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WANTSLIGHT Cel. Felder Celt Get. Bleat I* Tern Mere Light HE RETURNS THE CHARGE Felder Says That When Blcase Has Explaiood His Course in Senate and Rxecutive OfHce There Will be j Some Further Queries As to Ills Conduct. The State has permission to print the following letter from Thomas B. Felder of Atlanta to the Charleston News and Courier, the same being called forth by an Inquiry from the Charleston paper whether Felder had offered To will immunity from prosecution for $5,000. The Atlanta lawyer takes the occasion to propound a number of questions to Gov. Blease: Charleston News and Courier, Charleston, S. C. Dear Sirs: I received last night the following T. D.: "Reported you offered Towill immunity from prosecution for $5,000. please wire reply: "News and Courier." To which I replied: "Statement that I offered Towill or anybody else Immunity from prosecution for 00 or any other prosecution for $5,000 or any other amount, a base nninitierated lie." I beg to confirm thiB answer and to say that the next report, I take it, will be to the effect tha tTowill declined my offer on "advice of counsel," the advice coming from the general counsel of the plunderbund, Cole L. Blease. On yesterday I mailed a communication to you for reproduction in the: columns of your paper. As I recall,! I stated in the article that I wum?. ! not further trespass upon your space until after the lapse of 3 0 days. Upon reflection, I feel that I should withdraw this proposition, so that I may give to the people of South Carolina through the columns of your paper some reasons why "His Fraudulen cy," Cole L. Blease, 6hould approve the joint resolution creating a committee to investigate the conduct of the late winding-up commission and the agents and attorneys thereof, together with the conduct of all other persons who have had relatione with the winding up commission of the late South Carolina dispensary. The people of the State are entitled to know all the facts and the oni> possible way for them to acquire this knowledge is through the medium of this investigating committee, out fearing that the governor might object to the investigating committee turning the searchlight upon the conduct of Attorney Blease, and that this consideration might impel him to veto the joint resolution, by way 01 emulation of his example in having recourse to the public prints, as the proper means for ventilating these matters, I wish to propound to him a few questions which, if they should fall to impress him as being pertinent and relevant, win aouDueas uttve a contrary effect upon the public mind. They are as follows: The Questions. 1. During your incumbency as a State senator, please tell the people of South Carolina what vote you cast against and on what occasion you spoke in opposition to any measure pending in that body, aimed at the regulation or abolishment of the old State dispensary as an institution, or inimical to the interests of those who managed its affairs? 2. Why did you, as a senator, oppose all measures pending, in that body, having for their object and puipose the investigation of the conduct of the affairs of said institution and the honestly of the management thereof? 3. Why did you, as a member of the committee, created by joint reso lution, charged with tno tuny or investigating the affairs of the said institution and the conduct of the officials thereof, use every artful means and cunning device to stifle the investigation and thwart the objects thereof. 4. Why did you, pending the sessions of the aforesaid committee, meet daily and niehtly during the recesses of said committee with the dispensary officials, whose conduct was under investigation, and discuss with them and their friends who attended said caucuses ways and means for securing for them a whitewash? Is it not true that said caucuses were attended by divers liquor dealers, who participated in your deliberations; that at said caucuses the course to be pursued by you as senator was agreed unon and followed by you to the letter? Senator for tSrnfters? 5. Is It not a fact that when the resolution was pending carrying ai. appropriation of $15,000 to be used by the attorney general in the prosecution of grafters, you opposed the passage of the same by your vote and Influence; that In your opposition you spoke frequently against it and resorted to every parliamentary device to compass the defeat of the same? If you should answer this question in the affirmative, then I would ask II &?* the course you pursued in relation V--BL thereto was not the result of an agreement that you made with tlie representatives of certain liquor houses, who were on the ground resisting In every way possible the passage of said resolution? Did you not receive adequate compensation for your efforts in this behalf? 6. Is it not rue that between tne date of your election to the governorship and the date of your message in which you recommended the raisins of the joint committee you had several caucuses with your criminal associates whom you were under obligation to protect, when and where a conspiracy was hatched to thwart the efforts making for the punishment of your clients who had plundered the State, and is it not true that in order to effectuate the object of this conspiracy it was agreed that you should do certain things, which you have since done? Coming from generalities to specifics, I will enumerate them: To Control tlio Bench? (a) Did you not agree that no special judge should be appointed to pie side over any of the courts of the State where the grafters were under indictment except of your own selection; that you could afford to take no chance of getting another judge to try your clients like the one who presided in Chester? (b) Did you not agree, In these caucuses, to pardon any citizen of South Carolina who might be convicted under pending or future indictments, and that you would issue no requisitions for foreigners? (c) That you would dismiss the winding-up commission so that they could not, under authority reposed in that body by the act creating it, continue their investigations, and in dismissing these commissioners were you or not influenced by the rurtno consideration that they had issued a subpoena for one of your political lieutenants in the State; that he had ignored the same and they had issued a rule nisi requiring him to show ^ause why he should not be attached for contempt? (d) In these several caucuses, when the difficulty in obtaining the approval of the prison commission of your State to the course to be pursued was under discussion, did you not advise your confederates that you had at hand the means for overcoming this difficulty, to-wit: ignoring the prison commission? <>n Horseback. (e) Did you, or any of those wno were in caucus with you, suggest that on the theory that "the end justified the means," in effectuating the object of this conspiracy, you could with safety resort to any means, from character assassination to personal assassination; that after so long a time you "had the whip handle," or were "in the saddle," or some phrase of similar or substantial import? 7. What compensation did you re> ceive from the liquor dealers and what "rake off" did you get from the dispensary officials when you were "senator at law?" The Campaign Fund. 8. While perhaps not so pertinent, I consider the following relevant: What campaign fund did you have at I your command when you were a candidate for governor? How mucn wab raised before the first primary and how much between the first and second primaries? What liquor houses or dealers, corporations or the agents of corporations, contributed this money? If you should answer (which I do not think you will, because it is the truth) that very large sums of money were raised, kindly state whether or not it was used to debauch the electorate of your state. In conclusion: You honored the State of Georgia recently by paying her an official visit. What ex-dispen sary officials and liquor dealers entertained you in the city of Atlanta and in the city of Augusta? What conferences, if any, did you have with then) with reference to your future official conduct? Lastly, why don't you approve that joint resolution that you demanded? I understand that you say that the senators appointed on the part of the senate as members of the committee are not satisfactory to you. Would you be willing to approve that resolution if the names of all the 3e??n tors and all the members of the house should be put into a hat or box and shaken up and the names for membership on the committee be drawn * t L llt'I \Z I I \J ill . When you have answered the above and foregoing, I have a few more questions to submit for your consideration. Yours very truly, T. B. Folder. IJofused to Make Statement. TT. H. Evans of Newberry, former chairman of the old State dispensary board, was in Columbia yesterday, but refused to make any comment on the Felder-Blease controversy. at said that later he might have another statement to give out. Further Experiments. The further experiments to be , made with the ship will be confined to attacks on the armor belt and turrets. No effort will be made to raise . the San Marcos. It would cost sev,, r? a r>rw1 I )ir\ lie fin/l /IrOlnrK to float ) CI 14 1 II u mi i v v? viivuuuini m vw ? I the Blilp and restore her to her original condition and she is not worth It. Firemen Are Killed. Four firemen are dead, two others i are' dying and several suffering from ' injuries, the result of the collapse of i the roof of the Middleton Manufacturing Company building at Milwaui kee, Friday. WRONG RIGHTED Aa Old Veteraa's Petitioa Tamed Otwa aad Brandid as False. WANTS HIS PENSION - A. S. Salley, Jr., State Historian, Writes an Article in Which lie Cites His Unbounded Faith in the ' Honor of the Gallant Old Confederate Soldiers. Confederate veterans ought to be chary indeed about disputing claims J - ? ? ^ ?1 rv r, V?tf oth Arc ty\ r\ rn IllHGt? IUF |H?U0IU110 ,UJ viuui Of iuv/1 V especially when their only reliance for such action is upon their memories, after the lapse of nearly half a century. So thinks Secretary A. S. Salley, Jr., of the State historical commission, who cites a recent nstance where the State board of pen sions, guided wholly by the personal recollections of a member, disapproved an application for a pension, when examination of the records showed the applicant to have made a statement entirely truthful, even to have undervalued hie own military service; for he did not mention in his papers the fact that he was captured and kept for several months In a Federal military prison. The applicant was Private J. W. Crook, now living near St. George, who claimed that he served in Company II, 11th South Carolina Volunteers. After his application had been disapproved, a member of the boaid who served in the 11th regiment having declared he remembered no such man in that command, Mr. Salley wrote to Washington for information and was advised that such a person had been a member of the company and regiment as stated in o nnltpn t Inn I tliV lipj'livv* v?w??. In reference to the pension controversy, the following signed article has been given the press by Mr. A. S. Salley, Jr.: As the Confederate records of this State are in my custody as secretary ! of the historical commission of South Carolina, and as I am engaged in working them into shape for practical use, I feel that I should have something to say in the matter of the J controversy now going on in the i newspapers over the condition of the pension rolls. It has been alleged that there are men drawing pensions who did not render service in the [ commands which they claim on their j pension papers to have served in. In every case officers or men who are known to have served in those com- | mands swear that the applicant did so serve. Therefore, if the claim is false the applicants have perjured themselves. I do not believe thai such is the case. No evidence but j the memory of individuals sustains the charge. I have been engaged in | historical study now for over twenty 1 years and for over 1 2 years historical work has been my chief business occupation. My experience teaches me that the memory of man is a very treacherous thing and that the human mind rebels at accuracy. An old soldier can not possibly remember a man as being in his own company if that man was not in that company, but if the man was in the company and one of his former comrades does' remember him then that feat of memory is a much more reasonable feat of memory that that of the man who does not remember any such comrade, yet is willing to assert that no such man was in his company or regiment. I have just done a little in-, vestigating on a case that came to my attention when the pension board met last week and the result of it is an excellent illustration of the frailty of the human recollection of such matters. A member of the pension 1 board for whom I have a strong personal liking came into my oilice with j an application for a pension from J. J W. Crook of Dorchester county, and said to me: "Now, here 1r a man from Dorchester county who says he was a member of Company II, Eleventh regiment, and I will swear that there was no such man in that company, for I was a member of that regiment and I don't remember any such man. Let's look on your rolls and see if his name is there." I replied: "My friend, these rolls were compiled from memory after the war by survivors of the various commands, and the people who handled them before I took charge of them were untrained in such work and they are not to be relied upon." We looked on the roll of Company IT, Eleventh regiment, and, sure enough, Mr. Crook's name was not there. That convinced my friend of the pension board that Mr Crook's claim was false, but it did not convince me. f pointed out the fact that two men whose names were on the roll in my ofllce had sworn that Mr. Crook bad served in their company, but it seem* that their sworn statements would not be received against the roll in my ofllce, which was compiled from memory some years after the war and in which both the elements 01 clerical and typographical errors arc ,,n,wi n? the annlication if I U i?V i v;vuvnv??f ??M m i marked: "Disapproved. Can't fine name In historian's office." here I; ' a special act on our statutes wh'.ef gives me tho authority to enter upor the roll of any company In my ofllc< the name of any man when two oth era known to have been of that company make affidavits that such man was in their company. Therefore, if I want it understood, was not sufficient proof to me that Mr. Crook's claim was false and I wrote the following letter to the adjutant general, war department, Washington, who is the custodian of the Confederate records captured in Richmond and who has for years been engaged in making those records available for use: "I have the honor to respectfully request information as to whether or not the name of J. W. Crook appears among the records of Company H, | Eleventh regiment, South Carolina Volunteers, Provisional Army of the Confederate States, In your custody. This man is now drawing a pension from this State, said pension being j based upon affidavits from two men known to have been of the above named company, but it is claimed that the pension is obtained fraudulently. Our records here are far from complete and I do not thins such a charge should be sustained upon the showing made by them. A reply will be appreciated." To this the adjutant general replied March 17, indorsing the following on the back of my letter: "The records show that J. W. Crook, private, Company H, Eleventn South Carolina infantry, Confederate States army, enlisted June 11, 18 63, at Coosawhatchie; that he was captured near Town Creek February 20, 1865, and that he was released at Point Lookout, Maryland, June 26, 1865, on taking the oath of allegiance." Upon comparing that record with that given on the application for pension I found that Mr. Crook sta'ed that he had enlisted at Coosawhalcliie, but he failed to make as good a show for himself as the ofllcial records in Washington made for hiin. I suppose, like all of the poor old heroes, his memory is bad, or he did not regard details as essential. These exhibits show that an injustice has been done Mr. Crock and the two old soldiers who swore to his service# and in almost every case where some man tries to put negative evidence dependable upon his recollection of something that happened over forty years ago against positive evidence, even though the latter be dependent the two men who swore to Mr. 'o morvrrl V* o rl m O rlo MlPI V Qffl V I UUIV O 1 ULV/J u nuvi juuuv vii vm i uaa< davits for me I would have entered Mr. Crook's name on my roll ana then the pension board would have found it there and would not have had that ground for disapproving. I said that the absence of Mr. Crook's name from the compilation in my office, which I did not make myself, upon recollections extending back to the same time, the same sort of injustice will be done, or gross historical mistakes and myths will be perpetuated. From the examples I have seen 01 records obtained from the Confederate papers captured in Richmonu and now in Washington I am satisfied that a pretty near complete set of records were captured, and all such questions as have been ralseu recently in regard to the truth or falsity of the claims of certain pensioners can be settled therefrom witn reasonable certainty, and I submit that it is unjust to the gallant old soldiers or tnis ?taie 10 reject ineir claims on the negative recollections of other old soldiers when the ui ficial records are extant to settle such questions. The old fellows had hardships enough during the four years of terrible war to immune them now in their old age. I don't believe that there are many men in South Carolina old enough to have been in the war who would engage In fraud for the pitifully small sum given as a pension, and I believe tha? the number of bona fide Confederate j soldiers who would swear te a lie id aid some one else to perpetrate a from charges of perjury and fraud I fraud is smaller than one of those pensions. A. S. Salley, Jr. Columbia, S. C., March 21, 1911. ? +> ? GIRL KILLED 11V MULE TEAM. Took Fright From an Engine and Han Away in Columbia. The State says struck by a runaway team Wednesday in the western section of Columbia, Annie May Harris, a negro girl, 12 years of age, was killed. Jule Robinson, a negro driver for the Palmetto Fertilizer com. pany, loft a two-horse team steading , in front of the fertilizer mills in !charge of his son, Moses Robinson. .The animals became frightened at a passing railway engine and ran 'away. The girl was in the road and . the team ran over her, breaking her !neck. The negroes were taken to the .police station, but Tuesday night the j desk sergeant declared that they were not locked up. This probably means their release, as it was brought out that the boy tried to stop the team and was not to blame, according tc Coroner Walker. 1 - - | j Postofllce Dynamiters. , 1 Bloodhounds from I.ancnster wert early taken to Gahanna, Ohio, Tues i day morning to attempt to trace th< ? tlve robbers who early Tuesday dyna , mited the postofllce safe and securec j a small amount of money and seven , ty-five dollars' worth of stamps. N'< j trace of blood was seen Tuesday fol j lowing the battle with a posse of cit > izens during which it was though _ one of the robbers was wounded. BANK OF Conwa Has largest capital and surplus of i than the combined capital and surf CAPITAL STOCK. . .. SURPLUS LIABILITIES OF STOCI SECURITY OF DEPOSIT DIREI Robert B. Scarborough, EL L. Buck, George J. Holiday, We offer our customers every acc will justify, and we ftobebt b. scarborough, I President. We continue to pay 5 p< SFIRST NATH 4 OONWi/ ? CAPITAL STOCK SURPLUS PROFITS ? TOTAL ASSESTS iAk jjf DIRKC J. A. McDermott, John < Ml B. G. Collins, H. L. 1 jh M. Burroughs, C. P. Qu Successor to the Bank o: it Horry County, and a pioneer W ly allied with the recent de\ % Republic. Backed by the ilk United States Bonds, we are i W tomerg any reasonable accomj jk H. A. HPIVKY, f Cashier. PROFESSIONAL CARDS. i k ' H. H. WOODWARD attorney and Councilor At Lai CONWAY, S. C. K. B. SCAR It ROUGH CONWAY, 8. C. Attorney at Law. fit. H. BURROUGHS Physician and Bsrgeoa. CONWAY, 8. O. B. WOFFORD WAIT. Attorney at L*/. Bank of Horry Building. CONWAY, 8. C. WE WORLDS GREATEST SEWING MACHINE k hUGHT RUNNING, ^ Mluu want either a Vibrating Shuttle, Rotagg Shuttle or a Hingle Thread [ChainJSlUcA\ Sewing Machine write to Ml SEW HOME SEWINI MACHINE COMPASV Orange* Mass. tflSar eewfn* machines are made to sell repmllmd galit|(but the New Home U made to wosa Oar ruaranty never runs out. (MM If authorised dealers eaQpWj SOS SALSSW BURROUGHS & COLLINS COM CJonway, 8. O. ii ? *- . I Koht>c<l Mrs. Bryan. i Mrs. William Jennings Bryan wa robbed at. the Majectls Theatre Nev i York of a handsome seal hand bag containing $75 and valuable souve nirs collected by her and her hus band in their recent travels, last Sat urtday afternoon. Mrs. Stephen 13 j Ayres, wife of the Congressman . whose guests Mr. and Mrs. Brya: } were in the Bronx, made the fac . public. 1 Might Alarm Him, However. > No, Constant Reader, the order - Just issued from tho war depart men - were not sent out for tho sole pui t pose of reassuring Congressman Hot son. ' llorry, I y. S, C. I iny bank in Horry county. More k I Jus of all other banks in the county. I $60,000 I 12,500 1 CHOLDBR8 .... 60,000 rORS 112,600 :iors J D. V. Richardson. i W. A. Johnson. , g Will A. Freeman. / 1 ommodation which their account!^ I solicit your business. ^ I a wu a ^ n ). v. kichakdsuin, W1JUL, m. Vice Pbesidkht. Cashiba it cent, on yearly deposits. >*????**???? DNAL BANK|^ ly, s. c. ? 125,000.00 ^ 2,500.00 ? 125,000.00 JK tors: jr 3. Spivey, D. T. McNeill, luck, W. R. Lewie, D. SL attlebaum, D. a. Spivey. ^ f Conway, the oldest Bank In In Eastern Carolina. Close- 5: 'elopraent of the Independent Government and secured by prepared to extend to our cus- 2K tnodationB. W b. ?. collins, ^ President. 9 GOV. H IjE ASK VS. < OL. FELDEIt? The Governor Says lie Has Nerve "My Dear Hub" letters. If Governor Cole Tj. Blease knows. ;ik much about the alleged evil-doingsof Col. Tlios. n. Felder as has been intimated, and if Col. Felder knows as much of the governor's alleged rookedness as newspaper readers are led to infer from his published letters, there will he merry times throughout the entire summer. Governor Blease says he has more of the "My Dear Hub" letters, and Col. Felder promises to write a history of the old state dispensary and some of those connected with It. Col. Felder will not do this if Governor Blease signs the resolution to investigate themembers of the dispensary winding up commission, but the resolution HoH r?nt i?#?pn Rierned this afternoon,. and there is little likelihood of its receiving the ofhcial signature of Mr. niease. Col. Felder promises to om't none of the details in his story, and it is quite likely that the alleged dealings of the "chief of the plunderund" will be laid hare. Col. Felder s. style is so easy and his expression so clear and forceful that everybody in South Carolina will read his story. Worse writers than Col. Felder have sold their stuff for money. It is tobe hoped that the public will be given more of this kind of reading. TKAIN SAVKl) BV BOY. ?. Young Wrecker Itepeiited in Time to / Prevent Terrible Wreck. ^ Eleventh-hour repentance by a boy averted a wreck of an express train hound from Kansas City to Chicago, at a tretle near Holt, Mo., this weekFioscoe Townsend, the hoy who did not repent, was so furious when his chum, Walter Carpenter, appeared with the posse that, instead of surrendering when called on to do so, he showed fight. "Sure, I meant to wreck the train," lie said, pointing significantly at a big iron crowbar and chains that had ' . been used to fasten it to tho tracks. V "A lot of passengers would have been killed, and then I intended to rob* 1 the ones who were dead in the Pullmans. They would have had the most money." He was taken to Holt and locked lip. Carpenter, as a reward for his action in saving the train, was released. Hoth aro the sons of farmers. When the posse reached the' trestle young Townsend had Just fas ' * A - A.% X 1 ...UU jterea me crow.oar 10 mo iracKs wuu ? chains. Those who saw the way the- * work had been done say the obstruction certainly would have sent the train into the ravine. Caught by a Train. b Early Mack, colored, was run over v and killed by a train at Mayesville on Saturday night. Mack tried to - pass between cars of the train, when tho train moved, catching him, mashed the life out of him. He was t. discovered shortly after being i, missed, and the cars being moved to n release him, he fell out dead. Maiden of 70 Sues Bachelor of 74. Ola Osmund, a bachelor of 74, I? cited to tell a jury in Minneapolis,, s Minn., why he refused to marry Miss t Anna Olson, aged 70, following a - complaint which she has filed against >- him. She seeks damages in the sum of $5,000.