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BY E. B. MURRAY & CO. VOL. XIII-NO. 5. KATES OF SUBSCRIPTION.?Two DOLLARS p r annum, anil One Dollar for six months. ?Subscriptions arc not taken for a less period I lian six months. Iiiber.il deductions made to clubs of ten or mire subscribers. RATES Of AD VERTISIXG.?One Dollar per - <i'iare ol one inch for the first insertion,and Fifty '"cuts per square for subsequent inscrtionslessthan ibree months. No advertisements counte less than a square. Liberal contracts will be madewith those wishiug to advertise for three, six or twelve months. Ad? vertising by contract must be confined to the im m jdiatebusinessof thefirm orindividual contrac? ting. Obituary Notices exceeding five lines, Tributes ??>f Ke*pect, and all personal communic at ions x>t ?? ?tters of individual interest, will be charged for at advertising rates. Announcements of marriages und deaths, and notices of a religious character, are i??'spectftillv solicited, and will be Inserted gratis ESSAY ON USURY. Head Before the Joint Sleeting of the State Grange and State Agricultu? ral Fair Association in Ander? son, on the Sth of August, by Mr. ?. L. Roche, of Charleston. The Position of Those Who Oppose the Enactment of Usury Laws Defined. The laws regulating interest are among the earliest found in the statute books. In Greece, as far back as five hundred years before Christ, money lending was a recognized occupation, and IS per cent, was the legal rate; but 36 per cent, was charged for mercantile loans, and as much as 16 per cent, per day was paid by doubtful borrowers. The Roman law, called the laws of the Twelve Tables, al? lowed interest at the rate of 1 per cent, per month, or 12 per cent, per annum; but the Roman laws on this subject were frequently modified and altered to pre? vent evasions, but apparently without success. In the year 408 the legal rate of interest was reduced to 5 per cent. Justinian made a further reduction to 4 per cent., but exempted merchants, who were allowed to pay and receive 8 per cent. The usurers, however, under this reign are known to have taken as much as 60 per cent, where the risks of the loss was great. Stringent laws against usury were passed in subsequent years by other rulers of the Roman Empire; but the money-lenders continued to evade and render them nugatory. In the year 740 the Roman Senate again ratified a law making 12 per cent, the legal rate of iuterest, and forbade Senators to engage in the business of money-lending.? Again, later we find, under the Emperor Theodosius, 24 per cent, as lawful inter? est in Rome. By the laws of Moses, the Jews were prohibited from taking inter? est from each other; but were expressly permitted to do so from strangers. The canonical laws governing the early Chris? tians also forbid the taking of interest from their brethren. This idea was taken no doubC from the Jewish laws on this subject, as we do not find in the New Testament the practice of taking usury condemned, but rather commended, nota? bly in the parable of the talents, where the slothful and unprofitable servant who hid his lord's money in the ground and failed to put it at interest is punished, but the servant who traded with the tal? ents committed to his care, and gained other talents, is rewarded by having given to him not only what he before possessed, but also the talent which the first had failed to profitably use. Evi? dently the prohibition of the canonical law of the early Christians was intended to regulate the intercourse among "the brethren," that is among those who were to be the conspicuous leaders, just as the apostles were sent out without money to pay board, and the brethren were expec? ted to provide for them in their journey ings; all their goods were in common. Of course society generally cannot be regulated upon such a basis, and it would be as absurd to pass laws now against people charging board as it is against their charging hire for the loan of money. After the fall of the Roman Empire, and during what is called the dark ages, no interest was permitted, but a system called rents was practiced whereby bor? rowed money was returned yearly in small sums. As we approach nearer to our own times the rates of interest are found to fluctuate, but still, upon the whole, becoming steadily lower. During the reign of Henry VIII in England, 10 percent, was the lawful rate; under James I, 8 per cent.; under Anne, 5 per cent. William and Mary borrowed at 8 per cent, from the Bank of England, (at that time a new institution recently estab? lished.) Money can now be burrowed in England at from 2 to 5 per cent., the ? current rate being regulated entirely by the abundauce or scarcity of the article in the hands of lenders. From the brief review of the history of interest laws, which I have given above, one fact is clearly defined, namely, that no law, heretofore enacted, has been stringent enough to prevent what has been desig? nated as usury. Nay, even in the laws themselves we find a recognition of the ;tdage, "Necessity knows no law," and that an increase or decrease in the inter? est obtained on loans must be governed by the individual wants of the parties to the contract. In one instance merchants are allowed to pay and receive 8 percent, but borrowers engaged in other pursuits pay but 4 under one ruler; 36 percent, is named as the legal rate under a succes? sion of others; the ranges of lawful in? terest run all the way from 24 to 2 per cent. This proves that when the people were prosperous and money plentiful,, and the risk to the lenders reduced to a minimum, they were willing to accept small returns for the use of their capital. But in times of difficulty and danger, either from internal dissensions or for? eign war, when the tenure by which property was held became impaired, and the productive energies of the people rrippled, money, like corn, clothing or any other valuable thing necessary to the comfort or convenience of domestic life, advanced in price; in fact it was worth more, and those who had it to lend re? quired to be paid according to the risk run and the demand growing out of the necessities of the situation. The people of South Carolina are to-day in a posi? tion simitar to thin ; they are, so to say, in a transition state, and have been so lor ten long years, nor have they yet solved the problem or settled what they will do with it. Trained in the manage? ment of <me kind of labor, namely, slave labor, the landed proprietors were, with? out preparation, called upon to organize a new system, and make the former slave l>iolitable in his new relations as a free man. What was possible or impossible in this direction no man knew, and ex? perience could be the only teacher. The land-owner was driven by the necessities of his position to accept the situation and hike the risks, be they great or small. Hut the capitalist, who was called upon to advance the cash with which the nec? essary stock, tools, fixtures and labor was bought, could have no inducement to embark in this business but the hope of gain, nor could he have been expected to do so for a rate of interest of 6 or 7 per cent, per annum. The abnormal political condition of South Carolina also intensified the diffi? culties under which her people labored, and the frightful shrinkage in values, not only of real estate, but personal property also, operated seriously against the intro? duction of capital from abroad, and it was only the high rate- of interest and prospective profits that could induce moneyed men to take the risk incident to so disorganized a state of society. I'nder tl.e circumstances, the repeal of the usury law was a wise and necessary measure, freeing the land-owner and capitalist alike from an impracticable and useless iuriimhrance. With the absolute need to borrow or starve, the land-owner found his ability to furnish adequate security vastly curtailed, but by this repeal the former was enabled to borrow on the pro? duce of his land, and the hitter to obtain security from the same source. The "system of taxation heretofore pur? sued by the dominant political party in the State has also compelled bankers and money-lenders to demand high rates of interest from borrowers. Private indi I viduals are, in many instances, enabled to evade taxation on personal property; but bankers and banking houses are, from the nature of their business, under con? stant surveillance, and it is almost exclu? sively from institutions of this kind that planters, factors and agents obtain their ' funds by which the crops are cultivated and produce moved. The united taxes levied on these institutions, I am credi? bly informed, together with the expenses of management and working, will aggre? gate 9i per cent, on their capital. A law, therefore, limiting interest would either close these banks, or force them to resort to evasions, which would compli? cate business) anu* De morally wrong, even when beyond the reach of legal remedies. Re-enact this law and the transactions of ordinary business would be hampered by numberless subterfuges; agents, brok? ers and middlemen, would reap a rich reward from the necessities of borrowers, and in place of a fair and open trade in money, by which all loans would be gov? erned, and a known market rate of in? terest established, a complicated system of commissions, exchanges and over? charges would be devised, and result only in increased expense and annoyance to the unfortunate borrower. The old usury law formerly in force in this State was,'as is well known, a dead letter be? fore its repeal by the Legislature, so universal had become the practice of evading it. The temptation to do so would be greater now than before the war, as the moral tone in business circles is infinitely lower and practices recog? nized as legitimate that would not then have been permitted. 1 have heard the argument used by the advocates of a usury law, that one of their chief objects w.*is to hamper the farmer, prevent his borrowing money, and in that way confine his operation to the narrow limits of his own labor and the labor of his immediate family.? What progress or improvement can come from a scheme so narrow and contracted as this? These legislators would tie the hands of the man of energy to the plow toil and hoe handle, give him no chance to hire help to till additional acres, to fertilize his fields or improve his stock, by restricting his undeniable right to go into a free market, and make his free contracts for what money he needs, and pay for his cash, just as he pays for his labor or supplies, that is to say, no more or no less than what it is worth. Besides, all men in South Carolina are not farm? ers, or even remotely connected with ag? ricultural pursuits. It is the manifest duty of the Legislature to make laws for the government of the merchant, the manufacturer, the mechanic and the pro? fessional man, as well as for the land? owner and farmer, and it should also foster and care for the material interests of every class. To move the crops and supply the multifarious wants of society, the merchant must have either from his own stores large supplies of ready cash or be perforce a constant borrower. The manufacturer has to meet daily his ex? penses for labor, raw material and re? pairs. So, too, with the mechanic, who contracts for work, and to whom the journeyman looks for daily bread.? Banks were originally designed to meet the wants of such as these, and without exception every member of the classes enumerated above will tell you, "Pass no usury laws, leave us free to make such contracts for money as seems best to us." They know that the rate per cent, for loans is fixed by the laws of trade, and regulated by causes beyond the reach of general laws. In former years in the State of South Carolina money was not worth more than 6 or 7 per cent, because capital was abun? dant, and a greater portion of the labor necessary for conducting agricultural and mechanical operations being performed by- slaves, ready money was but little needed, and a few dollars went a long way in those halcyon days. The bank? ing capital alone amounted to fifteen millions, and the banks were also allowed to issue bills to tlfe amount of five mil? lions more. They were also restricted to 6 per cent, interest for discounting notes, but could buy and sell foreign and do? mestic exchange. Now mark the work? ings of these institutions. With all the advantages derived from issuing bills upon which they paid themselves no in? terest, but upon which they received 6 per cent., they found it still more profit? able to transfer a large part of their cap? ital to the great money centres of this country and Europe, and employ their money in trading in exchange, untram? melled by usury laws. A. T. Stewart, the great dry goods millionier of New York city, bought a large part of his foreign exchange from the agents of the Bank of Charleston. What immediate benefit was this large capital employed in New York to the agricultural community in South Caroli? na? Did it make money cheaper? No farmer or planter, as a rule, had bank credit in those days in any ordinary ^.7" or country bank, for they all did t .eir business more in New York than at their local offices; the presidents carried the banks in their pockets. The planter re? quiring advances was forced by the above system into the hands of the commission men who knew the ropes, and although 7 per cent, was the rate of* interest that appeared on the face of the bonds, noth? ing was said of the commissions charged for finding the cash. The effect of the re-enactment of a usury law at the pres? ent time would be to derange and ob? struct the whole financial machinery by which the agricultural and mechanical industries of the State arc carried on; confidence in the integrity of the people of South Carolina is being re-established, and also in their ability to meet their liabilities, and the dictates of wisdom would be to interfere by legislative enact? ments as little as possible with the recog? nized modes of transacting business. No law which could be enacted would or could annul existing contracts. These must expire by their own limitation. The signs of the times indicate that from natural causes interest here in South Carolina, as elsewhere, must decrease. Already has money fallen from 12 per cent, per annum to 7 or 8. With an in? crease in our material resources, a further reduction is certain; confidence will bring out the secret hoards now unem ployed, and the lenders become numer? ous and the- borrowers comparatively few. The great principle which underlies this question is one that has always prominently influenced the minds of Southern men, and particularly men of South Carolina. Legislative interference with personal rights have at no time found favor in this State. The usury law may be placed in the same category with the Puritan blue laws and the modern Maine liquor and prohibition laws, with which you arc all familiar. I for one do not desire to see the Grangers of South Carolina putting themselves on record as advocates of such measures as these ? laws simply enacted to satisfy popular clamor, which neither those who cry out loudest for their passage or the legislator who enact them intend to obey. The Cranges nvjsf. r>e above these petty enn siderations, and look to the true interests of the whole people, not to those which are supposed to benefit one class at the expense of the others. A law that can? not fail to embarrass the mercantile and mechanical classes must also in the end bear hardly upon the agricultural, and no legal enactment regulating interest can make money plentiful and lenders of it accommodating. But a good govern? ment, honest officials, industrious farmers, and prosperous merchants, with home manufacturers, making a home market for the produce of the soil, these are, and have been, the wants of South Carolina, and these alone can bring capital into the State and true prosperity to her peo pie. MARYE'S HEIGHTS. Burnsidc's Desperate Effort at Fredcr icksburg to Storm an Impregnable Fortress. From noon to dark Burnside contin? ued to hurl one division after another against that volcanic-like eminence, belching forth fire and smoke and iron hail. French's division was the first to rush to the assault. When it emerged from cover and burst out on the open plain, in full view of the enemy, it was greeted with a frightful fiery reception from all his batteries on the circling summit. The ridge concentrated upon it the convergent fire of all its enginery of war. You might see at a mile the lanes made by the cannon balls in the ranks. You might see a bursting shell throw up into the air a cloud of earth and dust, mingled with the limbs of men. The batteries in front of the devoted di? vision thundered against it. To the right, to the left, cannon were answering to each other in a tremendous deafening battle chorus, the burden of Welcome to these madmen about to die. The advance column was the focus, the point of concentration, of an arc?al? most semicircle?of destruction. It was a centre of attraction of all deadly mis? siles. At that moment that single divis? ion was going up alone in battle against the Southern Confederacy, and was being pounded to pieces. It continued to go up, nevertheless, toward the stone wall, toward the crest above. With lips more firmly pressed together, the men closed up their ranks and pushed forward. The storm of battle increased its fury upon him; the crash of musketry mingled with the roar of ordnance from the peaks. The stone wall and the rifle pits added their terrible treble to the deep bass of the bellowing ridge. The rapid discharge of small arms poured a con? tinuous rain of bullets in their faces; they fell down by tens, by scores, by hundreds. When they had gained a large part of the distance, the storm de? veloped into a hurricane of ruin. The division was blown back, as if by the breath of hell's door suddenly opened, shattered, disordered, pell mell, down the declivities, amid the shouts and yells of the enemy, which made the horrid din demonical. Until then the division seemed to be contending with the wrath of brute and material forces bent on its annihilation. Tb"- shout recalled the human agency in ail the turbulence and fury of the scene. The division of French fell back?that is to say, one-half of it. It suffered a loss of near half its numbers. Hancock immediately charged with 5,000 men, veteran regiments led by tried commanders. They saw what had happened ; they knew what would befall them. They advanced up the hill; the bravest were found dead within twenty five paces of the stone wall ; it was slaughter, havoc, carnage. In fifteen minutes they were thrown back with a loss of 2,000?unprecedented severity of loss. Hancock and French, repulsed from the stone wall, would not quit the hill altogether. Their divisions, lying down on the earth, literally clung to the ground they had won. These valiant men, who could not go forward, would not go back. All the while the batteries on the heights raged and stormed at them. Howard's division came to their aid. Two divisions of the Ninth Corps on their left attacked repeatedly in their support. It was then that Burnside rode down from the Phillips House, on the Northern side of the Rappahannock, and standing on the bluff at the river, staring at those formidable heights, exclaimed, "That crest must be carried to-night." Hooker remonstrated, begged, obeyed. In the army to hear is to obey. He pre? pared to charge with Humphrey's divis? ion ; he brought up every available bat? tery in the city. "I proceeded," he said, "against their barrier as I would against a fortification, and endeavored to breach a hole sufficiently large for a forlorn hope to enter." He continued the cannonad? ing on the selected spot until sunset. He made no impression upon their works, "no more than you could make upon tho side of a mountain of rock." Humph? rey's division formed under shelter of the rise, in column, for assault. They were directed to make the attack with empty muskets; there was no time then to load and fire. The officers were put in front to lead. At the command they moved forward with great impetuosity; they charged at'a run, hurrahing. The foremost of them advanced to within fifteen or twenty yards of the stone wall. Hooker afterwards said: "No campaign in the world ever saw a more gallant ad? vance than Humphrey's men made there. But they were to do a work no man could do." In a moment they were hurled back with enormous loss. It was now just dark ; the attack was suspended. Three times from noon to dark the can? non bn the crest, the musketry at the stone wall had prostrated division after division on Maryc's Hill. And now the sun had set; twilight had stolen out of the west and spread her veil of dusk ; the town, the flat, the hill, the ridge, lay under the "circling canopy of night's extended shade." Darkness and gloom had settled down upon the Phillips House, over on the Stafford Heights, where Burnside would after awhile hold his council of war. Lightning Striking a Tkain.?An incident of a recent thunder storm, as noticed by a passenger on a train on the New York Midland railroad, is thus de? scribed by the Middlctown Pres?: The storm was terrific. Crash after crash of thunder, with blinding lightning, accom? panied by a deluge of* rain and hail, fol? lowed them. At one time the train seemed to be enveloped in a sheet of elec? trical fire. A fearful crash preceded, and instantly the engine was in a volume of electricity. Balls of fire encircled the driving wheels as they revolved with lightning rapidity. Engineer Sandford beheld the phenomenon with wonder and awe, and supposing the end of all things was at hand involuntarily shut off the steam. Nearly every person on the train experienced a severe shock. A large tree by the track was shattered. The shock lasted but a moment. When sat? isfied that nothing had been injured, the engineer started the iron horse on with a loud whistle toward Norwich. ? Modern marriage, says a contempo? rary, begins with a coitrl and ends ivjth THIEVES BY BIRTH. Persons in Whom the Piopensify to Steal is Irresistible. I was invited to a jail in Massachu? setts by a young lawyer, who has since become United States Senator, to exam? ine the head of a client of his whom he was to defend on the charge of stealing. No information was given as to his alleged crime, and wo described the young man as being abnormally acquisi? tive, or selfish in respect to possession ; that he had very strong veneration, and would manifest much religious devotion, and would be sincere in it; while with his small cautiousness and conscientious? ness and very large acquisitiveness he would be likely to trespass upon the rights of others in the way of stealing. At this point the lawyer told the young man he might tell me what he had told him (the lawyer.) He went on to relate that he had been in the habit of stealing everything, whether he want? ed it or not; that he would go to prayer meeting and take the opportunity of praying two or three times during the evening, and sometimes on the way home he would he inspired with a devo? tional feeling, and would kneel down in the corner of the fence alone, and have a season of prayer that was sweet and heavenly to him ; and, strange as it may seem, if he saw a hoe hanging on a farmer's fence, or a whiflic-tree chain, or pin of a cart neap, or a beetle and wed? ges, or an old ax, half-worn, he would steal it, and afterward it would occur to him that he could not use the articles, nobody would buy them, and his only way was to conceal them; and he re? marked that there was a hollow log lying in a small piece of wood in which lie bad secreted the articles which he had stolen because he dare not carry them home nor offer them for sale. But it seemed to him that he could not help stealing them ; the impulse came on, and though he was sincere in his religious devotions, and exceedingly happy in their performance, he seemed to himself to be left to the temptation of the devil when anything which might be stolen was left in his way. A man who was a minister called for au examination, and at the end of a long and sharp analysis of his character, in which acquisitiveness and secretiveness had been described as strongly developed and'very active, and also conscientious? ness and cautiousness had been estimated as large, he seemed unwilling to go, but walked up aud down the room for several minutes, as if he had some burdened question he wanted to ask and yet was afraid to ask. Turning to him, I said : "Do you wish to ask any questions ?" "Yes," he said ; "there is one thing about me which you do not seem to have described. If you will tell me that, I will believe in phrenology." I instantly replied : "You have an inclination to steal; but probably manage to refrain from it." He opened his eyes with ter? rified astonishment, and, giving me such a fierce gaze as never will be forgotten, remarked: "Sir, that is true. That is my trouble. I am a clergyman, sir, and hope that I am a true one; yet I have all my life long been tempted to steal, and in my parochial visits often have an im? pulse come over me to take something ; and if left alone in a room I do take it; and sometimes it requires half an hour to find a convenient opportunity to get the article thus taken out of my pocket and back upon the shelf or table where it belongs. t It may be a shell which every Sunday school child in the parish knows; it may be an old hymn book with a name written on it, and half worn out?things which I do not need, and could not use if I did need them, with? out the theft being detected." And he remarked, with tears tumbling down his face: "By the help of God, I have been able, hitherto, to refrain from carrying away anything which I had thus, under the impulse, stolen." Twenty-five years ago there was a well to-do farmer's wife in Connecticut who had an impulse to steal only one kind of an article, and that was blue stockings. If she were driving, in the middle of a bright afternoon, a mile from home, where she and the horse and wagon were well known, and she caught sight of a pair of blue stockiugs hanging on a liue in the yard with ? Hier clothing, she would stop her team, get out of the wagon, go into the yard in front of the rooms where the family were working, and jerk those stockings off the line, leaving a dozen pairs of other colors, return to her wagon, whip up the team and get out of the way. It* she had been a stranger, whose peculiarity was un? known, she would have been followed and arrested and punished; but every? body knew that she had that queer mo? nomania for blue stockings. I examined a man's head and described him as being very fond of money, hap? pening, of course, to use that term, motiey, instead of property, and it made quite a sensation because it was known that he would steal money, and he did not hesitate to talk about it himself. But he would steal nothing else, no matter how valuable, though he knew he might be detected.?Phrenological Journal. A Powder Mill.?A powder-mill is not in the least like other mills. In? stead of one great building, it is com? posed of many rough-looking little sheds, sometimes as many as seventy or eighty. These are long distances apart, separated by dense woods and great mounds of earth, so that if one "house" is blown up the others will escape a like fate. Of some the walls arc built very strong, and the roofs very slight, in the hope that if an explosion happens, its force will be expended upward only. Other houses have enormous roofs of masonry covered with earth ; the roofs of others arc tanks always full of water. The constant danger, inseparable from the work, would be gradually increased were there not strict rules, always en? forced. No cautious visitor can be more careful than the workmen themselves, for they know, if au explosion happens, it will be certain, instant death to them. So no lights or fires are ever allowed ; no one lives nearer the mills than can be helped ; some of the buildings are car? peted with dkins, and the floors are al? ways kept Hooded with an inch or two of water; and in front of every door is a shallow tank of water. Before entering, every person must put on rubber shoes and walk through this water, for the nails in boot heels might strike a spark from a bit of sand or gravel, which might explode a single grain of gunpow? der, and cause widespread disaster. So the rubber shoes worn in the mills arc never worn elsewhere. Then, too, every one is expected to keep his wits about him ; there is never any loud talking or laughter, and no one ever thinks of shouting. Vet, with all this extreme care, explosions sometimes occur, and then there is seldom any one left to tell how it happened.? St. Xichofa* Magazine. ? The husband who informed his wife six months ago that he would lot her put out the washing as soon as times im? proved, has kept his promise. lie lets her put it out?on the line, And still >|io. is nnl happy. The Temperance Movement. The interest in the cause of temper? ance, now spreading so rapidly, is simi? lar to that which the crusade excited a few years ago. They are alike in that they both look to the Lord for help and deliverance, and in depending upon prayer, the Bible and singing, as the chief means of carrying forward the work. The active workers in the crusade were women, but wherever it went all Christian hearts became enlisted, and in many places the meetings for prayer, conference and singing, were continued through the day and until late at night. Of course such a method could not be? come general or permanent, but it was a time of seed sowing?of casting the bread upon the waters, which will be gathered many days hence. The crusade had many opponents but it made a profound impression upon the conscience of the world. Its influence will never die. It seemed to be the de? spairing struggle of many of God's suf? fering, distressed ones, and he honored them and sent deliverance as an earnest of better things to come. That was the prelude to the work now spreading over the country, which we believe will be followed by greater things than we have yet seen. So certainly as right is to tri? umph and Christ is to put all enemies under his feet, shall this giant evil of intemperance be slain. The Bible plain? ly teaches that Christ is to rule the world, and that all that will not yield to him shall be destroyed. We believe this as confidently as we believe the wcrd of God. Intemperance is the great evil of the world. It is a monster transmit? ted to us from past ages. Such an evil could not grow up in a single century. It has not only come down upon us from the past ages, but it so infects the inebri? ate that it is entailed upon the chil? dren of the drinker, generation after generation. It is a fearful inheritance! It must be checked and destroyed or it will over-ride and destroy everything good, to all that is most dear to the Chris? tian. If not checked, it will fall upon the next generation with more crushing weight. Are the Christians of the pres? ent willing to leave such an accumulated curse to those who are to come after them ? This would leave the future dark, indeed. God, we think, is plainly indicating that this is not his will, for he seems to be stirring a spirit of resistance in the minds of his people throughout the would. May not the time be at hand when he shall marshal his forces, and set them in array for the overthrow of this enemy? There is no other evil that has such a mastery over the world, and with? out the Divine aid there is no deliverance. Christian men and women must consider their duty in such a time, for without God there can be no general reform. He is clearly showing his willingness to work with the people. The Lord is against the evil, and the time has come for it to be known who are on the Lord's side. The work and interest now springing up should receive the most prayerful atten? tion of ministers and churches every? where, for if the evil goes on unheeded there will soon be no place left the church. God can do great things through his people when they are truly united with him. They must agree in asking him, and it is the agreement in this that is the encouraging feature of the efforts made of late. There is certainly no power outside of the Church to check and remove the evil. This is so because God is in his Church, and works through it. He leads it in every necessary con? flict. There is no promise of success without him. But if through indiffer? ence or unbelief the Church fails to fol? low him, golden opportunities may pass, and the unmitigated evil will move on, crushing out the life and hope of the world. The church has not'been faith? ful in the past, or the evil could not have grown to its present proportions. God could have mastered it long ago, but the people did not look to him nor ask him to help them to destroy it. He can de? stroy it now as easily as at any future time, and will, we believe, if his people will rally under him. This is the call the Church is now receiving. The press and pulpit must send forth the call until every one who truly loves God and his fellowmen is stirred and moved to action by it. The Church must go up to higher grounds. Right sentiments must be dis? seminated. The Church?ministers and members?must go forward. God calls, and the sea will divide when his people move forward in faith. Who does not hear the call??Cumberland Presbyterian. A Remarkable Invention.?Anoth? er invention pertaining to electricity, quite as wonderful as the telephone, though, perhaps, less calculated to attract popular notice, has recently been secured by patent in the United States to a Swed? ish inventor. The apparatus is an auto? matic railway signal, which enables the station oiiicials to know the precise posi? tion of any tain at any time ; it gives sound signals to the engineer, and at the station before the train enters, thus ena? bling switches to be cleared and arranged in time to prevent accident. If two trains approach each other, whether run? ning in the same or opposite directions, the engineers of both trains receive sig? nals in time to prevent collision, and the station people are at the same time auto? matically informed of the position of both trains. Any train may, by stopping at certain points of the road where "con? tracts are arranged, open telegraphic communication with the stations at both ends of the route, and two trains may in the same manner telegraph to each other. A complete record is automatically kept at each station of the speed of each train and of the exact time it enters or leaves the station. Stop signals may be sent at any time from the stations to any train while moving. The apparatus may be arranged to send stop or danger signals to trains approaching swinging bridges which are not properly locked and fas? tened. When this invention shall have been generally introduced, railroad acci? dents will be almost impossible.? Chicago Journal of ('otnnierce. A Smart Thing.?How many people arc there who really know how to make a mustard plaster? Not one in a hun? dred at the most, perhaps, and yet mus? tard plasters are used in every family, and physicians prescribe the application. The ordinary way is to mix the mustard with water, tempering it with a little flour; but such a plaster as this makes is simply abominable. Be? fore it has half done its work it begins to blister the patient, and leaves him finally with a painful flayed spot, after having produced far less effect in a beneficial way than was intended. Now, a mustard plaster should never blister at all. If a blister is wanted, there are other plasters far better than mustard plaster; then, use no water, but mix the mustard with the white of an egg, and the result will be a plaster which will "draw" perfectly, but will not produce a blister on the skin of an infant, no matter how long it is al? lowed to remain on the part. ? "Ma, go down on your hands and knees a minute, please." "What on earth shall I do that for, pel ?" '"OnilfO ] want fn draw an elephant " DK. FLUMER'S SPEECH. The Veteran Crentes a Sensation in ? Edinburg? A Remarkable Speech. The correspondent of the New York Herahl, writing from Edinburg of the Pan-Presbyterian Council, thus speaks of a venerable divine whose name is a "tower of strength" in this community: Any account of the personnel of the council would be incomplete without special reference to Dr. William S. Plumer, of South Carolina, its veteran. This grand old man?in his eighty eighth year, with his long, snowy hair and patriarcbial beard?might suggest the ideal Rip Van Winkle were his mind not so wide awake. Dr. Plumer was once minister of the church of Fred ericksburg, and indeed for a generation was the Presbyterian giant of Virginia. He was the leading man of a once fa? mous convention which met at Rich? mond to consider the educational condi? tion of that State. There he opposed the late Samuel M. Janney, who wanted the free school system, but complimented that modest Quaker, saying, "A city that is set on a hill cannot be bid." His epigrammatic utterances were widely known, as when he said, as au offset to a revival ist who said that he wanted "to get up a revival," that he (Plumer) wanted "to get down a revival." Dr. Plumer, aged as he is, has made one of the most powerful impressions on the council. It was when co-operation in missions was the subject that he arose to make an appeal for missions among the negroes of the Southern States. It was plain that the old scholar's erudi? tion and devoutness had borne him far above all vulgar prejudices against the negro. The promise, "Ethiopia shall stretch her hands," was raised by him against the superstition he rebuked that there was some special curse on Africans. He related some touching anecdotes of that race, showing their heroism and piety, and warned the church that they were not exhibiting as much wisdom as the Catholics in winning so desirable an element as the Southern negroes. Ro? man Catholics, he said, are building chapels everywhere and inviting colored people into them. He once told his the? ological class in Columbia, South Caro? lina, that he did not think the Catholics would make much headway with the colored people, because these were so noisy in their worship and so fond of taking part in public worship, but one of his class told him he had been to one of those Catholic churches, and the noisiest he ever heard. He (Dr. Plumer) had found it so ; the order had gone out from Rome, "never mind the noise if you get the men." The speaker seemed inspired with the theme. He declared tbe most eloquent preacher he ever heard in his life was a black man from Tennessee; that the only way to convert Africa, and forever end the odious slave trade, was to make a united effort to win the hearts of the colored people in Ameriea. It was a very remarkable speech this of Dr. Plumer, especially as the working of a high and human spirit in the heart of that State which was once so especially associated with the "cursed-be-Canaan" theory of the African race. Education and Agriculture. If "knowledge is power," as the civil? ized world admits, the agriculturists of tbe nations have but to educate them? selves in order to supersede the power of the trades and professions, and give laws to their respective countries. This would be placing the "bottom rail on top," since nearly all trades and professions rose into power and respectability before the plodding uneducated farmer.? Through all generations of the past he has been the football, the servant of aris? tocracy, the staff of bread to supporting his country, but too humble in rank to share its dignities. That long period ended, however, in the birth of the great republic. Henceforth all men were to be considered as "born equal," and as pos? sessing "unalienable rights." Hence? forth men were to be free to pursue their happiness, and without the trammels of hereditary titles and government prefer? ments. Henceforth intellect and genius was at liberty to shine from whatever rank or condition it might spring. Un? der these favorable circumstances, agri? culture made a powerful advance in the new world, and although it has not done all we had a right to expect, in view of thegreat advance in the arts and sciences, yet it has now climbed to a sufficient height for its votaries to lift up their eyes and behold something of the glory of its culminating power. The establishment of agricultural bureaus and colleges in the States, the liberal appropriations al? ready and yet to be made by the nation and the States for the development of its branches, and the honorable character it is daily strengthening by acquisitions from all classes of society, warrants the belief that the time is not far distant when -the supreme power and governing influence of the United States will reside in the agricultural population. At pres? ent, though possible, this is not the fact. While the agriculturists are in vast ma? jority, the trades and politicians actually rule the country; hence its turbulence and uncertainty. Politicians scheme for promotion and trades seek for monopoly. The conflicts of these demoralize and render unstable. On the other hand, agriculture demands peace, and flourishes only in a stable, peaceful government. This fact guarantees pacific rule by agri? culture, and prosperity follows as the handmaid of peace. Now, in view of this bright future, it is the duty of the farmer to give the highest consideration to the advantages of education. His children should be educated at all haz? ards. They should be taught the sciences in all their perfection, as a fitting prepa? ration for the high destiny before them. It is by the aid of these that agriculture is to be carried to its highest perfection, and it is by the triumphs of agriculture that the farmer is to take first rank in the classes of society. Lacing.?If all tbe women insane on this subject were in the asylums, the ac? commodations would have to be largely increased. The habit is a general one, and very injurious. A good authority says: "It has been found that the liver, the lungs, and the powers of the stomach, have been brought into a diseased state by this most pernicious habit. Loss of bloom, redness of the nose, and eruptions on the skin are among its effects. If pro? longed, there is no knowing to what mal? ady tight lacing may not lead. Its most apparent effect is an an injured digestion, and consequent loss of appetite. Of this, however, it is often difficult to convince the practiced lacer, for vanity is general? ly obstinate. But, lonkingat tight lacing, without consideration of its effect on health, and merely at its tendency to im? prove or injure the appearance, nothing can be more absurd than to believe it is advantageous to the figure. A small waist is rather a deformity than a beauty. To see the shoulders cramped and squeezed together is anything but agree? able. The figure should be easy, well developed, supple. If nature has not made the waist small compression cannot mend her work'/' Acts Passed by the General Assembly at the Extra Session of 1877. Ax Act to amend sections 55 and 56, Chapter CXX, of the Revised Statutes, relative to liens on crops. Section 1. Be it enacted, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the author? ity of the same, That Sections 55 and 56, Chapter CXX, of the Revised Statutes, relative to liens on crops, and all amend? ments thereto, are hereby repealed on and after the 1st of January, 1878. Sec;. 2. That all acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this act are hereby re? pealed. [ Approved June 8, 1877. An Act to amend Section 15 of Chapter XXXIX of the General Statutes, re? lating to the power in school districts to levy and collect special taxes for school purposes. Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That Section 15 of Chapter XXXIX of the General Stat? utes be, and the same is hereby amended, by striking out all subdivision 4 of said section. 1 Sec. 2. All acts and parts of acts in? consistent with this act be, and the same are hereby, repealed. Approved June 8,1877. An Act to prohibit the unauthorized Ab? sence of certain officers from duty. Section 1. Be if enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the author? ity of the same, That no State or county officer, except members of the General Assembly and the Governor, shall be ab? sent from the State during his term of office for more than thirty days in any one year without special permission, to be granted by the Governor of the State. Sec. 2. Any .such officer violating the provisions hereof shall forfeit to the State, upon conviction, the amount of the salaries and perquisites of their offices for the year in which said absence occurs. Approved June 7, 1877. An Act to reduce and fix the per diem and mileage of members of the General Assembly. Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That each mem? ber of the General Assembly shall here? after receive for each regular session five dollars per diem for each day during the session; and when convened in extra ses? sion each member shall receive thesame mileage and per diem compensation as are fixed for the regular session, audnone other. Sec. 2. That hereafter each member of the General Assembly shall be entitled to receive mileage at the rate of ten cents per mile for the actual distance traveled, by the most direct route, whilst going to and returning from the place where the session of the General Assembly shall be held. Sec. 3. This act shall, except as to the special session that was begun to be bolden on the 24th day of April, 1877, take effect immediately after its passage, and all acts and parts of acts inconsistent herewith shall then and thereafter be void and of no effect. Approved June 7,1877. Joint Resolution to appoint a com? mission to investigate the sale of the Columbia Canal. Section 1. Be it Resolved by the Sen? ate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authorityof thesame, That a commission consisting of the Attorney General and three members of the General Assembly, two of whom to be appointed by the Speaker of the House and one by the President of the Senate, be raised for the purpose of investigating the sale of the Columbia Canal and its appurtenances by a commission of this State. Sec. 2. That it shall be the duty of said commission to inquire into the man? ner of said sale, the consideration re? ceived by the State therefor, and whether or not the State is bound thereby ; and also to inquire whether the purchasers have duly complied with the conditions of said sale; and whether the said prop? erty has not reverted to the State by rea? son of the non-compliance with the con? ditions of said sale. Sec. 3. That said commission shall have power to call for persons and papers, and to administer oaths to witnesses be? fore them ; and that a majority of the members of the said commission shall have power to act in all cases. Sec. 4. That such commission shall conduct said investigation without delay and report the result to the Governor, to be by him transmitted to the General Assembly; and that until the meeting of the Geueral Assembly the Governor is authorized to take such action on the re? port as may be necessary to protect the interests of the State and others. Approved June 7, 1877. An Act to render officers of corpora? tions personally responsible in certain cases. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That, on and after the passage of this act, it shall be deemed a felony for any president, director, manager or cashier, or other officer of any banking institution, to receive any deposits or trusts, or to create any debts for such corporation, after he shall become aware that such corporation is insolvent. And every officer of such failing corporation shall become personally liable to the amount of such deposits or trusts received by him, or with his knowledge or assent, in any such case, to the person thereby damaged, whether criminal prosecution be made or not. And all persons con? victed for felony, as herein provided, shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of not less than one year, and by a fine of not less than ?1,000. Approved May 31, 1877. Joint Resolution to authorize the Gov? ernor to effect a loan. Be it resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That the Governor be authorized to borrow on the credit of the State, the sum of $100,000, if so much be necessary, in anticipation of the taxes to be collect? ed under the act to raise supplies for the current fiscal year, on such terms as he deems advisable. Approved June 7, 1877. An Act to amend section 1 chapter 69 of the revised statutes, and l?? authorize the Governor to appoint K?'?mLs of the Lunatic Asylum from ?u-iilund County. Be it enacted by the Senate ?m! Il-m ? c,f Representatives of the Stair ul Snith LEGAL ADVERTISING.?Yfe are compelled to require cash payments for advertising ordered by Executors, Administrators and other fiduciaries and herewith append the rates for the ordinary notices, which will only be inserted whon the money comes with the order: Citations, two Insertions, - Estate Notices, three Insertions, - - 2.on Final Settlements, five insertions - - 3.00 TO CORRESPONDENTS.?\ti order to receive attention, communications must be areompanied by the true name and address of the writer. Re? jected manuscripts will not be returned, unless the necessary stamps are furnished to repay t he postage thereon. Sfg~ We are not responsible for the views and opinions of ouV correspondents. All communications should be addressed ^"Ed? itors Intelligencer." and all checks, drafts, money orders, Ac, should be mnde pavable to the order of E. 13. MURRAY & CO., Anderson, S. C. Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That section 1, chapter 69 of the revised statutes be, and tbe same is here? by, amended so as to read as follows: "That the Governor shall appoint nine Regents of the Lunatic Asylum, who shall hold office for six years from the day of appointment, except upon the oc? currence of a vacancy in the regency, when the Governor shall fill the same by an appointment for the unexpired term only. The Regents shall be appointed from Richland County, and shall receive neither mileage, per diem or other com? pensation for their services." Approved June 7, 1877. An Act to prohibit the sale of seed cot? ton between the time of the sotting and rising of the sun, and to regulate the sale of seed cotton. Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Represeutatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in Genera^ Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That on and after the passage of this act, it shall not be lawful for any person to buy, or sell, cr receive by way of barter, exchange or traffic of any sort, any seed cotton, be? tween the hours of sun-down and sun? rise of any day. Sec. 2. That any person who shall vio? late the provisions of section 1 of this act, shall, upon conviction in the Court of General Sessions, or of a Trial Justice, be fined the sum of $50, or imprisoned in the county jail for the period of thirty days, or both, in the discretion of the court. Sec. 3. That all acts or parts of acts inconsistent with this act, be, and tbe same are hereby, repealed. Approved June 8, 1877. ? An Act to reduce and fix the price of dieting prisoners. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of South Carolina, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That hereafter the Sheriffs of the different counties in this State shall be entitled to charge and receive thirty cents per diem for dieting prisoners, and no more ; any law or usage to the contrary notwithstanding. Approved June 8,1877. Save the Old Paper.?Never throw away old paper. If you have no wish to sell it, use it in the house. Some house? keepers prefer it to cloth for cleansing many articles of furniture. For instance, a volume written by a lady who prided herself on her experience and tact, says: After a stove has been blackened, it can be kept looking very well for a long time by rubbing it with paper every morning. Rubbing with paper is a much nicer way of keeping the outside of a teakettle, coffee pot and tea pot bright and clean than the old way of washing them in suds?rubbing with paper is also the best way of polishing knives, tin ware and spoons; they shine like new silver. For polishing mirrors, windows, lamp chimneys, etc., paper is better than dry cloth. Preserves and pickles keep much better if brown paper, instead of cloth, is tied over tbe jar. Canned fruit is not apt to mould if a piece of writing paper cut to fit the can is laid directly on the fruit. Paper is much better to put under a carpet than straw. It is warmer, thin? ner, and makes less noise when one walks over it. ? The steamer City of New York, ar? rived at San Francisco from Sydney, brings the news that the American flag has been hoisted at Samoa, and alle ?iance formally tendered to tbe United tates. ? Arlington will not be surrendered to the heirs of Gen. Lee without a strug? gle. The first point in the legal battle is that the ownership rests in the United States, which cannot be sued by an indi? vidual. ? There is scandal over the disrespect shown to the bones of Gen. Custer while en-transit, recently, from the Yellow? stone battle-field to Chicago. On arriv? ing at Fort Lincoln the remains were de? posited in a shed, where they lay several days, and were thence transferred to a freight-car at Bismarck, and on the whole journey they were dumped around in freight-cars and handled as if they were ordinary baggage or a roll of buffalo robes. ? We believe the estimated population of the South is 12,000,000 souls, one-third of whom are negroes. 8,000,000 of this population doubtless live in the cotton belt, and purchase two-thirds of the meat they annually consume. Tbe Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture says that State buys annually ?18,000,000 worth of meat. Allowingan average expenditure, based upon this data, for each of the other cotton States, there can be no ques? tion but that the cotton States spend an? nually one hundred millions of dollars for the meat they consume. This is al? lowing twelve and a half dollars per cap? ita for the annual consumption of bought meat by the men, women and children of the cotton States. If this were paid for in cash it would buy enough to do al? most two years; but as the bulk of it is bought on a credit, nearly twice as much is paid for it as it is worth. We are con? vinced that if each family in the South were to buy in October an Essex pig, (we have no pigs for sale) that by the end of twelve months there would be enough home-raised meat in the South to save one-fourth of that vast amount of money, if these pigs received daily tbe slops from the kitchens which are now thrown away. Think of it; the slops of our Southern households properly utilized are worth about $25,000,000 annually. Arc they not worth taking care of? ? A representative of the New York Tribune, travelling in Louisiana, thinks that would be a far more attractive coun? try for Northern invalids than Florida, not because one threatened with or suf? fering from, consumption (which, in some form or other, seems to be a sort of universal disease among Northerners) could or would be more easily and surely cured there than in Florida, but because an investment in a sugar plantation would yield more immediate and heavier returns in money than an orange grove. Well, if money and its heavy interest is what is needed to cure consumption, we would think it would matter but little when or where it was invested. This Tribune writer thinks that, from an in? vestment of $10,000, any judicious North? ern farmer would realize a net income annually of $3,000 from a sugar planta? tion. Just so. We never saw a North? ern man but that thought he could invest in a Southern farm and make money, hand-over-fist. And we have seen a good many of them try it in South Carolina and other Southern States, and, where one succeeded, twenty broke. They be? lieve all Southerners are lazy and don't work, (which, we are sorry to fear, is not an unfounded accusation) and all that is necessary to make a fortune is a little Yankee vim and perseverance. Expe? rience has taught hundreds of them that Yankee habits don't bear luxuriant fruit on Southern larras,