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THE NEGRO PROBLEM. 1 0 ti Serious Mistakes Yade by the United o1 p States Government o a IN REFERENCE TO. THE MATTER It Is the Proulem of the Ages, and! Can Not to Be settled in a t V ft Decade or Even in a a Century. a The following is the second section s of an open letter from Ex-Governor D. H. Chamberlain. formeriy of this h State, to Mr. Jamres Bryce, a member a of the English Parliament We take a this letter from The News and Cou- o rier, to which paper it should have s, been credited last week: S( The query recurs what to do? Neg- 9 atively, I am quite prepared to say that we must avoid our past mistakes s of relying on statutes, or constitu- a tional provisions, or Congressional ac tion, to bring on or bring back a bet ter state of things. The evils to be 0 abated cannot be reached by legal 1 methods or appliances. Who does not d see how impctent, how aggravating of t our evils, have been all our essays at t] settling the problem or meliorating & the situation by the application from a the outside-I mean outside the t States or communities in which the e problem is most serious-of legal reme- c dies? The movement,, under such treatment, has always been from bad P to worse. And yet a recurrence to ti such means is now called for and rec ommended by a few high authorities. g One of the ablest, best-edited newspa- t< pers I have ever known, a paper here- t tofore widely distinguihhed and widely C influential by reason of its reasonable, sane and conservative views on this subject, is now calling vigorously on the Government, and especially on b the Republican party, to take up the a question as a political, partisan issue, fE and particularly to put in operation a by Congress what it regards as the1 power conferred by the fourteenth h costitutional amendment. In my I judgment, that way lie danger and l disaster, as they have lain in the past' ti I 1 read aright, this country cannot ti be led to enter again on that path. l The beacons of warning stand too a thickly along our history since 1865. As a party issue it cannot be made at-13 tractive to the only political party f that might be expected to regard it n with favor. THREE ROOSEVELT CRIMES. a What then? I can perhaps best o illustrate my view of aproper or hope- p' ful policy, in this regard, by referring a to certain well known acts of Presi- w dent Roosevelt in dealing with this bI problem. Three of his conspicuous di acts, related to the negro problem of 0 our. South, are (1) the Booker Wash- vi ington Incident, (2)the Crum appoint- iI ment at Charleston, and (3) the Indi- h anola ppostofflce affair. Of his conduct di in each of these cases I thoroughly si disapprove, and I will tell you why. C (1) THE FIRST INCIDENT was an invitation by the President to Mr. Washington to lunch at .the ' White House, an invitation which was accepted. I have already spoken of the feeling universal or nearly so, among the white people of our South d in the matter of social equality. -Whether the feeling sisi just or un just, natural or factitious, well found- ti ed or mere prejudice, I do not now cJ and here stop to inquire. It exists. E It merely becomes intensitied by every p act of defiance of it; and it is quite it beyond the reach of legal or political 'w treatment. Under these conditions I L say emphatically .that it is unwise, a p wanton and most reckless "playing p with fire," to do any act in this rela- si tion which conspicuously affronts the 'I white people of our South. I care not h how clear may be the right of a pri- d vate individual to act In this matter p according to his own will and choice; ci I care not if social relations, such as si were established betwen the President di and Mr. Washington, are approved at tl the North--as they are not except to tI a very small extent-a sense of duty, n propriety, and offcial decorum should re have restrained the President from w giving the invitation. Mr. Wa.shing- lE ton seems to me quite guiltless of II offence. He could not be expected to p: decline the President's invitation, re though I am glad' to add that I be- al lieve Mr. Washington has, In his own ii relations and conduct, always recog- d nized the feeling of our Southern at white people and has scrupulously de- t< ferred to it. I shall not fall to add di here that probably no man appreciates o1 the ability and great services of Mr. a1 Washington, his social and personal n worth, more highly than I do; but al that the President failed of his duty, ti acted contrary to good judgment, or ai possibly acted In trere wantonness of tC spirit-I prefer the former alterna- ti tive-Is perfectly clear to me. Chris tian principle, the principle empha sized specially by the Apostle Paul, would have restrained him from this act, which simply resulted in grave and widespread injury to Washing- , ton's cause and to Washington him- a self; for he has lost to an appreciable degree the favor and confidence of thet white people of the South, where his d labors lie and where his hope depends. b Er. Carnegie may pension him and F Northern friends may applaud the d President; but however magnificent it F may be, it is not war; it will bring d nothing but injury to the work so auspiciously carried on up to that ti point at Tuskagee. Does some one bi here ask me, Must we forbear to treat h Mr. Washington as his merits entitle him to be treated? Must we sacrifice our senses of right and justice in such matters to the prejudices of the whitea people of the South, I answer, Yes, if you are in an offcial position wherea your acts concern and atfect the peo ple generally. The President of the United States has no right as a matter h of duty or policy, to affront a large t section of the nation, even if he does not personally share their sentimentst on such point. If you are a private y citizen you may do as you please, with the constant limitation that you are 1 bound to be considerate of the feelings t of others, and be willing to accept a without complaint the censure of a those whcse feelings you wound. If e this feeling, be it mere prjudice or a something better or worse, is ever to pass away, its passing will not be hast ened or elected by defiance .of it, least , of all by defiance of it on the part of b those who are our national public cffi-p cers. Not the bitter blast of wind, s< but the genial penetration of the da sun's warmth will finally, if anrything a will, cause the put ing offof his cloak, se whatever be its moral texture. g (2) THE APPOINT31ENT OF DR. CRU31, g: a negro, as collector ( the port of F Charieston is an act of another char- Ia acter. In this case the apologikts A f g the President can make no claim, as F s soems moa in the Booker c rashington case, that the act was ie of impulse and not of delibera on; tcr not only did the President ice appoint Crum, but after the ap )intment had fallen by adjon:nment the Senate without confirmation he rain renewed the appointment, and hen, for a second time, the Senate Liled before its adjournment to con rm the appointment, he made an ad iterim appointment of Crum; and ie Senate at its last session having )r the third time failed to confirm the ppointment he again appointed him 2 interim: and thus he put and has -pt him in the office which he has nce held and now holds. Now who is Crum and what does is appointment involve? I know the an and his family. Crum has had a education whicl barely qualifies im to practice medicine among his rn race. no more. He does not rank racilly high even there. His per mnal character is good. Of business mnerally he knows nothing. Of mer mtile affairs he has no experience hatever. He cannot today keep a t of books of ordinary merchants' counts, gor can be examine such ac )unts or pass upon them. And what is the office of collector a port such as Charleston? It in lves contact constantly with the ading business men of the city, the ing ofn important business at all mes with importers of merchandise, is passing constantly on delicate and ,rious questions of mercantile law ad practice; and In addition to all 21s, he should be one lit to meet for gn consuls and officers of our mer iant marine; and to appear on im rtant public and social occasions as ie representative of the city and na on. Does not every important orthern port of the Union claim and t such a man as its collector of cus )ms? Is not the proud old historic ity of Charleston entitled to such a >lector, if such a one is to be found thin her borders? Does any one )r a moment undertake to say that rum is such a man? Why, then, is he been thrust into the office over 1 protests and objections, and in the zce of non-confirmation by the Sen le? There is but one possible an Ver; he has been appointed because, is a negro. If he were a white an, no President or other appoint ig power would ever dream of put ng him Into any high official posi on, least of all into the office of col ctor of the of the port of such a city ad community as Charleston. What has been the result? Precise what must have been known be re-hand--a great awakening of the agro race to old dreams and hopes of litical advancement and supremacy; id chagrin, disgust and a keen sense injury on the part of the white pea e of Charleston; a distinct disturb ace of and a putting far off the time hen racial hatred and ill-feeling shall only known there as history. My scussion does not require me to say surmise what were President Roose !It's motives in this transaction; but Is perfectly obvious that they could ave been no other than the hope and stermination to gain for himself the ipport of the negro race of South arolina, through their delegates in 1e next National Republican Con ntion, in his candidacy for our nom ation for our next President. His 'ork has been effective in reaching uat end, but what shall impartial or Jr-minded men say of it except lat t is ignoble In its motives and isastrous in its effects? (3) THE OTHER INCIDENT >be noticed is of all still another aracter. A negro woman, named :nne Cox, had been for several years astmaster at the town of Indianola ithe State of Mississippi, a town ith a population of possibly 1,000. aset year a public meeting of comn Aratvely a small part of the white ~ople of this town demanded the re gnation by this woman of her office. be general view was and is that she d conducted her office well and had yne l'iothing to warrant any com aint against her. Under fears ,used by the demonstration Mrs. Cox t her resignation to the postoffice apartment at Washington and fled to ie town. It Is certain that not more ian 50 persons at most attended the eeting whice demanded .Mrs. Cox's signation, or had any connection ith it. Forthwith, without the ast hesitation, In the plenitude of Leasureless confidence, the President oclaimed to the country that the ~signation of Mrs. Cox would not be lowed; that she would remain post aster; and that the postoffice at In anola would be closed, and all mail Idressed to Indianola would be sent the town of Greenville, thirty miles istant from Indianola. The post Ece at Indianola was at once closed ad remained closed for considerably Lore than a year. All the citizens d people of Indianola were for all is time deprived of postal facilities, ad compelled at their own expense bring their mail from another I AX SORRY TO BE OBLIGED add that the President's action in is-case was greeted by salvos of ap roal from his party friends; and it Lust be further added that not a few ho are not his political supporters mlauded his action. So slow are Len to look below the surface of ings and see the essence of such con 2ct! So easy is It to palm off hum 2g and claptrap, yes, and rank in stice and cruelty, as honorable in Ignation or spirited defence of right. or what is the essence of the Presi mt's action? It is that because a rtion, comparatively a small por on, of one entire community acts 3dly, the President may take it upon imself, without a hearing and with t law, to punish the whole comn unity, the guilty and innocent alike. he President had not a shadow of athority or right to close the post lce at Indianola, none whatever, ad no man can show such authority. 'he act was a purely wanton and law act. What he could do 1md what e should have done was to set in mo ton the legal remedles so abundantiy rovided by our Federal statutes for ae punishment of those who caused [rs. Cox to resign and abandon her nfice. The Federal statute book is terally stuffed with provisions framed >meet and punish such offences. Let ne open our U. S. Revised Statutes ad read, under the title of "Crimes," ~pecially Sections 5,382 and 5,412, d 5,506 to 5,522. NOTHING OF A LL THIS as thought of, or suggested, or done, the President. On the contrary, ssing over all legeal remedies, re >rt was had at once to an and captan am and theatrical announcement of course that was without any legal nction and which punished the con ssedly Innocent equally with the 2ilty. Edmund Burke, you will re ember, did not know how to indict whole people; Theodore Roosevelt, eater and wiser than Burke, knows cw not only to indict, but to try, .'nict+ and punish, a wrhole popmle. i do not, wish or Intend to exaggerate. &t every step I invite correction or Senial of any statement of fact herein made by me, or the controversion of any position I have taken or any argu ment I have used. But I do say that my recollection or reading does not furnish any parallel or example of such unwarranttd, cruel, wanton dis regard of right and duty, on such an occasion, on the part of any other President in our long list. No Russian ukase was ever more autocratic or un just. I have already stated why I have called attention to these acts and poli cies of Preeident Roosevelt. It is be cause it has seemed to me the APTEST WAY IN WHICH TO SHOW what a really patriotic and wise policy would be, by exhibiting the unwise and unpatriotic course pursued by him. If a policy diametrically coun ter to his policies and conduct, which I have rehearsed, had been pursued by him or were to be adopted now it would be the true policy. Instead of inviting negroes to his table, thereby flouting the feelings, opinions and deep convictions, of one whole section of our country--the exact section, too, where our negro problem lies and where alone it must be worked )ut-let a policy of forbear ance from aggravating what some may conscientiously regard as a blind and bitter prejudice be adopted. Instead of appointing a negro, be cause he is a negro, to high oftlee for which he has no fitness, appoint no man because of his color, but only be cause of his worth and titness, and if such a test should rule out for the present all negroes, be it so. No harm or injustice will be done to any by ex clusion for such cause, least of all te the negro. Instead of recklessly and lawlessly championing the cause of a negro postmaster by inflicting grave injury on a whole community, confounding the Innocent with the guilty, apply the law made for and suited .to such offences as occurred at Indianola to the known offenders, thus punishing only the guilty while vindicating the strength and majesty of the law in the presence of a people who too often resort to violence to need the example of a President taking the law into his own hands and meting out vengeance on the guilty and innocent alike. I have now, to the best of my abili ty, presented what have seemed to me THE SALIENT FEATURES of the present phases of our negro problem. I submit my statement and views to you as a small contr:bu tioa to the stock of information and materiel which you never cease athering,: and of which your Ro manes lecture of 1902 was the out come up to that date. I have ad dressed my lucubrations to you be cause of my high respect for your at tainments as a lifelong student of political, social and racial themes. You are of course aware that I tiave no authority for assuming that your views will agree with mine, but I feel sure you will believe me when I say that I have bere expres ed my pro found convictions upon a topic of high moment to my countrymen and of great interest to those of all lands who recognize the claim of all men of all races to justice and fair dealing at the hands of their fellow men. What I have written is likewise the result of my most careful personal observa tion and my constant study for a period of but slightly less than forty years. IN CoNCLUsION let me add that if I am appalled by the dangers and difficulties which our problem presents, I am by to means in despair. I believe our comnmon Anglo-Saxon race is qualified and de stined to work the problem out to a peaceful solution. No new devices or policies are needed, though nostrums without number are proclaimed on many hands. Deportian, extrusion, segregation, all forms of efforts to banish rather than meet and solve the problem, are mere dreams never to be realized, and ought not to occupy the waking hours of intelligent minds. With the abatement and extinctioni hrough the action of the negroes themselves of the crime which first caused lynchings, cnly the old, tried, commonplace virtues are wanted on the part of the white race-a deeply humane and Christian spirit; kindness of heart, manner and conduct; readi ness to yield and defend all the ordi nary civil rights; helpfulness, to be shown in all practical and reasonable ways; infinite and unfailing patience of spirit and of act. These virtues exhibited towards the negro race will do more, fare more, than schools or colleges, more than churches or mis sions, to roll back the tide of bitter ness and violence which has risen so high in the last two years, and will in due time bring peace and mutual re spect between two races exactly suit ed, under normal conditions, to be useful to each other; exactly suited each to its present habitat in our Southern States; between whom no natural hate or fear finds place, and whose present mutual antagonism is the wicked work of those who have sought to make a stalking-horse of a backward, but kindly, pious, and in :ustrially valuable race. Yours fith fully. D. H. Chamberlain. University Station, Charlottesville, Virginia, June 23, 1904. Making Figures Lie. The indication are that Mr. Carrol D. Wright, chief statistician of the government in general and of the Republican party in particular, will be the busiest man in the country for the next two months. As chief jug gler of figures Mr. Wright will be called upon by the g. o. p. manage ment to ahow that labor is better re warded and has more left after pay ing living expenses than ever before in its history. If anybody can juggle the figures so as to make a showing, Mr. Wright is the man. Not long ago e proceeeded to show that the average cost of living was lower now than it was ten years ago, and did it by showing that while such things as bacon and flour had increased some thing like 40 per cent, nutmegs and spices had decreased something like 60 per cent, showing a clear decrease of 20 per cent in the cost of living. And in his estimates of the cost of living Mr. Wright forgot to include the important item of rent, which takes fully 19 per cent of the average workingman's income. Mr. Wright will have to work at a desperate rate if he would do what his employers expect him to do for the g. o. p. cam paign. A Bad Risk. We do not wonder that insurance companies refuse to take risks on a lady's eighth husband. She is only 30 and has buried seven already. What a courageous fellow the eighth man was. He might defend Port Arthur, or venture on a Russian bat tlship. THE WEATHER AD CROPS. Report on the Conditions for Week Ending August 15. The week ending 8 a. m. August 15th bad a mean temperature of 77 degrees which is about 3 below nor mal. The extremes of the week were a minimum of 59 at Greenville on the 9th, and a maximum of 92 at Black ville on the 12th. The first five days were genera'ly cloudy, the last two generally clear. There were local high winds accompany thunderstorms that did light damage to corn princi pally. There were almost daily rains from the Ith to the 13th, and less general showers on the last two days. The precipition was evenly distributed throughout the State, and was not as heavy as during the previous weeZ. but the ground continued thorougbll saturated, and the injury to crops was aggravated by the cloudy weather, and very high relative humidity pre valled. Some bottom lands were overflowed and the crops on them destroyed. The injury from the rains was confined largely to cotton on sandy lands. The early corn was not affected by the wet weather except that fodder pulling was hindered and some fodder that was pulled was damaged; late corn cantinued its recent rapid im provement and has reached a stage of growth which assures it to be a good crop, regardless of the subsequent weather conditions. A few localities in the south central and southeastern parts report no in jury from the rain to cotton, but over the greater part it has grown too much to weed, and It is not fruiting correspondingly, on clay and red lands, while on sandy land it has turned yellow and continues to shed extensively, with rust more prevalent than last week. A few open bolls have been noted In the southeastern countines, and a "first bale" was marketed on the 13th, although that is 'not indicative that picking has begun. Tobacco curring is nearly finished; uncut tobacco is making a new and damaging gro vth; some injury to the leaf by the damp weather to tobacco in barns. Rice made substautial im provement but is ripening slowly. Peas are growing nicely. Late melons, are watery. Late peaches are rotting extensively. Pastures, gardens and minor crops are doing well, but need more sunshine. The conditions are favorable for fall truck planting and germination. Chester-Excessive rains caused cot ton to shed its fruit; and on sandy soil to turn yellow; all farmwosk -at a standstill. Chesterfield-The continuous rains damaged cotton materially, which is shedding forms, small bolls and leaves; weather unfavorable for saving fodder; turnips coming up to good stands. Clarendon-Five rainy days this week and heavy rains on two days; rust on cotton becoming general; minor crops doing well; too wet to plant turnips. Darlington-Too wet for all crops; cotton has been badly damaged; early corn is a splendid crop; tobacco nearly all cured, but that which is still in the felds has taken a second growth and is badly damaged; late melons ruined. Dorchester-Thunderstorn and high winds on 6th; rain all day on the 10th; also showers on the 7th, 8th and 9th; even temperature slightly below nor mai. Fairfield-Weather unfavorable for all crops; rain every day; low-land corn nearly ruined; cotton growing too much to weed on clay soils and is scalded on sandy lands; some could not be cultivated the last time and was laid by grassy. Florence-Rain nearly every day; cotton stopped growing and shedded squares and young bdlls; corn crop good: minor crops doing nicely; lands badly washed; sunshine needed. Greenville-Heavy rainfall this week; the ground is now too wet for any kind of farmwork; cottpn shed ding squares rapidly, and growing too much to weed; late corn Is fine. Greenwood-The land is wetter than for years; cotton is shedding badly; late cotton growing and fruite ing very fast; bottom land crops do ing nicely; too much rain for sandy landS. Hampton-Rain fell every day this week, and the soil is too wet for the growing crops; cotton is rusting bad ly, and corn is "firing,'' little or no fodder has been saved; cotton has be gun to open slowly. Horry--Week cloudy with frequent rains; all crops did fairly well except cotton which fell off in condition; many of the squares and young bolls haAe shed, leaves turned yellow and the plants look unhealthy. Laurens-Tco much rain for cotton; corn improved; peaches dropping badly; deficiency in sunshine caused all crops to suffer.I Marion-Rain every day which caused cotton to shed and rust; corn is better than for many years; all other crops are doing well. Marlboro-Cotton is shedding con siderbly, caused by too much rain; fodder ripening. INewberry-Week cloudy and show ery with excessive moisture, which caused cotton on red lands to grow too much to weed and to shed, turn yellow on sandy lands and shed fruit and leaves; corn planted in April will make a fine crop; March corn not half a crop; pea vines fine; minor crops improving. Oconee-Good raIns 7th, 8th and 10th; crops generally fine; forage crops greatly improved since the rains began; turnips being sown; fruit. es pecially peaches, is rotting. Orangeburg-The weather this week was more favorable for crops; fodder pulling nearly finished; much of it was damaged; young corn looks well; cottou suffered but little damage from the rainy spell; it continues to grow and fruit on many fields; very little shedding or rust; a few bolls opening. Piekens-Ample moisture with sun shine this week; fine growing weather; great quantities of fruit, melons and cabbages going to waste for want of a market; most of the old corn made, and is a fine crop. Richland-Orops deteriorated great ly, caused by high winds and heavy rains; rust has become general on cof ton; few bolls opening; old corn Is made; young corn looks well. Saluda-Continued and excessive rains have injured cotton; overflow of streams injured bottom land corn to some extent. Spartanburg- No rioods, but too much rain and too little sunshine; corn and pea vines are luxuriant; cot Iton too long-jointed and too tender an full of sap; there are not enough bolls for the season; cotton shedding considerably in places. Sumter-Cloudy with rain every ay but two; cotton does not appear o haben amaged a yet; and all ther crops, gardens and pastures re xeived benefit from the rains, but a montinuation of these rains will soon ause great damage. Union-Warm with rain on four days; too wet for farming work; old corn firing; young doing well; cotton shedding rapidly, with rust and lice present. Williamsburg-There has much rain fallen; crops look fine; cotton has be gun to shed on high lands; late corn is fine; peas very good; potatoes im proving; fruit is scarce; turnips being sown; gardens very good. York-Heavy rains on 7th and 8th destroyed much corn on bottom lands; too much rain for all crops; cotton badly damaged by some unknown in Bect, which has been mistaken for rust; upland corn and stubble land peas fine crops. Anderson-There has been too much rain for cotton which is shed ding somewhat; forage crops and fruit re fine. Barnwell-Too much rain; cotton yellow and rusty, in places it is dying; yonng cotton growing nicely but lacks fruit; cotton is opening rapidly and ome has been picked; corn good; ugar cane small. Beaufort-Rains continue but not in excessive amounts some fields very rassy; most cotton has been worked i Dut and.laid by; the plants have put i n too much weed; some fields have ire-blight and some rust; caterpillars present but have done little damage. J. W. BAUER, Section DIrector, Columbia. THE PRICE OF COTTON. Colonel Larry Gantt Advices Farm ers on the Subject. Col. Larry T. Gantt, in the Spar tanburg Herald, writes as follows con erning the cotton crop and prices: Nearly every paper I pick up not xcepting our own southern journals, re talking about eight and nine cents :otton and some predict that the ripening crop will only bring seven ents. Now Mr. Editor, such rot as this fatigues my contempt. Let those cot bon gamblers and nothern papers talk eight cents cotton, but our south ern papers should silence those bears by talking fifteen cents cotton. I do assert that there is now much greater reason why cotton should sell for fif teen cents by January next than there was this time last year. I admit that there has been a slight increase in the acreage planted over last season, but it is not near so great. as esti mated. I have no idea that the in rease is five per cent. and this is more than overbalanced by scarcity of hands to cultivate the fields. In my travels I have seen thousands of acres of cotton turned out to grass. 11 am not writing from hearsay, but from personal observations. Within the last few weeks I have traveled ver a greater part of toth Georgia and South Carolina, and paid especial attention to the cotton crop. Occa cionally, like the greater portion of Spartanburg, you see narrow belts of exceptionally good crops, but then you travel for fifty miles or more through a territory where the crops have been ruined from a prolorged drought. From Oglethorpe county, Georgia, far below Augusta, a dis tance of over one hundred miles and extending clear across the State, they cannot make as much cotton per acre as they did last year. Up to about one month ago they had not a drop of rain for from eight to ten weeks, and our farmers know what that means. Thousands of acres of corn refused to even pat forth shoots and were cut down for forage. ~There 19 a narrow strip, five miles broad, be tween Columbia and Augusta where they have fairly good crops. But from Augusta until you get into Lau-1 ens county that drought prevails.1 t is the same way over the eastern portion of our States. There are, a few narrow strips of territory where ood crops are seen but taken as as a whole I do not believe that Georgia ad South Carolina will make as much :otton as they did last year.1 Now, about Texas. Recently I have seen two farmers from that state, and I hey tell me that the boll weevil has I appeared there forty billion strong I and that while the loss from this pest: in Texas last year was $20,000,000, hat this year it will amount to $30, 300,000 to $40,000,000. These pests1 are appearing in Texas In sections where never seen before and in a sin-1 gle day and night they destroy great Eelds of cotton. One farmer had a en-acre field that made a bale and a luarter per acre. Some three weeks ago the Mexican weevil appeared in It, and in 24 hours nearly every square hiad fallen and he will offer the entire eld today for one bale. The Texas1 otton crop is doomed to destruction, and this means a loss of nearly a mil ion ales. And not only this, there is no old crop to work up. That labor strike in the New England mills is all buncombe; Those mills have shut lown simply because they cannot get otton to spin and also to try and beat< lown the price of the. ripening crop. The coming season cotton ought not to 'sell under ten cents and I believe it will go to twelve and one-half cents r higher. So I say to my farmer: friends, don't get frightened. You have the long end of the hand-spike in a short grip and a great future de mand for the staple, and stand up for a fair price for your cotton. Last year [ wrote a number of articles in The Eerald predicting that the cotton rop would not exceed ten million ales and] the staple ought to bring t least twelve cents per pound. I was told that I was crazy, but it transpir ed that I was correct. I now predict hat the growing crop will not exceed leven million bales and it ought to iell for fifteen cents, for the world is hort on cotton and it takes thirteen nillion bales to supply our mills and ~he demand of the world. I have these 8 acts from headquarters and a source hat cannot be disputed. Some one must stand up for our1 farmers and protect them from being ~ wronged and robbed of their hard arned profits, and this I intend to do as long as I can work a typewriter or aise my voice. I left our county cam aigners for the sole purpose of sound- ~ *ng a note of warning to our farmers nd letting them k-now the true situa ation. I shall continue to Investigate ;he cotton situation and watch the narkets and will then advise our 'armers as to their best interests. I ave never gone back on my people or leceived them and never will, either. Don't be bulldozed or frightened into ~elling your cotton for less than its I eal value for you are bound to get a t air and living price for it. I do not t advise any man who is in debt and a hat debt is due to hold back his cot- p bon, but those debts are not due for r >er two months yet. But there are p nany farmers who can hold their cot- a mn and they should do so. fi GAVE HIM A START. rho Way Mark Twain Helped a Young Doctor to Win Fame. "A certain ominent New York physician owes his start to Mark rwain," said * New York magazine editor, "and I saw him get it. It was many yearj ago, and the then young physician had just hung out his shingle. Mr. Clemens knew him quite well, and so did I, and we both be leved that he had the real stuff In him, but the people hadn't learned of him ret, and his office was empty. One day ark was in my place talking when a banker of socigl and financial promi aence came in. Incidentally he men tioned the fact that his physician had lied the night before with heart dis ase and he needed his services that 7ery minute. Mark at once suggested that he give our friend a trial. "'What kind of a man.is he? inquir d the banker. "'None better, I should say,' respond d Mr. Clemens. 'He has never lost i patient.' "i'hat sounds good enough. Give me his address, and I'll go to see "When he had left the office, I look ed at Mr. Clemens inquiringly. "'Oh, that's all right,' he said with L sly smile. 'I said he had never lost i patient.' "'He never had one to lose, did he? [ asked reprovingly. "'Of course not, but it wasn't nec essary to say that.' "As it turned out, the humorist was right, because the young fellow ban Iled.the banker's case with success and [t was the kind of an introduction he eeded."-Reader. PEASANT WOMEN IN JAPAN. 'hey Not Only Do the Housework, but Plow the Fields. The sewing In the kimond consists of Dne small and one long stitch, a species )f artistic basting. There Is reason in his, for whenever the kimono is wash ed it is ripped to pieces. This is per aps why the Japanese, who bathe Ualy, wear such dirty clothes, while the Chinese, who bathe sometimes, wear such clean clothes. The kimono strips are dabbed up and down with aut soap, scrubbed with a brush and ire ironed by drying them carefully on boards. One of the sights of a town ire these boards, with their strips of silk leaning against the sides of the houses. The peasant women not only do the housework, but out of door work as well, Like the coolies, they wear trou mr and stand knee deep in the slush >f the rice paddles, guide the water buffaloes at the plow or bind up the straw to dry on the trees. This is the apanese idea of a haystack and makes the trees look as If they were wearing skirts. One of the novel sights is the old women mowers, clipping the lawns with scissors as neatly as a lawn mower and stopping now and then to gossip over their tea. Both In China and Japan the tending of silkworms a not only done by women, but is re arded as an elegant duty. In China each year the empress inaugurate.s it eremonally, as the emperor does the spring plowing. In each country the ther important industry-the tea growng-is largely in the hands of wo Two Strange Ailments. Aphasia, or the loss of memory or comprehension of speech, is a queer iomplaint. A man who had forgotten as sister's name always referred to ber as "that other woman." A person apparently otherwise In perfect health will substitute the name of one article for another totally different In the most ludicrous way. Amusla Is a form of aphasia which prevents the patient from remember Ing music. One amuslac, unconscious of the oddity, sang the "Marneillnine"' throughout to the syllables "tan, tan, tan." On the other hand, another phasiac, also a Frenchman, could speak bat a single word, but could sing the "Marselilaise"' correctly. Pastines In Japan. In Japan to get up parties to behold the freshly fallen snow or the cherry blossoms or the maple trees In their autnal glory or to go to the flower shows is as de rigueur as are our din irs, cotillons and theater parties. ushroom hunting is a fashionable pastime, while In the house harp play ing, verse writing, embroidering and tea drinkring are the most absorbing cpations. The most pretentious en tertainment Is the tea ceremony. It is rery formal, and there is much elabo rate performance connected with it, ificult for a foreigner to compre bend.-Good Housekeeping. Not What she Expected. Mr. Ferguson put on his slippers and threw himself on the lounge. "It's so elightful to be at home again," he said. "I think I never appreciated it more than I do tonight" "It's delightful to hear you say so, eorge," cooed Mrs. Ferguson. "Yes; those confounded new shoes bave tortured me nearly to death to ay!"-Chcago Tribune. Ready Made. Barnes-Howes was quite Indignant erhen he heard what you were about. e says you can't make a fool of him. Shedd-Of course not; but I can direct public attention to what is already in existence.-Boston Transcript. There are two sides to every ques tion. The man who hears only one side and believes It is easily fooled. Shoolmaster. The mind ought sometimes to be amused that it may the better return ko thought and to Itself. Wants HIs Fee. The State says: "Aron Prlolea u, rho periodically protest the congres - tonal election in the first district for he sake of the $2,000 that Is allowed contestant by the federal govern aent, is n trouble with the negro awyer who helped to manage his case a Washington before the congres lonal committee. This fellow wants dss fees for services. He has brought uit against Prioleau and is likely to et judgment against him even If he ever is able to collect the amount. rioleau Is in worse luck than ex-Oon r essmanl Miurry of Sumter who suic eeded in swindling an old darkey rho was not smart enough to care for .Imself until the courts took the mat er up and brought Murray to grief.' a Georgia legislature voted an nrease of salary to the governor and o the judges, but made no appropria Ion for paying it. They also passed , law forbidding judges to accept free assses from the railroads. A judge iding around the country with a free asss in his pocket Is a sorry spectacle, ad we congratulate the Georgia solons m. forbidding It. DAVIS NOTIFIED Of His Nomination for Vice-President by the Democrats. EVENT WAS A NOTABLE ONE. A Large and Enthusiastic Crowd is Present When the Speeches Are Made by Messrs. Winiamns and Davis. Henry G. Davis Wednesday was formally notified of and formally ac cepted his nomination by the Demo cratic party for vice president of the United States. The ceremonies took place in the open air in the grounds of the Green Brier White Sulphur Springs hotel and were marked by simplicity in every detail. Mr. Davis was escorted to the flag draped platform at 1.30 o'clock in the afternoon by Representative John Sharp Williams of Mississippi, who delivered the notification address. An invocation by the Right Rev. Dr. W. L. Gravatt of the Episcopal diocese of West Virgian preceeded Mr. Williams' address. It took Mr. Davis 10 minutes to read his formal acceptance but he prefaced this with a heart to hearG talk of like duration to the several thousand friends and neighbors who were gathered under the trees as his audience. A reception and cotillion in honor of the nominee were held in the hotel in the evening. Special trains began arriving at White Sulphur last night. Several came this morning and the last, a 15 car special from Charleston, W. Va., delayed the ceremonies a half hour, as Mr. Davis did not wish to disap point his friends en route by proceed ing without them. Old fashioned "coaches and four" rolled in with stcaming horses and merry passengers from nearby r' sorts; farmers drove to "The White" with their families from many miles around and mountaineer made pilgrimages with saddle bags crammed with ra tions. White Sulphur has a population at this time of the year of nearly 1,000 guests-mostly the feminine elite of southern society. These, in their sum mer finery, together with the travel stained visitors, made a most cosmop olitan gathering estimated 3,000 to 4,000 in numbers. As an enthusiastic demonstration "it did itself proud," as Mr. Williams put it. A PERFECT DAY. The day was a perfect one. The sun shone throughout and the pure air of the mountains stirred gently into cool ing breezes. The upward slope of the lawn on all sides and the erection of a sounding board back of the stand made speech easy and the acoustics good. Mr. Davis was the centre of interest throughout the day. He was early on the hotel verandas greeting friends. Conferences were held later. Then came the committee of notification at 11.30 o'clock. After an early luncheon the "senator," as he Is still familiarly called, sought the privacy of his room for a brief rest. His excellent health and evidences of phys'cial strength were subjects of congratulation on the part of his friends. Mr. Davis makes no pretense at oratory. His deliverey is of the conversational style and his emphasis is effected by pauses rather by gesture of voice of infiezion. His speech was earnest and matter of fact. When It came his time to respond to the notification address he was kept standing some minutes while the au dience expressed its enthusiam. This effected Mr. Davis. He said. "I knowy that you mean all that you said and all that you have done. I feel confi dent further that this magnidiclent gathering of the citizens of West Vir ginia and tbe adjoining States means more than simply the hearty clapping of hands. It means victory.". Applause interrupted the speaker at this point and when Mr. Davis con tinued he complimented Mr. Williams on his speech and on his oratory and turned the compliment also to Senator Daniel, who occupied a seat on the platform. Before taking up his speech proper, he took the ladles into his con fidence and commissioned them to be vote getters for the success of the ticket. Mr. Davis did not follow his manuscript closely, though he held it in his hand. THE NAME OF PARKER. He mentioned the name of Parker and the response was instantaneous. A moment later he spoke of the platform and the contention between Hill and Bryan over its provisions. Zmmediate y Bryan's namd was- taken up and cheered. "Well," said Mr. Davis, with a meaning smile when quiet was re stored: "I was a member of the plat form committee and heard the debate between those two gentlemen, but the platfrom was formed and unanimously passed by the convention, and I here today stand upon it and expect It In November to go to victory." Mr. Williams pleased his hearers im mensely by laying down to Mr. Davis in irony rules of conduct to govern his ofcial career, each rule based on some characteristic of the opposition. He talked for one hour and was listened to throughout with marke d attention and evidences of approval. Many times he was enterrupted by cheers or laugh ter. When both had concluded Senator Daniel responded to repeated demands on him for a speech by calling atten tion to the old saying that "speech is silver, but silence is golden," adding: "And as I iecall that we formally adopted at St. Louis the gold standard I shall show my sincerity In advising my countrymen to do so, after being for 20 years a silver and gold man by practicing what I preach." THE STRAINs OF "DIXE." To the strains of "Dixie" and a melody of partiotic airs the assem blage dispersed, not, however, until many of its members had mounted the platform and extended personal con gratulations to the candidate. The in vited guests, including those in Mr. Davis' private party, who occupied a roped-off reservation on the left were the first to shake the senator's hand. Mr. Davis will remain at White Sul phur until Friday when he will return to his home at Elkeins. His plans for the campaign have not been fully ma tured. A pretty incident occurred at the end of the ceremonies when a delega tion or ladies from Atlanta, Ga., head ed by Mrs. W. L. Peel, all bearing the Georgia State flag, came forward to congratulate the candidate. These same ladies tendered Judge Parker a reception in Atlanta last June. The absence of National chairman Taggart, who was unable to attend the notification, as well as of nearly all representatives of the national com mittee rendered impracticable the for mation here of any plans touching the national campaign. Mr. Wiliams' and Mr. Davis' speeches appear elsewhere in this paper. THE LETTER DELIVED. The notification committee'with 38 members present, 15 of whom were proxies, met in one of the hotel par lors at 11 o'clock Wednesday, organiz ed and then sent for Mr. Davis and presented him the following letter of formal notification: "Mr. Davis: As the conmittee on notitzation to the vice presidential nominee, we have the honor in the name of the Democratic national con vention, which was held at St. Louise on July 6 to 8, to announceto you with that degree of formality which cus tom and respectful observance pres cribe the fact -that you were unani mously named by that body as their choice for vice president of the United States for the term beginning on the 4th of March, 1905, and to request respectfully your acceptance of the nomination. Knowing that we ought to succEd and confiding In the good sense of the American people for suc cess, we are, w'th well merited re gard, "Yours for the committee, "JOHN SHARP WIT--AX, "Chairman, "W. R. McCAULL, "Secretary." Berry Belmont and committeeman James H. Vahey of Massachusetts es corted Mr. Davis to the parlor, where the committee was in waiting. He was received with applause. Wnen it had quieted Mr. Williams, addressing Mr. Davis, said: "Later in the day we will have certain exercises which will be, of course, in the nature of a sur prise to you. At present the com mittee desires to present you formally written notice of your nomination to which you are to make response later on during the day." Mr. Davis accepted the letter and. remarked: "Your chairman has told me to make response later on. -I hope we will all make respone in Novean ber." Laughter and applause greetied this sentiment and the meeting ad journed. BALING COTTON. The System Now In Use Sadly in Need of Improvement. It has been said, doubtless without exaggregation, that there is nothing more crude and dest'tute of propersys tem than is the handling of the great. staple agricultural product of these!: Southern States, cotton, from thetime the crop is gathered until it is mar keted. While there has been immense progress in the manufacture of the cotton, the treatment it receives is barbarous from the momenbitis gin ned or seperated from Its seed untilit reaches the spinning machine. The cotton gin, or machine for freeing the lint from the seed, was Invented by_: Eli Whitney a century agd and while was fairly efficient when .he ed and the large amount of lint attached to them were tbrown away, mormic curate and economical processesfor ginning are highly desirable, and yet the Southern planters stick to the old proce-5 The method of baling cotton for transportation -is a crude affir and leaves the staple exposed to tihe in cemency of the weather and- to. all sorts of waste and petty thievery The planters, as a body, have never been ableto protect themselves against . the exigencies of theirownnecesstiespi, which may compel them to fore their - crops on the market.to the greatest -- disadvantage, when by the use of a system that would enable them to feed . the market just what it requires, and to hold back their stock -from being crowded in so as to break down prices, great benefi's would insure to .the planters and no damage would be in fieted on the consumers. Congresses and conventionsof cotton planters have considered the ,subject - and have put forth convincing argu ments in favor of such4a course, but It has not been possible in thie part .to consummate such an enterprise. Last. seson combinations of Southern cot,-S; ton dealers were made with a vievi to raise and keep up the prices of the staple to a-fair level of values, but the operations carried cut'took on so much of a speculative character that no sys tern was evolved, and nothing accom plished that could be made the basis o something regular and reliable-for all the parties Interested, because iany speculation in merchandise which en trs Into daily and necessary consump tion is a spasm-a fever which may do a great deal of harm even to those who hope the most from It, and this has been the result with not a few ex perienced in the season just passed. It is claimed that, with scarcely:10 per cent. change in any recent years' in the production of cotton, prices < have fluctuated more than 200 per-' cent. In 1896, with a crop of 11,270, 000 bales, the average New York price was 6 cents, though in many places in the South cotton sold as low as 4 and 5 cents a pound. During the present season, with a crop of little over 10, 000,000 bales, or a difference of only about 10 per cent., cotton has sold as high as 17 to 18 cents, and may aver age for the year 12 cents. These cbang es in price moreover are more rapid than in any other product. Between the time a farmer startsafrom his home to sell his cotton in the nearest mar ket prices may change $5 to $10 a bale. Under such conditions the planting in terests can never be on a thoroughly sound basis, nor can manufacturing' expand as it would under more suit able condition. But with prices fairly steady from year to year, the world's trade would rapidly expand and in creased production would find an ever increasing market, whereas now a crop exceeding by only a few hundredi thousand bales the actual needs of thte year, makes possible the breaking down of the price of the entire crop. - In other words, a surplus of 500,000 or 1,000,000 bales, or 5 to 10 per cent. excess over immediate wants, may be made under present condition to cause a decline of $100,000,000 to $300,000, 000 in the price received by the farm ers for their crop. These are facts that have been real ized to the cost of many a cotton plan ter, and It should seem that in this wonderful age of combination there should be some means, probably through an organization of planters, of improving conditions, and of creat ing a more solid and reliable basis for the handling of cotton from the gin to the spindle. Killed by Explosion. The boiler at the sawmill of J. F. Arnold, five miles from Senola, Ga., exploded Wednesday afternoon killing four persons and injuring several others, how many is not known. The, dead: J. F. Arnold, owner of the mill; Buford Arnold, Will Arnold, a negro; an unknown negro. The in jured include two negro employes, one of whom may die. The cause of the explosion is not known, but is ieport ed to have been low water in the boil er. J. F. Arnold was one of the wealthiest and most popular men in the county.