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PUBLISHED THREE JONES SLOGAN Is He Tsxatioa Wilhwt EqoalizalifiQ In Stafc Mma JODGERS Tm\x C?K^S^Uer-Geoeral ??^v^if^ With the Tkl^^e^ment Methods as This State <? i'a > So Cam to Have Tt w ? > ?? - ? . - - - ?? His Way. ? >* A. W. Jones, comptroller-general at'South Carolina has a new Bio-: gam and one which he thinks should s.aaplant the .famous expression of j Patrick Henry. "No taxation without equaliza tteu." says the comptroller, for the ether, "no taxation without repre sentation," has passed away and it seems to be the "life work of Mr. Joses to equalize the"taxes in this Slate. For 'twenty; years has ac famght for such a condition, long j sofore he 'played into State ' poli ties. '" * He is not fighting the corpora tteas for i*? his opinion they are Ivet te, assessed than the land of thej sSte.^-" ? p ? ' * 4 However, exceptions have been tfaJcac'"io his statement- as. to street railways and power companies. ' Tker foilowinff' is 'a^Stbry publish-j ?4 and answer- written' by Mr. Jeaes in "newspaper style: "The report made o'y Comptroller, ?j&aaeral Jones, pubttshed; :ycsterday, ea the ?assessment of the/Columbia.} awactrlc Street Railway, Light and Power Company;' haie ' attracted con: aWerable attention a?i?- as'a resutt' same flgurea^n^efetts? of the- Rlcb> lasd county boaYd of equalization to show that the present equalization Is on returns made* byvthe corpora-j Han in question an^t^st' 'the-* 'as-j sascment of a franchise?th*at is, the [ jsodwlll of a" corporation?1b '-im passible under' the present law. **The street" railway^ company. oc-| ?Ording to Mr. Gibbes, is assessed. a?1icba?is:'of''|8i6op'a mile and fol lawing the rule the assessment is ?T^O'-per cent '?fttilsl1 which '-s ?4.000 a mile. ' In addition, to this, ?s?' e^nltfrn-ent-ot the^conijany is al-j co returned, aa with othtr corpora tions, and assessed at the usual Rich land standard, which Is, probably, as high as any county in the State, ktr. Gibbes said a thorough invefc ?gatlon was made for i'Toperty val ues. "Concerning the assessment of the Columbia canal, Auditor Gibbes pointed out that this came under the supervision of the State board ef equalization and the judgment of j tkat body is that the canal is worth $15!o,000. The board, following out( tho usual rule, does not tax the value of the franchise. 'The figures given by Comptroller-j General Jones on the local plant j ace disputed by William Elliott, gen eral manager of the Street Railway,. Light and Power Company, especial ly as to earnings and gross receipts, ^fbwever, as the matter ha3 been terougbt up in this manner and will si given In the annual report of the comptroller, It is probable that some standard will be adopted for a basis slvaluation on franchise. At pres ant there is no way to determine the 'goodwill' of a public Bervice corporation.." . Mr. Jones' Reply. "Comptroller-General Jones referr- j iag to the estimated valuation of the i property of the Columbia Electric | Street Railway, Light and Powe?-J Company, which now owns both the Columbia canal, formerly of the Co lumbia Water Power Company and street railway system in Columbia and vicinity, at $3,500,000.00, and Mr. Elliott's contention that the figures as to Income are Incorrect, says, that these figures were taken by him from the returns of the Co lumbia Electric Street Railway, Light and Power Company, sworn .to by Mr. Elliott in the spring of 1901), as fellows: Gross receipts from pow er department (ca nal) .$108,139.2S Gross receipts from Lighting department . 10S.645.20 Gross receipts from Street Railway Depart ment _'. 159,401.90 Aggregate income of Co lumbia Elec. Street Ry. L. & Power Co.. . $376.186.38 "This company operated 21.36 miles of Street Railway, Columbia Canal and Electric Lighting Plant, has a monopoly of transportation, sale cf power, and through the in direct ownership by its stockholders of the Columbia Gas Company, has also a monopoly of the lighting plants in the city. While the Co lumbia Gas Company is a separate corporation, it has the same general' officers as the Street Railway Com-.' ppnv. tn wit: Eiwin W. Robinson,! prcsir'rrt: O. M. P?rry, secretary, and William Elliott, general manag er "The Comptroller General says he ioes not propose to be diverted from 1 estimating the true money value of th's propertv, what It is actually wr-th pnd will nroduce In nollars and cents, by talk about an Indefi nable 'goodwill* or "franchise' as ex isting apart from the property. "Joe Sparks." - ? TIMES A WEEK. MINE EXPLOSION EIGHT MEN KILLED AND 400 HAVE NARROW ESCAPE. Resctares Brave Danger From Fire Damp and Recover Three Bodies. Fire Gains Headway. -""T-Eight men were killed and four .-V.'ndred others had narrow escape* in an explosion of gas in Mine "A" of the Chicago and Cartersville Coal Company at Herrin, HL, late Thurs day. Open lamps carried by employers of the mine are believed to have caused the disaster. There were three men and a boy in this party, and all are dead. The dead: W. T. Pierce, mine en gineer; Eusene Barrett, assistant en-i gineer; Thomas H. Williams, assist ant manager; unidentified boy, about 16 years old; George Snyder, miner; Salvatore Greeco, miner; Pietro Romeo, laborer; Thomas Harber, miner. : James Guinney, superintendent of thii mine, a nd Robert Hueston, man ager, headed the first relay of res cuers. Despite the black damp which Sowed into the chambers adjoining those in which Pierce and his party :\irere killed, these men went into the : workings. ?' After sending to the surface three unconscious persons, the rescuers next ; found the bodies of Snyder, Greeco and Romeo. The efforts of the rescuers to pen etrate more deeply Into the work ings were, repulsed by increasing banks of after-damp, and they were forced toK retreat, leaving the bodies of Pierce and his companions. Firp also began to gain' headway, and it is not expected that the bodies can be removed.. All efforts are being directed towards fighting the flames. News of the disaster spread through Herrin, -and there was a rush of hysterical women and crying children to'the-'shaft- house. The damage to the mine cannot yet be accurately estimated. The col liery is one of the oldest In 'he sec tion and few accidents have occurred in It. Pierce, the engineer who los* his life, formerly was a Federal in spector of Government work on the Mississippi River. ? A BRUTAL MURDER. ? J. E. LiddeU Dies Within Sight of of His Home. At Greenville at ten o'clock on Christmas Eve J. E. Llddell, a real estate dealer, was found dead near the spot In the southeastern part of the cltly, where Wesley Russell, a mill worker was found wounded on Thursday night. Liddell had been dead an hour or more when found as the body was almost covered with snow. Christmas Eve he had been in the city shopping and started for home about 8 o'clock. He is a married man, and his wife becoming alarmed at his failure to arrive sent a neigh bor to look for h-im, with the result that his body was found within a stone'B throw of his home, a terrible gash in the man's head told the story of the tragedy, the wound evidently having been made with an axe or some sharp Instrument. Scattered all about the dead man were toys for his little children and a number of gifts for his wife. Residents of tho neighborhood, where the two tragedies have occur red one so quickly following the oth er are greatly wrought up over the crimes. Russell and Liddell were both struck in much the same man ner, except Russell had four gashes in his head, while Liddle had but one. Russell ('led Christmas night, from his wounds. Jess Fuller and Joe Baker, two white men, were arrested Sunday morning for the murder. The arrest was made after a confession alleged to have been made by Fuller to W. O. Stcver. a contractor. Fuller was taken to the police sta tion and a Iar?e crowd gatbesed. It I was feared for a time that tho pris oner woe id be taken from the guard house and lynched. He w-as finally escorted to the jail by the mayor and other citizens in company with the police. The crowd gathered around ! the Jail, and two squads of a local military company were stationed about to keep down any disorder. J The prisoner was finally spirited away In a large automobile by C. M. Wing and taken to Spartanburg. * Wild Cotton Trees. A test is to be made of the value of the fibre of the cotton bearing trees whirh grow wild in Sonora and Sinoloa. Mexico. The tree is known to the Mexicans as the aldone. Th? staple of the cotton is not as long ns that grown by the American plant er, but there is no need of ginning it. Merely flaying it with a pole while it is spread out on a canvas or a floor will rid it of the seeds. The staple is about an inch long. * Five Men Perish. At Shawnee, Okla., five workmen were killed and 17 others were In < i^-j.?nv hv thp explosion of a locomotive boiler that wrecked the rep?ir shop of the Chicago Rock Is land ? Pacific railroad. Railway of fichls say that only two are dead, although fragments of bodies found In the wreckage make It almost cer tain that five-were killed. ? ORANGEBUBS EIGHT SIGNORS AUVE GEORGIA SECESSIONIST LIVE TO RIPE OLD AGE. Some Iatereetlng Georgia History of the Beginning of War Between the States. Editor Savannah Press. Dear Sir: A few days ago I learn ed that only one member of the Secession convention of South Caro [ Una was living. p His name is Colonel R. A. Thomp son, a lawyer of Walhalla in that State. I have made inquiries of the several ordinaries of Georgia and And that we have the following mem bers of the Secession convention which met at Milledgeville, on Janu ary 16th, 1881, still alive: They are Fx-Governor Henry D. McDaniel of iuonroe, Ga., who was a delegate from Walton county; Is aac Bowen, now living at Reno, Kan sas, who was a delegate from White county; Judge Jeffsrson Jennings, a delegate from Clarke county, now living In Athens, Ga.; Judge Thomas S. Sherman, a delegate from Upson county; Judge Jefferson Jennings, a Ga.; Mr. W. T. Day of Pickens coun ty, now living at Jasper, Ga.; Dr. S. H. Lattimer, a delegate from Montgomery county, now living at Lumpkin, Ga.; Mr. D. Frank Gunn, a delegate from Houston county, now living at LaVIlle, Ga., and Samuel Harville, a delegate from Bulioch county, now living at Enal, in Bui loch county. So of the three hun dred and one delegates who answer ed the roll call at Milledgeville only eight now survive. The Ordinance of Secession was signed on January 21, 1861, by all the members except the following, who signed a protest: James P. Simmons of Gwinnett, Thomas M. McRae. S. H. Lattimer and Davis W. Welchel of Montgomery county, P. M. Bird of Hall county and James Simmons of Pickens county. Ex-Governor George W. Crawford was president of the convention, and Albert R. Lamar was secretary. I im Indebted to Mr. W. T. Hopkins of Savannah, Ga., who furnished me a complete list of the members of the convention and to the several ordinaries of the St3te who furnish ed me with the names of- those now living. If you think this of sufficient inter est, to our readers. I would be glad to see it published. Yours truly, J. A. Brannen. * MERCHANT KILLS MERCHANT. An Unfortunate Affair in the Town of Lancaster. Jesse W. Sowell, of the gro02ry firm of Ferguson & Sowell, wa-i shot and killed at Lancaster Christ mas afternoon by A. C. Carnes, ot the firm of Carnes Bros. The shoot ling occurred at the Heath-Elliott Company's stables. Sowell was shot in the left side, between the 5th and 6th ribs, just below the heart, and filed within half an hour of in ternal hemorrhage. Carnes was ar rested just after the shooting and lodged in jail. Those who are supposed to know anything about the tragedy are re luctant to talk, therefore, partlcu lars are hard to obtain. One report is that the trouble began in a friend ly tussle. Carnes, it is understood, claims that Sowell was choaking him uhen he fired the fatal shot. A search of Sowell's person by Sheriff Hunter revealed the fact that he had no weapon. Sowell, who was a man of re markable physique, was \2 years of age, and leaves a family. He was engaged in business In Columbia a few years ago. Carnes is a young man and unmarried. lie and Sowell are said to have been good friends. Three Perish in ley Water. Laura Currans. who had just re ceived the prize "for the prettiest virl in the school district," Alma Utterback, her chum, and Wm. John son, the girls' school teacher, were drowned Saturday night as they were | trying to reach their homes after a school social, by crossing Indian creek, near Bedford, Ind.. in a row boat. The boat upset and they were unable to reach the bank through the icy water. * Fatal Dispute Over Pool Game. A dispute over a pool game Thurs day morning at Birmingham, Ala., resulted in Luther Smith, the 18 year-old son of S. L. Smith, a Frisco railroad conductor, shooting H. L. Martin, tower watchman of the trmi ntl, three times. The bulletts enter ed the abdomen, Inflicting mortal wounds. * Dixie Most Popular. "Dixie" has finally been officially , proclaimed first in American songs and music in "patriotic popularity." Such is the verdict of 0. G. T. Son-' neck, chief of the divission of music 4n the library of congress, who has just i?sucl an exhaustive report on foer famous American musical com-; positions. * ] Hold Up Car Full. At Pittsburg. Pa., masked high ! waymen with drawn revolvers halted a street car Friday morning, forcing! the passendes to surender their val-1 i uables. Tying their victims with ropes, the robbers escaped. * S. Cm TUESDAY. DECI GEN. R. E. LEE It Is Said Northerners Object to His lauge in the Capital. ALL TOURISTS SEE IT j Virginia May Refuse to Let Statue? of Lee and Washington Remain Unless Congress Accepts the Form er Promptly in the Spirit in Which It Is Offered. A Washington dispatch to Th"> News and Courier says It Is learned that Immediately after the holidays the question of whether cr not the handsome bronze statue of Robert E. Lee, recently placed In Statuary Hall at the capitol, Is to te accepted by the government or raturned to Virginia will be settled. The mat ter, it is understood, will be forced to a decision. A member of .the Virginia com mission charged with the duty cf arranging ooth for the preparation of the Lee statue aud for its pre sentation to the government on be half of the State of Virgin's, Wednesday stated in most emphat ic terms that the Old Dominion would not let the question be forc ed, neither the acceptance of the statue, together with that of Oen. Washington, by the government. "As a member of the commission," he said, "and a citizen of Virginia, I will do my best to have the statues both of Lee and Washington re moved at once from Statuary Hall in the capitol and carried to Richmond, unless congress shall agree to accept them both, not only pleasantly but In the best of spirit. Virginia, you may be sure, is not anxious to force congress or any other body to recog nize Lee In Statuary Hall. In fact, I feel almost justified in saying that the matter has gone too far already. The grand old State of Virginia, and, Indeed, the entire South, has been Insulted by the very thought of re jecting the Lee statue. "If congress will not accept It In the spirit in which It is offered, then I feel safe In saying that a place will be found not only for this statue?the Lee statue?but for that of Washington also in the State cap itol in Richmond. The people not only of Virginia, but of the entire South would be glad to see both Washington and Lee In the city of Richmond. But I hope sincerely that no more will be said in a way that will make the Virginia peopl< feel that they would have to take such action as might some day be greatly regretted." It is learned here that there is a considerable amount of ill feeling engendered by the placing of these statues in the capitol. The official guides, who conduct tourist parties all through the building and see and talk with people from all over this and other countries, form an excel lent index Into the general senti ment of the people on various top ics of Interest. One of these guides was asked what the tourists thought of the mat ter?Irrespective of who they were or where they came from. He re plied that his business had Increas ed wonderfully since Lee was placed In the capitol, that many had view ed the Confederate general and his uniform with curiosity, and that al most without execption Northern sight-seers had condemned it. The feeling is thus seen to be quite bit ter. Washingtons and Lees. A few days a?o the press dispatch es announced the protest of the Michigan Loyal Legion against the acceptance by congress of Gen. Rob ert E. Lee's statue to stand beside the statue of George Washington, the two being the contribution of Virginia to the National Hall of Fame. The incident, says the New Orleans Daily States, has served to call attention to the curious fact that the Washingtons and the Lees have always been closely associated in the history of Virginia and of the country from the Colonial days down to the bloody War Between the States. The gallant and dashing "Light Horse Harry" Lee was a fa vorite of Washington and the beau sabreur of the Continental army whose knightly deeds will ever live in the history' of the American Rev olution. It appears that the day before the protest of the Michigan Loya! Legion was made public the Lee Camp of Confederate Veterans met in Richmond, Va., to receive a pic ture (jf Col. John Aujustine Wash ington, brother of George Washing ton. Col. Washington was lieuten ant colonel and aidc-de-cainp to C,,'\. Robert E. Lee, and a Washington of the genuine blood and breed. It is said that he was about the firs' man chosen by Gen. Lee for service on his personal staff, and that he met a soldier's death live months after the beginning of the civil war In the battle of Valiey Mountain, September 1?.. ISC,]. He was the last Washington to own and occupy the historic homestead at Mount Ver non, and in his memory the follow ing lines were written by the Rt. Rev. 13. D. Tucker, Bishop coadjutor of the Protestant Episcopal Church CMBEB 28 190?., I RAISES STORM PEARY'S FRIENDS OBJECT TO SENDING DATA TO DANES. Leading Members of the National Geographic Society Affraid to Risk Their Investigation. Rear Admiral Schley's demand that Commander Peary submit hie Polar data to the consistory of the University of Copenhagen for veri fication, following that body's repud iation of Dr. Cook, has raised a storm among the membership of the Na tional Geographical Society, which gave Peary a clean bill of health. The leading members claim that the scientists of the United States would be demeaning themselves, if they acknowledged that their find ings needed verification. There seems to be no disposition to with hold from the Copenhagen board '.he data filed by Peary, bu'. there it. a well defined opposition agaiudt turn ing It over to the Danish scientists for official action. The arguments advanced hy Ad miral Schley that such examination would remove all questl >n of rtouer from the claim of Peary ha/2 bwn found impeachable by Amcii'tan scientists, and, therefore, the ?,ues tion la not whether Peary's right, but whether the scientists ara wrong. "Nothing can be gained by sub mitting Commander Peary's da'i to the University of Copenhagen " paid Prof. Gannett, who was chalrmai. of the committee that passed upon the proofs of Peary, "and I do not s^e any reason why he should." Rear Admiral Chester, who atark ed Cook's data some time ago, de nounced the proposition of Adml"al Schley as "absurd." He declared he did not believe that the University of Copenhagen would consider mak ing a request for the proofs and that the whole matter was a mare's nest. ? ATTACKS FAMILY. Kills Wife and Child and Wounds Three Other Children. Suddenly becoming violently In sane, G. C. Cheuvront, a ranchman, of Fresno, Cai., Wednesday killed his wife and one child, wounded three other children and ended his life under the wheels of a railroad train. Mrs. Cheuvront was preparing breakfast when her husband enter ed the kitchen with a hatchet. With out a wurd he split her skull wit.h one blow. He then entered the bed room where his children lay asleep, In rapid succession he struck with the hacthen George, 14 years old; Claude, 12; Gladys, 19, and Nellie, an Infant. Claude is dead and Glad? ys is dying. The others will recov er. As Cheuvront left the house, C. M. McClung, a stepson 19 years old, met him on the porch. The maniac struck at hia stepson's head. Evad ing the blow, the young man struck his stepfather heavily on the jaw. The blow seemed to break the mad spell and the hand that held the hatchet fell to his side. Without speaking, he extended its handle to McClung and ran to the railroad track where he threw himself under a passing train and was ground to pieces. * of Southern Virginia, himself a fear less -soldier of the Confederacy. No Boldler of fortune, no seeker of self, No lover of glory and fame, But simply a man who was true to himself, The home where he dwelt and his name. He rode far away at the call of the land, Unmindful of peril and fnte; A smile on his face and a wave of his hand For the children who stood at the gate. He rode by the side of the kingliest knight, And deemed it a guerdon to share His tent, and the march, or the daneer and fight? To kneel by his chieftain in prayer. He lay where he fell, with the light on his face, Untouched by dishonor and fihame. Defeated?yet true to the pride of his race, The home where he'd dwelt and his name. The tears were like dew in the eyes of the chief, Who gazed on the form of his friend, And thought of the children at home j and their grief, The blossom of life and its end: He sent, all entwined with his pity and love. The (lowers that grew where he Ml ? And angels who walked on the ram parts above. Repeated their call, "It is well!"! 'Tis well, tho' for years he has slept 'neath the sod. Uncrowned by the laurels of fame. And simply a man who was true to his God, The home where he'd dwelt, and his name! ? ' TWO WHITE MAN LYNCHED HAD KILLED ANOTHER MAN AND WOUNDED HIS WIFE. Christmas Eve Tragedy in Virginia Followed by Hanging of the Crimi nal by Angry Mob. A dispatch from Hurly, Va., says following the killing here on Christ mas Eve of Samuel Baker and the serious wounding of his wife and two children by the former's enemy, Henry-Pennington, a mob of one hun dred citizens late Christmas night took Pennington from an improvised jail, where he had been incarcerated under heavy guard, and hanged him to a steam pipe. Pennington, who had been drink- j ing, picked a quarrel with Baker and j shot him while the latter was on his way to Sunday-school Christmas tree with his wife, his two children and a friend, Wyatt Meadows. Seeing that he had killed Baker, Pennington | started to run away. Mrs. Baker called after Pennington and implor ed him to help her take the body home. The ruse worked and Pennington went back to the spot where his vic tim lay dead. Bent upon avenging the dead, Mrs. Baker grabbed Pen nington's pistol from his pocket and shot twice at him. Her aim was bad but she succeeded in woundijg him in the hand and thigh. Pennington recovered posession of the pistol and then shot the woman and attempted to kill Meadows, who was running away, it is alleged, and the two chil dren. Pennington then fled, but was sur rounded by a posse on the outskirts of the town later in the night. He was captured after an exchange of shotB with the officers, who badly wounded him. Being to weak to stand the journey to the Grundy jail which is 15 miles distant, ove moun tainous country. Pennington was locked up in the constable's house, but about one o'clock Christmas af ternoon it '?"as thought advisable to remove him to a boarding house, where he was put under a strong guard. Feeling agaln?t Pennington ran hrlgh, and many covert threats of a lynching were heard during the day. At midnight a band of about one hundred citizens was Quietly organ ized, the guard was overpowered and Pennington was taken to the engine room of a lumber mill, nearby, and hanged to a steam pipe. The body was riddled with bullets, and was then left hanging until nine o'clock Sunday morning when it was cut down. * HAVE FAITH IN COOK. His Neighbors Take No Stock in In door Explorers. Those who know Dr. Cook best stick the closest to him. A commit tee which was appointed by the? Brooklyn neighbors of Dr Cook some months ago to raise funds for the erection of a monument to the err ploer. has decided to go on with the work, in spite of the cables from Copenhagen, "Dr. Cook," according to one member of the committee, "is a no ble martyr. The rest of the world may take the word of those indoor Polar explorers over in Copenhagen, but his neighbors in old Bushwick know that Dr. Cook discovered the Pole, because he told us so himself." FOUND DYING IN WOODS. Au Unknown Man Fatally Beaten Near Greenville. A white man. so far unidentified, was found Wednesday morning In a woods near Greenville, unconscious and in a dying condition. He bore signs of having been badly beaten about the head, and it is stated by the doctor that he has no chance to live. On his person were found weaving apparatus but this is the only clue lea ling to any knowledge of him. This is not the first affair of this kind which has happened in this particular spot. * Identity Revealed. Margaret Marshall is the name nt the young woman who is In a critical condition in a hospital at Norfolk, Va., as the resu't of an attempt at suicide, was connected with the staff of the Boston Herald for a year and a half. She is years old and a native of New Hampshire. She was graduated from Tufts college in 1907. A few months ago she left Boston and joined the staff of a New York paper. She has written several magazine stories Invention Brings $1,500,000. While i xperimonting with amateur photograph;' M. A. Yetnic and Dr. L. M. Early, of Columbus, 0., discovered a way of making a new kind of phot ographic printing paper, and recently a r'eal was closed at South Bend, Ind., by which the Eastman Kodac company will pay them $1,F>00.000 for the secret. The Eastman com pany could not duplicate the paper patented by the Columbus men. it promises to revolutionize the print ing of photographs. * 0 CENTS PEB COPY BOOZE TRADE Prohibition Counties Are Pajing Taelr Revenne Abroad. FLOODED WITH LIQUOR The Booze Houses Find a Picnic in the Dry Territory of This and Other States, and Reap a Rich Harrest of Caah That Could fet Better Spent, The Columbia State says the resi dents of the dry counties In SouU Carolina are not to be without their Christmas "booze." The abolition of the dispensary has seemingly not quenched their thirst, for every day the Columbia office of the Souther* express company receives and dis tributes a hundre'd or more package* of whiskey to the dry counties Most of the "sperits" received comes from Jacksonville, although Borne is received from Richmond. The trade has increased so much, as the holidays grow nearer, that the shipments of whiskey have ove? reached the capacity of the express' cars and the fast freight is used 1? bringing the pckages and casss here where the distribution is made by the express company to the train* entering those parts of the State where an arid desert prevails. The sensation of the season 1* express circles came a few days ago when a box car filled with packages of Christmas booze was received from Jacksonville. The car was split here and the packages consigned by regu lar express to the destinations speci fied on the packages. It Is said that at Spartanhurg 9? much liquor for Christmas consump tion was received that the regulas channel at the express office wan clogged with supplicants for packag es of cheer, and those wishing to send Christmas remembrances found it difficult to consign their gifts ts the clerks. This continued for a while until relieved by the establish ment of special depot for packages of whiskey, and for this alone. '.Even at that a visitor to the city from Spartanburg says that to get, a jug or case, position was at a premium in the line, as is the case when a big production is put on for one night only, and everybody in town wishes to take a friend to see tb?? show, and tickets are Bcaree. The old familiar jug is seen no more and the little brown jug with its red sealing wax, except the jugs are usually white, are now shipped in neat packages and the uniliated might not know what the pretty boxes contain. On account of the variety and con venient modes of transit from Jack sonville to Columbia, the majority of packages for residents of the dry counties near Columbia, order their "booze" from the Florida city, al though some prefer the Richmond houses. In the upper part of the State Richmond has the inside track and a special to The State from Richmond a few nights ago tells what an enormous business the Vir ginia whiskey houses are doing. This special says: "As a distributing point for the entire South, as well as for many States of the Middle West, Rich mond at this season haB shipped probably more whiskey to dry sec tions than was ever sent out in the same length of time from any city in the country, not excepting New York and Chicago, which are situat ed in territories surrounded by cit ies, towns and counties that have never been affected by the temper ance wave. This declaration 1s based on statements made- by leading whis key dealers and on estimates fur nished by representatives of the va rious express companies. - "The bulk of these gigantic ship ments have been consigned to indi viduals in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Missis sippi and the various dry sections of Virginia. At the same time enor mous quantities of distilled spirits have been shipped to Texas, Indiana. Florida and Illinois. "The express companies have rent-, od a warehouse especially for the handling of these .shipments. It is estimated that from 7,000 to 10.000 cases of whiskey are being sent out by the mail order houses in Richmond and Manchester daily. The average of contents of eacb package is from three to five gal lons. This Indicates that at least 40.000 gallons of whiskey are ship ped from this city each day. The whiskey establishments are working night and day." ? Was Brutally Murdered. A dispatch from Jefferson, N. C, says that it has been learned that the man Testerman who was at first re ported to have been found dead by the side of the road was not dead when found, but died soon afterward. It has also been learned that he was brutally murdered in a drunken row. there appearing wounds and other evidence of violence on the body of the deceased. No one, however, seems to know Just how he was murdered, or by whom. ?