The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, May 25, 1871, Image 2
THE JOURNAL.
CAMDEN S. C., MAY 25, 1S71.
A Ci en oral Crash Immin n .
The affairs of Kershaw County, peeuniariIy
and otticially, are in a desperate condition.
fJ he attempt to lead our readers into
the light of a true understanding of the
difficulties which surround us and the straits
to which we arc reduced, is by no means a
pleasant or-congenial task, but we- regard-it
as the part o? wisdom, that all the citizens of
^The County should know and comprehend
their exact situation, and what they may ex,_pect,
.
i. It has come within our knowledge, that
-1 r* .. 1 / /! f\ T
i since tne nrsc rxtara 01i ouruy v>omuu&3iuuyers,
who came in under the Act of the Lc(
gislature of 1SG8, and whose first meeting
vwas. held oa November 19th. 18GS. the finanncul
condition of the County lias been trou 'bled
and unsound.
' ( By their first annual report, extending
^ijroni November 19th, 1SGS, to November
.18G9- it appears that the expenditures of the
^County, consisting of accounts audited and
'^Aid by orders ou the County Treasurer,
omminted to 86.909.G5 .
For the vcar ending
Nov. 19, 1870 91,871.60
For.five months ending
-jApril 10, 1871, over 7,500.00
Making fur two years.
and five months 24,281.25
"We cnn argue that if 87.50Q were spent
during five months of the present fiscal year,
it is reasonable to suppose that $5000
more will be spent during the next seven
mouths, so that by the close of the year, there
will have been expended in all, the sum of
830,000 for three years!
To meet these expenditures, the County
could look to but a singlo source, to wit:
$9 anuual taxes, which from the Reports of
the State Auditor, are as follows:
Fotvfche'fiiscal rear ending
Oct. 31st. 1869 83,116.02
For the fiscal year ending
! Out: 31st, 1870 2,518.98
Taxes of 1868, collected
i in 1860 1,1-18.10
Taxes of 1868 and colleej
tud in 1870 and 1871 1.609.38
Tuxes.of 1870 5.703.52
Making a total up to April
15th, 1871, of 814,216.90
As this sum represents the total taxes for
County purposes which will be collected, in
all probability, by the 19th of next November,
it is clear that tHfc debt of the County
wifl'Ithen amount to nearly $18,000 !
it will be seen, that although it was
within the power of the County Commissioners,.to
know what capital they had to draw
ag/unst,1 they have overdrawn that capital
bye -nearly Fifteen thousand Dol'ars. In
addition to this debt, the County did owe to
th|.Tr?asurer of the State Lunatic Asylum,
nbgpt,4l3Q0, bearing 7 per cent interest, for
paujjenduuatics, but by a joint resolution of
the Legislature, the State was made to assume
the debt.
In other respects', the condition of the
Coputy is equally bad. The Poor House
containing about twenty inmates, and cost.
ingf. with the other poor of the (Jounty. about
82500, per annum, is unable to" procure supplies
from any source whatever, and will of
necessity,.be abandoned, if some mode of relieCisjapt
soon discovered.
What the wretched inmates will do then,
is we cannot answer: There ^rc now,
moi^ ij)'peals for charity, from persons iu necesaJjCflW
aircumstances, than we have ever
known,i and with the Poor Rouse closed, it
is fearful to contemplate the suffering that
willefisne.
The Sheriff, has a judgment against the
County, for nearly 81500, and as soon as a
coroner can qualify, will sell out its entire
property, since it will take nearly, if not
quite all, to satisfy his judgment. The Auditor
was reported as incompetent, by the
Grand Jury, >at the last session of the Circuit
)C6urt, which fact no one is disposed to
dispotej and wc lcuru that efforts arc being
made' to'ohst him and put in his place, one
to whomjthc same objection might lie, not,
indeed,\dn; the ground of educational incom
pctency, but of physical health,
The extravagance of the Probate Judgo, in
purchasing .Books for his office, with
printed forms, costing $25 oach, and not containing
mote than four hundred pages; of
the County Commissioners who hired teams
for travelling about to different localities, at
the rate of $7.00 prr iU>:m, besides charging
for mileage and their own services; of the
late Auditor, who charged the County for
officetrent, when said office was kept in his
own ho?se; of the Commissioners again, for
purchasing nearly $400 worth of lumber for
the Poor House, and leaving it on the ground
to rotj hecayse they had not the means to
employ workmen ; of the Tax Assessors who
have post the County in three years not less
Af munnoropd nf nloofinna urliinTi
Lilian yjVVU y V4 Jtuuiiwgviw v* n **tvu
have in the same timo, cost not less than
$1000; all combine to show the most desperate
stajte, of things, as extant in this County.
It is but the repetition on a smaller scale,
of tW extravagances of the State Government,
The people well know who are responsible
for this state of things, and they
intend.to hold them up to responsibility.
All this time we have been powerless to
help ourselves, but now that the dawn of
reason has begun, and the authorities seem
to be trying to do their duty by all classes,
we have resolved, as citizens who are anxious
for their welfare and reputation, that
this system of wholesale plundering shall
cease.' We are determined to expose tho
villanieSVe have endnred in silence, and to
arraigu before them the bar of public justice
and (hat the majesty of that law they have
trampled under foot, may be vindicated, and
that unprincipled men may learn that t'heir
sin is sure to find them out, and sooner or
later merited punishment will be meted out
to them.
What we have said has no personal allusion,
arises from no private animosity, is but
remotely connected with politics, but embodies
what we deem to be "the views of
those who rising above party prejudice,
seek only reserve from destruction their
loved land marks as a people.
RoIIoT For School Teachers.
We have it upon good authority that the
claims of the School Teachers of this Count y.
will be paid about the end of this, or the
first of next month. This will be a source
of great relief to some of the teachers. While
upon this subject, it may be well testate, that
there are about twenty-five teachers in thin
County, whose salaries average thirty Dollars
per month, which would make au aggregate
of $750.00 per month. Say that
school is kept ten months in the year, the
annual expenses for salaries, would be $0,000.
Multiply this sum by the number of Counties
in the State (32) aud wo have a grand
total of $28S.0U0 for salaries of teachers,
throughout the State. But Kershaw is one
of the smallest Counties, and it would be'
reasonable to say that not less than $325,000
would suffice for this purpose. Wo know
of some teachers, who are utterly incompetent.
for their work, and the public money is
thus uselessly squandered. There are many
competent persons who would be glad to receive
the salary of even a second or third
grade teacher, aud we think that economy
could very well be introduced into this department
as well as every other, aud at the same
time, a thorough systcai of schools kept up.
Representative Stephen Garcy.
The life and actions of a truly great man
always afford a subject for the study and,
emulation of youth. More especially is this
the c;ise when by the more force of inate genius,
that man suddenly emerging from the
gloomy and shaded retreats of private life,
bursts like a comet upon the arena of publicity
and startles the world by the brilliancy
of his intellectual achievements. Unlike
some "mute, inglorious Milton," or flower
"born to blush unseen," the self-made man
rising in all the might of his genius scatters
the clouds which, perchance, have surrounded
his humble birth, and gives to mankind the
uncommon phenomenon of a full grown man,
1
emerging irom ojujuliuuu, um uvj^mu^ uu?
to pause for the slow progress from youth
into manhood. In times like these, when
mediocrity secuis to have usurped the proper
seat of high talent, we consider Kershaw
County us cxtremcljffavorcd by, and worthilyproud
of being represented in the Legislative
Halls of the Stato by a Garey.
111 our last issue we had the honor of laying
before our readers a beautiful specimen
of the grammar, rhetoric and persuasive
eloquence of our Garey. On Saturday evening
last, for the first time, an immense audieuccj
consisting of ten men, two boys and a dog,
assembled in the Town Hall, to be electrified by
the lightning force, the resistless torrent
like power of a Garey's matchless oratory. It
was on this occasion, that the true qualities
of greatness shone resplendent in the actions
of our Garey. Unmindful of the vast assemblage
before him, unmoved by the frequent
and loud applause, patriotically overlooking
the ingratitude of Republics, christianly forgiving
the folly of those who stayed away,
this great man, like Pickwick, with one
hand benoath his coat tails, "and the other
elevated in mid-air, like the 6word of Damocles,
poured forth "thoughts that breathed
in words that burned," persuading, exhorting,
entreating, commanding, cautioning,
_ aL!?. otnrn irrnf rn*?
SCtlinmjJ J III V OlUl U <WUI|IVV| a. W.
able logic, moving rhetoric, followed each
other in continuous but regular order, until
carried away by the enthusiasm of the moment,
the vast audience fell asleep! The
dog howled his disapprobation of such conduct,
but the. great man exerting himself to
a pitch almost beyond conception, closed with
a glowing peroration, and the vast assemblage
dissolved.
"We understand that it is Carey's intention
to treat us outer barbarians of Camden to a
weekly dose of his panacea, until the rust of
centuries shall be gone, the scales fall away
from our eyes, and wo heathens sees the future
in the clear light of a Garcy's mind.
Like many other martyrs who have gone
before, Gary intends to sow the seed of
fame, so that even after he shall have passed
away, his works will remain, and men in
generations to come, away down the dim vista
of futurity, when passing by his "splendid
mausoleum, erected to his memory by a grateful
people, nmy pause and regret that they
jived not in the time of such giants as he,
and will impress upon their children to the
remotest generation, the story of this pioneer
of civilization. "Will our people appreciate
the fact, that this self-sacrificing Garcy desires
to do them trood, like a bottle of Plan
tation Bitters, or Russell's Soothing Cord:al,
Perry Davis' Painkiller or Walker's Vinegar
Bitters ? We pause for a reply.
Confederate Dead in Pennsylvania.
?On Tuesday, 9th inst., the lower house
of the Pennsylvania Legislature passed to a
second reading a bill appropriating $5000
for the use of Washington Cemetery, Maryland,
to be expended in removing to said
cemetery the bodies of Confederate soldiers
buried in scattered places in Pennsylvania.
The vote stood?yeas 46; nays 35. j
* J
A' Conference?The Ku Klux Lav.
A number of our citizens, J>y invitation,
visited Major Merrill, f^ost Commandant at
this place, on Saturday last, to confer upon
the subject of the disorderly and turbalient
spirit which has prevailed in this section of
the State. Major Merrill, expressed his regrets
that bands of disguised men had recently
been whipping and otherwise maltreating
white ami colored citizens oflhis
section. He mentioned incidents connected
with each of the most recent acts of violence,
which impressed those present with the^ca
that he is kept informed as to the operations
of disguised persons in this County. He
stated that he*had in his possession, the
names of a number of the parties who,had
engaged in these unlawful acts; and wad"also
in. possession of proof amply sufficient to convict
some of the persons before any-impartial
jury. He seemed to be amusofl at
the idea that the names of the guilty parties
were not known to the people, and asserted
that he could furnish them, and could have
such persons arrested in a few hours. *IIe
expressed the belief that the reason, phy
these parties persisted in such acts, wastthc
cort;ii n ty they felt that no person would |aro
to testily against them; and, in this connection
he exonorated the civil officers of'what
Mould appear to be dereliction in the^dischargo
of their duties, by not arresting .'and
bringing forward to trial the guilty per&ins.
For the reason that victims arc afraid to
make complaints, no warrantaare issued, and
consequently the sheriff or other prqjfer j&fficer
is powerless to make arrests.
Major Merrill frankly stated that his-tole
object in asking a conference, was that he
might ind.ucathe influential citizens of the
County to adopt prompt and decisive measures
to suppress any further disturbance, and
thereby avoid the consequences of military
interference; that he much preferred that the
civil authorities should regulate their own
affairs; and that lie was satisfied that if the
people opposed to lawlessness would urfite
and sustain each other and the civil authorities
in suppressing such acta, domestic disorder
would cease at once. He referred to the
fact that a large number of the laborer^ in
the North-eastern section of the County vApre
afraid to sleep in their houses, and that such
a state of affairs could not longer be tetaruted;
that lie was daily expecting notice tSat
' # /.?? lit It 1
tnc writ 01 hctueas corjm.s naa Dccn suspcnqea
in this County, but still hoped, by tho tiMely
action of the people, the necessity of declaring
martial law would be avoided. r
It is iiow left with our people to say whether
or not they intend to rcgulaie their otwi
civil affairs. To succeed in restoring quit
and order, men must no longer withhold thai
expressed and unequivocal disapprobation
Cau we longer permit the best interests ol
society to be imperrilled without a protdk.
when the remedy is so plain and obvioif?
All unlawful acts are wrong in principle
and 'the only differcnco can be as to the rem
edy. In this case, that remedy lies in public
opiiiion. Let public opinion condemn
violent acts as wrong, and society will no
Linger be afliictcd with domestic disorder. '
Any farther repetition of acts of violence in
this County, we foclasiurcd, will be regarded
by the military authorities, under the Ku
Klux Act, as a denial of the equal protection
of law to all of our citizens. The military
will proceed by arresting the supposed guilty
parties to suppress acts of violence under
the Ku Klux Act; and partieg, when arrested,
will be delivered over to tlm United
"\T.ir>1i:il rnurfc at Columbia. Charles
ton or Greenville. Under such circumstances
it will be next to impassible to procure
bail. The innocent as well as the guilty arc
liable to be suspected, and the expense of
trial in the United States Court will necessitate
costs in procuring witnesses, counsel,
fees, &c., that few of our citizens cannot
meet.
The Ku Klux Act comprehends all persons
found in disguise, or in unlawful assemblies
on the highways, or on the premises of
another. This Act will be enforced, and
rigidly enforced; aud unless our people at
once determine that there must he no farther
acts of violence in the County, wc will soon
have occasion to observe the practical operations
of the law in its utmost severity aud
with all its unpleasant consequences.
YorkvUlc Enqr.irer.
Selection for Newspapers.?Most people
think the selection of suitable matter for
a newsnaner the easiest part of the business.
X X ?
How great an error. To look.over fifty exchange
papers daily, froui which the question
is not what shall, but shall not be selected,
it is no very easy task. If every person
who reads a newspaper could have edited
it, we should have less complaints. Not unfrerjuentl^is
it the case that an editor looks
over his exchange papers in search of something.
Every paper dryer than a contribution
box, and yet something must be had?
his paper must be out, and something must
be in it, and he doc3 the best he can. To an
editor who has the least care what he selects,
the writing he has to do is the easiest part
of his labor. Every subscriber thinks the
paper is printed for his benefit, and if there
is nothing that suits him it must bo good for
nothing. As many subscribers as an editor
has. so many tastes he has to consult. One
wants something very smart and sound. One
likes anecdotes, fun and frolic, and his next
door neighbor wonders that a man of enso
will put such stuff in his paper. Something
spicy comes out and the editor is blackguard.
Next comes something argumentative
and the editor is a dull fool. And so
between them all, the poor fellow gets the
worst of it. They never reflect what docs
not please them, will please the next man j
but tney insist that if the paper docs not
-please them, it is good for nothing.
Arrival op Maj. Sam. Dickerson.?
This well known colored man has returned
from his trip North, the incidents of which
have been published. Sam comes home
most heartily disgusted with Northern "air,"
? j LJa determination to do all in his
(ill U ilVUIIO Hiw vw.?
power to uproot the lladicals and carpetbaggers
generally from the Stato. lie has
evidently lost his love for persons of their
persuasions. He said that Horace Greeley
told him that there never would be peace in
the South until the ''low whito men who had
come down 'here since the war were expelled."
Sam says that he will use hist best exertions
in that direction, and will soon kindle
a political fire in this State which will
never be quenched until it has consuniod all
of the evils . which afflict it in the form of
"carpet-baggers, ex-stable kcepors and bar
tenders from the North."?Char. Courier.
i . ..'/ion;.. *.'*: .
Obstructing the Fisheries.
This subject having been referred, by.the
Legislature of the State, at its last session; to
the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, the
Acting Commissioner has applied to the Attorney-General
of the State as to his powers
and duties iu the premises. The following
reply of that officer, which is as explicit as
emphatic, is published for the information of
our readers:
Office of the Attornev-General, 1
Columbia, S. C. May 15, 1871. }
John Hart, Esq., Acting Comirutsioncir Bureau
Agricultural Statistic*:
Dear Sir:?Your note of the Gth inst.,
has been before me for several days, awaiting
an opportunity for reply.
An examination of the statutes of the
Stats since 1870 will show that the State
has sought to protect, in the amplest manner,
the great interest of all her citizens in the
tree passage ot migratory Usla m ail ncr inland
creeks, bays and rivers.
A sorics of general and special enactments
for the past ninety years attests this desire
and purpose on the part of the State. 13y
one of these Acts, all obstructions to the free
passage of fish are declared public nuisances,
and any citizen or citizens aro authorized .to
summarily abate them. The greater part of
the older Acts upon this subject are still of
force, but two more recent enactments, prescribe
anew the laws which govern these
cases.
By a joint resolution of the General Assembly,
passed January 19th, 1870, a Board
of Fish Commissioners were authorized, and
their duties defined. These are:
1. To inspect all inland streams and report
what obstruction ought to be removed,
or what impurities are allowed to flow into
streams where fish are found.
, 2. To report all violations of the fish laws
to the Solicitors of several Circuits of the
State.
The Solicitors arc, by the same resolution,
directed to prosecute all persons reported by
the Fish Commissioners. This gives the
o 11 . 1 _! _ _11 1 *1 I
luucsi power to eniorcc an existing laws men
.existing were very full and complete for that
purpose. I can hardly conceive of a case
which is not covered by the various Acts
passed pvior to 18C8. But at the last session
of the Legislature an Act was passed
which fully re-enacts the leading features of
former laws,' and again offers the fullest
means for the complete protection of our
migratory fish. The fish section of this Act
forbids any permanent obstruction of any
kind whatever in any of the inland waters of
the State, to the free migration of fish; and
further provides for a "close time" in each
week, from Saturday night to Monday morning,
and any person violating the provisions
of this section is made liable to a fine of
twenty dollars for every olfcncc. The second
section of this Act requires all manufacturing
companies, or persons erecting dams,
to provide suitable fishways, and renders
them 1 able to a fine of $.),OUO far failure or
refusal to comply with this requirement.?
The tiiird section of this Act makes it an indictable
offence to cause to flow, or to be
cast, into the inland waters of the Stale any
substances poisonon > or destructive to fish,
and attaches to the offence as penalty a fine
of not less than ?f>00, or imprisonment for
not lew than six months. This law is of
force, and supplemented by m.'ny of the
previsions of former laws, which are also of
force, and, I am sure, that as Commissioner
of the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, you
could hardly ask as for more complete legal
facilities for carrying out the duties of your
office. You have only to ascertain any violations
of the foregoing laws, and report them
to the Solicitors of the several Circuits
wherein they occur.
In addition to this I shall be glad, at any
time, to give you any farther aid in my power
in rendering your administration of this
branch of your official duty effective and useful.
Very respectfully,
D. II. Chamberlain,
Attorney-General.
Tiie "Winnsboro' Homicide?True
State of the Case.?As we suspected it
turns out that the account given of the killing
of the County Treasurer, of Fairfield,
was?to put it mildly?highly colored. The
Winnsboro' Nttcs in its last issue, says:
We regret to state that Mr. John W.
Clarice, County Treasurer of Fairfield, died
on Tuesday night from the effects of a wound
inflicted Tuesday morning, by a pistol shot
fired by Mr. W. D. Aiken, in a personal
dfficulty. The matter will undergo a judicial
investigation, and we forbear extended
comment. Mr. Aiken and Mr. George
II. McMaster, it is 6aid interferred to part
Mr. Clarke and Mr. Samuel DuBose who
were exchanging blows, when Mr. Clarke
seized Mr. Aiken by the throat, and continuing
to choko him against his protest and
warnings to desist the latter drew a pistol
and shot him through the bowels.
The statement that appears in the Columbia
Umion (Wednesday) we know to bo in
totQ false, and citizens desiro to hear from
what pious missionary thto. paper receives its
malicious and lying information.
The verdict of the Coroner's Jury was,
that John W. Clarke came to his death by a
pistol shot in the hands of Wm. D. Aiken.
Mr. Clarke was buried at the Methodist
Church in this place, on Wednesday afternoon
with Masonic honors.
Bailed.?Wm. D. Aiken, Esq., charged
with the death of Treasurer Clark, of Fair-1
field, on Tuesday, last, was brought before
Judge Melton, in chambers, yesterday, on
application for bail. A written petition was
presented by J. B. McCants, Esq., with
affidavits o? numerous witnesses, that the
fatal shot was fired in self-defence, and while
Clark actually ha4 Aiken by the throat.?
Solicitor Talley, assisted by Messrs. Worthington
and Iloge, insisted that it was a capital
offence, and, consequently, not bailable.
Judge Melton after summing up, decided
that, in his judgment, the prisoner was entitled
to be released on bail, as it was not a
capital offence. It was the duty of every
good citizen to prevent a breach of the
peace, if possible; and Mr. Aiken had so attempted;
had placed his hand softly upon
the shoulder of Mr. Clark, and endeavored
to put a stop to the difficulty between Messrs.
Clark and DuBose. Mr. Ciurk seized Mr.
Aiken by the throat, and, although warned
by the latter to release him. maintained his
grasp, when ho received tho fatal wound.
The Judge in conclusion, stated that he would
require bail in the sum of $5,000. which was
premptly furnished, and Mr. Aiken was released,
and immediately returned homo.'
Columbia Phoenix, of Friday.
The Story of "E. K. Harring-ton," the
Mysterloua Suicide. >.
"The beautiful suicide'' who died at the
Stevens House, New York, some -days ago,
and whose history is totally jihiknown up to
hour of her burial, has boen'tieognized by a
, correspondent of the World, who gives ner
history at some length. The name signed to
the note sho left was E. K. Harrington.?
This, the correspondent gays, was . not her
real name, and the latter does nofchoose to
divulge. Eleven years ago, he says, in a
southern city, the lady was tnan ied to a gentleman
in every way worthy, apparently, and
the union promised the happiest results.
The war came . and the husband, we read,
"went to the field with the rank of colonel
in the army of the Confederate States.?
The wife returned to a plantation in the upper
part of Georgia. Here she remained
until 18G4, when she contrived to pass the
lines and conic to New York. She did this
!>. /,A?nnA.MAM/.A S.i* 1^ At* ltl1L)l\<in/1 O It 01 f tl A> It/JArt
Ill ^UUSUlJUULivi; \Ji Iici mwwunu c ut*i <u^ uucu
taken prisoner, and allowed to live in the
city on parole. Before lor.g some vague rumors
which she had heard in the South were
intensified and strengthened into conviction
by Col. Harrington's conduct. In a word,
he had been publicly charged with being a
coward, and his reluotance to seek, an
avoidance of an exchange confirmed the accusation.
Loving him so intensely as she*!
did, this disgrace to his manhood afflicted
her most.keenly. It was not long before he
perceived by her manner that something
was wrong, and by persistent questioning at
length obtained the truth. lie naturally
indignantly denied the imputation, but when
she pressed him?at whatever cost of sorrow
to herself?to again join the Confederate,
forces, he refused; and, on her persistently
urging it, so fur forgot himself as to strike
her. Nor was this brutality of single occurrence.
Uut, although suffering the most
poignant anguish, her love for him remained
strong and earnest as when first married. And
it was the excess of this love which rendered
her utterly miserable. She had no children
on whom to bestow her corroded affection,
and though despising him thoroughly to
whom fate had linked her, still loved him
fondly. It can easily be seen how such feelings
conflicting and yet alike, would operate.
As time went on the knowledge that his
I wife considered him a dastard led Col. Harrington
to take to hard drinking. !Jhen the
misery of his poor wife was, if possible, intensified.
She would not leave him. With
the self-abnegation known only to women
she clung to him, and continued to present
tho curious spectacle?not so rare, by the
way?of a wife cherishing a man whom-she
knows to be contemptible. Needless is it to
say that her favor was sought by numerous
admirers, but sought in vain. She remained
true to her husband; true as the needle to
the pole. The hard drinking went on, the
brutality increased, her misery rose daily,
but never to the height of heaven. Three
years ago, after a stormy scene with her husband,
drunk as was only too customary, she
find wildlv from the house tvith the inten
tion of drowning herself. Fortunately, or
not, as the case may be, she was met by a
friend, dissuaded from her purpose and taken
home to fall into an almost fatal illness,
on her recovery, it was the same life over
again, the same treatment, the sanio sorrow,
and t lie same never-conquerable love. To
her iutiuiate friends she oflcn spoke of suicide,
and defended its moral rights; saying
that there were some wrongs, some miseries,
which only a self-inflicted death could end.
<7hec more she tried the fatal leap?with
what result is a matter of wide notoriety.?
Perhaps her best epitaph is the words with
which she finished her mortuary note: 'Judge
I not, that ye be not judged.' And so ends
the story of 'E. K. Harrington.'"
Tiie Fate op General Duval?Lecompte
and Tiiomas Avenced.?General
Duval was made prisoner on Chatilon
Heights, and was on his way to Versailles
with the several hundred other insurgent
prisoners captured at the same time, when, at
the crossroads where the Secaux, Paris, Versailles
and Bievre roads fork, the prisoners
ar.d guard met General Viuay and staff, who
trot-n tm/1 i n ct in I4oi<rVliQ ITp nr
dcrcd the guards to halt, and he dismounted,
went to the prisoners and said: ' There is
among you a Monsieur Duval who call himself
General. I should like to see him."
General Duval stepped from the ranks calmly
and with dignity, and said, "I am lie." Gen.
Viuoy added : "And there arc two 'chcs da
bataillou' also with you." They stepped
forward. General Vinoy ' said to them :
' You arc frightful wretches (canailles); you
shot General Clement Thomas and General
Lccompto, and you know your fate." Turning
to the commander of the guard, lie said:
"Captain, detail a platoon often riflemen,
and do you. goutlemen, go with him to yonder
field." The insurgent officers quietly
walked to the spot indicated, a narrow field
on the road to Mcudon, and lying on the
northern side of a white boundary wall,
on which is painted in very large letters
: "Duval Garden." In front- of this
wall General Duval and his companions
stood, threw off their coats, and placed themselves
before the platoon charged with their
execution. When the muskets were leveled
at their breasts they shouted "Vive la Commune
!" and the next instant fell corpses.
Paris Letter.
Ex-Gcncnral Roger A. Pryor, lato of
Virginia, had sonic words with council to
whom he was opposed in a case on hearing
before Judge McCunn, the special term room
of the Superior Court this morning. When
the ease had been disposed of the counsel
met just outside the door of the court-room,
and the despute was renewed. Gen. Pryor
waxed wroth, seized counsel by the nose,
tweaked that organ violently, then grasped
his coat lappols, giving him a vigorous shaking
and showering epithets remarkable for
their vigor and terseness, upon his unfortunate
head. Counsel threatened the vengeance
of the law upon the belligerent General,
but the latter turned upon his heel and walked
away, thus ending the scene
" ?rPir ^ m 1Q,1,
j.\. j. uummerciut>) j.oi/6.
"The knave that fired the Ephesian dome
outlived in fame the pious fool who reared
it;" and we suppose it is this kind of immor!
tality the lcadcs of the Communo have
1 sought for themselves, in levelling the colI
unin of all the glories of France in the
Place Vendome, and they have achieved it.
They have erected a monument to their own
j infamy far more durable than the brazen
pile which, in the fury of their fanatical in[
sanity, they pulled down.
A" '
JT ' ?*,
- * I
A More Chaerful Outlook to the Plant- ^
era. J
From the Maeon (Oct.) Telegraph and Mutenger*
The terrible experience of the past two
years, maugre all predictions to the contrary, J
is- beginning to work out the pecuniary a
salvation of the Southern agriculturists. fl
From an interview recently whh one of -I
the largest provision dealers in the citj, an4
perhaps in the South, the pleasing intellq M
genee was derived that tip to this pcridcT^iin^J
the current year not more than one-half oF
the bacon, and one-fifth of thecorn had been
shipped to the interior as compared with
the consumption, of the previous season." "
Upon enquiry, we learn, affij that thei
books of the Central Flail Boad shows a falling
off of near three-fourths of the guano
trade of Middle and Southwestern Georgia.
From this we argue, that our husbandmen
finding out how dangerous it is to toy with
cotton, that most uncertain of coquetts, are*
beginning to turn their attention to the pro
auction of gram, stock, fruits, and other
comforts and. luxuries of,the farm. TKe
lesson, if really acquired, was taught not *
moment too soon.
And now that the planting season fs orer I
and there is no longer danger of further-in- A
crcasc to the cotton crop, through the grec<? fl
of thoughtless parties,- we propose to show
that the farmer has a fair prospect for an
improvement in tliq price of the great staple*. ^
at the opening of the Fall market. Our
reasons for this opinion may he briefly
summed up as follows:
1st- The acreage laid down in cotton this
year will be erne-fifth leas than in 1870- M
This is caused in part, by the abstraction or 41
thousands of able laborers, who now swarnu
'upon the numerous rail roads, and other
public works in progress of-construct ion, and
the unprecedented rains and fresheta of
the past few weeks. In the West on the
margin of rivers, in the region desolated by
the dreaded crevasse, and in Southwest Geor- A
gia, Florida and Alabama, where thousands M
acres of the best lands are still under water, ^
the crop will fail to be seeded at all, or must
come forward too late for a good yield.
2d. The unfavorable spring has greatly fl
retarded field operations, and much cotton
will be eaten, up by grass before it can be
chopped aud cleaned out. One of the best k
planters in Randolph actually ploughed up"
a good stand of cotton Inst week, as ho eould '-i
only'destroy the grass by that method, and '<!
was willing to undergo the chances of a late:
crop, in perference to the labor of cultivating
that which was already unmanageably. - To >
this may be added the fact, that present * M
low prices do not offer any inducement to
the farmer to ndglect his corn prospect^ and^'U
as is most proper, this branch of agrcultureis
receiving far more attention than usual.
3d. The pacification of Europe will en-able
its war weary inhabitants to turn their
attention on^e more to the production or
food, and recuperation of their exhausted
resources, and ere another season opens, the.
hum of business will again begin to enliven
the blood-Btained streets of the half-deserted j
cities of that continent, and the demand/or i
cotton resume its normal proportions, v y* "
Lastly, as has been announced in a formerissuo,
carefully preserved records of past
seasons indicate that three successive years j
favorable for the development of the cotton 4
plant, attended also with late frosts, are unknown
in the history of the country. A
heavy ! crop, tl erefore,' the present year' is<
not within the range f pr >bibilities.
Let our p'a-iters than take heart, a id app'y
themselves with renewed vigor and determination
to the w irk of rendering .hjir fiuiilies
really independent, by raising 4
abundant supplies of food for both man and J
! beast. |
Thus situated, wife even a hilf crop of!. ^
cotton and enhanced prices, the silver lining
to the clond will again cheer their vision,
and the days of their present tribulation: be A
shortened. v: I
The Parisians have pulled dowmttve & a
inn us column in the Place Vcn'domc. It
was of bronze, one hundred and thirty-fife 1
feet high, and was mado out of twelve inn- f
dred cannon captured in the campaigns of 1
Napoleon, to whose glory it was dedicated.. "
It was overthrown to express the detestation J
of the Parisian Commune and people of the V
Bonaparte rule and system. As a wojrk of J
art is was remarkable, being copied after thp-^ 1
Trajan's pillar in Rome. In falling iff$roke: %
into several pieces, and the statue of Napo-- ' tfl
Icon on the top lost its head. A vast- con>-. j
course witnessed the event.
? - j
* . STATE ITEMS. ,
Lancaster is to hare a minstrel troupe. 1
K. G. Billings of Lancaster, has beea ap- J
pointed Notary Public by Governor Scott, jj
Jefferson Dav's, ex-President of the late- j
Southern Confedracy, was in Columbia yesterday.
AVhooping-cough and chicken-pox are pre- j
vailing to an alarming extent in the neighborhood
of Marion Court House. J
3Iaj. Samuel Dickcrson has returned from 4
the North sore-headed. Ilia experience
there has envenomed him against the carpet- j
baggers. ]
The prospects for an abundant wheat crop,
in Union county are quite gloomy. The rust
and fly have taken complete possession of it
in many localities. A
The Barnwell Smtinel says that crops of I
all kinds are looking well. From all parts J
of the county we hoar the most favorable
reports, and the prospects for fruit, of all 4
kinds was never better. fl
Air .Tnsenh Hewit. the old and well known
proprietor of the Point Ifouse, on Sullivan's j
Island, attempted to kill himself Saturday fl
by cutting his throat with a razor, failing
after four efforts. 3Iental depression was, I
the cause of the rash act. 4
The new court house at Blackville is being 1
built under the supervision of Dr. G. B.
Lartigue, and in all probability will be conu '
plcted in time for the Fall term of court.?
It will be a handsome brick structure, forty
by sixty feet and will cost about $8,000.?
The county commissioners of Barnwoll pro* 1
posed to build it for $40,000. J
The Sumter Ncirs says, that on the eve.
ning of the 21st inst., Mr, Wm, Simms,
while returning homo in company with his
son and daughthcr, (Mrs. Sanders.) was shot
and instantiy killed by Mr. James Sanders}
(his son-in-law,) the same shot also wound- .
iug Mrs. Sanders. Sanders then fired upon '
young Simms, inflicting painful but no* < ,
rious wounds.