The Clinton chronicle. (Clinton, S.C.) 1901-current, January 14, 1960, Image 9
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Thursday, January 14, 1960
THE CLINTON CHRONICLE
By SPECTATOR...
* COMMENTS
ON
MEN AND THINGS
W'-4‘
What is a Constitution worth?
Why have one? Frequently a Consti-
tion stands in our way and holds up
a stern, forbidding hand. That is
' why we have a Constitution; it for
bids some-things and it requires
certain things, at times.
Who reads or studies our Federal
and State Constitutions? I wonder.
Our State Court will pay respectful
attention to the Constitution when
it is invoked; and the Federal
Judges in South Carolina are al-
* ways guided by the Federal Consti
tution, unless the Federal Supreme
Court bases a decision on some
sociological theory. That, of course,
must be .ednskiered by all Federal
Courts. ® > ;■
’Our natioq began interpreting the
Constitutionlyears ago, and now no-
body knows exactly what the law
really is. We are, they say, a gov
ernment of law by law, but that is
highly politicalized.'
In the South Carolina State
Constitution we have many clear
provisions which are now entirely
disregarded. Perhaps the Constitu
tion cihould be amended, but it
should not be strained or strangled
by its friends.
~ Consider this: Section 19 of Ar
ticle 3 prescribes; “Each member
of the General Assembly shall re
ceive five cents for every mile for
* the ordinary route of travel in going
* to and returning from the place
where its sessions are held; no Gen
eral Assembly shall have the power
to increase the per diem of its own
* members. The members of Con
gress, I think, collect for only one
trip each way.
That-was clearly understood from
the year 1895 until about 1930, or
thereabout.
Members of the General Assem
bly received five cents a mile going
and returning once a year, as the
Constitution explicitly provides. But
sometime in the heyday of construc
tive intellects it was interpreted to
mean so much a mile going and
coming every week.
So there you are: You don’t have
to amend the Constitution, you may
construe it, or interpret it.
That may be a small matter, but
it is just one of those small matters
which develop into large matters.
There are many other sections
commonly disregarded, but one or
two will suffice for this time.
There is Section 29 of Article 3,
which says: “AH taxes upon prop
erty, real and person (personal)
shall be laid upon the actual vajue
of the property taxed ,as Ihe jmme
shall be ascertained by an "assess
ment made for the purpose of lay
ing such tax.”
I may remark that Section 30 of
Article 3 has some little interest for
us... ~~
Notwithstanding the clarity of the
law this was disregarded and re
sulted in suits or threats of suits
to compel observance. But why was
it disregarded? Does no one read
the Constitution? Yet good men ad
vocate a new Constitution. I could
agree with them if we could compel
respect for it.
Now we have Section 13 of Article
10, which has recently been submit
ted to the Attorney General, result
ing in a ruling that it means what
it says.
Here it is: “The General Assem
bly shall provide for the assessment
of all property for taxation; and
State, County, township, school,
municipal and all other taxes shall
be levied on the same assessment
which, shall be made for State tax
es.” Tru jt is that the State does
not now assess general property,
but certainly a county within itself
may not have varying valuations.
I’ve always been interested in a
note I read in a booklet on the Con
stitution. published in 1M5j It says
of Section 32 of Article, 3: “Stricken
from Constitution by Joint' Rqgplu-
tion and an Act 1944 (1945).
How can that be? Since when
may the General Assembly strike
out a section of the CbhstitutionT •
'“'■fhinking of constitutions, much of
ment is based on strained interpre-
the activity of the Federal Govern-
tations of the Federal Constitution;
and some other activities seem to
be gross perversions of the prin
ciples of American history.
The Income Tax, for example, is
based on the _ 16th Amendment,
which reads: “The Congress shall
have the power to levy and collect
taxes on incomes, from whatever
source derived, etc.”
But nothing in that authorizes or
justifies a general imposition based
on net worth. It would not require
a metaphysicist to prove that as
sessing net worth is not strictly the
same as a tax imposed on income.
Furthermore, the graduated in
come tax is utterly unsound and
un-American because it taxes cit
izens on different bases, instead of
taxing all on the same basis. .The
idea of an imposition of 20 per cent
one some incomes; 25 on others; 35
on others,; and up to 91 per cent
is utterly mischievous and confisca
tory. If a man pay 20 per cent on
an income of $10,000 he will pay
$2,000; but if he pay 20 per cent on
$100,000 he will pay $20,000. Now
why should that man pay $40,000?
Of coarse I am understating H.
If a man pay 20 per cent on an 1
income of a million dollars he will
pay $200,000. Why should he pay
$600,000?
All this is part of our trend to
ward Socialism.
Again, why should a corporation
pay 52 per cent of income to the
Federal Government? TTiat is m6re
than half^ Without any investment
and without any risk the Govern
ment takes 52 per cent And there
are other taxes.
At least the uniform 52 per cent
avoids the viciously discriminatory
tax as on personal incomes.
Suppose the Government should
tax a farmer 52 per cent of his
profit as^farm tax, and then sub
ject him to the. discriminatory and
confiscatory personal income taxf
That is what it does to Easiness.
For example, the Government col
lects 52 per cent from the Cor
poration and then collects per^opal
income from the stockholders Abo,
already paid 52 per cent? ' *
In South Carolina we are begin
ning to see the light; our State of
ficials are eager to welcome new
and expanded busines operations.
We would do well to compare our
State with others and then remove'
alny obstacles our taxes may im
pose.
Our -first need is profitable em
ployment for all our people; then
the whole state will benefit. We
should not think in terms of more
taxes, but fewer and less taxes.
A spending and taxing spree must
be avoided; we must attract people
and business by reasonable taxes.
Anyone cap readily imagine more
and more spending, but we can’t
compete with other states except by
offering a better climate for bus
iness. j
Since most enlightened citizens
are advocating and urging new in-'
dustry, with due regard for those
which have served us so well for
years, let us base our recommenda
tions with facts before us.. Study
these figures:'.
What 100 new industrial workers
would mean to your community;
296 more people; 112 more house
holds; 51 more school children;
$590,000 more personal income per
year; $270,000 more bank depos
its', 107 more passenger cars regis*
tered; 174 more workers employed;
4 more retail establishments; and
$360,000 more retail sales per
year.”
* * •
‘"Duke Power Company has an
nounced that it will build a huge
multi-million dollar steam generat
ing power plant about 20 miles
southwest of Anderson. It will, when
complete, be the second largest
plant in the entire Duke Power
Company system. The' plant will
be located on the Savannah River.
It is most pleasing to note that
this company, as well as other com
panies, realize the need for more
Thrifty Shoppers
The Chronicle
it b is is-
> ■ f r he
Supervisor
BEFORE
THEY BUY
Mr. Merchant
Your Local
Paper is >
Way Out in Front
WHEN IT COMES TO GIVING YOU THE MOST FOR YOUR AD
VERTISING MONEY-THATS US! SMART SHOPPERS MAKE IT
THEIR THRIFTY RULE TO MARKET BY “THE CHRONICLE”
ADS. DOLLAR FOR DOLLAR’YOU GET GREATER VALUE IN
YOUR WEEKLY NEWSPAPER IN TERMS OF:
♦CIRCULATION
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♦IMPACT
♦SALES
si
The Clinton Chronicle
power generating facilities in South
Carolina.
The fact that private capital is
still being used.to build huge gen
erating plants in the face of gov-
emriient competition is noteworthy.
We feel that private capital can do
the job better and that so long as it
is willing to do the job the govern
ment "Should stay out of the power
generatingliusiness.” „ /
That wa§ an editorial in the Lee
County Messenger of Bishopville.
I have no information about this
proposed dam but it will cost thirty-
five million dollars I should think,
purely as a guess. What does that
mean 0 That-will-be an increase in
investment in Anderson County; it
will mean money for the schools,
for the county government. It will
mean tax money for the state and
for the Federal Government.
It may not be altogether ,a wild
guess that this new plant will pay”
two million dollars a year in taxes.
Men have invested their savings
to build this great plant. Not one
dollar of your money, or Govern
ment money will be used for this
This is no government project; this
is private investment for the public
service.
Haven't you read that our South
Carolina Electric and Gas Company
paid twelve and a half million dol
lars in taxes last year? And its
tax payments are greater every
year. All this is an investment—
more than 250 million . dollars—by
our citizens who by faith invest
their money, for the development of
the most necessary service in mod
ern busines sand living
* * *
The differences in the penitentiary
matter are especially unfortunate
because all those gentlemen are ex-
tellent men, good citizens and of the
highest rectitude. Moreover, all are
of splendid purpose. The Governor
is right in referring this to a Legis
lative Committee The Richland
Grand Jury is not the proper author
ity. Mr. Stackhouse, naturally
thought of a Grand Jury. All these
gentlemen w en: e understandably
correct in purpose. Mr. §tackhouse
is a citizen of high stahding, a man
of patriotic zeal; Col. Manning is
an old comrade of mine for whom I
I cherish great respect jind affection
Laurens County To
Get $12,030 From
S. C. Forest Funds
Laurens County is scheduled to
receive $12,030 91 as part $442,-
T 0 *? in receipts on the South Gar
olina National Forests during the
past > a"
The federal g v i,
sued a ' ~" r ’; to tb: v :
total amount. Forest
Paul H Russell said
The sum represents 25 per cent
of the total $1,771,192 received from
the sale of timber and other special
uses in South Carolina National For
ests during the past year.
Counties where these lands_ are
located receive 25 per cent of the
proceeds of timber sales and other
earnings each year, allocated oh
the basis of the acreage of National
Forest within their limits.
Payments this .year amount to
about 59 cents per acre on the Sum
ter National Forest and 98 cents per
acre on the Francis Marion Nation
al Forest.
South Carolina counties due to re
ceive payments, include Berkley,
$183,548.73; Charleston. $57,568.85;
Abbeville, $12,497 88; Chester, $6,-
952.56; Edgefield $16,906 08;* Fair-
field, $7,286.79; Greenwood, $6,125.-
55; Laurens $12,030.91; McCormcik, i
$28,007 17; Newberry, $32,441.35;-[
Oconee, $42,893 64; Saluda, $2,499 -;
58; and Union, $34,038.86.
Paul H. Russell said that the
South Carolina National Forest
lands'now include 245,650 acres in i
the Francis Marion National Forest
area and 341,624 acres in the Sum
ter National Forest area. This is. a
total of 587,274 acres in South Car
olina.
Honor County Boy
Earl Robertson, 18, of near Lau
rens, was honored at the 38th 4-H
Club Congress as 4-H tractor win
ner from South Carolina.
Earl won the state tractor crown
on the basis of his outstanding rec-.
lord of activity and leadership in
! the 4-H tractor program. He was
awarded an all-expense-paid* trip
to the congress in Chicago by the
American Oil Company, sponsor of
the tractor program for 15 years in
South Carolina and 21 other eastern
and southern states from Maine to
Florida.
Highlights of the week in Chica
go for Earl were his crowing Us the
state tractor winner by a petroleum
centennial queen and an honors ban
quet attended by all state winners,
their sopnsors, and 4-H leaders.
Earl lives with hris parents, Mr.
and Mrs. R. E. Robertson, on their
420-acre farm in Laurens county
He has been in 4-H club work and
the tractor program for six years,
serving as dub officer for ^ three
years and a junior leader for one.
Winner fo the state tractor driv
ing contest in 1958, Earl was laso
chosen to represent Laurens County
in 4-H tractor contests for the past
three years. He has also won 18
blue ribbons, seven red, and one
white ribbon at the county fair in
the last six years
In addition to his many 4-H activ
ities, Earl graduated from * Ford
High School this year, where he was
sports editor of -the school paper,
business manager of the yeaihook,
and vice-president of the senior
class. He has also served as pres
ident of the Greenwood-Laurens
FFA and as a member of the 1968
Palmetto Boys’ State. '—
Clinton Boys
Top Whitmire
Whitmire and Clinton split even
here Friday night in a basketball
double-header The Clinton boys
drubbed .Whitmire 69-2fc; and the
Whitmire girls triumphed 2T-24
Girls:
Whitmire (27)—Lemmon 7, Atkins
9/ Sparks 3, Gilliam ; 8. Collins,
Moore. Foster, Cochran.
Clinton (24)—Bodie 7, Pri .e, Hill
15, Boyce 2, Barron. Bender.baugh,
Morse, Davenport. Thackston and
Nichols.
Boys:
Whitmire (22) — Evans. Nelson.
Jones 2, Brassel, Alexander 5,
Montgomer> 3. Grant 3. Wilbanks 8,
Hendricks
Clinton (69)—Whitman 17. Price
2, King 7, Sanders 4. Gaffney 9, Sur
ratt 2, Cox 3. Littleton 10, Batiey
10, Byown 2.
SENSING
THE NEWS
By Thurman Sensing
Executive Vice-President
Southern States Industrial Council
THE NO UNION’ VOTE TIDE •
Southerners just won t be sold a
bill of goods by the big unions Ed
win A. L^hey, Pulitzer Prize win-
nining reporter of The Chicago
Daily News, recently pointed out
that the “no union” vote tide is ris
ing in the South. i
“Unorganized workers," sarid re
porter Lahey, “seem to say in the
privacy of the National Labor Rela
tions Board voting booth that the
AFL-CIO has failed to convince
them of the wisdom of joining a un
ion." As a case in point he cited ^
recent NLRB electioft among em-j
"ployees at a blanket factSi-y near
Asheville. N. C. The employees vot
ed 1,345 to 244 against any union,
representation^ ,
The hostility aganlsl union rep
resentation by the.workers them
selves." Mr. Lahey asserted, “ap
pears to get worse every year in
the South " It's a fact that Southern
ers are voting* aghinst unions in in
creasing numbers Look at North
Carolina! Of*a tot^l of 7.332 votes
■cast by North-Carolina workers in!
1958 . 4.626 were against union rep
resentation Mr Lahey made the
statement that the figures foV the
fiscal year' 1959 will show an even
heavier “no. union vote than in fis
cal 1958
While Mr Lahey correctly do
senbs Southern disa-oprtnal of un.
lonism. he fails to understand why
the people of lie Southern states re
sist the Reuther Meany-Hoffu axis
The Chicago reporter takes t h e
word of AFL-CIO boss Waltee-Reti-
ther that "Ihe labor movement has
gone soft ' He admits, however,
that the middle cla'<es of :he South
"have not been sold on the respec
(ability’ of unionism."
In making that statement about
reifpectability. Mr Lahey edmes
close to the truth about unionism in
the South Southern attitudes tow ard
unions aren't what thin- are because
as Mr Lahey says, employers
"have taken a tougher stand
against unions :hnn ever '• Plenty of
employers in every region of the
country ha\e taken a firm stand
against the hoodlupi tactics of big
unionism
Neither is it eorrect to swallow
the Reuther me .bout unions get
ting soft Vctualh they • .ire as
had as nails and as heartless as
the power hungry men who dom
inate them The union bosses time
abd again have been willing to take
men away from their jobs in the
hope of building up the union power
in the South The unions are ready
to use the 4 same tactics of boycott
and brutality to win a strike The
difference is that the South is more
determined to meet big unionsim s
hard tactics with hard resistance.
.Southerners have a long heritage
of independence and love of per
sonal liberty. They aren't mass men
from big city slums-with ancestral
memories of being bossed m Euro-*
pean cities TV working people in
mam Southern communities h^ye a
personal pride that won’t let them
be forced into line by goon squabs
or the political propaganda experts
of union bosses .Southern communi
ties .ire .fortunate in that the pol-
ucians and police forces aren't cap-,
fives' of the lai*>r bos yes
And, as Mr Lahey admits, union
ism ;sn t respectable in the South
The people in this region still want
to do art honest day’s work for a
day s pay. They still have confi
dence m the people—their neighbors
—for whom they work They know
that the progress of the region
cohies from more industry that op
orates continuously, without the in
terruption of ^strikes called by far-
off bosses They .jirenj about to join
with people like.Ji'mmy Moffa. To
be <ure: unions win -onrif elections
and have a hold on certain indus
tries But, by 4tui large, big union
ism. as Mr Ljihey asserts, is not
making headway in the Southern
states
\n<l as standards of living and
"respectability’ 'rise in this region,
the tide of no votes" against un
ionism also will rise All the gouges
indicate that to be the truth.
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