Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, October 28, 1919, Image 1
. ' , j - ISSUED SCMH WEEKLY. . ' ^
l. m. grist's sons. pubii.h.r., ^ ajfamilj IjHWWtt: d.ot ih? promotion of tht potiticat.jSoeial, Ijrirutturat and tfommerrial Jntfr^sts of ih? jiltoplt T6R"^t^rVEn?i^i?m*MC*J
established 1855 , - "~~r~ YORK, S. C., TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28,1910. . NO. g6 m
WON THE CHEAT WAR
_?.
Port Played By New Acquisition In
Revolution. ,
COLONEL WILLIAM HILL A LEADER
k i '
Scholarly Review of the Campaign of
1780r Which Reeulted in Complete
Overthrow of Political Domination of
America by the Britieh.
The address of Dr. D. H. Hill, of
the North Carolina Historical Commission
before the King's Mountain
Chapter. D. A. R. and the Winnie
Davis Chapter D. J). C., in the courthouse
at Torkville. last Friday was
i devoted mainly to the part that the
"New Aquisition," including York
county, played in the American Revolution.
It comprehends a masterly, review
of the deciding campaign of 1780,
and furnishes a historical chart that
is possessed of undoubted present interest
and future value to the people
of this whole section. The address
was as follows:
Hill's Iron Worits,* the site o'f which
the patriotic Daughters of the American
Revolution mark today, were
burned by the British in 1780. The
year of its burning was one of the
1 fn
most npiewuruiy m ovum v?.v>..~...
annals, for In that year of Revolutionary
history her volunteer sonB
rose in wrath and in/might to rid
their Boil of invaders whose barbarous
disregard of the comities of war
usual aniong British soldiers had
' Changed all previous ?fhousht of allegiance
unto tyng to fierce resentment
and abiding determination to he
free. Under new leadens, following
new methods, shrinking from no
dangers nor hardships, these determined
men in this year turned the
tide of British success in the south
They, aided by troops from North
Carolina, Georgia and Virginia, prex
pared the "way for the subsequent
/ triumphant campaign of Greene which
redeemed the state ' from British op
' presslon and rapine, and contributed
so much to the surrender of Corniwall
Is at Yorktown. Their successes,
too, came after a scries of appalling
disasters.
\ General Situation in 1780.
To understand the significance of
1780 we shall have to tajte a rapid
fiance at the other fields of KevoluI'arker
in Charleston harbor In June,'
1778, and after the destruction of the
Cherokee Indians a little later by a
s combined force from South Carolina,
North Carolina, and Virginia, the
south was almost entirely free from
British invasion until December, 1778.
** nhantro U'Q a thpn
nVWQYCl^ tx IC1 i IUIC vuaiigv
In store for her people. For three
years the states of South Carolina
and part of North Carolina were indeed
to be desolated, and no form of
Bartering was to be strange to them.
Their sons were to fall not only in
battle, but were to be illegally hanged,
backed to pieces after surrender and
often assassinated by their own firesides.
Marion writes to his commander:
"Col. Tarleton has burned
all the houses and destroyed all the
corn from Camden to Nelson's Ferry;
he has behaved to the women with
great barbarity: beat Mrs. Williamson,
relict of Gen. Williamson, to
make her tell where I was. ... It
is distressing to see the women and
children sitting in the open air
around a fire, with not a blanket or
any clothing except what they have
on, for he spares neither Whig or
Tory." Stock was slain in the yards
and fields. Furniture was wantonly
rt*?troved. Pilla;:e was unconfincd.
Wagons loaded with booty, varying
from rings, watches, plate, to barrels
of indigo and rice, made their way
to British headquarters;
These disasters followed a decision
of the .British government to cease
t major activities in the north and transfer
the seat of hostile aggression to
the south. There were two reasons
for this transfer of action: one was
a military reason, the other an economic
one. The military reason grew
out of a belief that the interior sections
of the south, or as these sections
were then called, the 'black country,"
were more loyal to the crown than the
coastal plains were. Hence the gov-,
ernment was convinced that, if its
army could capture a coast town in
t one or more of the southerly states to
serve as a base, the British army of
occupation could then march into the
disaffected back country with a cer-*
tainty of large accretions to its regiments.
The hardy frontiersmen thus
secured could speedily be drilled and
disciplined by such excellent commanders
of militia as Ferguson and
Hamilton into matchless soldiers.
Thought the Farmers were Traitors.
Georgia, the weakest of the southern
colonies, was selected for initial
invasion. On its conquest, the plan
provided for the British armies to
march into South Carolina, complete
its overthrow, and with battalions
still further augmented, sweep into
North Carolina with its supposedly
large complement of king lovers.
? After the anticipated subjection of
North Carolina and the enrollment of
its Scotch disaffected, the English,
with full ranks of seasoned soldiers,
*Th??e works were situated on Allison creek,
near the Catawba, in the part of South Carolina
which was then known ns the New Acquisition.
now York county. *
it'
w^re by a march through Virginia to ?
join their northern army and over- i
whelm General Washington's forces. (
Needed Plunder. c
The second reason for this transfer ?
ofj fighting to the south was, as al- <
ready stated, an economic reason. The (
south had as yet suffered little from (
the ravages of contending armies. The f
Scenes of Washingtons" battles were t
[far from its borders. Consequently ?
her people had still sown and har- c
vested. Internal commerce hadj been a
quickened, not ruined. Not only ?
were thfe current year's products in 1
i 1 ? rr?-???n?v, oViina Vini! front t
Hell J U, UUl, CIO l^uguotl Olii|/s
up a fairly effective blockade of her C
ports, there was a large storage of F
the wry products England needed? F
rice, indigo, grain, tobacco, naval (
stores. These would make rich booty J
for a conquering army. If Savanndh *
and Charleston should fall to their '
armies, they would have ample port t
facilities. c
Charleston at her Greatest.
Charleston at that time was one of ^
the most important seaports of America.
Rameay states that shortly before e
the Revolutidn, South Carolina export- "
ed 1,107,660 pounds of indigo and 142,- 1
000 barrels of rice. Most of this, of *
course, went through Charleston. Oliver
Ellsworth,'speaking in the Con- c
nqcticut Convention for the considcra- c
tlon of the Constitution in 1788, said: ''
"One hundred large ships are every
year loaded with rice and indigo from *
tfie single port of Charleston." Strains
says: "In 1777, 1778, sne (Charleston) n
was the mart which supplied with c
goods most of the sister states south
of New Jcrefy. An extensive inland
traffic sprang" into existence between ^
her and the northern towns in conse- '
quence of the British fleets along the n
coasts of New York and Virginia. In
this traffic more than a thousand
wagons were incessantly employed."
McCrady adds: "From the victory of 11
the 28th of June, 1776, Charleston had 11
become the storehouse of merchandise n
and the retreat of privateers, and into v
its harbor were brought their prizes n
for condemnation." No wonder, then, n
as commerce went in those days, South c
Carolina and other southern states 8
were alluring: objects of conquest.
Patriots Overpowered. y
In pursuance of this new policy of
southern invasion Sir Henry Clinton, v
who had succeeded Sir William Howe h
as commander-in-chief of the British y
forces in America, ordered Col. Archi- ^
bald Campbell w{tb 8,500 regulars to ,
S&v^paah. At tije same
join Campbell and to take command j,
of the combined British force. Sir h
Henry himself was to folidw with ad- j
dltlonal sea and land forces and take
chief command in the south as soon as j
he could arrange to occupy Gen. tl
Washington's army during his absence, j
Col. Campbell arrived at Savannah or. b
Dec. 28, 1778, and without waiting for v
Prevost, speedily defeated the seven t
or eight hundred troops stationed there ^
under Gen. Bobert Howe of North c
Carolina. Campbell then moved up to h
- _ "
Augusta as uen. frevosi crosseu miu e
Georgia and made his conquering way r
to Savannah. Then Georgia, in the v
words of Fisher, was declared by r(
these commanders as "out of revolt," w
and the way was clear for them to
prepare to fall on South Carolina. In 0
what condition was the Htate to re- ^
. pulse the forces surely gathering to g
! crush her? Let us see. n
| In September 1778, congress ordered a
Gen. Benjamin Lincoln of Mareachu- e
setts, who was second in command to w
Gates at the Saratoga victory over
Burgoyne, to relieve Gen. ITowe in
command of the department of tluj c
south. Gen. Lincoln, so slow wis q
travel in that day, did not reach his t
new command until just before the j
fall of Savannah in December. On 0
his arrival he found, as McCvady pu's c
it, "a department but no army to n
command." Two fruitless' expeditions
towards Florida and ot^-.r service had ^
reduced the six South Carolina Conti- j
ijcntals to about 1,00b men. Only 130 a
of the Georgia Continentals were u
ready for duty. Some militia were \
tinder orders to re ort to him, and the "s
staunchest remnants of Howe's army (
were making the.r way to his head- 0
quarters. t
Congress Hrd Given Little Help. s
In addition- to the pitjful smallness j.
of his army, Lincoln found great dis- t
content anvmg the people. This arose j
from the fact that appeals to the Con- s
tinental Congress for aid had brought o
the discot/raging answer that Wash- j
ington's army was then too small to f
spare ani men. Ik-ginning now and )
continuing for nearly two years Brit- j
ish emissaries spread the report that r
in spite of South Carolina's efforts for t
the general welfare of the country, t
she was now to be left to her fate by. H
congress. This dissatisfaction and
I >h.,oa I'limnhs nffpeted for two
years recruiting for the Continental c
Regiments, although bounties had c
risen very high in 1779. In 17S0 the t
offer by the state of a bounty of s
$1,000.00 on enlistment and $2,500.00 (
and oae hundred acres of land at the r
end of twenty-one months of worthy c
sendee' failed to fill these regiments. a
An earlier act, March 177S, requiring 8
all idle and disorderly men, all strolling
and straggling men, and all va- j
grants ,'to be enrolled in one of these (
regiments, had also dampened the re- (
crulting zeal of high-spirited men, for ,
they did not care to serve in such j
company. , j
North Carolina and Virginia to the ,
Rescue.
On .finding that congress could not j
i
i
I
i
LHSiat, the state government asked renforcemcnls
"ffdtf, Vlrfcfhja, and North
hujolipaj. IfcutH states, WtjoncV tir^mis>d
'to' ?end ft'oopr'* ihdeed, as the
:lasalc but. Bometylwt, hackneyed lnclIcnt
between the governor, ,of) North
?arolir& alid the1 governor South
Carolina helpe}rtoi (Illustrate, there had
ilways been an interchange of coralies
between the two Carolines. As
:oIon^s: they j hart; marched to e?ch
Ihcr's succor in Indian wars. Happily
is states they were to continue this
:omity in the Revolution. The first
etter recorded in the letter book of
V*? A?" + ?Atrnf?*A?? a# XT Art V*
lie in oe oiaie bt nui vi ii wi tu
Carolina 1b a request from Governor
lutledge for aid for South Carolina,
n answer to this lettejr, 1,400 Nortt\
Carolina Continentals under Generals
ames Moore and Robert Howe arrlvd
at Charleston In time to strengthen
ifoultrie in his heroic repulse of
Linton In 177G. A little later, 1,900
her soldiers under General Griffith
lutherford joined South Carolina and
Virginia In breaking the power of the
Jherokeo Indians. Some months
arller, 1,100 North Carolina mlltta
inder Colonels Polk, Rutherford and
ilartin braved a winter campaign In
he Ninety-six district to aid South
Carolina in putting down the so-calld
Scovllite insurrection. In two later
ampuigns her soldiers had marched
nto South Cqrrolina.
Now in the hour of Lincoln's need,
forth Carolina did not stay her hand.
Ian Inhn A aho at hid hdnH nf 9 Oftft
nilltia hastened early In 1779 to Linoln's
standard. Many of his men had
d be armed after they reached South
Carolina, for their own state had exausted
its supply of guns. The only
forth Carolina Continental regiment
lot with Washington's army was also
urricdly dispatched. In Feb. 1779,
iharles Plnckney generously wrote:
"A$ to further aid from North CaroInc,
they have agreed to send us 2,000
lore troops immediately. We have
iOW upwards of 3,000 6f their inen
/ith us, and I esteem this last auglentatlon'
as the highest possible
nark of their affection and the most
onvinclng proof of their zeal for the
lorious cause in which they are enaged."
It may have been that these troops
/ere not ail sent purely as a "mark
f affection." The North Carolinians
/ere a canny fol^c/ and they may well
ave 'felt that it was better to help
ou South Carolinians to fight the
>nu8n iriu.ii it w?;m iu ia&iii uiuiti uiunr i
n their own state.
In iliirQh. 177,9, Lincoln, finding. his
' rvf.p-d' in "'*< ' - i <ii 01 ;;ia, but the
Kritish upset his plans by defeating
is North Carolina militia under Gen.
ohn Ashe at Brier Creek.
A month later, Cen. Lincoln, leaving
ifoultrle to guard the road to Charleson,
again Bet out for Georgia. Gen.
'revost, apparently tHlnklng that the
.est way to stop Lincoln's movement
ras to threaten Charleston, moved on
hat city. Driving Moultrie before
im, he demanded the "surrender of the
ity. When this demand was refused,
e retired, but not before Lincoln turnd
back at Moultrie's call. As Prevost
ctired he laid wast ; a rich section
rith abominable noroughness. This
eckless devastat1 n was a foretaste cf
rhat the^state, was to suffer.
In December Lincoln, In high hopes,
rranged ',ith the co-operation of
.'Estalng'f French fleet to storm
avanna'i," but, "Alas," Moultrio comlents,
."it turned out a bloody affair
nd ./e were repulsed with a loss of
ig'jt or nine hundred men killed or
fjbnded." v
Capture of Charleston.
In December Clinton, the British
onimander-In-chief, appeared before
'harleston with 8,000 additional
roops. After a siege lasting until
lay 12, 1780, he received the surrender
>0 that important city with, as he
laims, 5,500 prisoners, numerous canon,
and most valuable stores. A
mrder blow could not have befallen
he South. To save the city, if posslile,
Washington had sent to its rescue
11 the North Carolina Continentals
nder Gen. Hogun, Gen. Woodford's
'irginia Continental brigade, and
ome horses. The South Carolina
Continentals were also there. Thus at
no blow all the Continental forces of
ne iwu Mia-ies mujsi expoweu were
wept Into captivity. As far as can
ie made out from conflicting reports
he total forces surrendered, induing
Continentals and militia, were by
tntes as follows: South Carolina,
.117; North Carolina, 1.S14; Virginia,
,386. The figures do not include genual
and staff officers. To this starting
military loss must be added the
n?:? nf rh.irlAQinn nc n nni-t nn/1 nf I
learly all the Revolutionary leadtrs of
he state. Governor Rutledge and part
if his council withdrew during the
lege for the sake of the state.
Like Sherman's Famous March.
As soon as the capitulation of the
dty was accomplished, Clinton sent
>ut expeditions to complete the re'uclion
of the state. General Clinton
oon left Cornwallis to command in
he state, and, says Fisher, "there was
low for a long time a frightful scene
if anarchy and confusion, murdering
md confiscating; the patriots retuliiting
as host they could."
Hut disasters were not ended. In
lune congress ordered Gon. Horatio
lates, the hero of Saratoga and an
>'Hcer whom Wiseacres in the north
.vanted to supplant Washington, to
ake command in the south. Gntherng
troops as he came, Gates made his
vay to HillshorO, then Salisbury, then
(Continued on Page Two.)
i J
| VIEWS kM INTERVIEWS
?.??
i Brief Local Paragraphs of Dors or
Less Interest. ;
?
Pir.KFn IIP BY FNAIIIRFR RFPflRTFRS
t (
Stories Concerning Folks and Things
Some of Which You Know and i
Some You Don't Know?Condonsed i
for Quick Reading.
"I am always delighted to come to
Yorkville^ and to York county," said ,
Dr. I^e Davis Lodge, ' president of
Limestone. College, Gaflfnoy, in conversation
with Views and Interviews
last Friday. "Of course," said Dr. 1
Lodge, "you might take that with a 1
grain of salt but1 it is actually a fact '
I know a great many towns and com- ,
munities over thcjstate and I visit
each year a greai many; but there
is no town or com^nlty in the state
whose charming hospitality I enjoy ^
more than I do /Vhrkvllle." Asked ,
about Limestone wttegev Dr. Lodge (
said that the coll^A opened thtb year
under what are cAsldered the far j
most auspicious cimimstanccs in its f
history. The enrollment is around tbe ,
300 mark and pracdftklly every county ,
In South Carolina |Ks represented as
well as a number o^spther states. Pr.
Lodge returned to^Gaffney Friday
afternoon. Always demand as a
public speaker hlB fopularity Is ever
on the increase an#he has only Yecently
accepted invrations to deliver
addresses before cnBt different communities
of South Cwollna.
The Texa# Crop.
"The cotton crop fin Texas?some 1
sections of the stateifet least,", Is evl- 41
dently pretty short' this ye<Lr," observed
Mr. J. C. Wallace of Yorkvilh '
Saturday. "I have ^brother who Is 1
engaged in farming out in Texas,"
said Mr. Wallace, "u?d in a letter^re- c
celved from him recently he suid ho r
.was only getting about two bales of
cotton to the plow this year, whereas
last year he got afcout fifteen. Of
course that ratio wofl't possibly apply ,
everywhere but he siys that the crop
of many other farmers In his neighborhood
and In other communities la ;
turning out move bt less the same v
' c
way. ' -
Cemetery QoUtg Down. I '
"Bothel cemetery, one of the,largest ^
and oldopt in York cdpnty which for t
years hw pf. fe'iing
one of the beat kept burying grounds _
in the county, appears tp be going
down for some reason of other," said
a Yorkville lady who /visited the
cemetery a few days ago. "I noticed <
thht a number of the graves were
badly sunken and the gravestones
were falling down In a number of
Instances. But maybe," she observed, c
"it is a case of where the few who 1
have for years taken enough pride in
j the old cemetery to look after all the r
graves have coma to the point where r
they have decided that it is the duty
of every* family to look after the r
graves of its own dead and if they 1
are not interested enough to do ?;o, 1
then the dead arc not worth bothering
about." 1
Discarding the Uniform. c
[ "You don't see so many ex-soidiers
either white or colored wearing the *
uniforms given them, upon their discharge
from the service as was the a
case a few months ago," mentioned a 1
Fort Mill man wHo was in Yorkville r
yesterday. "And of course there is a 1
reason in the fact that they have had s
a chance to get a dollar or two ahead v
and have used the dollars for the pur- c
chase of ether clothes. Occasionally a
one sees a discharged soldier in the 1
uniform now; but hardly ever." I
Some Fight.
"I saw one of the best, hardest and
fiercest football games at the York
county fair in Rock Hill Friday that 1 *
have seen in many a day and I have' 1
seen some of the largest college teams 8
in the country play," observed a '
Yorkville youngster Friday. "The game 1
f
j was between Chester and Rock Hill
and the score was 0-0. Chester and 1
Rock Hill have been rivals for years '
and those kids went after each with
blood in their eyes. It was some
contest and it appeared that the school c
kids on each side were Just tickled to I
death. They were perfectly satisfied 1
with a draw." >
Young Lady's Death Very Sad. r
"Death of Miss Annie May Koger, c
school teacher at India Hook of pneu- 1
monia last week was particularly 1
sad," said a young lady of Yorkville i
who was talking about it Friday. "The 1
young lady's home was in Colleton S
county and although her parents were v
notified as soon as it was realized that c
her condition was really serious, they 1
did not pet the message and have I
time to pet to India Hook until she c
was dead. She died at the home of 8
Mr. \V. M. Carothers and although c
everything possible was done for her,
none of her own kin were there. The
young lady is the second India Hook
teacher to die in recent years."
Not So Good.
Although the I?ancaster cotton
market is being touted as about the
best that is, it would appear that the
market there is subject to reservations.
Hearken to this from the Fort
Mill Times: Attracted by the adver
tised market price of cotton in Lan- 1
caster, which was reported as 37 cents a
for middling, several Fort Mill farmers
| tried to dispose of their holdings there
but found upon investigation that Fort fi
| Mill was a better market. One of thpj^
prominent farmers of this section lin
tjhia experience and finally disposed <
05/ hales, on ^the .I'ort Mill market to hi
advantage. ' 4 ?i
Price of a Stew,
am getting siRty-flVe cents for a
qystoi;>stew this, fall/? said( R. D. Dor
notJ, local restaurant man the othc
day "and I (lo 'not make any indr
proflt off of It. if as much, as I did scv
eral years ago when I sold for
quarter. I guess there are just a
many oysters as there ever were bi
they cost more. Surely there are Jut
as many people to eat 'em."
He Was in the War. ,
He is big and rough and uncout}
He can read a little and write a litth
He says sayings that are not to h
found 1ft the dictionary or the Sun
lay school.quarterly. He drinks moon
ra/v(n?..Mn n,U/.n ko 14
smut; iiiuioiuic nngii ?ic tun |$ci it
patent preparations when he can't H
pays his debts as best he can. H
served in the 118th Ipfantrry of th
rhlriieth Division during the late wa
?right up against the Hfndenburg lih
tvith a gun. He >vas over at Rock HI
it the fair on "soldier day" bu
He didn't see fit to wear his uniforr
rhere were a fow soldiers there i
jniform and a few women wer
gathered around them spouting pa
triotium and waging the flag. H
ooked on and grinned. Finally a swee
iroung thing approached him and ip
juired, 'and were you too in the ser
idee?" He looked at he>-^n a hal
jontemptuous, half pitying way an
'eplied as he fumbled awkwardly a
lis hat. "No, 1 ma'am, I was in th
var." 1 I
Bapk Business at Fair.
A branch bank at a county fair! J
leemn like a funny idea does it not
.Vhat need Is there for a bank at i
dace where every one who goes ha
ill the spare cash he expects to speni
n his pocket, and where small chang
s abundant with everybody who I
loing business? That is the questioi
hat woyld naturally arise Jn the mini
>f the average layman. But there i
norc to it than that. On hearini
hut the peoples National hank o
tock Hill had a branch bank in an au
oraobile at the fair, Views and Inter
dews took occasion to investigate
?aul Jenkins was in charge insid
;he automobile. Views, and Inter
dews stood aro(in,d a little while ajii
vatched. Some people came rb
iiaugi*, Huuie umue ueuusim, HUUII
sought New York Excminge. As t
vhcther there was any money loaned
flews and Interviews did not learn
>ut numerous checks were cashqf
ind altogether'the banjf proved quit
l convenience to many people.
Enquirer Was in Demand. , .
The Courtney Tractor company o
forkvllle, made quite a hit with it
dea of giving away copies of Th
forkvllle Enquirer at the Yorjc Count;
'air. Mr. Courtney's main idea o
:ourse was to get the testimony o
ileased owners of Fordson outfits be
ore as many people as possible, am
lot being able'to get his advertise
nent reprinted in circular form h
ime for distribution, he just bough
>apers. He whs told in advance tha
le could hardly distribute that man:
>apers to a fair crowd in a day; bu
ie said he would take chances 01
nat, ana as a mauer 01 raci ne cam
>ut all right. It was not but a HttI
vhile alter he got the papers to hi;
>ooth, and people knew they were t<
ie had, that calls were numerous. Man;
;ubscriberrs who had left home befor
he arrival of their Enquirer got paper;
rom Jilm and. several hundred other
wo copies. It was quite common b
ee 'men walking about the ground
vlth papers in their'pockets, and oc
:aslonally a man or woman'could t*
icon reading their paper. J. Dicksoi
^esslie, who was exhibiting the Re
jublic truck in three sizes in a boot]
ust across from the Courtney tracto
>ooth said to Views and Interviews
I got my paper this morning nn<
>roujht it out here with a certaint;
hat I Would be able to give it t<
omebody who would be pleased to roa<
t and pass it on. It turned out as
xpectcd. There was no trouble ii
Inding somebody who wanted it, an<
tell you that Mr. Courtney's plac<
las been mighty popular today."
Far Beyond Allotment Span.?Th
leath at Nenagh, County Tipperary
reland, of Mrs. Bourke, who was re
>orted to have reached the age of 12:
rears, has led the London Daily Ex
>rcss to make a record of some of th<
ther famous cases of longevity. Ii
904 the regimental . chaplain of tin
8th Bengal Infantry was still conduct
ng services in Calcutta at the age o
30. In 190S Andrei Nickolaievitcl
Ichmidt, a Russian, produced paper:
vhlch showed that he was 136 ycaii
ild, and had>-enlisted in the Reva
mttalion in 1796. The same yea
ladji Raouf was 133, and was stll
na Q ua/l/llfjf In Pnn
Unilllg it IKllls uo a ouux.v. ... ~
tantinople, but he was a Juvenih
ompared with Quo-Ka-Num, an In
llan chief who roamed the shores o
^ugct Sound at the age of 160. H<
ras generally conceded by Europeans
nore likely to be 200 and he claims
o ycmembcr the time when iron was
inknown to his? tribe. He was 2 fee
inches in height and did not weigi
0 pounds. A few years ago a Chines*
voVnan reached Montreal. She hat
eft her native land when 70, and hu<
ived in Demerara for 100 ypars. Ir
912 Europe had 7,000 living centenrians,
of whom 3,$88 were Bulgarians
? Columbia has a population of aboul
<(.000, according to a recent edition ol
tanborn's map of the city.
*
s '
5 INSURANCE ADJUSTMENT.
la
Important Condition Precedent to a
Correct Stand.
>r ? (
! THINKS MANNING WAS DOODWINIEI
a i
M Reviow of Effect to Wrost Insurance
1 Monopoly from Organization that is
' Using Wrongly Acquired Power for
Merciless Profiteering..
Mr. J. S. Wannamaker, President
American Cotton Association. St.
Matthews, S. C.
, My dear sir: I have your favor
of the 21st Inst, and am fcJad to know
? that you favor the development of
, the state warehouse system modeled
e on the South Carolina, p an "in every
e state in the cotton belt.'' As soon aa
r I return from the conference vvAh
' Governor Dorseyi I will prepare tae
U articles giving concrete plans cont
necting the system with , financing
i institutions and the marketing fean
ture. You have done a wonderful
c work in arousing public sentiment
and you can depend on my doing aay'*
thing in my power to aid you. -flefore
t writing these articles however, something
definite must be agreed upon
/ about the insurance >iuestion. A situ{
ation is brewing in the insurance held
(1 in South Carolina which,will have a
t tremendous effect one way or other,
i Insurance is a vitaf^ factor in the financing
of cotton. We have reached
the point where the farmers must finance
and control' the surplus in order
| to get a fair price for the cotton crop.
' The higher it goes the more surely
1 will this berths case, because at pre*
sent prices; manufacturing concerns
cannot afford to carry a large sur0
plus, and if middle men control the
8 surplus they wtll use it as a club, and
" continue to reap unreasonable profits
at the expense of both producer and
, manufacturer.
g A bank cannot -afford to hand^
' warehouse receipts unless the insurance
is unquestioned, and the farmer
cannot amard to pay an exhorblUnt
" rate of insurance and Interest charges
e in order to hold his cotton. In es~
tablishing the state warehouse system,
ihe moment I touched the insurance T
r stirred up a hornet nest. Had I not
e befen entirely free to make my own
0 arrangements outside of South Caro:
Una, the system could have never be^n
i' put la operation nor 50a It be maifi
J tallied ?ffectivety?WimrijlJW$t JIHfWII!
Insurance situation.
No man who has the true interest
cf the fanner at heart can advocate
1 a system which does not take care of!
8 the country storage. Cotton should be
e kept as neat the place of production as
y possible arfd when it moves should go
f straight tp-'the place of manufacture,
f even if ft Is in-China or Japan. Every
' time that cotton is moved, it adds to
d Its primary cost, and whether the
" grower pays it direct or not, it/is at']
1 his expense. I found in 1911 that the.
1 rates on country ' warehouses were
1 prohibitive. The trust charged $3.50
y per $100 while In a fourth class town
1 with exactly the same building the
I rate was lfss than one half Jhai
e amount.
e Experience has proved that safety
9 in Insurance lies in the distribution of
3 risk. I contend that if the surplus
y cotton were distributed in warehouses
e of 600 bales capacity scattererd vall
9 over the belt, that so far as Are
9 risk was concerned it is the best in
0 the world, and should be the cheapest.
9 The insurance companies paid more
" ioss In one Are in Augusta, Ga.t than
e they would in the next ten years on
II Georgia cotton in country warehouses
* such as I have described. Yet they
^ give the Augusta warehouse a rate of
r 15c and charge the country warehouse
: *3.50 per $100. The remedy for that
1 is to provide a system of state inV
surdnce for warehouse cotton. To do
a that, however will Invite such a con1
test with the insurance trust that it
* will be necessary for each state to
1 have its own rating and inspection*
1 bureau. V?"e have a provision in our
e constitution forbidlng the formation
of a trust and specifically directing
the legislature to pass laws for their
e prevention. In 1917 the legislature of
South Carolina deliberately laid down
- to the Insurance trust and we are tol
day well nigh powerless.
The passage of the Lnney-Odom act
2 was the result of the flght made by the
1 trust to prevent the development of a
2 state warehouse system. South Caro
Una has been selected by this trust as
I a proper Held for the full development
i of a trust system with a view to Its
J extension Into other states. So that
' if you are going Into other states with
I the cotton association, it will be necr
essary l'or you to take a hand in this
1 flght.
After the passage of the Laney2
Odom act there was a wholesale with
drawal of Insurance companies from
f South Carolina in order to force its
- repeal. They failed to deprive ,this
2 state of insurance, because of the de
1 velopmcnt of local companies and of
' foreign companies who remained, be1
cause they saw It would be' a proflti
able field. By the time the legislature
' met in 1917 the fight was practically
1 won, and all property in South Caro1
Una was being taken care of at rates,
1 far less in most cases, than those
which we had been paying under the
domination of the insurance trust. I
thought at one time that Governor
t Manning had gone in with the trust,
r but I do not think so now. i bebeve be
was trying to do his duty but
/ < V.
Well yi vmmij u<?f<?in ?.
eral counsel for the insurance trust T;
appeared before committees of both
senate and house, and presented an >j
.insurance lajw of hts own making,
and stated that if this act was pasa^^H
that the companies would enter the
state'and treat the people "right. Govcrnor
Manning's political Influence se-.
cured 'the repeal of the Laney-Odogs.
act and I saw that 1 was powurleS|m
and resigned as warehouse commls- '
South Carolina an Object Lesson.
The very first step taken by the
trust was a general increase, ranging - V
from a minimum cf. 45 per cent, to
100 per cent in rates. They are nqer-1
preparing to take the next step ? to
make the' trust absolute, by driving ^ all
non-board companies and
local agents out of business. I have A
recently returned from a northern tri^^H
where I have secured positive information
that South Caroling has been 1
selected as the proper state In which ; ^
to try this experiment. The reasonfl^^|
assigned being, viz.:
$lrst. In order to punish this
for having tha tamertty to buck 'WNF/.^sai
trust hi 191?. :
Second. BeoauM the it a small /f
tats and will be law expensive a?Wp|fl
dangerous to make tha fight ht
I might add that I suppose they puUg^HI
ed it over the politicians so easily its --M
1917 that they regard our legislature
as a "soft snap." v
A few days since there was a meet- I
Ing in Atlanta of the general and spa- ?
cial agents of the Southeastern Un- M
derwrlters Association, (which la tin /<
name for that hranoh of the trust y- !|8
embracing South Carolina. That atalt-'^ ^
ling announcement, was made after
this meeting that no Jocal agent who1 ' gljfl
represented any company not a mewber
of the trust, would be permitted :JM1
tr> rpnrpscnt nnv -of the trust '. mOKSm
panles. Thsy gave u a reason for !>
this action that the non>board com- >
panles. get latea from ths trqst BtnmftoHfl
ihg office without any host to theqq^^H
ai.d are consequently enabled to |
the local agents more commM0^^uP|
than the trust companies. Thls^qSP '
not true because the non-board corn- ? ^
panles are urged by the trust to send J v
their reports through the Stamping .ft j
Office; as a matter of fact, these noc- . ^
board companies hare uanounoed : j
thelr willingness to pay their prpthem
self as to obey the ruJe?"aud , "c
sacred than dollars and ?*ntt It 1*. . **j
a question of personal liberty. It Is
an effort to Compel' every total ipsurance
agent to become a servant o< ?
the trust or quit business. t
Following this meeting in Atlaa%|j|<^iM
lh*r# ?ru a ecret moetine iblibmHfli
the Jefferson hotel on October
The Atlanta meeting made Its igocecdinga
public, but then I understand iii
that the trust leaders saw that they
were going a little too fast, as the
South Carolina legislature would soon ?.-j|
be in session, and It was deemed
advisable to keep under cover until'
after the legislature adjourned, For , j
this reason not a word has been given
out from the Columbia meeting. I ?
have given the alleged reasons set Vc
forth by the trust for attempting to rijQ
force Independent companies to retire* from
the state, but anybody conver- jjjjj
sant with the situation knows that the
reasons given are all rott/ The real v<3|
I reasons are,'vis.:
First. Those companies and the
local companies who remained Jn the
state and stood by our people are
writing more than one-half'of all the
business in this statat
Second. It is a continuation of the
effort to destroy the state warehouse
U C?mAI> ^esMtUiaa an^ MMIJasi
/oiviii m wvmn wmvuini ?vvm w??ww* < - r,impossible
it* dsvelopmsnt in other
states. v.
As soon as the trust was permitted
to eater the state after the repeal <'
of the Laney-Odom act they sent
around and had each one of the state
warehouses rated. I have in my possession
a little bopklet giving the new
rates, which on an average was double '
the rate that I had secured, by form- ..
ing a combination of independent
companies. I have heard of a pro- . '
minent Insurance man making the remark
about this new rating: "If we
can't put thorn out of business in'one
wsywe can j another." The South
Carolina state warehouse system did <*-,j
not make any war op the Insurance '
trust. The commissioner found an >
average rate of |S.50 per 1100 and
went to New York and formed a com- ?
blnatlon through which he obtained a
rate of $1.58. The trust when they &
found the names of* these companies c
compelled them to withdraw, not be-, ?
cause the rate wee too low, but be- -l
cause they did not propose to have > J
nnv nnnnaitinn. I have written this . <?
at some length, so as to let you soc
that we have the opportunity right .A
here in South Carolina to win ,-this . c
fight and have no trouble when you , \
go into the other states. The other y
articles will follow as soon as I can
nnd time.'
Yours very truly. ^
Jno. L. McLaurin.
Bcnnettsville, S. C., Oct. 24, 1919. : j
? Although Lieut. B. W. Maynard
of Wake Forest, N. C., was the first
to complete the transcontinental air
race, Capt. J. O. Donaldson of Qreenville,
S. C., made the flight in about
ten hours less flying time, according
to the latest calculations, the war department
announced last Friday.
* f