The Manning times. (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, February 08, 1899, Image 4

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SOME~1 NE VAS. Which Have Passed the House of Representatives. THEY GO TO THE SENATE. Oil Inspection, Commutation Tax, The Sale of Tobacco and Other Matters Leg islated On. On 31)nday the llouse pased a bill >rovidin4 for the inspection of oil. 'he bill provides for the election of an 'i, inspector of oils at a salary of $1.20o per annum. to be derived from fees paid by the oil companies for havying their oil inspected. A general commutation tax bill took up considerable time, but was finally passed to it. third readios. The bill provides that the county treasurers of this State are hereby au thopized and empowered to rceeive from any and all persons liable to road u ties iu the counties of Abbeville, one dollar; Aiken. one dollar: Anderson. one dollar: Barn% eli. one dollar: Beau fort, two dollars; !k-rkeley. one doilar: Chester, two dollar-: Chesterficli. one dollar: Charleston. two dollars: Colic ton, two dollars: Clarendon. one dollar: Dorchester, one dollar: lParlington. one dollar: Edgefield. two dollars: Fairfeld, two dollars; Florence. one and a half dollars; Georgetown. two dollars: Greenville, one dollar: Hampton, one dollar; Ilorry. two dollars: Kershaw. two dollars: Lancaster. one dollar: Laurens, one dollar: Lexington. two dollars: Newberry. two dollars: Marl boro, one dollar: Marion. two dollars. Pickens, one dollar and fifty ce'nts< Richland, one dollar: Spartanburg. one dollar: Saluda, two dollars: Sumter. one dollar: Union. one do lar: Orangeburg. two dollars; Williams urg, two dollars: York, one dollar, as commutation tax: and all moneys so paid shall be set apart and known as the county road fund: Provided, that such commutation tax be paid for the fiscal year 1699. be tween the first day of March and the first day of April, and hereafter said commutation tax shall be paid by the 31st day of March of the year next af ter the fiscal year for which the same was due. That such persons as have paid their commutation road tax shall be exempted from road duty for that fiscal year: Provided that this Act shall not affect the commutation tax for the year 1899. In the House it was fully an hour Tuesday before the body could get to work. The bad weather caused a num ber to be late, and others were sick with the grip. There was some talk of send ing the sergeant-at-arms for some of the tardy ones, but they commenced dropping in one by one until at last a quorum was present. Under the head of unfinished busi ness, Mr. Laban Mauldin's bill in rela tion to fixing the day of adjournment for Feb. 11th was taken up and killed, the motion by Mr. Blease being to post pone discussion until the 11th day of February. Mr. Mauldin demanded the aye and nay vote, which resulted as follows. those voting in the affirmative wishing to table the bill until Feb. 11th: Yeas-Speaker Gary. Black. W. 1)., Blythe, Bolts. Browning. Colcock, Crumm, Dargan. Davis, Dean, D~e Bruhl, Dendy, Evans, N. G., Floyd. Gause, Hill, Hoff meyer, Hopkins, J ack son, Lockwood, Lofton, McCraw, Mc Laucblin, Miley, Montgomery, Nettles, Richards, Sanders C. P., Sawyer, Sink ler, Smithi G. P... Smith Jeremiah, Themas W. H., Thomas W. J1., Veil ner, Whisonant, Wimberly, Winkler 39 Nays-Bacot, Bailey, Bell, Blease, Caughman, Efird, Epps, Evans H. H., Gamble, Graham, Henderson, Hollis, Mann, Manning, Marion, Mauldin, Mc Dill, Moss, Ragsdale E. B., Richard son George W.. Richardson Henry B., Robinson C. E. Robinson R. B. A., Sharpe, Simpkins. Smith J. L.. Yarn, Weston, Wingo, Woodward M. B., Young-3(;. It was necessary to 'poll the house to see if a quorum were present, as te lit tie interest was manifested and so few voted on any question. Mr. HI. II. Evan's bill to permit' chaingangs to be used in the p~rom1otion of the health of a community pas: ed its second reading. The bill read as follows: That on and after the approval of this act the county board of commissioners shall have pow er and authority, in their discretion. to utilize the county chaingang in whole or in part in any kind of work calcula ted to promote or conserve public health in the county or in any com munity thereof, in which sentences of the convicts on such gang were pro nounced. Mr. Floyd's bill to regulate the scale of tobacco passed its second reading after the coupties of Clarendon, Hlorry, Marion, Pickens and Chesterfield had been exempted. It applies to the rest of the State. Following is the bill: Section 1. That the charges and ex penses of handling and selling leaf to bacco upon the floor of tobacco ware houses in this State shall not exceed the following schedule of prices, to-wit: For auction fees. fifteen (15) cents on all piles of one hundred pounds or less and twenty-five (25) cents on all piles of over one hundred pounds and less than two hundred and fifty pounds: fifty (50) cents per pile for piles of two hundred and fifty pounds or over. For weighing and hauling, ten (10) ecats perpile for all piles of less than one hundred pounds; for all piles of over one hundred pounds, at the rate of ten (10) cents per hundred pounds; for comn mission on the gross sales of leaf tobac co in said warehouses, not to exceed two and one-half per cent-mi. Sec. 2. That the proprietor of each and every warehouse shall render to each seller of tobacco at his warehouse a bill, plainly stating the amount charged for weighing and hauling, the amounts charged for anction fees, and the commission charged on each sale, and it shall be unlawful for any other charges or fees exceeding those herein named to be made or accepted. Sec. 3. That for each and every viola tion of the provisions of this act a pen alty of ten dollars shall be enforced. and the same may be recovered by any person so offended. Sec. 5. That this act shall go into e' feet immediately upon its approval. Mr. Laban Mauldin's bill to aniend the law relating to stealing from the field passed its second reading. Mr. Maudlin said that this was not to extend the law. but to simplify the law in order to clarify the statutes'so that~magistrates will have no trouble to construct the law. The bill as adopted reads: That ajy landlord renting land, te 1 ant or lalfirer Woking on shares o crm shall take ffm the fi41d any 4i hi a In Ii ,i t z 4 - oiln dt-'vot q kat id 1 e1ib n when(JJ a, i n emled shall ead as followt Secti4tiii D I. Who,ever shall tC.a1 fronit the IeIlIdy grailn. cottoln Or Ve etables. whexther severed from the free hoid I not. shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor. and on conviction thereof shall be punished by iniprisou meut for not more than fivc years, or by a fine of not more than five hIundred dolars: Provided, That any landlord renting land. tenant or laborer working en shares of the crop shall take from the field any part of the crops made by aid tenant or laborer without the con sent of the othor, ,hall be considered as stealing from the field. and shall be punished according to t lie provisions of this section. On Thursday .lr. W'uklers bill to rcgulate the disbur.e- neit of money a isin-, from the sale of liquors passed its third reading after a long tight. The bill as it sas up for discussion was quite different fre m the original as introduced bx r. WV\in\kler. which pro vided that the schools f the State should be kept open for five months. the fund; i or their :upport being the three mill tax supplemented by the dis pensarv protits. The bill as it passed provides that all revenue derived from tie sale of alcoholie li:iuors in this State un-er tile dispensary law shall be apportioned among the various counties of the State for the benefit of the com mon schools in proportion to the amount of profits derived from the sale of alco holic liquors in the respective counties, and all funds not derived from said dis pensaly law not already disbursed shall be apportioned in the same way. A Great Year for Trusts. The St. Paul I'ioneer Press contends that the year Istk' was one of the most wolderful in the history 4 this country and tries to sustains t he statement with the following hill of partieulars: 1.Largest wheat crop excepi that of 189 1. -l. lighiet price recorded for wheat except in 1S84. 3. Largest cotton crop. 4. Largest export of breadstuffs. .. Largest exports If manufactured goods. 6. Largest aggregate exports of pro duce and merchandise. 7. Largest productioin of iron cre. S. Largest prodution of pigiron. 9. Largest, production of coal. 10. Largest production of copper. 11. Largest. production of silver ex cept that of 1S92. 1. Largest production of gold. 13. Largest golc holdings. 14. Largest per capita circulation of all forms of money. 15. Largest aggregate bank clearings. 16. Largest aggregate railroad earn ings. 17. Largest aggregate sale of bonds. 18. Largest aggregate sales of stocks on New York Stock Exchange since 1882. 19. Smallest number'of failures and smallest aggregate liabilities since 1892. The Pioneer Press should add one more item to its list. Last year was a great year for trusts. but our cotem pa rary seems to have overlooked thisI item. The number of trusts formed last year is put down by the New York Herald at ninety-two. The amount of their common capital stock is $957,967, 300. and of preferred $384.791,900. The largest of these combines are the American Tin Plate company, $30,000, 000; Continental Plug Tobaeco Co.. $30,000:00; Consolidated Gas Co.. New York, $37,0000 Federal Steel Co., $100,00,000; Metropolitan Street Railway Co., $40,000,000; PacificeSt-ates Telephone Co , $.30,000,000; Gaslight and Coke company, of Chicago. $30, 000,000; Print Cloth Pool, $50,000,000,; United States Biscuit company, $30. 000,000; Writing Paper company, $40, 000.000. If it was not for the forma tion of these gigantic oppressors of the masses and the existence of the gold standard the array of facts set forth by the Pioneer Press would mean great business activity and prosperity to all who are willing to work. But on ac count of the existence of these things the prosperity that we hear so much Iabout is confined to the few who com ose the trusts or have large capital. One of the items put down in the enunm eratien is the large cotton crop. We of this section know how much pros lperity this large cotton crop brought to the farmers and merchants of the South. The same is the case with many of the other items. No doubt the 'trusts prospered during the past year. but the masses did not. The Question of Salary. There being a proposition to increase certain salaries in the State of MIassa chusets. the Springfield lepublican declares it is no time for salary-raising, -:en though the stock markets are booming. The great industries and businss of M1assachusetts. are not find ing it easy to increase their rewards above the profitless point of the past five years ot depression. and are still turninr out products at the low prices which'have enabled public officers to make their salaries go further than ever before" Speaking of public salaries anI particularly of the governor's recommendation of an increase for the higher State court justi~pes. the lhpub lian compiles the following table. showing what compensation is received by the chief justice of the supreme court in each cf the New England States and sonic of the larger States of the Union. assachusetts. .. .. .. .. . Maine..... .... ... . New Hampshire. .......:. . Rhode island.... .... ... ('on acticut.. .. .. .. ...... .( New York............... 1.0 New Jersey........ ... .. 100 Pennsylvania...... . Maryland.............. .. 80 Georgia............ ... ... 0 Louisiana . . ...... ')hio.. . ............ ( IIndiana . .). . Illinois.. ...... ..00(1 Iowa................ 4 1000 Wi......in.00 Misour................ 4.00 Texs................ . 4000 Nebask............ . . 000 Io an... ........ .......... . 000 Cloraska....... ........... .00 California............... .000 The Republican states that ireterally the salary of the chief justice. which is given above, is $500 more than the salaries of other justices on the bench and says that in New York the election is by the people and candidates for the bench have to contribute liberally to campaign expenses. A NEW York newspaper estimates that the securities owned by twenty seven of the richest men in this coun ry have been increased in value in th~. Smof SI).000,00)0 by the recent up: 4'I ~ ~ ,' X T I A I). rhe Retiring Congressman Issues an Address to the People. ASSAILS SENTOR McLAURIN. Says He Has Been Treacherous'to His Colleagues and Uncru pulous. Very Warm Language. l'o the People of South Carolina: Sinee manifestos, addresses and ex Poses are in order in South Carolina, I have decided to have a word to say. The star player in the rccent perforni aue has been writing his own plays. ritising and danning all others while painting his own part in glowing colors without regard to truth or the interests (I any save himself. I have decided it to be my duty to keep quiet no longer while lie is allowed weekly to exploit himself and his actions through the leading newspapers of our State. I shall confine myself to a statement of facts that can be fully substantiated by the entire delegation in congress, and, in fact. all who had an pportunity from the inside to observe closely the trend of matters during the last six years. The people of South Carolina have a right to know what is now and what has been going on behind the curtain. And when they have learned all the facts they will not be slow to make up their minds. The address recently issued by Mr. W. A. Neal. it is well known was not written by hin. Ie was sick at the time and could not judge for hiiself what the effects would be. nor how des picable it made hiin appear in the eyes of both friends and foes. It was well known that it was written by John L. MeLauriu. who hitened down to Col umbia from Washington and as hur riedly came away after he had penned this infamous slander. an instrument of apostacy. and induced Neil. poor, sick ftlow to sign it. Along with other members of South Carolina delegation in eon - I have been subjected to the trea 2-ry and undermining tactics of the j;ier senator fron our State so long tii I had almost become used to it ani did not expeet to ha% e anything more to say during the short period in which I will renain in public life. But there is such an outrageously false accusation against the entire delegation in the Neal-3Me Laurin address that I cannot longer re main silent. MeLaurin has his commmision as senator until 1903, and he may feel that he can slander us with impunity, but L at least, will not submit in si lence. M-Laurin makes Neal charge: "In 1894 I was invited to go to Wash ington to attend a conference. I was present in Irby's committee room when it was agreedto make John Gary Evans governor of SouthCarolina. There was only one man who raised his voice against it in protest. I was a witness to the scene when he withdrew in anger from the conference." There was no need for him to go back four years to make an accusation of there being a ring in Washington at the time which was running South Carolina-s polities. lie made poor Neal sign a falsehood, knowing at the time himself that it was a falsehood, and his only purpose could be to injure the delegation here in the eyes of the people. Now, the facts are these and I will be sustained in my statement by every member who par ticipated, as well as by Senator Tillman who was at the meeting mentioned-he being soverner then: Irby called a meeting of the delegation without let. ting us know what he wanted with us. Tillman, Neal and Evans~ were pr-sent. As soon as the meeting opened 31cLaur in mentioned that Koester, then edit ing The Register. and Bowden, two prominent South Carolinians, then in Washington. ought to be admitted to our council. Irby and 31ebaurin were then not on good terms on account of a scandal involving 3IeLaurin, of which I will not speak here, because it is too nauseating, and they began to (;uarrel, Irby declaring that he would not havo anything to do with a Populist, and before anything was done, or the pur pose for which we had been brought to gether mentioned. 3IeLaurin angrily left the roomsaying lie would -stand by his .friends." M1atters having assumed this shape, Latimer. Talbert and myself, members of the house, also left. and there was not one word said about running John Gairy Evans for governor. MLe Laurin has become so notorious himself for jiolding conferences and lplann inrg politi cal deals, and is by nature such a tr-icks ter and conspirator, that I piresum lhe feels called upon to charge such things to others. He wvas in the "F'orty-a ove ment" which had for its object the de struction of the Rleformi party. lHe beggedl Latimer, Talbert and myself to join him in a Populibt manifesto to the people of the State in 12!4, saying that the State was ripe and that the people would rally behind that banner if we would ioin him. He denied this when he was running for the seeine, but I can prove it by both the gentlemen referred to. ie cursed and damned the dispen sary law here during the Darlington rist and wrote the ADear. Appelt let ter" giving Senator Tillmnan the - -Joab stab.' vet when Tillman came on here afterwards he went to him and begged him not to light him in his congres sional district for congress, and dis laimed intending anvth ing but friend ship for him. H1e promised Bowden that he would run for governor in 1896 and encouraged Bowden to run for con gresss. lie made Toni Reed believe lhe was itn sympathy with the Republican party and thus obtained his position on the ways and eans committee above older and abler members of the house. Ie has been, in a way. trying to deliver the goods, and his tariff speech was a part delivery. His fawningaround the president last summer and declaration that McKinley was the "mnost po;Mnbrt president since Lincoln anid oughlt to be renominated by acclanmat ion~~is another part. All these things go to prove his absolute unreliability and his unscrupu lous ambition. Hie is a Demtocrat only because he believes that is the way to gratify his anibition. I would go on and give instance after instance of his treachery to his col leagues, and of his trickery, but this is enough for one installment. Let him dispute what I have said thus far and I will give hint sonic more, and what is more to the parpose, let the people know more fully what manner of man it is they have sent to the I-nited States senate in the place of the noble Joseph II. Earle. Very respeetfully. \Xasingon.17) (1 Fe. 1. :Srai. FJwLIC FRINTING. rhe House Passes a Senzible Bill on the Subject. In the u i onic -m Tuesday of la-t seek 31r. Moss' printing bill was the ir-t t" collie up. It was the occasion >f -uite 1a discussion between Messis. Ktird and E. B. Iagsdale on one side, nd Moss and Wolfe. in favor of the jill. Mr. 31oss said that the object of he bill was to equalize the rates of ad ;ertising. Under the present law, as de had learned upon inquiry, there was i chance for abuse of the public funds. The printer's system of measurements~ is by the inch. and not by the word. Mr. Wolfe, chairman of the commit tee on public printing, said that the bill proposed was an improvement on the present law. le pointed out de liciencies in the present law. There is no limit to the caption and an un scrupulous printer can make that cap tion as long as possible. There are certain facts in the body of the notice which must necessarily be in the cap tion. A printer may call each initial a word and each figure a word. A inason does not count the number of bricks in a wall. but measures it b, length. lie can be forced to count the bricks, but this is unnatural. Brevier tyI e is as lmall as can be conveniently read. ThN too. the bill provides for it to be "solid. not giving an opportunity for padding. The printer is compelled to certify by oath to the correctness of his bill. The newspaper men are an honorable body. They would not stoop to have an unjust bill passed. They merely want a ini form rate of charges. Messrs. Efird and lRagsdale fourht the bill very hard, but it passed in spite of their opposition, because the House saw that the measure proposed was a great improvement on the prcs cut law. The following is the bill as it passed: Section 1. That State and county of ficials authorized by law to publish ad. vertisements in the newspapers of the State, including sales of real and per sonal property by Masters, clerks of Courts. Judges .f Probate and Sheriffs: citations. notices to creditors and no tices of final settlement by execution: vIministratois and guardians. and all other persons acting in a fiduciary ca pacity, together with all otliei advertis ing done by order of any Court, includ ing service of summons by publication; notices of election ordered by commis sioners; reports of county treasurers, supervisors, superintendents of educa tion; notices of county auditors, procla mations of the executive department; proposals for works and supplies by the heads of department or other officials authorized to advertise for competitive bids and all other advertising whatever by State and county officials shall be charged at the rate of one dollar per inch for the first insertion, and fifty cents per inch for each, subsequent in sertion; the said advertisements to be set in solid brovier type, including the eaption and all other parts of the said advertisements: Provided, that news papers using other than brevier type shall ieceive compensation based on brevier measure: Provided, further, that all accounts rendered for printing shall be under oath that such accounts are in accordance with the requirements of this Act: Provided, further, when the value of the estate as to which such advertisement is made is less than $200 only one-have rates hereinafter allowed shall be charged or allowed, and when the value of such estate is less than $100 only one-fourth of the rates hereinaf ter allowed shall be charged or allowed: Provided, further, that if the propri. tors or managers of the newspapers in any county shall refure to insert such advertisements in their newspapers at the rates hereinafter allowed, the same shall be posted in at least three public 'places in the county, one of which shall be at the Court House door. Section 2. That all Acts and parts of Acts inconsistent with this Act be. and the same are hereby. repealed. February Weather. The following data for the month of February, covering a peiod of twenty eight years, have been compiled from the weather bureau r-ecor-ds in Charles ton. Temperature-Mean or normal tem perature, 53 degrees. The warmest month was that of 1884, with an aver ae of 65..degrees. The coldest month was thait of 1S95, w~ith an average of 41 degrees. The highest temperature was 80 degrees on February IS. 1891. The lowest temperature was 12 degrees. on Febuary 8, 1895. Average date on which first "killing" frost occurred in autumn. November 27. Average date on which last "killing" frost occuirred in spring. 3March 2. Precipitation (rain and mel1ted sn -: Average for the month . .41) inches. Average number of days with 1-100 of ad inch or more, 10I. Thle greatest monthly precipitation wva 10.45 inches in k74 The least monthiy precipuita ion was '3 .1 inchtes. in 1898. The greatest amnounit of precipitation record ed in any twenty-four consecutive hours was 2.79 inches. on February 16 and 17. 1S84. fhe greatest amount of snowfall recorded in any twenty-four consecutive hour-s (record extending to winter of 18S4-85 only) was traced on February 20. 1889. Clouds and Weather-Average nmu ber of clear days, 10: partly cloudy days. 10; cloudy days, $. Wind-The prevailing winds have been from the southwest. 21 pei-centum. The highest velocity of the wind was 44 miles. from the northeast, on February 27. 1S9;3. 4c Cattoa Makes 43. Prices. Not on'ly on Provisions, Clothing, Furniture and all the aetual necessaries of living, but as well on things apper taning t: our enjoyment and culture. This is specially true as to Pianos and Organs. Wise ~inufacturers realize that in these close tinmes prices must be exceedingly low, and they are met t ing the emergency. Notice the latest advertisement of Ludden & Bat-es Southern MIn ie hlouse, Savannah. Ga.. in this issue. amnd wrIte them for -their iuir Cents Prices. This is a wide awake- never-get-left and thoroughly reliable hotuse. whose offers always mean just what they say. It costs nothing to write Ludden & Bates for Catalogues. Prices and Easy Install ment Terms, which they send with pleastre. MIr. James 31. Smith of Coluiabia. S. C. writes: Dear Sir-It give me great pleasure to say that taeUl North State Ointment bought of you has entirely cured me of eczema when everything I had used previously failed to giye any relief. It is a great medi cine. and I would not be without it in my house. I use it for almost every thing, where any medicine is needed,* agd have gotten the best of results 'very time. Respectfully, P~EACE l' LIXSTI. Gen. Cimez Accept the Overtures f Presiint McKinley. HE IS NOW OUR ACTIVE ALLY. The Provisions of the Compact Made for the Payment of the Cuban Soldiers Under Arms. A dispatch from Pkemedios. Cuba. under date of Feb. 2. says: As a result of the conference which Robert P'. Porter. the special conimis sioner of President McKinley. has hald with Gen. Gomez. the latter cabled to President M1Kinley this afternoon as suriug him of his cooperation in dis banding the Cuban armyand in distrib uting among the Cuban soldiers the S3. oo.6000 appropriated for the purpose of ennabling them to return to their homes. Geri. Gomez also telegraphed to 31aj. Gen. Brooke saying lie would accept the latter's invitation to go to Habana. The success of Mr. Porter's mission greatly simplifies the returning of mili tary Cubans to the pursuits of peace. In view of Gen. Gomez's supposed prior attitude of hostility toward the United States. Mr. Porter came here clothed with absolute authority and the tender of $3,000.000 was practically a verbal ultimatum. Ilad it not been ac eepted no more ultimatums would have been made. M1r. Porter made plain the purpose of the government and was gratified at the ready response of Gen. Gomez. The cInference took place at the house here occupied by the Cuban general as his headquarters since coming to town. When Mr. Porter arrived here last week lie was acompanied by Senor Gonzalo de Quesada, the special comn missioner of the Cuban junta at Wash ington; Capt. Campbell, of General Br6oke's staff; Lieut. Ilanna, of Gen. Wood's staff, and a corre-pondent of the Associated Press. The Cuban commander was cordial in greeting -Mr. Porter. and opened the in terview by referring to the change for the better which had taken place in Cuba since lie was last here in Septein ber. lie also laid stress on the fact that some people were asking where was Cuba's promised liberty. "The answer to this," said Mr. Por ter, is that Cuba now has commer cial and industrial liberty and that President McKinley has directed me in framing the Cuban tariff to make no discrimination in favor of the United States in the mannerthat Spain favored ,herself. Cuba is free today to bny in the cheapest market. People are re turningto the pursuits of peace and our military government will give way to the civil government as fast as possi ble." Mr. Porter also said that-the purpose of the American government is to lay a firm foundation of stable government for Cuba, to give the Cubans all the lib erties they had fought for, and that Gen. Gomez must remember that and more still. For instance, there are 25, 000 or 30,000 Spanish soldiers at Cien fuegos who have not left Cuba, that we had only been a month on the island and that President McKinley needed and was entitled to the cooperation of all interested in the welfare and future of Cuba and that he needed the coopera tion of Gomez above all others. The first problem, Mr. Porter then pointed out, was the disbandment of the Cuban army and the return of the Cu ban soldiers to work. This was the spe cific mission which had brought Mr. .Porter to Remedios and in which Presi dent McKinley expected Gen. Gonmez's 'aid. The Cuba. commander replied that he was willing to give the aid required, but asked how he could do so. To this Mr. Porter replied that Presi dent McKinley would be glad to have him go to Habana and cooperate with Gen. Brooke in disbanding the Cubans and in paying over the 23,)000.000) ap Ipropriated for that purpose. Gen. G3omez said the amount was too small, but that was not his fault. and he would make it go as far as possible, while likening it to the miracle of the loaves and fishes. 'No man in history." said MIr. Por ter. "has done so much with so small resources as you have done. Uenee your cooperation with Gen. Brooke will bring good results." Glen. G omez especially reqiuested that the money. for which Mr. Porter had orders in his pocket, should be paid over to Gecn. Brooke and not to himself. as he did not want the personal respon sibility of keeping it. The Cuban general then assured Capt. Campbell iif his good feeling toward Gien. Brooke and the formal compiaet was piresented to Gomez. by 3Mr. Porter and was assented to by Gen. Gomez. In brief the compact is its follows: First. The Cuban oticers in each province shall assist the American offi cers in distributing the funds. Second. That these officers shall at once meet at some convenient point and devise how. when anid where the pay nments are to lbe made and arrange any other details. Third. That the sum paid to each mian shall not be regarded as part paty mzent of salary or wag~es due for service rendler'fl. but tio f'ailitate the disband mec t ofthe army. as arlif ft suffecr ng andt as ant aiid in getting thle peopitle to work. Fourth. The Cubans shall surrender their arms to the Cubain assembly cr to its representatives. Fifth. 'lhei comm ittee on distribution shall use its best en !eavors to distribute it among the population, so that all may secure work. Sixth. T[hat the $2,00 0(11 i shnall he placed subject to the order of (Gen. Brooke and that action in the miat - ter shai li bi immed iate. Gen. I omez was tenderedl a iubl ic reception this evening and .h ir. IPorter was among those presenlt. Gen. G;onmez male the point in his discussions with 3Mr. Porter that the estimate of' the amount wanted f'or the army was not his, but that of the Cu ban assembly. it w~as then that lhe brought in his reference to usinz the grant like the loaves and fishes. The meeting last night at the Cuban club house took the form of a reception to Mr. Porter and his party. It was ar ranged by Gen. Gomecz. the invitations being sent out after the close of The conference. The priv'ata theatre of the lub was crowded, many handsc.mnc and gaily dressed women in the audience giving beauty and color to the scene. American and Cuban nlags were the principal feature in the decorations. Senor de Quesada made a stirring ad dress, counseling faith in the gooid in tentions of the United States and lire dieting a glorious future for the Cubani 'republic. He was literally showered iwith roses lyy the women at the end of SABSO UTELY P Makes the food more del ROYAL GAKINO POWD President GKinley, Gen. Goimez. lr. Porter Lnd the I 'ited StatCs. TIe followed other speeches, but (;en. Gomez did not speak. MONKEYS AS COTTON PICKERS. An Interesting Experiment Being Tried in Mississippi Cotton Fields. Mr. T ni G. Lane contributes the fol lowing to thie Southern Cotton Planters' Journal: Two years ago. at the Vicks Iurg, fair. in the fall oif 189G. as I1rof. S. N1. Traces and 31r. W. W. 31angran were watching some trained uninkeys pErform their various tricks l'rtofesior Tracey said to 31r. 31auprun: 'As sur as you are alive. 31angram, those moo keys can be taught to pick cotton bette. and more cheaply than our Negroes do. and perpetual fame will be the part of the man who first tried the exp-criment. At first Mr. Iangun was inclined to laugh at the idea but the more he tholul ht over the mjatter. and the more lie wanlied the monkey at their vari ous tricks. the more he became con vinel that there was something in it. and the next day as he left the profes sor at the Carroll hotel, he said: "Well professor, I have been think ing, over your suggzestion of teaching monkeys to pick cotton. atnd I am de termined to try the thing and see if it will work. They have been taught to do much more diflicult things than that, and I am almost sure they can be taught to pick cotton. We can't rely on the Niggers much longer, and next fall I am going to buy me a dozen monkeys and see what can be done." The next fall, that is in September of 1897, 31r. Man grum hunted up the owner and trainer of ten trained monkeys in New York City. and make arrangements both to buy the monkeys. and to get the ser vices of their trainer who understood the business.and assured Mr. Mangruni that it would the simplest thing imagi nable to teach monkeys to pick cotton. These were placed upon one of Ir. 31angum's )Iississippi plantations about the middle of September of that year, and the training began. The monkeys belonged to the race known to scien tists as Splagtalis Vulgaris. and the males weigh about 110 pounds and the females about 90 pounds each. Bags were made for each monkey, which would hold about 25 lbs of seed cotton, and a bag placed over the shoulder of each. It is surprising how rapidly the trainer taught the monkeys to pick cot ton. Baskets to hold the cotton were placed at the end of the rows. and one man, over and above the trainer, was nec ssary to take the cotton out of the sacks and put it in the baskets. The females proved much better pickers than the males, for they not only pick cleaner cotton. but they would also pick more of it in a day. In less than a month after the monkeys started at the work they could pick an average of 150 pounds a day. They picked in weather in which Negroes would not pick, and picked cleaner cotton. The cost of picking was much less, and in every way they miade much better pickers than the average Negro. The first experiment, although on a small scale. proved to MIr. MIangrum that monkeys could be used with great success as cotton pickers, so in June of' 189S he made an order for 300 monkeys of the samc breed, on an exporter of monkeys from Africa, with the under standing that most of themi were to be females. About the first of-September of this year the new batch of monkeys arrived. and the service of the old trainers was engaged to train this new lot. Butt this was not such an easy matter as was at first thought, for many of the new monkey's were still wild. But the trainer thoroughly un derstands his business, having served for a long time under Barnum as train - er of monkeys. Finally with the aid of the ten old monkeys, who were of great assistance, and a great deal of punishment anid rewarding. the gang were pretty well trained by the middle of October. I have watched this experiment with greater interest than I have watched any new things in years. I have kept in constant correspondence with MIr. MIangrum about this matter and about the middle of Novemiber I visited his plantation near Smedes to see the mon keys at their work I must admit that it was a glorious sight to) see, and one that did my hcart good. The rows were filled with mionkeys,. each one with her little cotton sr ei around her neck. picking juietly and orderly, and with out any rush or confusion. WXhen they ot their sacks tull they would run to the end of the row. where a man was stationed to-empty them into the cot ton baskets, when they would hurry back to their work. and the monkeys seemed actually to enjoy pticking. Killed Each Other. lIhb M1arks, a noted sporting charac ter and typical deadshot TIexan, was killed in a duel Thursday with John W. Bennett. pr'oprietor of a saloon and gambling house at San Antanio. TIex. M1arks had been drinking and annuounti ed as lie left his own saloon thait he was going to die with his boots on. Ile entered the .Silver King saheon and tratened to shtoot out the lights. W\ords wer'e passedi andU revoler c5wereC drawn. 3I1arks em ptied tie fiv' cham-' be's of' his revolve'. sh ouinhg Ie~n nctt throuah the abdomen. Stretchled on the floor, mortally wountded. Bennlett fired three slots at MIarks. killing him~ nstantly. Bennett died Thursday. No Additional Judges Ila the IIlouse 'I h~ursdlay. Mir. M10s~ bill providing for' two additional cir euits brought furth much debate. Thie author' contended that he was not act uated by personal intere-t atnd tha t the arrangement would not diaplace any of the present judges. Be.fore the. v~ai there were ten judges andi they (crtaii lv are needed now. The '-"heme" would cost 810.000t but it would save 84O0000. M1any members engaged in the de'bate. dicussing the cost and necessity the bill. On a vote being take~nte bill was killed. Wiaeree with the 31ain Star that "Ulnitedl States senators should be elected by tie 10opular' vote instead of leaving it to the legislatures of the scv eral States. A mtan elected to the sen ate in this way would be directly respon sile to the people foir his conduet while. in Washington. and wou'.d be made to feel that he was sent there by the people. It is wrong for a legislature to have j.aw es that could properly be iven to tihe people." Tmn: Richmond Times thinks that -before Eagan gets through eating the dish of crow in front of him. he will think that embalmed beef is angel's POWDER URE icious and wholesome .R CO.. N4EW YORU. FI(ITIN( BEGINS. Battle at Manila Between Our Troops and Filipinos. TWENTY AMERIGANS KILLED. The Battle Began Saturday Night and Was Resumed Sunday Morning by a General Ad vance of the Americans. A dispatch from Manila says the long (xspected rupture between the Ameri cans and the Filipinos has come at last. The former are now engaged in solving the Philippine problem with the ut most expedition possible. The clash came at 8:40 Saturday evening. wlen three daring Filipinos darted past the Nebraska reginent's pickets at Santa Mesa, but retired when challenged. They repeated the experiment without drawing the sentries' fire. But the last time Corporal Greely chalenged the Filipinos and then fired, killing oneof then and wounding another. Al most immediately afterward the Filipi no line, from Caloocan to Santa MesL commenced a fusilade which was inef fectual. The Nebraska, Montana and North Dakota outposts replied vigorousty and held their ground until reinforcements arrived. The Filipinos in the mean time concentrated at three points, Cal oocan, Gagalangin and Santa Mesa. At about I o'clock the Filipinos opened a hot fire from all three places simulta neously. This was supplemented by the fire of two siege guns at Balik-Ba lik, and by advancing their skirmishers at Panco and Pandacan. The Ameri icans responded with a terrific fire, but owing to the darkness they were unable to determine the effect. The Third ar tillery also did good work on the ex treme left. The engagement lasted over an hour. The United States cru iser Charleston and the gunboat Con cord. stationed off Malabona, opened fire from their secondary batteries on the Filipinos' position at Caloocan, and kept it up vigorously. At 2:45 there was another fusilade along the entire line, and the United States sea-going monitor Monadnock opened fire on the enemy from off Malate. With daylight the Americans advanced. The California and Wash ington regiments made a splendid charge and drove the Filipinos from the vil lages of Paco and Santa Mesa. The Nebraska regiment also distinguished itself, capturing several prisoners and one howitzer and a very strong position at the reservoir, which is connected with the waterworks. The Kansas and Dakota regiments compelled the ene my's right flank to retire to Caloocan. There was intermittent firing at vari ouis points all day long. The losses of of the Filipinos cannot be estimated at present, but they are known to be con siderable. The American losses are estimated at 20) men killed and 125 wounded. The Ygorrotes. armed with bnws and arrows, made a very determined stand in the face of a hot artillery fire and left ttany dead oni the field. Several at tempits wer< made in this city Sunday eveuing t o assassina te American otficers. SAVAGE AND FEROCIOUS. The DevD Dancers at Ceylon and - Their Mysterious Ways. The veal Singhalese devil dancers in Ceylon are ferocious and savage fellows. Their dances are revolting and horrible. Butt their profession is popular and affords a royal living for the men who go into it. There is a superstition among the Singhalese that when a man falls sick lhe is supposed to be afflicted by the devil. In order to rid him of the disease the devai dancers are called in to propitiate the demon. Two or more of them go by night to the sick~ man's house. iN front of which a smati, square inclosure, about six feet high, has beent mad? of grasses and palnm leaves. Trhis an swers the purpose of the green room at a theatre. Trhe men appeamr at first without masks ,andl withi lon;: yellow grass streamers hanzintg from their heads and waists. 'Thle only light cast on the scene is by torches made of sticks. round which pieces of cloth are wrapped. dipped in oil. To the music of at tam-tam, kept u~p on oneC note, the danticrs sinig a peen.iamr, wild funeral dirge, in wvhh-ht the sptectators often The da~ncers beg'in by slowly moving aboti. stret ch ing the -right foot and bigin tiimte left uip to it, and appear as if they were searching .for some iinig. dluring which the singing sounds like cryin~g. Theiy are then asking the devil to applea:r. There are twenty-four differenit sorts of devils, and. after the first part, the dancers are constantly ebtiaging ithei r clothles to represent the emt1ire spectits: some wear masks, some deni jaws -ml terrile teeth reaching tioi th :r-s. 'Itne jaws open and close ini a very reatlistic mtanner. A dance .i*~ .: si 5over two nights. as the whole twemij1V-itouri devils have al. il t'o be' pe-rsonit-d b(efotire tic partic-ular dle moin who is a ih!iliniig tne sick man is pitehed oni. When he gives signs of his presenic the (lancers go into a sort of frenzy, which increases as lie takcs possession of them: tue tami-taim beats faster a no faster. thle ehainting growvs into yells. the nme-~n whirl amnd stamp andi the bells on their anikies jingle and clash. At this stage the dancers appear to be looking for sonie object to give the devil in sacrifice, and into which 1:e may pass. A chiekent is usually offered by the friend of the sick man, and this unforttunate bird is seized uphoni. twist ed anud tormented anti htitten between he false teeth, until the dancters. wvorin ont, move slower aind slower, and the chiciken sinks inito a sort of r:u-. whichul is the sign tt theii dehvil hai neceted the sacrifice. and is willintg to patss from the titan into the birdI. A Niw Y ork tmin who hatd the gi for011 'our yers in sueC~sion C:-ehed it ibis yea r heerause he kept his feet dh-y andtt now feels sure that thec di5sse is contracted thirou~gh the feet. And iett oni topj tot this another fellow etnies along anid says that lie hadl grip five year- in succession, and wears two woden legs. This senms to knock the arnl :Pom tinder the foot theory. but as tf ce it is a good ting to keep the - l egarmu. Work on the Atlantic Coast I ini tx tension front Denmark tolohm progressting rapidly. Crossties arer ht ing lput donw and steel rails laid. It is the object of lie ollicials tolht the One of the Cleverest Tricks Known to the Professional Swindler. IT REQUIRES PATIENCE. The Victim May Have Been Watched for Months Before He Is Fleeced. The Case of Doctor Darlington, Who Was uobbed of a Satchel Contatning 830, ooo in Cash-Some Other Instances Where Large Sums Have Been Secured by Thal'. Process. "The art of 'substituting' is perhaps one of t he cleverest tricks of the pro fession." said a veteran thief-taker, when approached concerning the loss of Samuel Greenwood, president of the Coatsville 'Pa.) National Bank, who was robbed of a satchel containing IoIlds to thet4 value of $10,000. while anot her grip was substituted in its -Speiaking of similar cases that have comle. 10 iy notiev." the detective con tini-dl. as he leaned back in his chair .114l took on a reg iniscent air. "it Is re mrik:iil b what elever devices the -pro fs-ssional swindler will resort to in ordI-r to fasten on his intended prey. Amid yt. wvhile. the ob)stracting of one's gri p :ml the substlltiing of another. mji: V s.-emlii .1 ditticult mat-er at first glanli-.. neve-rtheless when you remem ber that the thief may have watched Mr. Greenwood for months, the thing b(-omes quite clear. He may have followed him from place to place, week out :lI week in. Ile became acquaint ed with the habits. of his intended victim. ant. when the opportdne mo ient arrived in the restaurant all he had to do was to place his empty grip where the sehel containing the valua bles had bten before. "So much for that case. Let me tell you about another, much cleverer with the exception that the swindlers were apprehended afterward. About thirty years ago a great sensation was creat ed when Doctor Darlington, president of the West Chester (Pa.) bank, was robbed of a satchel containing $50,000 in cash. Ile was on his way home from Philadelphia. Seated in the rail-. road coach, with his feet on an old grip on the floor, the old gentleman thought himself and his treasure abso lutely safe. But he did not know what was in store for him. In the seat in front of him sat a woman in black: Bk the way, it is nearly always a.wom an in black who is concerned in these swindling affairs. But to continue. "The lady, for she had all the ap pearances of a gentlewoman, was evi dently distressed from a -cough -and vainly attempted to raise the window next to her. She kept lifting away, and still the window would not'budge. This was too much for Doctor Darling ton. (allantly he got up from his. seat, or rather released his foothold on his grip. while placing his knees -on his seat. The scheme was not mature as yet however. The woman- bore down on the window while apparently assisting in Its raising, and thus matters stood for a minute or two. The moment for th work of the confederates had- ipw arriv ed. Seated across the aisle one of the thieves swiftly pushed his own satchel under Doctor Darlington's seat, abstracted the full one, and the trick was done. The man was attired in a long cloak, which facilitated the oper ation, and when the old man sat down he felt secure in the fact that his feet once more touched a satcheL. At the next station the thief got off, and the woman was not suspected until long afterward. for Doctor Darlington never dicovered his loss until he reached home. The men implicated were 'To bacco .Tack' and 'Slappy Williams,since convicted to long terms In the peniten tiary. The woman, whose name I have forgotten. was also sent up.. "Yo can easily see how the trick was done," and here the superintend ent showed. by the aid of some chairs and other paraphermialia, how Doctor Darlington was made the loser of a satchel wvith $50,000. "One of the foremost detectives In the service, who for obvious reasons desires his name witheld, told of an other satchel robbery that differed in somec respects from the one above. The spotted vidtim was despoiled of his grip as the train neared a station a disance away from the point of de parture. A confederate was in wait ing outside, and cunningly the stolen valise was passed to him, while the unsspecting traveler did not discover his loss until some time afterward. Condition of Working People. A striekinig illustration of the differ ene in the condition of the working people of Europe and those of Ameri a is furnished by contrasting the steerage passengers who ga West with those that go East on the big Atlantic steamers. Steamship doctors say that eni the westward voyage they are al ways compelled to use many gallons of disinfectants in the steerage. On the eastward voyage they use none. Em igrants from Europe to the United States are peaded together like so many cattle, and live in a way that would disgrace noble animals. After two or three years in America, when they go back to their homes, they de mad cldean quarters and comfortable unks and the use of a bathroom. When they go West they carry theirbe longings tied up In a handkerchief or jammed into a bag. When they go East they have a good trunk, and some times several on them. Smallest Locomotive. The smallest locomotive ever made was seen at the Omaha exposition. Its height from the top of the stack to the rail is 25 inches, and the gauge Is 121: inches. The cylinders are 2x4 Iinches: the boiler is 1% horse power, imade of steel, and tested to 300 pounds restrr and will hold 24 gallons of wat.rl. The .diameter of the driving wheel is 10 inches. The weight of the little engine is about 600 ponnds and it will run on a rail three-quarters of an inch square. It will drawv 10 car-s, each cltaininlg two persons. 31anila Hemp. Every engineer knows what Manila h'ip is. butt few are aware that it is ti, product of a species ef banana whidh is cultivated li certain localities in the Philippine Islands. The plant, called by'the natives "abaca," throws up a cluster of sheating leaf stalks to a height of twenty or thirty feet, which spradtt out at the top into a crown of hue. undivided leaves. When It 1s three years old it Is cut down, and the stalks are torn into strips. These strips, while still fresh ,are drawn be ween a knife and a wooden block, and] the soft celluious matter is removed. The tibre is then hung upl to dry in the open air until it is lit for use. Each stalk giv-es about a pound of fibre. and It wo natives5 will turn~X out abouit twenty iv'' p)oundhs a day. 'The insidle tibre, which is thin and weak. is used by tha natives for ma~king articles of dress. T familiar Manilai rope is made from the fibre of the outer layer, which as h~rd and strong. The whole supply of axila hemip practically comes from the li'hippines. and the United States consumexi 41 leer centt of it. Last year this contry took 417.473 bales out of the &!.'J20 bales exported. Great Brit il oin next with .iS3.182 bales. Tie' ...imtn of Eurone- took 22,373