Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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VOL. XVI. MANNING, S. C., WEDNESDAY. JULY 10 1902. NO.50 (RE ; T _ RESA .T ;i. ii Three Hundred Men Perish in a Johnstown Mine. I BEEN IN OPERATION 50 YEARS. Cause of the Explosion Not Known, but Suapposed to be tie ('arelessnessoi'Some ti ti Minle:-.:s w Johnstown was again visited by an I appalling disaster last Thursday. It I is only less frightful khan the awful' h; calamity of May ,I. 1S9. in cost of st life. but in its terrible consequence, it h has brought the shadow of sorrow in h; hundreds of honies made desolate by a ti mine explosion, which took place in 11 the Cambria Steel Company llolling t Mill mine, under W\estmont Bill, at Ir 12.20 o'clock Thursday afternoon. hi How many are dead it may take la several days to ascertain. but that it p; is a long and shocking list is certain. w It may reach 200 or more men. si It was nearly an hour after the ex plosion before any general knowledge of what had happened got abroad. Men who (ane from the mnes. escap ing with their lives, told the terrible 0 news and soon it spread like wild tire all over the city. In scores of homces there were the most pathetic scenes. i Mothers, wives, daughters. sons and relatives were frantic with grief. r Hundreds rushed to the point and. with sobbing hearts, awaited news that did not come from the ill-fated mine. THE WORK OF 'RESCUE. L At the opening across the river from li the point the Cambria Iron Company , s( police, with several assistants. stood ,o guard. permitting no one to enter the n mine, from which noxious gases were st coming. It was nearly 4 o'clock when all hope of sending rescue parties from the Westmont opening was abandoned. Two men who had escaped from the - mine, Richard Bennett and John c Meyers, went back two miles to see what assistance could be rendered. but n the frightful damp drove them back b and they fell prostrate. and after a desperate struggle reached the outside. a The doctors gave the men assistance b and. after working with them half an hour, restored them. Their story of the situation in the mine made it clear that the rescue work could not proceed from the West- - mont opening, and then hasty prepa rations were made to begin that sad mission at the Mill Creek entrance. Soon after the news of the explosion 1 reached the Cambria officials Mining Engineer Marshal G. Moore and one of his assistants, Al. G. Prosser, made d an attempt to enter the mine. They If. were followed by Mine Superintendent t George T. Robinson, but the grses stopped their progress and they were compelled to return to the surface. RESCUERS OVERCOME BY GAS. Mine Foreman Harry Rodgers. his al assistant. William IBlanch, and Fire c< Bosses John Whitney. John Rletallick and John Thomas were overcome by i the gases, and it is feared they perish- n ed in an effort to rescue the miners. A son of Harry Rodgers then tried to e reach his father, but he was quicklya overcome by gas and was carried outn unconscious. b William Stibich spent several hourst at the Mill Creek opening. He said that he believed as many as 450 men were still in the mine. In his opinion. from all he could glean, not to exceed 150 had come out. When the news o-f the explosion n] reached the surface MIarshal G. MIoore. 5 mining engineer, and one of his as- tl sistants, A. G. Prosser, promptly r made an attempt to enter the mine. C They were followed by 31ine Superind- '4 ent George T. Robinson. After much u trouble they -reached one of the tele a phones located in the mine and com- e municated with the Cambria general oflice. They were unable to give any n details of the effects of the explosion, t but feared the loss of life was large a and that the damage to the mine was k serious. Their progress was stopped a by the deadly gases and they stated a that an attempt would at once he i made to reach the scene of the acci- re dent, which is known as the " Klon- a (like" in the miner's parlance. No en- ft: . ,ce to the working portion of' thek . .n can be efl'ected from the main entrance. Many of the miners escap ed at Mill Creek, a shaft reaching the mine near the power house at that e point. Is NARROW ESCAPE OF AMERICANS. 5 About a score of Americans. wvho were at work in the Klondike district. noticed the presence of the tire damp in their apartment soon after the ex plosion occurred and started at oncet for the main entrance. They were almost overcome by the gas. but Ia reached the outside in safety. one of' the men who got out safely said it wasb not known what caused the explosion, I and that it will probably never be r known, as he believed none of the men I at work in the Kiondike district cana be saved.t CARLELESSNEss OF MINERS. a lHe also said that only a few days S ago the otticials issued an order to the t employees in the mines not to play c with the gas, and that the next day a I young Hungarian was seenl pushing his naked lamp along the rootf of thea mine in search of it. The mine fore man. harry Rodgers. his assistant,. William lilanch, and Fire Bosses John e Whitney. .John Thomas and .Johni I Retallick were overcome by the gats and perished in a heroic attempt to rescue the miners. Mining engin.eera Moore and George T. Robinson. sup erintendent, are at the head of!] . rescuing party from the F'ra nklin Slope and Conemaugh Nine. They t are slowly working their wvay tow~arde the scene of the explosion. but must: fight the gas every step of the way. Canvas screens are being used to walls all the side entran(ces and rooms so as, I to force a current of pure air ahead of the rescuers. Engineer A. Gi. Prosser. K who, with Mr. Moore, entered the, main opening, came the to surface at Mill Creek Thursday and immediately set about getting men and material to assist in the rescue. It will be abso- I1 wuely impossible to state the loss of| e unt i the recues reach the scel the disaster, ,vhich may be severa urs., possibly midnight. TrYING To SAVE WHITNEY. IIarry Rodgers. the mite foreman s assistant, William blanch. wit! ire Bosses .lohn Whitney. John iRe lick and John Thomas. were not ir :e Kllndike when the explosion tool, ace. but started down a short tim ter. it is feared all have perished ritith Powell and Thomas Foster, vo other tire bosses. carried Mr nitney two hundred yards in th< p: of saving his life. wher iey were compelled to drol eir burden and save them lves. M3r. Whitney was unconsciou: bile being carried by his friends be tiiteei-year-old son of Harr o(d(gers. when he heard that hls fathe: id been overcome with fire-damp arted down toward the Kilndike ti alp rescue him, if possible. and hi d no sooner entered the drift wie le deadly gas almost overcam< ie lad and he had to becarried back is tongue protruded its whole lengtl om his mouth and men had to fore s jaws apart with a stick to preven ckjaw. Young Rodgers. who is eim oved in the mine, was among those ho escaped through the Mill Creel raft. THE BODIES OF FIFTY 3EN. Several miners have reached the sur .ce who were working near the scem the explosion. They say that the, issed through a portion of the Klon ke district and saw the bodies 0 least fifty men. The men wh< tole out were foreigners and were i ich an excited condition that it was apossible to get a connected stork -om them. The mine has been open for about ty years and is producing :'.000 ton: 3r day. It is the property of thi ambria Steel Company. The fami. es of the entombed miners are as mbled in large numbers at the min( ening, but they cannot get any deti ite information and must endure I ispense of many hours. AIDIORiY AS A MORGUE. The armory of Company Ii, 5th reg ent. N. G. P.. will be turned into iarnel house. After a conference it was an unced that the dead miners woul a brought to the armory Friday lanks have been laid on chairs in th< rmory and the removal of bodies wil gin at an early hour in the morn ig. The ambulances of all the under tkers in the city are at Mill Creek it adiness to begin the transfer o dies. At midnight President Powel tackhouse was seen at the mouth o1 >e mine and gave out the followini atement: "The disaster is an awful one ant me on us entirely unexpectedly. Th( sine had been inspected only thre( iys ago and was pronounced in satis tctory condition. In the thirty year: rat the mine has been in operation u serious accident has occurred. Th< muse is yet indefinite, but I believt was caused by gas escaping fron le fifth heading, which was closet ad was not being worked because il >ntained gas, into the sixth heading THlE NUMBER OF CAsUALTIEs now placed at 125. No list of th< ames of the dead miners can be given r the majority of them were for gners, and were known only by chec] d not by name. The oniy way theil ames will ever be known, if thb idies are recovered in time for iden fication, will be by their familie! mding their names to us. DEsCRIP'TION OF THE MINE. The mine in which the disaster c. arred is Lone of the largest coal mine: i the United States, according to the :atement of otticials tonight. Fron ie entrance in the hill across th< ver from the point to the one at Mil reek is a distance of three and three uarters miles. The Klondike section 1which the explosion occurred, i bout two miles from the Miil Creel ntra'Ce. The mine is divided into a larg< umber of headings, levels and see ons. The sections run oir to the lef1 nd right of the headings, and ari fown as rights and lefts by th< iiners. The men who escaped thi: fternoon have spent years working ir ..Otherwise they could never havy ached the surface. Lights were ou1 d there was no way for them to tin< tbeir way to the top had they ne nown the mine perfectly. EFFECT OF THE EXPLOsION. The few survivors who have escap d from the depths of the mine de :ribe the condition as frightful. Out ide of the "Klondike" the mines ar te and uninjured. Within tne fata mits of the mine the havoc wrough y the explosion is such as beggar escription. Solid walls of masonr hree feet through were torn down a ough barriers of paper. The roof f tie mine were demolished and no door remains standing. Brave attempts at rescue were mad ere. Mining Engineer Moore an< is assistan;. Al G. Prosser, tried t< iake some headway toward the im risoned miners three and a half mile: way, but they wvere driven back b he deadly gases. lRichard Bennet d John Meyers, two miners. wer imilarly driven back. Then the at empt at rescue woJrk from the mair pening was shift'ed to Mill Creek, fi'n iles frGin this city. Business in the city was practicall: t a standstill. "They are not all (lead. We rai cross some of them alive." stammer d Mr. Swan Tylar. at 1.25 o'clock to ight. wvhen he staggered out of thi haft at Mill Creek. 1ust how many, tho uzh, dead o live, he was unabile to saiy. lHe hai seen down in the mine since 2 o'cluel a the afternoon with the rescuini 'arty. The first victim brought 't he surface was William ltobertsonat ompanied by Dr. John B. Lowman. "We have four with us." said th: otor. lbertson is in the wors hape. H~e is unsconscious and badl murt. We passedI twenty-lve bodie Chilc getting out these four, who ar et alive. We counted them as w~ vent aong. 'They lay' in all k(indts )Sitionis. <)ne mian was leanin gainst a door, not far fr'om Robert ;n, just where he had been throw yy the force of the explosion. Frot had undoubtedly died in great agony. Others were partly standing, partly reclining. They were in heaps and singly. The patty with us has nearly reached the actual scene of the explo sion and the work of bringing out the poor fellows ought to progress rapidly from now on.' It was nearly 12 o'clock before the first four live men and one corpse was brought up and laid on mattresses, rugs and comforts on the ground. They were not left long outdoors. as it w'as too cold there. but were carried into the boiler house nearby. and the doctors went to work on them. giving them restoratives and administering .xygen in the glare of the tires from the open furnaces. At 12.15 A. M.. this (Friday) morn i, GENE:RAL IANA(GER MOOIE, ( of the mines, who. with Superinten-1 dent Robinson, had penetrated to atI considerable distance in the Klondike. I had reached a telephone station and notified men at the main entry that he had found five of the bodies up to that time and had been only in the t right rooms. From the brief report - it was understood that Mr. Moore had gone as far as he could without en dangering his life from tire damp, and hA decided to go to thL Mill Creek entry trou there without further search. Further news came a few moments later that Mine Superintendent R' binson, who had gone into the mine with General Manager Moore. had k been overcome with fire damp and was 1 unable to talk. iHe had been carried to the Mill Crock entrance. The mine ' employees stationed at the mine en try stated that the fact that Mr. Moore had penetrated so far into the mines showed that the tire damp was being cleared rapidly and with every prospect of being entirely driven from the mine before morning. Mail Agent Caught. Postotlice Inspector J. J. Smyth ar rested at Eutawville Friday Mail Clerk A. P. Prioleau and brought him to Orangeburg that afternoon before - the United States commissioner here. c Proleau was one of the few colored t mail agents in the service, and had I been running on the route between E Creston and Pregnall's, on the Atlan- t tic Coast Line, for a number of years, his route formerly being over the same road when it was the Eutawville Railroad. Prioleau was appointed i mail clerk under the administration ] of President Harrison, and very soon a afterwards the position was placed vwithin the civil service rules, and t Prioleau has held his position ever f since. Recently there have been a t number of complaints filed against ( him with the department, and these i charges have been unnder investiga I tion by Inspector Smyth. t Capt Peter Gaillard, at Eutawville. complained that letters addressed to him had been frequently tampered i with. Accordingly Inspector Smyth put in the mail bag for the Pregnall's 1 branch at Creston a test letter ad- r dressed to Capt Gaillard, and when t the letter reached Eutawville it had been tampered with. Inspector Smyth r followed the letter and as soon as it I was opened at Eutawville and he ascer- t tained that it had been, tampered with he arrested Prioleau. Prioleau denied his guilt and employed former United States Attor ney Abial Lathrop to defend him. The preliminary came off yesterday and Prioleau was bound over to the next term of court. -As To Insects. it is well known that many diseases are propagated by vermin. Flies trans port tuberculosis, mosquitoes yellowC fever and malaria, rats the plague.C Mr. V. Haazen in the Annales de I Pharmacie reports the results of ex-r periments on the destruction of vermin that are of immediate practical im- 1 portance. Bedbugs resist exposure Ar twenty-four hours to an at mosphere containing six grame of for-C maldehyde per cubic meter. With eight grains a certain number died. I All perished with nine grains per cubic metet. The gas furnished by 1 the burning of twenty-five grains of t sulphur per cubic meter also destroyed all these pests. Flies and mosquitoest are killed by two grains of formic 1 aldehyde per cubic meter of air. Fleas t are destroyed by seven grains per cubic 1 meter or by burning sulphur. Rats and mice are destroyed by thirty-six hours' exposure t{) an atmosphere con taning fifteen grains of formic alde hyde per cubic meter, but the full ex posure of thirtysix hours must be given; twenty-four hours is not suf t icient. - Egyptian Cotton. "Egyptian cotton is being introduc vi in Texas and promises to revolu tionize the cotton industry in the south "Mr. C. S. Austin, of San An tonio, Texas, remarked recently:"t i mu..h more desirable than the cot ton raised in the United States now and is even better than the sea island cotton. The Egyptian cotton has much~ longer tibre than other cottons and its seeds can be removed so easily that it is not necessary to cut up the cotton in ginning it. A series of saws which work between rods is used gin-1 Ining ordinary cotton and considerable power is reqiuired to tear it loose from1 its seeds. The Egyptian cotton c.an, be separated from its seed by a series of rollers, which do not cut the cotton and destroy the length of its fibre. The department of agriculture has distributed the new cotton throughout me south and it will soon be knowvn wether the Egyptian product will oarish in all the districts devoted to tne raising of co.tton.' -l Great Loss of Property. A sandstorm has caused damage Iestiated at $1,00,000 in the Indio ojvalley on the Southern Pacific railroad in the Colorado desert. An artificial oasis of nine hundred acres had been made by digging artesian wells and planted in melons. Judging by last y1year, when only sixty acres were in cultivation, a profit of more than 1.00 an acre would have been made. Three hundred carloads of melons, for which 81,:200 a car had been otfered, were almost ready for shipment when the storm broke. For three days it' nraged with the thermometer 126 in tmIthe shade, and when it was over every SENATORIAL RACE. Lhe Candidates Speaks to a Largi Crowd at Orangeburg. LATIMER GOES FOR EVANS. rhese Two Candidates Attack Eac Other and Indulged In Crimi nation and Recrimination tor Some Time. The senatorial campaign meetink vas held at this place on last Thurs lay. The party came over from Sum .er, where they had spoken on Wed ieday. The following account o ,he meeting was furnished The Newv: tnd Courier by its regular correspon lent. lie says Orangeburg never doe Lnything by halves. It is that unit )t actio in and confidence of her people n each other that makes Orangeburi ne of the finest counties in the State othing gives these people-more pleas ire than to attend a campaign meete ng, so when the announcement wa: nade that big and brainy candidate or the Senate would speak at Orange urg Thursday fully 1,500 people ;athered around the stand, erected or .he east side of the Court House. anc rave the candidates the greatest in piration they have received on thl: ampaign. Everybody expected "hol tuf'" and they were not disappointed ,very candidate made votes, but hoy he ballots will add up no one knows TIYE 3MEETING. The Senatorial meeting was callet ,o order by County Chairman W. 0 'atum at 11.15 a. in., and an earnes1 nvocation was offered by the Rev. II 3. Browne. a presiding elder of the ethodist Episcopal Church. Th( irst speaker introduced was COL. WM. ELLIOTT. Col. Elliott was at the disadvantag if being the first speaker, knowing hat his speech would be criticised b3 uis able ompetitors, who would nott veryth.Ig he said. Col. Elliott saic bat the old Black District had a1 arious times covered nearly half thi! ate, and if he had represented hal f it, why not trust him further an( nake him Senator for the whole Stater Ie told of his record in the civil wai md his work in behalf of his homi )eople in the dark days o' reconstruc ion. He was chosen to lead a forlort ight In his district and terrible con ests followed each election, yet hi, ongressional record of fourteen year, s before the people and is unimpeach ble. The total amount of appropria ions obtained is in round number: >5,00C,000. Col. Elliott spoke of the wonderful mproveraents in the manufacturint nterests of the county and, as we ar )ecoming a nation of exporters, it iF ecessary to improve the-transporta ion facilities on "God's hghways.' le spoke of the Appalachian forest eserve and how beneficial. its estab ishment will prove to the South it he prevention of destructive overflow f our Southern rivers. THlE HON. J. J. HIE31PHILL. Col. Hiemphill threw handsome bou uets at the ladies. A voice: 'Praise the gals if you Ion't get a vote." We will do ourselves an Injustice I: mr representatives content themnselve: vith getting appropriations; we neet eaders in Washington from the Soutt ho can protect our political inter sts. He charged that the Democrati< ommittee had reported adversely or >e occasion, but Col. Elliott callet uim down and reminded him that he nade such a statement before and il vas not true. M1r. klemphill yieldet o Col1. Elliott's correction and passec in to the Philippinae Islands, denounc ng colonial expansion and spoke 0: iur Oriental trade, especially the smal eturns accruing to us from the Phil ppines. He said that in the dischargt >f his duties as a lawyer he has ofter >een called away from South Carolina o attend to professional matters ome of his competitors want to say hat he had given up his citizenship ut again he deemed it expedient tc el of his home connections in Ches er-the same statement he made al hestertied Court Ilouse. Coi. Ihemp iill received a beautiful bouquet 01 iowers. EX-GOVERtNOR EVANs. Mr. Evans felt the Inspiration of ar ld-time orderly campaign audience. I told why he entered this and thn ormer Senatorial campaign. It tool lis competitors tive years to tree Mc ~aurin, and now they all come hern tnd want to be Senator. "Dan lHen lerson went all over this country cus ;ing old Ben and everybody connectec s'ith the Reform movement. Now hi :omes here preaching unity, but givi ne the peas and Henderson the cake.' Ele spoke of Latimner's charge that il vas said of him he took $15,000 oul >f the bond deal. Uie denounced il Lgain. If anybody will find it I wil livide and give them two-thirds of it. Latimer says that his record is clean We shall investigate this little mat ;er. "He denounced the transporta on trusts," said Mr. Evans-. "bu :hat pure, honest, Dr. Stokes. wh~on 'ou all loved" A voice: "Let him alone now; h< s dead." But Mr. Evans went on to read thi :harges made by Dr. Stokes in thi ~orkville Enqurrer, and which hay' tlready been printed. Latimer was ui tt Tirzah claiming all the credit fo: :he free rural delivery, when Mr. Gris :eported his statement in a daily pape: md thus caught up with Mr. Latimer -aiming what did not belong to him J that trip to Cuba he (Evans) wa: hown there, and Tillman and Nortoi :me with Mr. Latimer. Tillman toli amim that he was Latimer's guest, an< spposed that Latimer was payirng fo . "Tillman had been caught u] with once with a free pass and you an rest assured that you could neve -tch that old bull in a similar scrap< mgain."~ You are asked to believi Stokes a liar and to believe him." Mr. Latimer answers all this by say ing that he brought a few Yankee Swn here, and pleads the Charlestoi Exposition as one of his excuses. Mr Evans said that Mr. N. D. Harris, on' af atim.es hbest friends in hIelton Ilad written him that Latimer had told him that he had offered Stokes an annual pass, and that Stokes accepted it. Also that Latimer had offered MIr. R. A. Lewis, of Belton. a pass to Mex ico, but he had refused it. Again. Mr. Latimer offered Mr. ilufus Hill. of Ancerson, and his brother-in-law. i Clarence Brown, free transportation to Mexico, and that both accepted. Mr. Evans also charged that Latimer' was in favor of turning over 3.000.000 worth of property in Washington to the Pennsylvania Railway. In these things he had simply responded to Latimer's invitation to inspect his record. Mr. Evans said that l!? was president of a little railroad nine miles in length between Pickens and Anderson. le is proud of this, for every cent of. money in this little road belongs to South Carolinians. He is now living in Spartanburg, and has the confidence of every man, woman and child in the city, besides the support of the two papers, and believes that he will get 8,000 out of the 9.000 votes in the county. Ile spoke of his opposition to the Cuban war, and said that we ought to swat Cuba off for a "nigger" and then kill the "nigger." lie is stan'ing on his record and asks the votes of south Carolinians. LATIER IN REPLY. Mr. Latimer started out by saying that I e is not responsible for this let ter being brought into the campaign and therefore, the consequences must rest with the man who is using it. Mr. Latimner's denials and admissions were the same as rinde at Conway, but as to the new matter, the charges concering, or coming from. Belton, he was as silent as the grave. Also the matter of giving that property, valued at $3,000,0100, in Washington, to the Penpsvlvania Railway. Ile admitted all the junketing trips and said there was no law against accept ing free transporations as the Legisla ture had killed it, but when Mr. Evans took him up on this he ad mitted that the Legislature had kill ed it, but the Governor had vetoed it. He admitted that he had gone West on free transportation. In this it was understood that he referred to his Mexico trip, but who went with him was not stated. Mr. Latimer turned on Evans and said: "You were charged with tak ing $15.000 in that, bond deal. You have gone down into the grave to bring something up against me, but the man that made that charge still lives. Why don't you bring him here? (Cries of "Hurrah for. Latimer.") Rion. of August4, knows about it. Why did you not bring him?" Evans: "I could not get him, but I got an affidavit from his denying it, and read it in the campaign." Mr. Latimer said that if anyone could prove that he tendered Dr. Stokes ~an annual pass over a trunk line that he would withraw from this race. Hispoke of his personal friend ship for Dr. Stokes, and said that three weeks before Dr. Stoke's death because a letter from Dr. Stokes, stating that he wanted to come up and visit him. If there was any enmity he never knew it until these letters were produced. tIe said that Evans got into the Executive Mansion by swinging on to Tillman's coat tails. To this Evans replied: "You never would have got into Congress with out Tillman." - Latimer: "After all Ben Tillman has done for you, you said that he had lined his pockets with rebates." Mr. Evans denied this. .Mr. Latimer went into his Congres sionalrecord and told what he had done including getting an appropriation of $15,000 for Newbeiry College. Al though he had been warned in Sumter Wednesday on the street not to repeat his goat story, he did repeat it here to-day and applied it to Mr. Hemp hill. lie told of his transactions in copper stock and thought it a fair and legitimate way of making money. He obtained an option on a certain block of it and sold it at an advanced price. le did this after Congress adjourned. In conclusion he said: "If you do not think that I dlid right, dont vote for me. I will not have an oflice ex cept on honor." (Cheers.) THE HON. D. s. flENDERSON. Mr. Henderson was at last put on his metal and made the best speech he has made on the ca:npaign. He was. born, lie said, in Colleton, and not a dishonest dollar has ever passed through his hands. Elliott, Latimer and Hemphill, who have been in con gress so long, have not brought salva tion to South Carolina. Latimer poses as a' farmer, saying two words always for himself and one for the farmer. Col. Elliott tells that he has fought negroes for fourteen years and now, as a reward, asks to be sent to the Senate. He told how they settled the negro auestion in Aiken forever. M1r. Hemp lll has been in congress ten years he did not set the world on tire, but after all these years he comes back and wants to go to the Senate. Evans said that lie defeated him (Henderson) in Aiken, but lie did not. Ben Tillman defeated him and not, Evans. Hie ran on the Shepard ticket and Evans had Tillman at his back. Ben TJ.illman knows him and respects him and be lieves him (Henderson) to be an honest man. "The campaign," said Mr. Hen derson. "has just opened. You people are thinking and this is going to be a campaign of education. These fellows are hitting at Dan Henderson, for- they know he is coining," and when he gets to congress he wvill do much more tuan send out rotten seed and bulletins, and will do his best work for his constitu ents. lie believes in the importation of capital, but is unalterably opposed to commercial tyranny. Co0L. GEORGE JOHNsTONE. Col. Johnstone told of his experience. When 37 've:'rs old lie hauled cotton from Newvberry, when he got his start -in life, and lhe is proud of his record. He wa in congress from 1890 to 1892, and wvas defeated by Mr. Latimer be cause he could not advocate the sub treasury scheme. Mr. Latimer went there piedged to it, but in a few short months abandoned it because he saw the measure was absurd. Mr. Latimer denounces lawyers, but he makes his son a member of that profession. H~e thinks he can make capital of denuin ciation. yet in his inmost soul he ad mires the profession." "Gentlemen." said Johrnstone, " what kind of a hypoc risy do you call this?" Col. Johnstone was then on his metal, and the perspi ration showered down on his chest and shoulders. Hie said that he entered this campaign with the determination to forget the days of harsh speech. but Mr. Latimer had been dogging him for several days and he expected to stand it no longer, le said Mr. Latimer had MURDERED AT SEA. One Man of the Crew Shoots Down Another Without Warning. A special from Pensacola, Fla. says The American schooner, Mary, San lord, which arrived Saturday after noon had an eventful voyage from Bluetields, Nicaragua. to Pensacola, during which time one man killed an other and the crew were almost in constant mutiny for the man's blood, who murdered their shipmate. Cap tait McI)onald was glad to reach here, and as suon as possible had the murderer in jail. The Mary Sanford left lBluelields on June 24 and when four (lays out in latitude I .It and longitude 81.45. A. c . Nicholson, the first mate, kill ed Fred, Reed a West Indian seaman at 4 a. m, R:eed, It was learned, had been ordered to some duty about the sails, but the particular job was not done according to the liking of Nicholson, who ordered Reed to do the work over. The latter did not. relish this and made insulting remarks to the mate, who without any bandy of words, whipped out a 44-calibre revol ver and filled the negroe's body with four bullets, either one of which would have proved fatal. The seamen died within 20 second after being shot. When Captain McDonald saw what had happened, he ran and overpower ed Nicholson, took the pistol fron1 him and threw it overboard. The late was then placed in irons and kept so contined, and under strict guard until the vessel reached the Pensacola quarantine station. when the United States miarshall's ollice was told of the murder on the high seas and Nicholson brought here and lock ed up. le will be given a preliminary trial before U, 5, Cormissioner Tuni son tomorrow morning. Since he has engaged legal advice lie refuses to talk and give his side of the occurr ence, To The Journal's representative one of the ship's otticers stated that im mediately after the killing four West Indian seamen. couutrymen of the dead man, openly resented the murder of Reed, and many times did things looking as though the murderer would swing from a yard arm. The captain, two mates and steward were the only white men on the vessel, and the combined watchfulness of this over worked quartette prevented a marine session of Judge Lynch's court. The West Indian were said to have been a most revengeful class and various con spiracies were nipped in their in cipiency by the white crew, who gleaned knowledge of the plots by the boasting of the conspirators, who on one occasion are said to have threaten ed to have the lives of all the ship's officers when they were prevented from laying hands on Nicholson. Reed's body was wrapped in sails and buried at sea, a few miles from the location of where the shooting oc curred. Ile had repeatedly made trouble for the ship and is spoken of as having been a dangerous man. Nicholson belongs to a prominent family at Halifax, Nova Scotia, and has followed the sea for many years. The Mary Sanford, flying the American flag, is a frequent trader here. The murder will necessarily have to be heard in the United States court, which convenes here next month. And this is the first capital crime to be heard or docketed in the federal court of this district for years. A Simple Remedy. The troublesome little red ants that appear as if by magic about midsum mer, and take complete control of the pantry at the time when summer heat makes other trials hard to endure, may now be routed by a very simple remedy. A practical housewife made the discovery by accident, and it has been found satisfactory in every in stance in which it has since been tried. Simply mix tive cents worth of tartar emetic in an equal amount of white sugar, make it quite moist with cold water, put it into small dishes and set it on the shelves where the ants are troublesome. The ants will disappear quite as mysteriously as they came, and there will be no dead ones lying around on shelves and floor. Do not throw the mixture away, but save it for further attacks, as it can easily be moistened and used again when we go to the pantry some warm, moist morning and tinid sugar bowl, cookies and al' sorts of sweets and cereals, swarming with the troublesome sum mer pests. McLaurini May Decline. Some people in the South Carolina circle in Washington who claim to have inside information as to affairs in this state seem to think that, after all, Senator McLaurin may not be ap pointed to the federal judgeship of the court of claims. Not because they do not think the president would appoint the senator if he desires the honor, but because they believe that after all the talk concerning the sena tor that he may not care to accept the place. ie may prefer to remain in the senate until the end of the next session of congress, when his term will expire, and then to reenter the prac tice of his profession, either In South Carolina or in Washington. The senator, it is stated by his friends, has received many tempting offers, but he has accepted none of them, and it is said he may decline the judgeship if offered. Three Mutilated Bodies. Near Prudence. Enid, 0. T. 30 miles southwest of here, the bodies of a man, a woman, two children, appar ently members of one family, mutilat ed into almost unrecognizable masses were found today. The bodies had been stripped of all clothing leaving no means of identification. It is sup posed that the family were strangers traveling overland and that they were robbed and murdered by men who th~en made off with their team and belongings. An Indian Hanged. Arch Conley, an Indian, and Dick Fleming, were hanged upon the same scaffold in Salesbury, N. C. last Tues day. Conley paid the death penalty for the murder of a young negro last November. Fleming was hanged for committing an assault on a white oman last February. THE NAVAL CADETSHIP. Senator Tillman Makes an Announce ment as to the Examination. Senator Tillman has sent The State the following of interest to many young men in South Carolina: The recent naval appropriation bill authorized the appointment of two midshipmen at large, for each State; to be selected by its two senators. The navy department, by arrange ment with the civil service commission will have examined young men, desig nated by senators, on the 1ith of Au gust at either Greenville, Columbia or Charleston. This saves the expense of travel to Annapolis for the entrance examination herstofore held there. The examination papers are prepared by the academic board at Annapolis, so there will be no exam.ination on en trance to the academy except a phys ican one. . In order to make sure that there shall be no vacancy, each senator is authorized to designate six young men. one as principal and the others as first, second, third, fourth and fifth alter nates. If the principal fails the others take his place by succession, in their order. In order to aftorl an oppor tunity for the best talent in our State to will this prize, I have decided to have 4 competitive examination held in the State house at Columbia on Monday, July 28, beginning at 9 o'clock a. m., to select a principal and five alternates. Those selected will ap pea before the examiners of the civil service commissioners on the 11th of August, after having been nominated by me to the navy department. No one will be permitted to enter the ex amination who is not physically sound. as it would only cause a waste of time. No student who has been expelled from college and none but bona tide white residents of the State need ap ply. All applicants for examination will report promptly to the board of exam iners to be appointed hereafter and announced through the papers at the hour and place designated. The board will prepare the examination papers and hand them out that day. The scope of the examination is as follows; Reading, writing, Spelling, arithmetic, geography, English gram mar, U. S. history, world's history, al gebra through quadratic equations, and plane geometry (five books of Chauvenet's Geometry, or an equiva lent. The age limits are from .15 to- 20 years. For the information of candidates the following is quoted from the reg ulations: "A sound body and constitution, suitable preparation, good natural capacity, an aptitude for study, in dustrious habits, perseverance, an obedient and orderly disposition, and a correct moral deportment, are such essential qualifications that candidates knowing deficient - in any of these respects should not, as many do, sub ject themselves and their friends to the chances of future mortification and disappointment by accepting ap pointments at the naval academy and entering on a career which they can not successfully pursue." This examination will be at my per sonal expense, and the six highest can didates will then be examined before the examiners of the civil service com missioners. The examination will be absolutely in the hands of the examiners I select, but previous good conduct at school, character -and good habits will no doubt have weight with them in mak ing their selection, as well as common sense and manliness. Mental ability is not the only test to be applied. The names of the six highest com petitors will be sent by me to the navy department immediately after the ex amination, not later than the first of August, and that department will issue permits to appear before the ex aminers of the civil service commis sion on the 11th of August, at one of the three cities herein before specified. All the papers will be forwarded to Annapolis by the civil service com mission examiners and the highest successful competitors will receive the appointment to enter the naval acade my at the beginning of the next ses sion. In the event the midshipman thus appointed fails on physical ex amination or at the first annual ex amination, I will give the place to the next highest competitor on the list. Crops Bad ly injured. There has been a reversal in the condidion of cotton, for whereas up to week before last the complaints of de terioration were largely confined to points west of the Mississippi, and to the Gulf States, now the crop is doing exceedingly well in the former region and it has been materially injured in the Atlantic States by drought and exceedingly hot weather that stopped the growth and caused shedding of leaves. However, the injury has not reached the point of disaster, and a soaking rain would remedy whatever damage has so far occurred. At scattered points in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, and especially in the last named State, good rains, have f a 11 e n since the last reports were issued, In Alabama and Mississippi, and por tions of Louisiana, the conditions have not been improved, as there have occurred only widely scattered, light showers, and the dought has in creased in severity. Damage by lice has occurred to some extent, but that source of injury is not at all threaten ing. In Texas picking has made slow progress, but plants are blooming and fruiting well, which from now on is the principal thing to keep in view in arriving at the probable outcome of the growing crop. Good rains have fallen in many sections of South Car olina in the last week and the crop conditons in this State have improved considerable. Still there has been great injury to the crops in this State by the drought. Beeswax and salt will make your rusty fiatirons as clean and smooth as glass. Tie a lump of wax in a rag and keep it for that purpose. When the irons are hot, rub them first with the wax rag, then scour with a paper or rclnth sprinkled with salt. THE OREGON OUTLAW. Who Has Killed Six Men Since June 9 Still at Large. BLOOD HOUNDS ON HIS TRAIL. Fully a Thousand Men are in Pursuit of Him Including a Posse Which Takes Train to Cut Him of from Cedar Mountain. Harry Tracy, the convict who has killed six men and wounded several others since June 9, is being hotly pursued by men and dogs in the coun try southeast of Seattle and will prob ably be slain or captured. His pur suers who have with them two fine bloodhounds are only a short distance behind him. Tracey made another extraordinary escape from one of the posses after him Wednesday afternoon. Word was received at the sheriff's office that Tracey had been at the house of a Mrs. Gerald near Renton for five hours. Fifty armed men at once hastened to the scene. When they reached the place they scattered and took posses sion so they could watch the house to the best advantage. The peculiar actions of Mrs. Gerald convinced the men that Tracey was still in the house. On the arrival of Sheriff Cudihee the posse closed in on the house only to learn from Mrs. Gerald that Tracey had given them the slip. He had left the house by a rear door ten minutes previously while the posse were taking up positions to watch the place, hid for a few minutes in some of the bushes and then quietly slipped through the woods toward Palmer. THE WONDERFUL COOLNESS and daring of the convict was never more fully exemplified than in this in stance. In the back yard of the Ger ald home, Anderson, the man whom Tracey had kept a prisoner from the time he left Port Madison, was found tied to a tree. Tracey had tied Ander son while the posse was in full view of the house. The bloodhounds were let loose on his train and are reported to be only a few minutes behind him Fully a thousand armed men are now engaged in the pursuit, including a posse which has taken the train -for Palmer to intercept Tracey in his flight toward Cedar mountain. News was received at the sheriff's office Wednesday that Harry Tracey was at Rancher Gerald's house, below. Reno, on the Cedar Mountain road. A little after 2 o'clock the 17-year old son of Rancker Gerald arrived at the sheriff's office with a gold and a silver watch, saying that Tracey had arrived at his father's house at 10.30 o'clock Wednesday morning and after eating a hearty meal had sent him to a neighbor's house with the two watches, with instructions to try to sell tiem. Tracey said if they "were given away" he would kill the whole family, the boy included. The boy, knowing that it was Tracey, conclud ed to bring the watches to the sheriff's office, hoping that -the desperado would remain there until a searching party could arrive. The watches answer the description of those stolen from Johnson. Young Gerald describ ed Tracey accurately, and the officers think he is trying to make the Palmer cutoff by the Cedar Mountain road. Johnson's white boat, used by Tracey in his escape from Port Madison, has been found on the fiats near Seattle. SEVENTY FIVE PEE CENT. State Board Fixed that Standard of Valuation for Taxation Purposes. The several committees of 'the state board of equalization charged with the equalization of assessments of real estate in South Carolina for taxation, and also with the assessment of cotton mills, fertilizer mill and cotton oil mill plants, worked all of Tuesday after noon and evening and all of Wednes day morning as well, and it was not until 4 o'clock that they were ready to report their action to the full board. The important "per cent com mittee" recommended the adoption of a 75 per cent basis of market value for taxation of all property subject to equalization by the board, provided that after obtaining proper informa tion from the counties the board may lower the percentage if not injurious to the several counties. A strenuous effort was made to change this so as to make the basis of valuation 65 per cent, but this failed by a vote of 14 to 14, the chairman casting the decisive vote in favor of the committee's re port. This report was then adopted as follows: "Your committee appointed to fix the precentage on property beg leave to report that they .recommend that the following resolution be adopted: "Resolved, That all property sub ject to equalization by this board he put on a basis of 75 per cent of its ma'rket value, and that the county auditor and county chairman of each county be required to furnish the comptroller general, before the next meeting of this board, a sworn state ment, according to their best knowl edge and belief, showing what per cent of its market value property was assessed at in their county. Provided, That when this information has been obtained, the board may lower this percentage to such a figure as will equalize the taxes and at the same time provide a sufficient amount to meet the requirements of the various counties." Works of a Cloudburst. A special from Paris, State of* Choahuila, says A cloudburst visited this section today,covering an area of 50 square miles and doing damage to the extent of $400,000. The big Patagolana dam, the largest in north ern Mexico, broke with all the flood gates open and was completely de stroyed. The San Lorenzo dam, which has been standing for over 3.50 years was also washed away. This dam was built of solid masonry about 1570 and was in perfect condition until Wed nesday.