The Horry herald. (Conway, S.C.) 1886-1923, March 21, 1912, Image 5

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? - -?" ' * THE FELDERLETTERS GOVERNOR BLEASE REFUSES TO LET THEM BE SEEN. A. . . HUB EAVANS TESTIFIES The Legislative Committee Again at W ork Investigating Charges Made ^ by Governor Against Winding Up Commission, None of Which Have Jieen Sustained by Witnesses. "The governor said that he would not turn over the letters to the committee except on the order of a circuit judge." ^ Tlis statement was made before the legislative dispensary investigating committee Friday .by Senator (Jlil ton, a memuer ol mo com annuo who called on tho chief executive with Representative J. J. Evans, to I make request for the inspection of certain letters alleged to havo been written to II. II. Evans by T. J.J. Felj dor, the Atlanta attorney. I "I think that we can get that order from the circuit judge," said a ' l member of the committee. It is expected that the matter will be carried into the courts. II. II. Evans of \j Newberry, appearing before tho committee Thursday and Friday, told of receiving certain letters from T. 13. I Folder, the Atlanta attorney, offering to for a "whiskey corporation" to secure the business of tho old State dispensary in South Carolina. These letters, he said, were in tho hands of the governor. II. 11. Evans said that ho would try to secure the letters. Ho failed .and the committee Friday appointed na'or Clifton and Representative I'.a ns to call on the chief executive and ask for the letters. Tho committee met with a refusal. II. 11. i vans, in his testimony, charged v ong intentions on the part of FelB v , and said that the letters would t ..bstantiate his statements. JIe said i iat he was anxious for the letters *1o be presented in evidence. '1 he a <ounnitteo desired the letters for inj tpeetion. The first witness called at the sesl f ions Friday morning was L. W. Idoykin, former member of the dispensary board of control. IIo was questioned by the committee as to the [ purchase of whiskey by the .board. lie was asked by tho committee con< rning the statement of Towill that jsmall orders were made at the regu^ l.ir meetings and that largo quanti ties came in between the regular quarterly meetings. He said that he complained to W. O. Tatum concern} g the large shipments of whiskey !iich were made without order from the board. He said that the orders were places 1 by (J. II. Charles, the clerk, Mr. ? ( Varies is dead. W. O. Tatum, mon1 ned by the witness, was the coni*i issloner of the dispensary. Mr. 15oyh .i declared that Mr. Tatum was v< ry much worried over the action < f Charles in ordering the large amounts of whiskey. The entire hi line for the large orders were j.Viced on Mr. Charles. The witness said that he had met A M lh Folder on one occasion while Pj> Columbia and that he had reeeiv. anvnral lot tors and teleerrams If.'oni Felder. 11 o said that Felder v is "always worrying him" for or<1< "s. Ho did not know tho business of Felder. The witness told of a conference in 1905 at tlio Jerome Hotel in Columbia between Felder, Towill, Evans, and himself. He thought that Evans had introduced him to Felder. lie said that Folder questioned him as to who was going to run for tho positions on tho dispensary board. "Folder outlined a plan, stating (1hat he controlled several of tho largest whiskey distilleries In Ameri( a and ho wanted to get some busi^ n ss in South Carolina," said HoyMr. Boykin said that ho left the room, refusing to discuss the plan offered by Felder. "I afterwards | a fold Towill that Feldor had a lot of ^ p. II to conio hero and make a propoI si ion like that," said tho witness. The witness denied that ho knew of any State otlicial receiving graft Hi connection with the dispensary. 1 > had heard of some gifts by tho v 1 iskoy companies. I Hoy kin said that ho had been call| < ! before the Bleaso commission, llo <11 1 not give testimony, but made an I ahidavit, which was furnished to the le: islativo committee. On question In the committee he gave a list, so < .?. nq remembered, of tho "rep Iiitable liquor houses." Reverting to the Folder letters and telegrams he said that they merely asked for a conference. lTe said that ho had never heard of a row between Folder and II. II. Evans. ^ The witness did not remember how "Hub" Evans received the alleged proposition by Folder to get buisiness in South Carolina. "Does it come within your knowledge that money was ever paid tc Attorney Cleneral Lyon or any othei State official?" "No, sir." The witness denied that he had A ! over received any money outside of his salary. "I would not doubt but that they are tho men of highest honor. They are upright." This statement was made by Mr. Boykln when asked as to his opinion of the members of the Ansel commission. He thought them to be competent men and well able to wind up the affairs of the dispensary. Evans Recalled. H. H. Evans was called by the committee. He continued his story of the relation of T. B. Felder to the State dispensary. lie said that Felder was alleged to havo become the owner of the Sidney Lucas Whiskey company of Nashville. He said that during one conversation Felder had told him that ho had his (Evans') stock in the Sidney Lucas company already paid for. Evans said that ho told Felder that the plan to form a whiskey corporation was impossible, "because it would have been impossible to place the goods." Ho said that the conversation was after tho conference in Columbia between Felder, Towill, Boykin, and himself. He said that they all left tho room together after Felder had outlined his scheme. Evans said that he know of no officer in the State of South Carolina that received any money in connection wtt.ii the Sfnfe dlsnensarv other than the compensation allowed by law. lie said that he heard of some rumors that gifts had been given. 110 said that the whiskey drummers had "tried all kinds of parliamentary ethics on me." lie said that M. A. Goodman had offered him "the cold hard cash" to get business for a new com pany. "There is John Black. lie has been pardoned, he is free to come up hero and testify. Ask him about tbose matters." Evans said lie kicked '.VI. A. Goodman down some steps for offerig a bribe. lie said (hat Goodman afterward received some business. All whiskey, lie said, was bought 011 requisition of the commissioner of the dispensary. Evans was questioned by the committee as to houses represented by Good man. "Did you give the governor any information set out in message No. J *> ? ? "I did not." "Did you tell the governor that (lie statement that you held a conference with Attorney General Lyon, John Gary Evans and T. B. Folder was a mistake?" "I did," replied Evans. "I think that I did discuss the alcohol with him," said Mr. Evans, "f did not know anything about the price of tlie alcohol," he continued. "Do you know anything either by flic record or otherwise of any of the charges made by the governor in message No. 4?" "I do not," replied Evans. CUTS A COOI> SLICE. Creighton Paid Nino Hundred Dollars by (Governor Please. In the report of Ihe Comptroller General, page No. 55, part two, under the head of, "Governor's Fund for the Enforcement of Law," the following items of expenditure, which will be of interest appear: May, C. W. Creighton. . .$200.00 July, C. W. Creighton. . . 100.00 August, C. W. Cerighton. . 200.00 November, C. \V. Creighton . 200.00 December, C. W. Creighton . 200.00 It is not stated for what special purpose this total of $000"was spent, but it is interesting to note that all of these items are under the same head as the several amounts paid by the Governor to Loon M. Green. A sensation was sprung in the Legislature when it was said that Green's report was based almost entirely on the data secured from the oflico of Commissioner Watson. Green was factory inspector appointed by Governor Please after ho vetoed the salary for the regular cotton mill inspectors. ? crrf\i>\i ii nru / 1 IJP A \\r nn/n.u iii i. n * iiiin.iii . Lumber Mill Wiped Out and Other Buildings Hurt. A cyelono which passed through tho south edge of Cheraw Friday afternoon totally destroyed tho plant of tho Boykin Lumber Company, unroofed tho main building of the Cheraw Door, Sash and Lumber Company, and blew down the dy kilns; unroofed the Seaboard Air Lino depot, destroyed the negro Baptist church and the baseball grandstand, blew down every smokestack in the town and levelled many chimneys and small buildings. Nobody was hurt. St. Davis church, one of the oldest in tho State, was not damaged, but many tombstones* in the l church yard were broken by tho , snapping off or uprooting of large oak trees. Snow Slide is Fatal, At Tellurillo, Colorado, four men - are dead and several missing as the [ result of a snow slide that swept i down off Black Bear mine. The slide carried away mine buildings. ) Bryan Harmon's Guest. William J. Bryan, who arrived at Cincinnati Friday to speak at "The World in Cincinnati" exposition, wa? lithe guest of Gov. Judson Harmon at OUTLAW IS CAUGHT SIDNA ALLEN, MEMBER OF VIRGINIA GANG,CAPTURED WIFE KiLLED IN BATTLE Two of the Leaders of the hand of Outlaws Wlio Murdered the Judge, the Solicitor and Sheriff While Molding Court at llillvillc, Va., Have lieen Captured. The end of the day's chase Friday of the outlaws who shot tho Judge and other court ollicials at llillsville, Va., to death while holding court, brought the death list of tho court house tragedy and its sequel up to live. The iifth death was that of Nancy Ayres, a 19-year-old girl, accidentally shot during the fusilade in the court house. Sidna and Floyd Allen, two of the chiefs of the bund which rode down on the Carroll county court house Thursday and assassinated the judge, the prosecutor and the sheriff, are in captivity, both wounded severely. Sidna Allen's wife is dead, shot in a pitched battle with a posse in the mountains while helping de- | fend her outlaw husband. The storming of Sidna Allen's house late Friday was like a bombardmeht. The posse trailed through the bush four miles up the ridge and surrounded his cabin in a grove. Allen, expecting their coming, was barricaded, well supplied with rifles and ammunition which he had brought from a store in which he was a partner. From behind stumps, rocks, trees and other natural fortresses of [lie mountain side, the posse blazed at the house and Allen blazed at the posse as fast -as the women of his family could reload his rifles. in a lull the posse rushed the house, broke down the doors and found Allen's wife shot dead and Allen himself, groaning in a heap, bleeding profusely. "You got me," because I couldn't fight no longer!" lie is reported to have said to the men who brought him back to 1 fillsville more dead than alive. Mr. Williams, attorney general of the State, declared Sidna Allen's bullets killed Judge Massie on the bench. r loyci Alien, ine cause ot me Tragedy, was taken to the lock-up this morning under a heavy guard and immediately whipped out a pocket knife and slashed his throat. His wounds, however, are not serious. Allen's son, Victor, Cahbell Strickland and I3yrd Marion were also locked up as witnesses. All the other members of the gan probably eight, are up in the mountains off toward North Carolina, well armed, well supplied and determined not to be taken alive. At daybreak one set of detectives, which had reported at Hillsville, joined a party of deputy sheriffs from the neighborhood and set off up the mountainside. The traveling was slow and tedious. The other party, which went up the north side of the ridge, stormed the Allen house. Upon tho arrival of help, confidence began to take the place of the terror, which prevailed unrestrained for 24 hours. Judge Staples, designated by Gov. iMann to go to Hillsville and hold court, took the bench and summoned a special grand jury to indict the murderers. This one act had more to do with tho restoration of quiet than anything. The reognanization of tho court, which was all but wiped out Wednesday by the work of assassins, had a great influence. Early in the day report came from Mount Airy that the Allen gang had raided a hardware store there and stocked up with guns and bullets. Sidna Allen was partner of the store, and the gang probably found sup..II ..nn.1.. T,*?... 1 ?i i. 1 ,.l, f 4 1./, |JI1U9 its tiu jr. x' i niiiy t! i ;' 11 i liic; iiiau hunt is in abeyance waiting for daylight. Not a stranger will travel these mountain roads at dark with tlio Allen gang looso. Reports have been coming down tho mountain all day that the outlaws have recruited a big band to their defense. Officers think this no't unlikely. A lawless element has ruled tho mountain fastness for years. There is a saying among revenue officers that every pine tree shelters a whiskey still. A battle between law and crime is sure to draw recruits there. Thursday guard of mountain sharpshooters surrounded the jail ready for any attempt to take off tho two prisoners. The officers think, however, that with both Aliens wounded the outlaws may be less eager for the fight. With daylight the pursuit will be renewed with reinforcements that are still coming from the countryside. Features of the tragedy have been so many that all probably never will be told. One came to light recently. Walter Tipton, a lawyer, who was defending Floyd Allen in court Fri1 day, was a brother-in-law of Commonwealth's Attorney Foster, who was killed. Tipton stood beside his relative when Allen, poking his gun under Tipton's arm, shot down Foster. Who killed Sheriff Webb is not : definitely known. ) Tho outlaws could not havo picked j a bettor time to make a stand against : their pursuers. Every mountain KILLED TWO BANDITS +? EXPRESS MESSENGER. TRANSDA EE TELLS HOW IIE DID IT. No Was Not Only Ilnive and Dating in Dealing With the Robbers, Rut Had P.'enty of Nervo. David A. Trandale, tlio young oxpress messenger, tells liow ho succeeded in saving the money of the company and the postofiice by killing two bandits who held up the train 011 which he was running near Dryden, Texas, a few days ago. Transdale was not only brave, but he had plenty of nerve and kept perfectly cool. Here is his story of the hold-up and killing: "The llrst intimation that I had something was wrong was when the .X Tr .A /A ,xlr /wl /-V I A r\ f 111 tf I'M V |)Ul LUI iviiui;^ia Lac viv^ui wt v and announced that I was wanted outside. When I stepped to the door i was covered with a Winchester. Reagen, my helper, and Hanks, the mail clerk, and 1 were forced to stand by and watch the robber collect the sealed express packages. These were taken to tho mail car, where a bag containing registered packages was split open and the express packages placed inside. "The robber used nie very roughly, striking me frequently with his Winchester and poking me about, ordering me 'to get a move on.' That stirred my desire for revenge. By feigning indifference I persuaded the robber to go back into the express car, telling him that lie had missed a valuable package, it was my purpose to lead him into a trap. " 'There's the most valuable package in the car,' I said, indicating a package with my foot. The robber bent over to get it and I struck him a hard blow on the back of the head with an ice mallet, killing him, 1 believe, instantly. "From his body I took two sixshooters. 1 gave one to Banks and (lie other to lteagen. Wo concealed in one end of the express ear and waited. When about one hour, 1 fir nd t no winciU'Ster, tninicing ny this stratagy to alarm the other robbers it' there were any. In a few minutes a man entered the other end of the ear, crawling stealthily behind some trunks. lie thrust his head from behind a trunk and 1 spotted him. "Then I waited for some time. All was still and we dared not move. In about another hour I gave the signal to the engineer to back up. That's the whole story, so far as T know, except that when we got to Sanderson, T went .before the grand jury then in session and told of my experience." K1L1.K!) VlYK PKODLK. Headland, Ala., is Destroyed by a V ierce Tornado. Five persons are known to have been killed, a dozen injured, several of them seriously, and scores of buildings in both the business and residence districts of Headland, Ala., are total wrecks as the result of a cyclone which struck the town at .'1:150 o'clock Friday morning, causing panic and confusion among the 1,200 residents. J. C. Copelaiul and his wife occupied a room on the top lloor of their home. The liouso was upset by the force of the wind and both husband i ...s e r .1 ^ ik.v <r^ aiKl WHO I I't'L'U i ruin i m* w rr*c wore found lying several hundred yards from the site of their home. In Geneva county, according to meager advices obtainable, a boy was killed and three other persons were injured. At Hartford, 30 miles away, a son of Willy Adams was killed outright in the presence of members of his family and another boy is said to have been badly hurt. Fifteen minutes after the cyclone struck Headland all who had not been injured assisted in the work of rescue. Jumped Overboard Willi Haby. Leaving their baby alone on the deck of the transport Warren in charge of a Japanese nurse one evcnmf, Maj. Albert E. Truby, and his wife, both of San Francisco, returned to the deck to llnd the child missing. The nurse had committed suicide by jumping overboard and had carried the baby with her. ? Old Hog Case Settled. The locally famous "Ames-Combs hog case," on which the courts of Hazard Ky., have wasted time for many years, is settled. The last action was concerning the costs. The court decided that each side should boar its own. So the court costs, $.">00, will be further swelled by attorneys' foes. brook is a little creek, every creek is 11 ...? nM% ~ \ small rivur. i uu uunxy i.mus ui "lio last few weeks have melted flu snows, washed out the roads, carrlec1 off the bridges and made mud kne< leop. The hardiest ponies floundci up the grades with great effort. Juror Fowler, who was injurec during the scene of terror in tin "ourt room, is in a critical conditioi and is not expected to survive tin night. The wounds of Jurors Kan< and Wordell and Dexter fload, clerl of court, are not serious. LAID HER TO REST! ! THE GALLANT MAINE BURRIED IN j THE GULF OF MEXICO. TAKES HER LAST SLEEP Solemn and Impressive Ceremonies Mark the Towing to Sea and Sinking of the Hulk of the Battleship Maine From Harbor of Havana, Where She Had I>ain for Years. Under lowering skies and in a j heavy, tumbling sea, the old battleship Maine, resurrected after fourteen years' burial in Havana harbor, Saturday plunged, with her colors Hying, to her everlasting rest, six hundred fathoms deep in the sapphire waters of the Gulf. The sinking of the hulk was carried out precisely as planned, marking the end of the great work begun more than a year and a half ago. After imposing ceremonies in the morning, which ended with the formal transfer of the custody of the bodies of 111o heroic dead sailors, by the mayor of Havana, Julio 1). Cardenas, to Brig. Gen. W. II. Bixby, chief of the engineer corps, U. S. A., as the representative of the United States, the cofllns were taken aboard the armored cruiser North Carolina, where they were deposited on the quarter deck completely covered by a great mound of floral tributes, under a guard of honor composed of marines. '.Minute guns were fired by the North Carolina and the scout cruiser Birmingham and the batteries of Cabanas Fortress until the ships cleared the harbor. Soon after o'clock the navy tug Osceola, aboard which were the i'nited States minister, Arthur M. Beauprc, and the staff of the legation, Big. Gen. Bixby, Col. William Black, Lieut. Col. Mason Patrick and Major Harley B. Ferguson, constituting the Maine commission, passed lines to the stern end of the wedgeshaped wreck and started seaward. Two flanking tugs attached lines to either end of the bulk-head, which then became the afterpart of the hulk, to steady and steer her. Iler decks covered with llower9 and palms and a great American ensign floating from the jury mast, where the mainmast formerly stood, tho Maine was taken to sea on lier last voyage. On deck stood Capt. John O'Hrien, famous as "Dynamite .Johnny," skipper of tlie filibustering steamers Dauntless and Three Friends, acting as the Maine's last pilot. As tho wreck passed the American squadron the crews manned the rails, the marines presented arms, the scarlet-coated bandsmen on the quarter deck played the national anthem, while minute guns boomed a requiem. Passing out of tho harbor, salutes were fired, the flotilla, headed by the Maine, proceeded in silence with the (lags at half-mast. At 4:35 o'clock the three-mile limit was crossed. The Vmeriean cruisers took up a position to the west and the accompanying vessels to the north and south. Meanwhile, tho wreckng crew wont aboard tho hulk and made ready to carry out the arrangements for the sinking. At 5 o'clock another whistle from tho North Carolina sounded and another gun was fired. Tho cruiser instantly threw open tho vales and Capt. O'Hrien jumped aboard a tug alongside, which steamed a little distance away. Then all eyes in the great, fleet were fixed on tho wreck; the crews of the warships were lining tho rails. All was silence but for the washing of the heavy seas. For ten minutes no change was visible in the trim of the great battered hulk, which pitched heavily as the buire rollers struck her. Then she was seen to bo sinking at the bulkhead end. Soon the waves began to wash over her deck. As she remained pitching and wallowing, each moment getting deeper and deeper, the stern was seen to rise. In a few seconds the hulk was almost vertical, showing first, the propellers and then tho full keel. The next moment there was a flash of black and white, as the great ensign flying from the mnst struck the. waves and disappeared. Simultaneously tho decks were blown up by tho air pressure and with incredible velocity the Maine plunged down, leaving no trace save flowers tossing on tho surface of the seas. Jumped in Front of Train. At Milledgeville, Oa., hurling himself in front of a freight train, Arthur Welscnlmker, aged Til years, a pellagra patient, was instantly . killed, the train cutting off his head. An attendant, in charge of him nt, tempted to pull him away from the I track, but Weisenbaker hold on tight* ly to the rail until be was killed. r * * Frozen in Ice ltloclc. 1 At Pittsburg, Pa., the morgue am2 bulanco was temporarily turned into 1 an ice wagon Thursday. Its cargo ? was a huge cake of ice taken from c> the Ohio river. Frozen in tho. Ice < was a man's body, which was discovered by two rivor forrymen. GREAT LOSS FROM RAINS I MUCH DAMAGE ItEI'ORTED PROM I THE SOUTHEAST. I jj^H South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia an<l Alabama Suffered I More Than Other States. I The rains of last Thursday night I and Friday played havoc in the up- I per part of South Carolina with 1 railroads, cotton mills and other I property. Jn fact reports of heavy I property damage throughout tho I Southeast, as the result of the ter* I rifle rains of the past two days, con- I titiue to be received, and earlier esti- I mates that the losses will reach into I millions are sustained. I Rivers and smaller streams are all I out of banks and railroad traffic is I generally demoralized. The South- I ern Railway has been hard hit. The 1 washout of a trestle over the Haw I River, near Reidsville, X. C., stop- I ping through trafllc on the main line, I while schedules on branch linos in I the Carolines have been annulled be- I cause of washouts and damages tres- | ties. Through trains are being detoured to the south by way of Knoxville and Chattanooga. Cotton mills and other industries along the smaller rivers have been compelled to shut down by high water, and in North Carolina alone the losses are estimated at half a million dollars. Thousands of cattle and hogs have been drowned in the swamps adjacent to the rivers. The flood came so suddenly there was no time to get them out. Reports from Columbia show similar conditions in South Carolina. The Congaree and Broad rivers at Columbi-a, have become raging torrents and the flood threatens to carry away the big steel bridges over both rivers. At Camden, the Wateree River has carried away two bridges and all roads into the town I are submerged. The Saluda River also is out of bounds and reports say a freight train litis been caught between two washouts near Saluda and abandoned. r]'he Savannah River, at Augusta, came to a standstill Saturday night at. 3G feet, 9 inches, after spreading over a large part of that city. The damage, it is said, will bo much less than the memorable ilood of 190S. At .Macon the rise of the Ocmulgee River caused a break in the city . water mains, cutting off the water supply of part of the city and leaving the city without lire protection. From Southern Alabama come reports that all rivers are steadily risimr mid dainaire to nronertv is onor mous. At Montgomery tlie Alabama has backed up nearly to the union station. Governor O'Xeall issued an appeal for helf for the storm victims at Headland, where a hurricane killed live and destroyed forty homes. CATGUT IX Till) FLOOD. Drowned Trying to Cross the Enoree Hiver Friday. A dispatch from Spartanburg says that while endeavoring to cross Enoree river, a small stream which had boon swelled to three times its usual height by six inches of rain which fell in this vicinity early Friday morning, O. C,. Ligon, a leading citizen of Enoree, was drowned when a small boat was dashed to pieces by debris which was rushed down the torrent of waters, llis companion, Will Pulley, may be dead or alive, no one on this side of the river can ascertain, and communication with thp other side has been cut off by tho destruction of every bridge for miles and miles and by the loss of all teland miles and by the telephone lines being put out of commission. Theso two men wanted to communicate with the other side of tho river, where their fanii..wJ v^re, and at 4 o'clock Friday afternoon attempted to cross in a small row boat. Tho center of tho liver had not been reached when a huge log, floating past at a rapid rate, struck their boat and smashed it to splinters. ? MANY STAKYE TO DEATH. Population of Small Fishing Yillago Arc Yictims. Tt is learned at St. Petersburg. Russia, that the entire population of i small fishing village in Nova Zeruhla, is dead of starvation. The cemetery is full showing that the few dead persons who were found untnterrcd had buried those who died (irst. The vessel which was to take food supplies to the village was held : st by the ice for mouths and when it "ot through the people for whom the food was destined were dead. The minister of the interior notified the cabinet that ho would ask for a further sum for the relief of starving peasants in various parts of tho empire. This will bring the total sum expended thus far up to $03,000,000. Starts Rattlesnake Farm. A rattlesnake farm has been started in Great Harrington, Mass., by Cecil Miles. Starting with 100 reptiles ? */\ milbn i frtl'tlinft fmm !UW rjAjiUtlO iV mw. VM..V - w selling skins and rattlesnake oil. %