Europe and Algeria, sorrel from Europe and northern Asia, the mountains of India and North America. Spinach is supposed to come from northern Asia. For some twenty years past the crosnes has been used. This little tubercle with fine savory flesh, which has long been cultivated in China and Japan, is probably indigenous to eas it'rn ^\.siu. The tomato comes from Peru, the cucumber from India and the pumpkin from Guinea.?Itevue Scientiflque. COW AND BEAR FIGHT A DRAW. Honors Even In Hot Mix-Up on a Long Island Roadway. A big brown bear which has performed for the amusement of the children of many Long Island villages, probably never acted with quite so much agility as it exhibited the other day when it encountered along the road a brindle cow belonging to Joseph Harrigan, of East Neck, Huntington. The cow is very proud of a long and sharp pair of horns. The bear at first ntertained little respect for the horns, but he learned something. Harrigan was leading the cow along the East Neck road, when the hear loomed up in leash to a pair of Russians. The cow, at sight of the bear, began to bellow, jerked the rope from '" luirwl .,11,1 ohiirfTojl (Iip henr. Bruin appeared to be surprised and made no defense to the first onslaught, tlie result being a rip 14 inches long in his fur. front which blood dripped. Then the cow. Hushed with success, began a second charge. Bruin, this time unhampered by his keepers, who had both climbed trees, reared on his haunches, and as the cow closed in. raised Itis forepaws and ripped two beautiful streaks down her shoulders. The horns had again scored, however, and both were glad to cease hostilities when Harrigan again got his cow in tow.?New York Times. PANAMA CANAL. Columbia Lady Interestingly Describes Immensity of the Work. Columbia State. Miss Mamie Gasque is home at 815 Main street after a six weeks' visit to j the Isthmus of Panama, that slender strip of land which is today the most important undeveloped spot in the world and is. perhaps, one of the busiest places on the f?lobe just now. Miss Gasque is a niece of Mr. Jackson Smith, | a former Columbian and until recently la member of the Panama canal commission, and during1 her stay in the canal zone she was at the home of Mr. Smith at Culehra, within a short distance of the famous C'ulebra cut. She was able to see the great work that is being carried on by the United States government close at hand and thus became possessed of much information concerning the canal itself and life upon the isthmus. Miss Gasque talks interestingly of the undertaking and brings close home the work that has been the dream of nations for many years?the joining of the Atlantic and Pacific. "The first thing that strikes one in taking a first view of the work being done on the isthmus," says Miss Gasque, 'is the immensity of the undertaking. In the first place, I believe every one has an idea that the isthmus Is a strip of level country and that it would thus be comparatively easy for a canal to be dug through it. But this is by no means the case. The isthmus is a OO-mlle stretch of rolling hills and rocky land, and -this makes the undertaking of building the canal all the more difficult. It is almost impossible to describe how great the undertaking really is and one is staggered when the situation is viewed. "An idea of the work being done may be gained, when it is known that 100 'fnmense steam shovels are kept going ail the time. It Is stated that 3,000,000 cpbic feet of eartli and rock are removed each month. But a better idea of the work is shown in tnat s>uu irain loads of material dug from the canal are being handled every day. In the afternoons the workmen begin to unload and when you think of 500 train loads passing your house you can Imagine the noise. It is impossible to hear one another converse if you are iiving anywhere near the railroad that runs within the cut where the canal is^belng dug. "This Culebra cut is about the most difficult feat that the engineers have met with in the construction of the canal thus far. The cut is through a high mountain and the bigness of this job at this point baffles description. One has to go and see the work being done to appreciate the undertaking of cutting through one of these mountains and the work is not nearly done yet. Another gigantic work is the building of the Gatum dam on the Colon?which is the Atlantic?side of the isthmus. Of course, it will be necessary to rebuild portions of the Panama railroad, which now crosses the canal at points and this railroad will be constructed throughout parallel with the canal. This is considered to be a big work ?h.i? in ncfnmnlished. "Of the working force of 33,000 persons on the construction of the canal 5,000 are Americans, 7,000 are foreigners and the remainder are negroes, including Jamaica negroes and Panamaians. Wages are good on the Isthmus and when you consider the small living expenses the men are well off in that part of the world. And Panama is not so different from other parts of the g obe. Before the work on the canal proper was started an army of workers were sent to the isthmus to build homes and provide for the coming of the canal builders. There are already in the neighborhood of 2,500 buildings, including office buildings, dwellings and store houses of every description. There are four water systems to supply the men employed by the government and those living in the towns on the isthmus. All the modern equipments such as electric lights, railroad shops, ice factories, great bakeries and other utility plants are in the canal zone. Low Cost of Living. "With a fair rate of wage those working on the isthmus are in good circumstances, for their living expenses are not very high. In the first place, the homes are furnished those in the employ of the United States government. Tiiis means that electric lights, fuel and other utilities are furnished, together with the house. There are married quarters and bachelor quarters in the canal zone and the bachelor homes are furnished just the same as the others. Meals are furnished at the hotels at 30 cents. This gives a living expense of about $30 a month. "Panama City, the capital, is the largest town on the isthmus, having about 15,000 inhabitants. The other towns do not average over 1.000 inhabitants. The towns are built close together and one can stand on a mountain near one of the cities and see the others in the distance. "The isthmus is now in good condition arid tis far jus the health of the people living on it is concerned it Is as good as the average in any other part of the world. There are two big hosnitals at Panama City, where the sick are cared for. Yellow fever has not bren known on the isthmus for several years and precaution has been taken to keep away tlie dreaded disease. Should a single case break out on the isthmus every one there would have, so afraid are those living there of contracting the fever. "It has been imagined for a long time that vegetables could not be raised in Panama, but several crops have now been sucessfully cultivated and importations of vegetables are growing less each year. Tomatoes, lettuce, garden peas, beans and other vegetables are grown and are as good or better than any in the states. Meats are shipped to the isthmus in cold storage from New York and New Orleans for the most part. Canned milk is used, as there are no cows on the isthmOs. The government has been operating there big truck farms for the past year. Egg's are brought from this country. "There has always been a mistaken idea that chickens could not live on the isthmus, consequently none were carried there, but now this is not the case, and chickens are being raised in the canal zone. Some of the Americans living near Panama City carried over a few chickens and when it was seen that the fowls were able to stand the tropical climate more were carried over, and now It is hardly necessary to bring any from the states. "There is a nine months' rainy season in this region and during this period the gardens are irrigated. Of course, all of this is due to American enterprise and there was no such thing as truck farms or any kind of farms before Uncle Sam took charge. The isthmus is really a place now inhabited by civilized people. And it is a noticeable fact that there are few loafers on the isthmus. It is true that everybody works there, the majority being employed by the United States government. "The native women are objects of curiosity to those who visit the Isthmus for the first time. They are fond of blight colors. For instance, one I saw had on a red turban, a green skirt, yellow shirtwaist 'and a purple snawi arounn ner nee*. i lit; men a dress is not so different from that in other countries, while the children don't seem to mind at all about what they wear, I remember seeing a bridal procession pass within a short distance of our home at Culebra. The groom was dressed in the conventional black, with frock coat. The bride was bedecked in many colors, with long bridal veil and two little pickaninnies carried the train of her dress. "People imagine that the canal zone i is not a pleasant place In which to live, having heard stories that the IsthI mus is a death hold of fever, malaria and all manner of tropical diseases. But this is not the case now, the United States government having rendered the isthmus a habitable region. It is now the region where some years ago the natives were able to live without work amidst the riot of luscious fruits, bananas, pineapples, oranges and other varieties. The fruits are still there in abundance, but there are other things which make the isthmus now a civilized, cultivated land and all that has been done is to the credit of Uncle Sam's workers." South Carolinians' Part. In the great work that is being carried on in the canal zone there are a number of southerners who have taken .'i prominent part. And South Carolina has furnished her quota, three of those who have been praised for the work i>n the isthmus being: Jackson Smith, a former Columbian, and until recently head of the department of labor quarters and subsistence: Maj. Gaillard, in charge of the Culebra cut; Henry Smith, employment agent, the only one now left of the three appointed by President Roosevelt. Mr. Jackson Smith is well known in this city, having worked here in the office of his brother, Mr. C. M. Smith, at the Atlantic Coast Line depot. Although Knoxville and other cities claim Mr. Jackson Smith he started his career in Columbia, having come here from his home in Marion. Mr. Smith has a sister living in Columbia now, Mrs. H. D. Casque. Before taking up his work in the canal zone as member of the Panama canal commission, Mr. Smith was passenger agent of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad company. Perhaps no other man at work in Panama has done so much as Jackson Smith with the single possible exception of Col. Gorgas, who became world-famous by his work of rendering the isthmus sanitary. In accepting the tesignation of Mr. Smith from the Panama canal commission, President Roosevelt said: "I can not permit this occasion to pass without expressing formally to you my appreciation of the earnest, thorough and effective service which you have rendered in organizing the department of labor quarters and subsistence and in devoloping it to such a state of efficiency that the task of your successor will be comparatively an easy one. The supreme importance of the department of labor quarters and subsistence in the work of constructing is known to every one familiar with the work." A Great Work. It is estimated that the canal will be eight years in building from the point at which the work is now. Four years in an auuress unncicu ? ??'ja>iuv, I'enn., before the summer school Mr. Bennett spoke of the canal as being the "eighth wonder of the world." He paid a tribute to the southern men who have taken such a prominent part in the work and gave some figures in the course of his lecture that will show what a great undertaking it is to cut through this slender strip of territory. Mr. Bennett said in part: "Figures talk, and hence a mere recital in figures will give an idea of what it means to build the Panama canal. Over 100 steam shovels, each capable of lifting a ton of material, are at work there; there are unloaders and spreaders and track-throwing machines; there are several hundred steam engines, and 500 train loads of material are handled every day. That little 50 miles of track, known as the Panama railroad, is about the busiest railroad on earth. Three thousand carpenters were at work for years building houses. There are more than 2,200 buildings of every possible size and shapes; 24 different types of dwellings alone; office buildings; store houses, hotels, magazines and whatnot. There are four distinct water systems to supply not only the cities of Panama and Colon, but the entire working force along the line of the canal. There are ..lorOi-io lin-hr nlniits milron/l shons. ice factories, great bakeries and all the other utilities that are required to supply tlie necessities of an army of 44,000 employes. There is an average working force of about 33,000 men. Of these 7,000 are for the Panama Railroad company: on the canal there are at work about 5,000 Americans, between 0.000 and 7,000 foreign laborers, and the balance negro laborers. Comparisons of Work. "Let us make a few comparisons, First, 1,000,000 of cubic feet of earth and rock a month was thought to be good work: then excavating 2,000,000 was thought to be a fairly good average; next 3,000,000 a month was reached, and now the slogan is that 4,000,000 a month must be reached. ; Has any one an idea what 3,000,000 of cubic feet means? It is a larger bulk than the greatest of the Egyptian pyramids. Three million cubic yards of ' dirt, if hauled by two-horse wagon teams, would make a string of teams, with a foot of space between them, more than 8.000,000 miles long. The Suez canal was ten years building, between 1859 and 1869. It is about 100 miles long and cost nearly $100,000,000. We are digging a Suez canal every year, counting the excavation. The sanitary department cuts and burns or removes 15,000.000 square yards of brush a year, drains a million square yards of I swamp lands, keeps up 3,000,000 feet of ditches and fumigates 12,000,000 square feet of living quarters., Cost of the Canal. "Let us see what it will cost to build this canal. The United States paid the French Panama Canal company $50,000,000 and to the Panama government $10,000,000. It authorized an expenditure of $195,000,000 for the construction of the canal. The total amount expended up to date, including the $50,000,000 is $145,000,000. The last appropriation act carried for next year's expenses $29,177,000. The total appropriations made to date are $170,964,468.58. Therefore within the original total of $195,000,000 there are left not quite $25,000,000. It- is now supposed that the canal will cost altogether anyway from $300,000,000 to $500,000,000. No doubt tbere are men who will cry out that this is a sheer waste of money. The same kind of men ridiculed the Suez canal in its beginning as a chimerical scheme, but it has paid from 12 to 17 per cent on the investment, and there need be no fear that in this respect history will not repeat itself in the case of the Panama canal. "WVint th