Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

iVOL. xxvII MANNING, S. C., WEDNESDAY. MAY 7,43 NE5iRO DESPERADI ATTEEPT ASSAULT AND KILL Tye Of HIS PURSERS. WOUNDS FOUR OF FOSSI Crowd Numbering Hundreds in Ho Pursuit, Determined to Avenge Death of Two and Wounding o Four Cltizens.-Lynching Sure to Follow. Information from Allendale at o'closck Friday was that Henry Aus tin, the negro murderer who Is stil at large had presumably crossed the Savannah River from a swamp neal Sennell Hill and gone to the Georgia side; that Rural Policeman Spiven der was leaving Allendale for Sen nell Hill at the call of the sherif of that place with whom he is to pur. . sue .the fugitive into the Georgia swamps; that the trail taken up b3 the penitentiary bloodhounds Thurs day afternoon believed to be that of Austin's was .not the trail of the wanted negro at all. These according to this Informa tion are the lateesdevelopments it the affair which has cost the lives of two well thought of South Caro lina citizens, the wounding of -foe others and created intense excite ment throughout Hampton and Barn well counties. A dispatch from Hampton says af ter outwitting and eluding bands of armed men and bloodhounds all day Thursday, firing on one party whicb attempted to stop him in a public road about two o'clock that morning and escaping, being once driven be yond the State border Into Georgia and later being forced to cross back Into South Carolina, Richard Henry Austin, the negro who killed two men and wounded four in Hampton Coun ty the night before, was pushed back by his pursuers into Coosawhatohie Swamp, not a great distance from Barton, late that afternoon. The dogs had taken the trail and the ne gro was believed to have been locat . Fully one thousand men from Barnwell and Hampton counties, their faces showing the grim deter mination to have vengeance, search ed every nook and corner of the com munity in which the tragedies oc curred for the negro. The patience of those men who have, searched so S d(gently Is s nliistexhausted. " -The period of.-xcitement Is over, but in its place Is the settled and steadfast desire to do something for revenge. This is the expressed state ment of a number of men who com pose the searching party. The blood hounds from the State Penitentiary are on the -grounds and early Thursday morning struck the trail of the negro, but the trail ran into a public highway and was lost, the evidences being that a convey an-ce was used. Whether confeder ates or accessories furnished the con veyance is a question asked by many of those on the scene. It is known that in the neighbor' hood where the negro was last seen Wednesday night a negro hot sup per was in progress and attemptl were made by some of the searchers to procure assistance from those in attendance upon the supper but the3 steadfastly refused. Thie adds fue! to the fire and what may occur Is not known. Whenever and however Austin is taken, In the Event he should be cap tured, there Is no question now what the disposition will be. Nothing could prevent a lynching, and from the temperament of the crowd, It is not to be unexpected that fire will play its part. One small posse of eight men trail ed the negro toward the Savannah River swamp, five miles from the Savannah River. they left their auto mobile on account of a puncture anc were walking along the roadway when their attention was attracted by some one running through the un dergrowth in the woods. They stepped to one side of the road an~d as Austin came out ordered him to ditop. Instead, he paused bu a moment. opened fire on the pose and turned back into the woods. The fire was returned, and while blood or the ground indicated that Austin har been hit, he was not seriously wouni ed. 1)etails of the Tragedies. The details of the shooting ar4 that after the negro Austin had pre -pared himself with several boxes o1 buck shot, shells and a gun and large calibre pistol, with suffieni ammunition, he attempted to assau11 the wife of a prominent farmer ir the Luray section of the county Wed nesday. The lady by trickery suo ceeded in getting a shot gun and rar the negroUt. of the house at the same timeig the alarm. Mr. J. G."Folk, a near neighbor hearing the alarm ran to the assist ance of the woman and shot at Aus tin, who barricaded himself behind large bor and Mr. Folk was unable t< shoot him. The negro then comn manded other negroes to harness his mule to a wagon, which they did and he made his escape. The news spread like wild fire an< a crowd of men from Luray overtool the negro, who was In the road nea the home of M*. W. C. Bryant, In thi county, talking with Mr. Bryant as i nothing had happened. The negr ran into a pond, or bay. nearby an< Mr. George Henna entered the ba: just In the rear of the negro. Mr Hanna was shot through the should er, but was not seriously wounded During the ensuing combat, Mr. Hat na held his ground and continue: .whootng. Dr. Moore entered, going to thb assistance of Mr. Hanna, but,the ne gro shot him, literally mangling hi righ arm and infititng seria'Qs lo Juries with buckshot in his face. Not withstanding this, Dr. Moore recov ered his weapon, which had dropper to the ground at the shot, and com meneed firing with his left hand a S the negro. Mr. J. Frank Bowers, rushing ii at this time, was met with two ful loads of buckshot from the gun of the man, which completely blew off thi toip of the head and upper face of Mr Bowers. It being almost suicidal fox Dr. Moore and Mr. Hanna to sta3 where they were, the negro being se. curely barricaded, they withdrew t leaving UTr. Bower's body in the pond In the pool of his life blood. Dr Moore was at once carried to Luray, f thence to Columbia, where he nos lingers. This shooting occurred at about 3 o'clock. Pickets were then placed around the pond and it was while on picket duty that Mr. McTeer Bowers - was shot by the hidden negro, 1 Reinforcements from Hampton and Allendale having arrived, Magis E trate Edenfield called for volunteers, and Policeman Harter, Dr. Tison, John Dunbar, Mr. Hiers, all of Allen dale, and Mr. Dunning and two tray elling men from Fairfax answered the call, and under the leadership of Edenfield entered the bay. When within twenty feet of the hidden ne gro JuJdge Edenfield was shot thru the breast and stomach with buck shot, and falling to the ground, call ed out, "Get him boys, for he's got me." I Mr. Harter dropped to his knees, and with his sixteen-shot Winchester riddled the logs and bushes, forming the barricade of the negro, with bul lets. -The negro evidently fearing to rise did not shoot at the searchers more, and fearing death, the men withdrew out of range of Austin's gun. Austin wisely, from his viewpoint, stuck his overcoat up on a nearby tree, and this overcoat, which was af terwards recovered for the use of the bloodhounds in getting the scent,a also seen to be filled with bullet holes. No further attack was made on the negro at that time and the au thorities in Columbia were communi cated with for dogs and men. Night came. Fires were built by two negro men all around this bond except on one side. Austin, knowing that some negroes were engaged in buildnig these fires, walked boldly out to where several white searchers were standing, and upon being halted ex plained that he was one of the men who'had been building fires around the pond and that-he was going up to his house and that he hoped they would get the negro who had killed two of the best white men in this country. He was allowed to pass, but not stopping at the house indi cated and stooping and dodging for the woods, the men on guard knew then that he had escaped and imme diately gave chase. Austin entered a branch, and until several hours later was not heard from. A party of eight men who had been sent in an automobile to Cohen's Bluff to intercept the negro should he attempt to cross the Savannah River at that point, when their ma chine broke down, were returning on the public highway when the rattle f shells in a bag approaching them caused them to command "Halt". The response were shots from the :an's gun. The party returned the ire with probably fifty shots, but no negro was found, he having escaped In the dark. About this time the train from Co lumbia bearing the hounds arrived and being placed on the trail at the last place the negro was seen, failedi to get the trail. ~They were then carried back to the pond where the irst shooting had occurred and imme diately picked up the trail and ran it for several miles, but it ran into a public road and was lost. Reports received at Hampton at .bout 3 o'clock Thursday afternoon were to the effect that the dogs have ecovered the trail and were running - Coosawhatchie Swamp with about ne thousand men following. Judge Edenfield was shot in Barn well County and Mr. Bowers was shot in Hampton County, the county line 'unning about midway through the ond or bay. Each of the men was shot in the county in which he re sided. XILILED A SQUEALER. New York Gangmen Shoot Member Who Was Telling. Suspected of "squealing" to the istrict attorney, Jerry Maida, known as "Jerry, the Lunchmanl," met his 1ppointed death on Firty-First street near Broadway, New York, early Tuesday. He was shot down by gangsters who sent bullets into his body. The shooting occurred only a cou pe of blocks away from the scene of the murder of Herman Rosentiial last July, but the gunmen had loss luck .than the Rosenthal mftrder crew. Five policemen who were in the im mediate vicinity heard the shots and pounced upon five men whom they accused of the killing. The police allege taat the men aught are members of tae l'aul Ktl ly band of gangs(e--. of which Jerry was an adherent. They s'ty that Jor ry had recently fallen unde" siuspi cdon, however, and that he was thought to be revealing the gang's secrets to the district attorney. None of the men caught were arm ed, but witnesses said they had seen rthem throw revolvers away and three Sof the guns were found in a garbage can nearby. The police say thai ,"Guinea Sam", one of the prisoners, was under arrest two years ago in Sconnection with thle murder of an other member of the gang under sim -ilar circumstances. He Conquered Them. The Savannah News says the pre ailg opinion is that L~ Pierponi e Morgan was one rich man who over Scame any dtfficulties wealth put ii s the way of his entering the Kingdou o afeaven. THE MARKET BASKET DEMOCRATS 'INSIST UPON REDUC TIONS IN TARIFF BREACH IN PARTY LINES When Representatives From Louis iana and New Jersey Attack the Rates on Sugar and Live Stock. After Four Days Debate No Dent Was Made in Democratic Plans. All efforts of the opposition in the House of Representatives at Wash ington to disturb the "market bas ket" reductions in the Democratic tariff bill failed in the House Thurs day, despite the fact that Republican orators sounded warnings of ruined industries, enforced idleness and empty cupboards to follow the enact mest of the Underwood %bill. Still championing the bill as the greatest that ever has been written for the benefit of the people of the country, the Democrats were deaf to the pleas of representatives of the .beet and cane sugar constituencies against free sugar in three years; unmoved by the charge that they legislated in to the hands of the beef trust by plac ing duties on live stock while free listing their products; determined to rush the passage of the bill the ear liset possible moment. The first break from the solid front of the majority came. however, when Louisiana Democrats,* led by Representative Broussard, appealed to Mr. Mann, Republican leader, for a share of time in which to speak against the sugar schedule, and when Representative Kinkead, a New Jer sey Democrat, uttered a prediction that the senate would strike out the ways and means committee's 10 per cent. rates on live stock. When Representative Sloa. cf Ne braska introduced an amendment to increase the rate on cattle from 10 to 15 per cent., after a 25 per cent. amendment by Mr. Fordney of Michi gan had been rejected. Mr. 'Kinkead declared that he believed that the ways and means committee had kept the platform pledge to the people when they had reduced live stock rates to 10 per cent. but he felt that the committee should have placed live stock on the free list along with meats. "I .believe and hope," said Mr. Kin kead, "that when it comes back to us from the senate the duty will be cut off and that every Democrat on this floor will support it." This aroused prolonged applause from the Republicans, who earlier were stirred to enthusiastic cheers when Mr. Broussard declared that the sugar rates proposed by his party would redound only to the benefit of the sugar trust. The test vote on su gar came on an amendment offered by Mr. ~Mann to strike out the pro ision placing sugar on the free list in three years. It was iost, 88 to 186. Representative Hardwick of Georgia defended the rates for the majority, describing America's sugar industry as of the "hothouse" varie ty, unable to stand on its own feet and exacting excessive taxes from the people to support it. Representative Mann opposed the rates, and Repre sentative Underwood closed the de bate. "No man is so ignorant that he oes not know," said Mr. Mann, "that the price of sugar in this country would be 100 to 200 per cent. higher than It is were it not for the beet su gar supply produced in this country. and yet you intend to strike down this industry in the United States. "Make the most of your opportu Ity, the country Is ready to say your tariff legislation Is a failure, and the first opportunity the people have will be the last opportunity you will ave." Representative Underwood analyz d the sugar rates In the proposed bill, described the Louisiana cane In ustry as one that could not survive and asserted that the rates in the bill would not affect the beet sugar ndustry. "Beet sugar in this coun try can be produced on an equality with European rivals with no pos sibility of competition within a rea sonable zone." he said. "What the Western beet sugar people 'seek Is to tax the American people in order to bring Their beet sugar to the Atlan tic seaboard and drive out all compe tition. T Is simply a question of freight rates." The Japanese question was touch ed upon during the debate on the wood schedule, several members pre dicting that reductions on shingles and other wood products would turn the lumber camps of the West into Oriental labor camps. Representa tive Falconer (Progressive) of Wash ington. alluded to the Democrats as "HinduChiee-Japanlese lovers" and told them "your Democratic secre tary of state is coming back from Cal ifornia to tell your Democratic presi dent some facts about Oriental labor that he does not know." The agricultural schedule precipi tated prolonged discusssion though Mr. Underwood held it down with frequent motions to cut off debate on successive paragraphs. Amendments were offered to increase the rates on cattle, sheep, hogs, wheat, oats and other grains and nearly every other item in the bill, but all were rejected. On this schedule the session again went far into the night, though the oppositIon gave evidence of having largely spent its force. Thursday there were indications that Republican leaders would not undertake to delay the passage of the bill much longer. Representative Moore of Pennsylvania. who has been active in offering minority amend ments, voiced this view. He said the Republicanls would not atempt to ff1 ibu,,e. and that they had been WORTH ALL THE REST THE TESTIMONY OF THE WORLD'S RICHEST MAN. The Remarkable Statement Made in His Will by Y. Plerpont Morgan, the Great Financier. It is doubtful If the will of any man who has died in the last decade has 'been so widely discussed as th:it of the late J. Pierpons Mcrgau, says The Greenville Piedmont. This was not because of the disposition which he made of his money and estate. The partition was about as expected. The amount left was not surprising. The portion of the will which has caused the discussion is this para graph: "I commit my soul into the handa of my Savior, in full confidence tlat having redeemed it and washed it in His precious blood, He will present it faultless before the throne of our Heavenly Father; and I entreat my children to maintain and defend at all hazard and at any cost of per sonal sacrifice the blessod doctrine of complete atonement for sin through the blood of Jesus, once offered, and through that alone." Many sermons have been preach ed over the country upon this will. The view taken by all is that it is a notable tribute to christianity and that, coming from the man who probably controlled more money than any other one man in the world, it is sure to do good. Dr. James I. Vance, pastor of the First Presbyte rian church of *Nashvill e, Tenn., spoke of Mr. Morgan's will last Sun day. Reading the paragraph quoted above, he said: 'This is the way the greatest finan cier of his age writes his last will and testament. This is what a multi millionaire has to say of values. This is the statement of a rich man who was not owned 'by his money, but whose money was owned by him. This is the profound conviction of one who had all that the world could offer, and who tells us what is realy worth while. So far, as I have been able to. learn, 'Mr. Morgan's life and character were in harmony with the terms of his will. He was deeply religious. It was his custom to visit the church every day, and spend a while there. Sometimes his pastor would find him there in prayer, some times walking up and down the aisle singing an old hymn. One'of the bishops of his church says he was the most religious man he ever knew. "Mr. 'Morgan declares his estimate of the value of salvation, the prec iousness of a personal hope in Jesus. He was just a sinner saved by grace. He had what money cannot buy, what the world can neither give nor take away. How rich was he five seconds after he died? Was he not as rich as before? He was infinitely richer. Through death he came into his own. Money was nothing. Im mortality was everything. "The most precious thing in the world Is salvation; not money, not stocks and bonds, not financial Influ mene, not money earning capacity, not pictures and rare books and works of art, but eternal life through Christ. Do you believe It? 'Who sh'll it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Would you be willing to go to hell for a mil ion dollars? Would you be willing to go for a billion? Would you give up the little hope you have for all the oney of Carnegie, Morgan, Rocke feller and the rest? If so, the mon insan-ty has made you crazy. Let us reconstruct our Ideas and shake off.a the spell of greed, and refuse to sell out for that which never can satis "The great financier also declares is estimate of. the value of the atonement. He entreats his children not to regard the millions of money he leaves, not to care for his marve lous art collection, not to sustain his charities and philanthropies, so much as to maintain and defend at every hazard and cost the doctrine of the omplete atonement for sin through the blood of Jesus Christ once offer ed. That is the most remarkable statement ever made.in a human wi-ll. And yet some people, think that the atonement has played out. And yet here is a man who had studied much, seen much, owned much, and who omes back to say that there Is noth ing more precious than the doctrine of the atonement. "His statement is all the more re markable because of the atmosphere of commercialism in which he lived and because for years he had a min ister who held very lax views about the atonement. Perhaps this may help to explain the statement in his will. At any rate, his own faith was unshaken, and with his dying hand he writes this charge bidding those who take his place to make it their chief concern In life to defend the atoning spirit of the Savior's death. 'This is the key to Mr. Morgan's life-not Wall street, but a corner in a pew in a Christian church. If you want to know what made him there It Is. If you would explain his philanthropy, it is there. He was essentially religious. There is no philanthropic or charitable or soc ological work that is not built on re ligious convictions. We have many shallow schemes today, but we need to get back- to eternal and fundamen tal verities, If society is to be saved. Mr. Miorgan declared that he lent millions In money just on his faith in man. s~ack of such transactions was more than a shrewd reading of human nature. It was faith in the Son of man. "hammering away at the Underwood bill for four days without making a single dent in it." The fact that many who claim that their business is af fected are asking the Republicans to hasten matters In order that they may "readjust their affairs" is said. to e prtly responsible for 'the tp9.n& Ityatitude. SOIL SURVEY OF STATE HAS BEEN ALMOST COMPLETED BY THE GOVERNMENT. There Are Seventy-three Different Types of Soil in State-Only Four of Them GeneraL The bureau of soils, United States department of agriculture has made soil surveys of over half 'f the total land area of South Carolina. or over 15,000 square miles, at a cost of about $50,000. During the surveys 73 different types of soil were en countered and mapped, on which al most any type of agriculture could be practised, particularly the various types of trucking crops and the heav ier types of agriculture. In addition, thousands of acres were encountered suitable for excellent cattle raising.. The counties in which soil surveys have been made in' the state are Ab beville area, embracing parts of Al: beville, Anderson, Grenwoo t and Laurens counties; Campobello area, embracing parts of Greenvii! and Spartanburg counties; Charlest )n area, embracing parts of Charlesto. and Colleton counties; Conway area, embracing part of Horry county; Darlington area, embracing Darling ton county and part of Lee county, Orangeburg area, embracing part of Orangeburg county, and the follow ing counties: Bamberg, Barnwell, Cherokee, Chester, Clarendon, Fair field, Georgetown, Lancaster, Oconee, Orangeburg (in progress), Saluda, Sumter, York and Union counties (in progress.) The soil survey work has developed four main soil provinces in the state, namely the coastal plain, Piedmont plateau, Appalachian mountains and the flood plains. The soils of these provinces differ widely in character and adaptation. The coastal plain province, which is situated in the eastern part of the State, consists of soil material that was washed down from the higher country, n6w classed in four main soil series which are the Norfolk se ries, classed as the most valuable trucking 'soils of the Atlantic States and excellent coton, corn, oats and forage soils; the Orangeburg series which are admirably adapted to the production of Irish potatoes, corn peaches and wrapped tobacco; the Portsmouth series, which, when re claimed, are well adapted to the pro duction of strawberries and vegeta bles, corn and forage crops, and Cox ville series, which are classed as fine soils for the production of strawber ries, oats, corn and cotton. The soils of the Coxville series are prominent flat woods soils, but at presetn are inadequately drained. The Norfolk ieries surveyed amounts to about 700,000 acres; the Orangeburg series 200,000; the Portsmouth series about 500,000 and the Coxville series about 300,000 acres, including about 125,000 acrres of swamp and 100,000 acres of tidal swamp and marsh land. The Piedmont province consists of three main series of soil types and others of minor. importance, namely, the Cecil, classed as excellent general farming soils and the sandier mem bers being well adapted to a large variety of vegetables; the Durham series. regarded as good for general farming and the lighter members as excellent trucking soils; the Iredell ::e rec'mmended as good soils for cotton and corn and grain crops. The area surveyed contains about 1,900, 00 acres of the Cecil series, 75,000 acres of the Durham series and about 75,000 of the Iredell series. Lfuch of the soil In the Appalach lanmountains is suited only for for estry purposes, although the Porters series contain what is regarded as the best apnle soils of the South. A portion of the region is well adapted to the production of wheat, corn, sye and barley while some of the series are admirably adapted to the produc tion of Irish potatoes. About 1,300,00 acres of land have been surveyed in the Flood Plains rovince which, when reclaimed by ditching and diking are the most productive soils of the State. Howev er, much of the terrace or second botto msolls are considered veay val table for the production of corn, cot tnn, oats and cowpeas. The soil surveys have demonstrat ed that the State contains a large ar ea of very productive land on which improved farming methods are prac ticed. The State has no land that is reclaimed that can not be used profi tably for agricultural purposes. How ever, there is a great deal of land that Is at present not In use or on which farming methods are Indiffer Soil surveys of some of the coun ties demonstrated that a large per cent. was not under cultivation al though the soils were of high qual ity and that they could be converted into profitable fields. The Ports mouth soil, for instance, has a large acreage that is not under cultivation but when well drained produces a fine quality of tea, good corn, celery, onions, cabbage and forage crops. The .possibility and necessity for the production of more wheat, vege tables milk and butter in the State Is brought out prominently by the soil surveys. In the Piedmont section there are sufficient areas of the Cecil sandy loam and the Durham sandy loam to produce all the vegetables necessary for home consumption and for shipping, and in view of the ad mirable adaptation of certain soils throughout the State to forage crops, the buying of meat, milk or butter from outside sourecs should not be rctied. There will be found some of the very .best vegetable soils in the coastal plains section of the State. F.rly vegetables thrive well on the 'y sandy land~s while the medium and late ergps tbhrive w%'I) on tbq heaer wpa. CARRY OUT PLEDUE PRESIDENT WILSON URGFES NEW JERSEY DEMOCRATS TO CARRY OUT JllY REFORM Incidentally He Promises to Give His Opinion Upon Local Questions if Asked-Democrats Must Carry Out Their Campaign Promises or Lose Out Before the People. President Wilson Thursday night In two speches at Newark and at Eliz abeth, New Jersey, made good his oromise to return to New Jersey to, fight for the reforms which were pledged to the people while he was governor, but which failed of accom plishment since his departure for Washington. The president was greeted with cheers and enthusiasm as he faced the big crowds. "It made my pulse beat," said the president in his speech at Newark, "to think that I was to come to this great county of Essex that wants to govern itself but does not. I have come therefore to speak not to you but for you. I have exercised a great self denial about New Jersey. My great temptation in choosing a summer home was to pitch my tent where I used to. But there is going to be a contest for governor In New Jersey next summer and I did not want anybody to think I wanted to boss the job. I have no candidate for governor, but I am opposed to who ever is desired by certain gentlemen. I don't want to see any governor pri vately owned. I am going to New Hampshire next summer but New Hempshire is in telegraph comunica tion with New Jersey. Any one who wants to know what I think can learn by asking. "But I want to say a few words about the Democratic party. I want everybody to realize that I have not been taken in by the results of the last national election. The country did not go Democratic in November. It was impossible for it to go Repub ican because it could not tell which kind of Republican to go. The only hopeful and. united instrumen.t through which it could accomplish its purpose was the Democratic party. There were certain things which we want, the country said, not- certain persons elevated. There were certain things we want demonstrated, such as that the government of the United States can not be controlled by pri vate interest. Now .the Democratic party is going to have a try at mak ing -these things, sucessful and if net t we're not going to have another try.". The president applied his reference J1 to the national election to State situ ation deducing that If the Democratic = party in the state did not redeem its pledges, including jury reform, the people might try another political party In the next election. Mr. Wilson declared that when the Democratic party In New Jersey three years ago came into power, every body wondered "If the old gang I would run It, but it did not." The speaker said that when he was preparing to go to Washington fromJ the governorship he was told that3 "the old gang would come .back." i "I did not believe It," he contin-E ued, "until I saw it.Once more that bulky form of the gentleman who us ed to personally lead the New Jers-t eey legislature Into disgrace reap peared on the very floor of the legis- < lature; that great system with a big t nae-like 'S,' that great, sneaking, whisering system had established itself In Trenton." The president used a quantity of adjectives to describe the "gang" and charged that the system had been so orrupt as to permit grand juries to Indict at strategic moments and "they can withhold grand juries from indict Ing when all is quiet and you know that the mastery of certain gentlemen i this state would be impossible if the things they did were subject to the dispassinate judgment of grand uries." The president was unsparing in his attack upon the eleven assemblymen from Essex county who were oppos ing fury reform. "It Is a disgrace," he said amid ap plause, "to the judicial system of the State and the Union and I come here to protest as a representative Amer ican citizen that these things should not be allowed to exist."1 EATS THhOUGH A TUBE. New Yorker Has His First Square Meal in Fifteen Years. 1 Daniel J. Curtain, of New York city, an employee of the Street Clean ing department. ate his grst square meal In fifteen years a few days ago. He had been afflicted with a stric ture of esophagus which prevented him from swallowing solids, and for the last ten years he says he has liv ed principally on his nerve. Two weeks ago Curtin was operat ed upon and a tube inserted in hisI side for the Introduction of food. He cannot swallow solids any more than before, and has to take them, finely~ chopped, through a tube, but the diet is much more satisfactory than the soup menu h~e was compelled to endure for so many years. His first "square meal" consisted of chicken soup, rast beef, vegetabIles, salad Gopher Killed by Golfer. The Eastern golfer whose drive caught a bird in the air and killed it has nothing on Willis R. Armstrong, a banker of Colorado Springs, Colo. A ball driven by Armstrong struck a gopher squarely on the head, killing the little animal. The gopher had only his head out of the grou.nd wb0E mAa, rm wacigtc~~ tis artve. * HUMAN DOia rILL b HEROIC WORK ON MISSISSIPPI LEVEE WHEN BROKEN. Water is Held Back By Human Bod ies Until Laborers Could Fil the Breach With Sacks of Earth. Quick work by determined farmers and a small bunch of willing negroes who were thrown into an incipient crevesse In the absence of sand bags Thursday saved another disaster along the turbulent Mississippi river. The dozen negroes who lay in the gap of the Poidras levee, holding back the water until sand bags could be filled to take their places, risked their lives, but saved the day when it appeafed hopeless to even try'to hold the fact crumbling embankment.. The Poidras levee, which is only 13 miles south of New Orleans, began to cave rapidly shortly after 5 o'clock i Thursday morning. When the cav ing was discovered the entire batture En front of the Poidras - store, 100 feet wide and extending from the levee to the river bank 200 feet )ut, had caved and a small gap in 1 the levee had gone. The alarm was given and within 20 minutes a score )f negroes. were brought up by a planter who lives a few hundred cards south of the scene. The levee was caving rapidly when this small Force arrived water about two inches Seep was pouring over the embank- i rent. It seemed too late to prevent the :rash. A desperate chance was tak m when two 12-inch boards were put along the top of the broken levee and, i. dozen negroes accepted the task of folding it in place. These human c and bags might be taken with the rerdy next slice of the levee but they ield on until a row of bags filled with dirt were put in place behind c :he boards. Other bags were hastily ;lipped into the gap and soon a hun Ired more negroes and white men were working like ants filling sacks Lnd cai'rying filed sacks to the gap. Then without warning, the stretch >f the levee crown where the human t and bags lay a few moments before c ell away to a depth of 28 feet. A sec md row of bags held the water back Lnd within an hour 2,000 of the dirt illed sacks were in place and the aving was temporarily checked and, or the time, the levee saved. E MU ERER IS CONVICI'ED. t Dnwriten Law Fals to Save Man in Georgia TriaL The unwritten law has received a evere jolt in Georgia by the convic ion and sentence to three years of >enal servitude of Elmer T. Darden,' rho shot and killed C. Of. Goddard in he Union Depot at Atlanta last t nonth. f Darden admitted all the circum tances of the killing, practically as lleged by the prosecution, and bas ,d his plea wholly on the nuwritten aw. The .fudge charged that there ere no such thing as unwriten law, Ld the jury found Mr. Darden guil y of manslaughter. -Before dismiss-g ng the jury. Judge Roan said, "yout re a set of brave men. Not every uy ignores the unwri.ten law, andt ret there is no such thing as an un ritten law in this county. Onlyt avages or people who cannot write iave unwritten laws." 4 In sentencing Darden to serve :hree years the Judge said, "Still I ecognize that you had some provo ation for what you did, and while 1 he law should punish, they should be enent under certain cli-cumstances." WILL AID ADMINISTRATION. )emocrats in Clfornia Support Wil son and Bryan. An indication of the form Demo-d ~ratic opposition will take to the pro osed Webb draft of the anti-alien 1 and bill was given in the California tate senate at Sacramento Thursday vhen the measure came up for final ction. It was the original plan of the pro- 1 ~ressive Republican majority in its Lssurance of a successful issue to< orce the bill to a vote at once but ata :he request of the Democrats a post >onement of one day was granted at 4 :he last minuate. In return for the delay the admin-. stration leaders received a pledgec 'rom the minority that it would abide 1 y the results as shewn in the final -oll call and not demand a reconsid-1 ration. Thus the Progressives felt :hat although apparently they lost a lay, in reality they saved several )y checking further eff'orts to impede :heir plane. Plot to Smuggle Chian. Another plot to smuggle Chinese cross the Canadian border was dis ~overed at Mount Morris, N. Y., when biee half-starved Chinese were tak n from a box car. The conductor's attention was attracted by pounding n the door of a car. When he an swere-1 a man in broken English leaded to be released and offered im $10 to open the door. The car was sealed in Canada and billed to N~ew York city. Ropemaker Slept 77 D~ays. Leon Jean, a ropemaker of Cher bourg. France woke up to find him self in a hospital instead of at hi home. He was further amazed when told he had slept continuously for 77 days. Jean could not be awaken ed on Feb. G, and he was sent to a hospital by members of his family. His ~iiresent health is good. Panther Kills Negro Boy. A panther, -driven from its lair in the swamps of the St. Francis basin, near Forrest City, Ark., by the flood, killed a negro boy. The .body of th'e .outh -a tbr .sna maatel BY NILLIONAIRE IN TRAIN BE WAS ROBBING A VERY BOLD AFFAIR With Drawn Pistols Daring Bandit Passed Through Coach After Coach Relieving Passengers of Valuable. Shot as He Leaves the Train But Escapes. The bandly believed to be badly wounded who escaped from the Kan ms City Southern Gulf Coast train after he had shot and seriously in ured Jesse M. Short, a millionaire nine owner of Joplin, -o., and rob ed the passengers soon after the rain had left the Grand Central -ta ion at Kansas City, Mo., about mid light had not been captured Friday. Bleeding from wounds he had re .eived In a pistol battle with Short, he robber left a trail of blood as he led. This enabled the officers to fol ow his tracks until he arrived at the Blue River, almost a mile. from the point where he jumped from the rain. Here the trail stopped abrupt y and his pursuers expressed the be lef that he continued his flight in~a oat. The train was just pulling out of he depot when a tall. men ran-eut >f the darkness of the railroad yaeds md climbed up the steps of the ob iervation car. He wore a dark hand edohief drawn over the lower part >f his face and carried two pistols. Oscar Allen, a negro porter, who - aw him board the train rushed out snd ordered him away. The robber overed him with his pistol and said: 'I am going to put over a trick here. rou sit down here and be qulet,.I will seed you." After the train had proceeded Lbout three miles -the robber. ordered llen to go ahead or him 'throug. he train.: In the sitting room of the i.bservation car were W. J. Scafe of eck City and E. F. Seaman of Eu eska Springs, Ark. The robber's roice trembled as he demanded their raluables but they offered no yesist ice and gave him money and Jew dry amounting to about $20. Preceded by the frightened negro, he robber then entered the chair car' where there were about a dozen pas engers, all men. "Hold up your hands," was the ommand. with which the:- robber reeted them. The passengers read ly complied. The bandit, passed ong collecting their money and ew dry. The robbery of the chair car was ceomplished within five minutes-and he surprised passengers -obeyed the Inal indunction of the, robber to sit [own and remain quiet. The Pullman car was entered next, Lfter robbing two passengers from whom he secured .small amounts of money, the robber came to the berth iccupied by Short. "Give me your money," the robber emanded In a whisper as he shook - he sleeping man. When awakened uffcently to realize the import of he command, Short handed over $1. 00 and a large dia~mond stud. Ae he robber turned to leave Short selz d a revolver and fired through the urtains. -The robber returned the re and both men emptied their wea ons, each shooting blindly through he curtain which was perforated y almost a dozen bullets. One bul et struck Short's forehead, another ent through an arm and a third odged in his knee. Short fell back In his 'berth and he robber fled toward the rear of he train. Passengers in the other a, aroused by the shots, followed Lim. They saw him back out of the toor of the observation car and drop rom the train, which was just being irought to a stop. He left blood tains in the aisles and on the car latform and the passengers saids he. sppeared to be badly hurt. It was ielieved that two of the bullets fired >y Short struck the bandit. C. G. Glzson, conductor in charge >f the train, when he heard the ooting, seized a pistol and, accom anled by a porter, a brakeman and xpress messenger, started for the allman car. Before they could lear the aisles of passengers so they ould use their weapons, the robber ad leaped from' the train. An ambulance took Short to a hoe ital. Physicians there 1said while mis wounds were serious, they did ot consider them fatal. Short Is one of the wealthiest mine iwners pof Jasper county, operating :Inc and'lead" mines In that district. 1ix years ago he was a miner work ug for wages. Limit Size of Trunks. Forty-five Inches is the largest runk that may be carried on rail oads In the United States according o an agreement of railroads made In Thicago. The new rules frown on he trunk with bulging side, or bot :om designed so that It must stand n a certain position, so the gowns nd hats inside will travel right side p. It may be some time, however, yefore the "freak" trunks can be re used. 'Notice Is required in order to reec them lawfully. Labor Leaders on TriaL Scores of officers guarded the court it Patterson, Mass., at a special ses sion Wednesday for the arraignment yf William D. Hlaywood, Elizabeth surley Flynn, Carto Theska, Patrick Qtinian and Adolpn1 Lessig, indus trial workers of the world leaders, in icted for inciting Paterson silk mill trikers tp riot. Forty other mem bers of the organization are awaiting lo pead to cMarg of ~ua'fzzl a