The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, March 30, 1886, Image 1
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VOL.-2. ABBEVILLE, S. C., TUESDAY, MARCH 30, 1886. NO. 30.
Hard Facts About Fighting-.
[Frank Wilkison in the New York Sun.]
As we, year by year, grow away from
the war, and the number of men who
carried a rifle or swung a sponge staff
among the guns grows smaller, the
country is flooded with mythical accouuts
of this or that officer's wonderful
^lionlnv rnnrficru nn Qiir*li nml ciiiOi
fields, and the generation is called upon
to admire the gallantry of the warlike
commanders of their ancestors. 1 protest
against the farther manufacture of
sham military reputation. 1 know, and
all soldiers know, that the greater portion
of the stories now current must be
false.
An officer dies and at once the newspapers
and magazines are filled with
accounts of his bravery and of the valorous
deeds lie performed, and how he
saved the Union on such a battlefield.
We are solemnity told that his presence
inspired his troops, just ready to break,
i or, already in flight, and they, nerved
by a glencc of his blazing eyes, reformIed
and rushed madly on the foe and
snatched victory from defeat. This is
rot, unmitigated rot.
The distinguishing characteristics of
the American volunteer were his independence
of thought, his want of rev
Ivivhvb iur iiiosc in auuioruy, ana ms
ability to take care of himself in battle
and to correctly judge of its tide. He
bad no respect for any general whom he
did not believe to possess the qualifications
essential to a great commander.
Therefore none of our general officers
inspired him at all. When the volunteer
fought on the offensive he fought
wrell and steadily as long as he thought
there was a prospect of success. On
I the defensive he would fight to the
death if he knew that it it wus essential
^ to 'the safety'or the army to hold the
position he occupied. He would assault
earthworks, it mattered not how strong
they were, savagely, and carry them if
it was possible. But, having once seen
it io work apt clonc range, and having 1
thoroughly felt of its defenders and ]
\ realized that the line could not be carried,
.he would n?? again make a detery
mined assault.
f In one instance, at Cold Spring Harf
bor, in 1864, the ;*rmy of the Potomac
openly refused to snake a second assault
on works they had been up to in the
morning. The privates had seen the
Confederate works; their general officers,
of whom we hear so much in these .
I days, had not, and the privates consid- ,
F ered themsalves just as well qualified ,
to judge of their capacity to carry
earthworks by assault as any general ,
officer, it mattered not how high his
rank, who had oot seen the works, and
who evinced no burning desire to in- j
Inpwt uicw i?uici^iu ul ciuse rfingo. It
is true thwt the troops who refused to ,
renew the assault at Cold Harbor cheer- ]
fully sprang to the assault at Petersburg ,
| a few d*ys later, but they had not seen (
the latter works and they had a sufficiont
confidence in General Grant's (
ability as a .commander to believe that (
\ lie would not (have ordered an assault
uniess there <kad been some prospect of (
' success?and that is where they fooled i
i themselves. None of our generals could |
have forced itieir troops to make another (
I ^ determined assault on the Confederate
| lines at Petersburg.
I At present we hear of how such and
p such generate led their men to desperate
charges. These heroes arc pictured to
the youth of our land as going into ac{
lion on horseback, wavings word in hand,
( -and far in advance of the charjjing line.
I have seen many charges delivered by
both Uniew and Confederate troops,
f I have seen our inen, with blanched
faces and set jaws, and their eyes blazf
ing with battle light, stream past the
guns I served on, and run full speed at
^ earthworks, behind which Lee's veteran
infantry lurked, and most always get
whipped. Then I have seen the lines
> in gray charge Union earthworks or battle
lines, and I have seen them melt
f away before the heat of our fire ; but I
/ never saw the recklessly bravo general
officer* we hear so ranch about at present
lead any troops into action. I have
j seen tihem closely followed by their
i brigade officers, but I never saw them
1 lead. In troth, what business wmtlrl #n
j officer have in front of bis men when i
I they were in action ? He would be in 1
9 the line of their fire, and would surely i
be killed. I
| All privates hare seen division and ]
CQff* and army headquarters, and non ? <
over savr them pitched among the troops
in a place of danger. No one ever
li *ard of a general officer being killed
in camp. We are told that these gallant
men habitually rode the battle line or
line of trenches, and that they smiled '
at humming bullets and laughed solid
shot and bursting shells to scorn. It is
true that brigade commanders were con- j
spicuous by their absence, and the .
presence of a divisions commander ^
muuiig nit> nuups was so unusual mat it ^
attracted the attention of the soldeirs, T
and was always remarked upon. What t
business has an officer commanding f
from ten to forty thousand men to be in t
the heat and smoke of a battle ? He j
cannot direct the troops if he is on the ^
battle line. He could not see how the
fight was going. Brigade commanders
could not find him. Of course, or if
his troops were charging, or if they 1
were advancing he could be with *
them.' c
We are told of general officers, grievously
wounded, waving aside their aids r
and lightly dismissing the medical at- *
tendants, and saying in effect: ''Let the
battle proceed, 1 cannot abandon my S
troops. We must save the Union.*' r
Pah ! Much they, under these circum- |
stances, thought of the Union or of
their troops. The truth is, that the)', *
one and all, got themselves lugged off *
the field as quickly as possible, and 1
they were exceedingly glad to get to '
the rear and into an ambulance and be r
c
driven .to a place of safety and a surgeon.
To have a rifle ball weighing an J
ounce driven home in the groin, orshat- C
ter the thigh bone, or mash the knee 1
Q
joint to splinters, or smash the bones of
the arm, or to have a solid shot or a
t
ragged chunk of a shell lop off an arm ^
or a leg, knocks the fight out of a man.
lie wants to go home at once. It was ^
possible for general officers to go home,
and they went. At least I never saw, ?
nor did any of my comrades see, general
officers swathed in bloody clothes
fighting their division or corps.
General officers, corps and army com- ^
manders, these are pictured as speaking
words of encouragement to their waver- r
ing troops, which, clearly heard above
the awful roar of a pitched battle, caused
men to nerve themselves for supreme
efforts, and they won the fight. These
childish tales are pobably a rehash of
mythical military legends of Napoleonic .
era. The great Corsican statesman and
military genius was ever represented as
talking to an army' of from 30,000 to
300,000 men. Then, loo, Wellington is 11
said to have blatcd "up guards and at
them" to his troops on the field of .
Waterloo. The noine of the battle is ^
terrific, and one human voice could not
make itself heard for any great distance, j.
Suppose a battle is in progress. The
infantry is firing. The artillery is in .
fiction. Solid shot nnd three inch bolts ^
Hv K(!l'l>nniln(r flipnnrrK 421.,11
?j ? 0 an. outtiih lire
bursting. The hum of bullets is loud
f?nd steady. The wounded shriek as
they fall. The dying groan. And we .
ire asked to believe that a general officer
spoke to his men in the midst of this '
deafening uproar, and inspired them. .
He could speak, and speak, and if he voice ^
did not have the compass of fifty foghorns
he might as well whistle into his ^
boot for all the inspiration his troops
.1 C E
uumu uiuw limn mm. 1
t
Tlio Cotton rianters* Crisis. ?
The false idea, the great error, of the
Southern farmer is that the business of a
the farmer is to produce some leading n
money crop as the object, all other crops t
being only subsidiary to tlio money t
irop?necessary evils or drawbacks*, il
This error has taken such deep hold on t
:hc minds of the majority of Southern d
"armers that it seems to have been born t!
n them ; in fact, it is largely an inheri- c
lance. Merchants, mechanics and pro* g
iessiona! men strive by their brains and r
theirs arts to gain money with which to tl
buy the comforts and necessariog, and. V
is they may be able tho luxuries of life, r
The farmer need take no such round- t
ibout methods to secure a supply of the I
necessaries and comforts, and many of f
the luxuries. He may go, and by all t
means ought to go, direct to tbe first t
jource?mother earth. c
For twenty years we have been fol- \
lowing our ionis fatuua. the h?n? ?f V
setting rich by cotton planting. Indeed, c
for the last few years many farmers
nrivo been glad to make both ends meet, r
ind have despaired of attaining a com- t
petence. Something mast be done. Tho 1
present statu of things cannot always, i
How the South Cjui (Jet Even. ai
tl
[E. J. Donuell, in Washington Post.]
e:
The aim of our protective tariff is to
protect Americans from foreign compe- tj
ition. In its practical application to a ^
lemocracy, all citizens should be proected
equally. This may be avoided so
ong as a portion of the people are either ^
gnorant of their rights or fail to insist
jpon them. When, under the protective
lystein, any portion of the people or any |
ndustry demands equal protection with
he already protected, the demand can- j.r
lot be refused without violating the m
leinocratic principle. Practically that
s precisely the way it has worked in
his country.
The two pets of our protective system w
lave been the iron and woollen indusries.
Their tariff history has one feaure
in common?in both cases the tariff
m manufactures existed for some years jy
>efore the producers of the raw mate- s{
ials demanded and obtained similar proection.
^
It was first supposed that this would ^
o stimulate the protection of raw mate- j)(
ials as to reduce the price to the world's
narket value; but in point of fact, it has
lad no such influence, and the manufaoures
have found that, in order to give Q|
hem an advantage over the foreigner
n our own market, a higher tariff on ^
nanufactures than on raw material was w
iccessary. This they have not always
btained, owing.to the watchfulness and rj
ealousy of the iron producers. Practially,
they have generally found that
heir only advantage <fver the foreigner, tj.
von in the home market, consisted in
rt
he superiority of American labor. In aJ
he meantime they are shut out from the
oreigti market. In order to have their j
quality in foreign markets restored, a
Irawback on exports is necessary. This
principle is admitted to a limited extent, | M
s in the case of roflnort nnwr I
o?i ""?VH e;
, drawback of $2.70 per 100 pounds on sj
xports is now pnid out of the national
reasury. Experts say this is nearly j
talf a cent more than the duty on the ^
aw material. j
One of Alexander Hamilton's pet e<
chemes was to put a stop to importation aj
f nails. He procured the enactment of
ehat he promised would be a prohibiivc
tariff, viz : two cents per pound. In ^
he face of this prohibitive tariff
mports doubled.
Nails were then made exclusively by
tand labor, and it seems strange that a w
nan of Hamilton's intelligence and parotism
should have offered, at the pubic
expense, such a high premium to Q]
nduce Americans to engage in one of
he most degrading forms of labor in
xistencc. It still exists in Europe, and ^
urnishes a fine subject for the eloquence
if peregrinating American Froteot*on- n
sts. Mr. Hamilton's scheme failed ut- ^
prl v.
? -J - . C]
The more favorable conditions in this ^
ountry lifted the American citizen
bove the necessity of hammering iron.
nto nails, but theso conditions also fur- tl
lished him with the necessary genius to
ift nail-making up to his own level?he
nvented a machine to do the work for
lim. Where tho demands of the case,
whether from the peculiarity of the inlustry
or the requirements of free com- ^
letition, called for new instrumental]- **
ies American genius has never failed to al
Ind them.
The first tariff on raw wool was en- ?'
cted in 1824. tfntil then the woollen P
manufacture pospered?indeed, it had
teen well established in colonial times?
mt over since the wool tariff was enacted c<
t is hardly an exaggeration to describe cl
he industry as a chaos. Excepting un- "
er the revenue tariff from 1846 to 1860,
he woollen manufacturers have been c<
onstant suppliants in the halls of Con- h
Teas. They seem to be ignorant of the w
eal cause of their trouble. I suspect
hey know more than they pretend to tr
now; .but they are afraid to demand the T
epeal of the wool tariff, fearing a coun- ei
er attack on the manufactures' tariff. ?'
n tho meantime they also are shut out ***
rem the foreign markets. Nor has the fr
riff ever prevented or even reduced
he volume of imports. It is morally T
ertain that if we had no tariff on either ?'
root or woolens, our imports would not ft
>e increased and our exports would in- b
rease rapidly. * di
So flu* as I know, neither our woolen
tor our iron manufactures have applied *'
o Congress for a drawback on exports. 01
! suppose this is owing to the faot that n
t is opposed because onlj a portion of
heir raw materials ha# been imported
tid paid duty, but this is little better
lan a^subterfuge.
Democratic equality requires that all
xporters shall have returned to them a
le whole increase in the cost of fc
le materials and instruments used y
i their industry, caused by the tariff. fn
his applies to agricultural products w
5 well as to manufactures, and it w
jplies to both as truly as to refined ki
'gar. a I
When the whole of the American peo- la
le demand their rights under the pro- T
ictive svstem. not onlv to be urotected fi
?r V - - " " * "
om foreign competition in the homo c<
arket, but to be also protected from p
ich tariff taxes as place them at a dis- gi
Ivantage in selling their surplus pro- ol
nets in foreign markots, the argument rt
ill have arrived at logical conclusions w
here the most stupid will understand w
. P
Some of my friends find fault with A
ee traders who are found advocating ti
>me special protective tariff. I think fc
ich fault findining is unjust. Mr. Tren- r<
[>lm has been accused of inconsistency T
acause, being an aowded free trader h
D advocates a high tariff on rice. In tl
y opinion Mr. Trenholm should have
)ne much further. He should also ol
ive advocated a drawback on exports gi
cotton. Of course, as a free trader ho It
r>ows perfectly well that the great rice U
roducers of the Kast cannot compete oi
ith South Carolina in cotton produc- n
on and would be very glad to exchange 8)
ce for cotton cloth ; and ho knows, also, n
tat the labor employed in the rice h
Tamps could easily be transferred to U
te cotton fields, but we are under the e<
giine of what is called "protection" tl
id he is completely justified in de- li
landing equal rights as an American t
tizen. r(
There ave two wa}^ to obtain an over- ^
irow of an unnatural* illogical aysteui. n
-one is to tto other is to p
(tend it and puBh it to logical conolu- h
ons. If the people can be easily in- 0
.ructed in the truth, the first is obviousr
the best; if they are successfully d
kialed and an "object lesson" seems in- G
cspensable, the latter should be adopt- w
1 without hesitation and pushed perstently.
A true doctrine has nothing a
> fear from such an ordeal ; a doctrine t,
lat will not bear such a tost is obvious- ^
j false. y
I have grave doubts as to whether the g
rotective system will ever be over- &
irown in this country in any other s
ay than by extending it equally to all. 8
:s weakest point is its utter inconsis- h
?ncy with democratic equality. It is tl
nly by limiting its application to a few ??
rticles that its evil influence can be ^
jccessfully concealed from the peo- h
le. v
if Mr. Morrison would itsert in his f<
ew tariff bill an article giving a draw- f,
rack on all exports, equal to the in- a
rease in the cost of production caused g
y the tariff, he would probably bring n
i i- ? 1 ?
it; utnu i|ue?iiuu iiuuiu iu luu uiiuurending
of his constituentis more effeclally
than in any other way. 8)
A Collision on The Rail. g
A collision between the Charleston d
ound Augusta passenger train, Conuctor
Webb, and an outward-bound i
eight train, Capt. Goodwin, occurred >*
bout one quarter of a mile this side of s<
ineath's Station, a few minutes after 6 &]
clock yesterday morning. The usual r<
lace of meeting is at Sineath's and the ai
icident is probably owing to a faulty w
mepiece in the hands of one of the *
>nductor8. The passenger train people w
aim to have been on time, with the it
ght of way. The freight train people ?
ridently thought the saine thing, and ai
ime on with a full head of steam. A1J ?
ands on both engines jumped into tho P
ater when they saw tho accident in- ^
citable, the engineer of the passenger ?
ain reversing his engine first, however. ^
he result was a wreck. The passenger 6
igine being at a reverse, drew itself u
at of the wreck, its fore-wheels off the "
tils, smokestack gone, and its entire
ont badly batterod, when its engineer "
aickly boarded and stopped her.
bo engine or the freight train u
iffcred bj far the most injury. Its ?
urewhtels were driven under its fireox,
while the body, of the engine lies ^
iagonai'y across the traok. The tender P
-as jerked completely from the track
id thrown over on its side, the first box 11
ir telescoping the engine. There was 71
o injury, except to a few er,ossties, done
> the track, and nobody was hurt.? v
Tela* And Courier. g
DodKiiiK the IjynclicrH I
Several monhts ago Charles Hawkins, 1
young negro farm hand, made a J
lonious assault on Miss Brockman, a 1
oung white woman of respectable 1
LUiilv whose mind is *vnnk. Tho ocan..u t
as made in tlic; kitchen of the house in
hich Miss Brockraan lived and Hawins
was caught in the act. He escaped
; the time but was captured a few days
>ter and put in jail at Spartanburg,
he scene of the crime was near the
rreenville line and many men in thip
junty joined with the Spartanburg
eople in tho effort to take speedy venaance
on the criminal. A large body
f men visited Spartanburg city and
tided the jail but the officers had been
arned and got Hawkins and Ed Bundy*
rho was likewise wanted for lynching
urposes, out of the jail to the woodshunt
for the two negroes was connued
all one night and part of the
dlowing day, and the searchers nar>wly
missed finding them several times
he two men were put on a train
owever, and carried to Columbia where
icy were lodged in jail for safe keeping.
It was all right that far, but the
Sicers of the law found that they had a
ood deal of an elephant on their hands.
; was known that the feeling against
[awkins was not a temporary outburst
f public wrath. The people of the
eighborhood were determined that he
lould die for his crime. The helpless
essof his victim, the resectability her
cr and connections and the fact that the
iw could not hang the criminal cementi
public sentiment so that it was known
lat no power conld save Hawkins from
inching if he ever got where Spartanturg
or upper Greenville men could
?ach him. He had to be tried in some
ray or released. The latter alter
alivfwflM^ld ba and. the
robiSttrfcras how and#rroid
aving him seised id Iprtourt rooW or
n his way between mure and the jail.
A plan was at last made, and it was
etermined to have Hawicins brought to
freenvillc, kept here until the court
ras ready for his case, hurry him over
? Spartanburg, accept his plea of guilty
nd send him to Columbia by the first
rain. Acuordinigly Sheriff Gilreath
as given secret instructions last week,
[e sent his son and chief deputy J. D.
rilrcath, to Columbia on Wednesday.
Ir. Gilreath presented his order to
heriff Rowan, of Richland, and after a
light delay, received Hawkins harried
iin into a carriage and put him aboard
tie train, He warned his prisoner to
keep his mouth shut.44 and the advice
ras faithfully obeyed. Hawkins
ardly opened hismouth during the
rhole day, and was not at ease an instant,
>r the perspiration poured from him
'om the time he lef Columbia until his
rrival here. An assumed name was
ivon to *11 prioniroB an?l Mi
let all questions with evasive answers.
A reporter from the Netos was at the
til when the street car stopped at Broad
treet and Mr. Gilreath and his prisoner
ot off. Hawkins is apparently about ,
K'enty-two years old, and is of very
ark gingerbread color. He is of
tedium height, and weight and pock
larked, the pallor of confinuent bringlg
out the pits on his face plainly. He
semed to be in. good humor as he
pproached the jail, but as he saw the '
jporter an anxious expression appeared
nd he looked at that harmless individunl
rith a long and steady gaze in which u
rhole chapter of questions appered. He
'as quickly taken up stairs and locked
i. The sheriff, the deputy, Solicitor
rrand Wro. H. Irvine,Hawkins counsel
nd the News representative, were the 1
nly persons here who knew who the
risoner was. The last named was not (
ond to secrecy by official duty, as the 1
thers were, but was put under oath by '
10 sheriff, who has not beon able to '
njoy a night of sound sle<*p since his
ndesirable patsoner came here, know- '
ig that if a hint of his presence got into
10 country there would be a lynching '
l spite of all that could be done.
Over in Spartanburg Solicitor Ducnan 1
>und his plan would not work. <
[e knew that against -an attempt
> take Hawkins no adequate force
auld he raised, and found that tho ,
eoplo were on the watoh so vigilantly >
lat the criminal could not be carried ]
ito court or kept in the jail an hour :
rithout risk of a determined attack. '
The plan was, therefore, changed and <
motion for change of venue to Greon- J
ille was made and granted. Word was !
ent to the officers here, and yesterday !
noming as son as court was opened
Hawkins was carried before Judge
Witherspoon and arraigned for assault
?nd battery with intent to commit rape.
Ho pleaded guilty, and was sentenced
to fifteen years in the penitentiary taken
o a carriage in waiting at the door and
Iriyen to the Columbia and Greeville
lepot where ho went aboard the train a
rcry few minutes before it started' havng
been arraigned and put on his way
,o the penitentirry inside of half an
lour. Ho doubtless thought he was
ioing very well indeed and was apparentV
nloaSnH of Kftrinn. I- "**
j t vmuw.xkiiqmvuu iiitinccK. .air.
Irvine had made an attempt to have the
sentence made seven years but he did
not press it very energetically or spend
tnnch time on it. It was touch and go
bnsiness and had to be done by the
watch. A delay of ten minutes would
have missed the train, and if Hawkins
had been kept here until to-day it is
certain some up-countryman would have
carried the news home and had the
whole of the and Greenville the Spartanburg
mountains swaming down here last
night Sheriff Gilrcath draw a sigh of
relief when he heard Hawkins was
safely off, and remarked that if one of
the several men from the Brockman
neighborhood who were here on ThursJay
had caught sight of Hawkins, or
heard a hint of his being here, ho could
have set that whole section afire and
brought down a whole regiment of cool,
xcuve aim Drave men Dent on baying tho
wretch's life. *' f
Bacon v?. Shakespear.
[Augusta Chronicle.J
We consider that Dr. Lipscomb has
effectually dispelled the illusion?if
there ever was an illusion?that Lord
Bacon had inspired or created any of
the Shakespearean dramas. The subject
was hardly a ''national issue** and few
scholars have given their^ serious time
to its consideration. It has afforded a
theme for ingenious theorists to advance
or to refute and has given the material
for no end of philosophical conceits, but
the value of the allegation as a literary
position is untenable. '
Lord Bacon, so far as we know, had
no dramatic power. He was a fine
talker and a jester, but the purely judi?
cial caste of his mind and the peculiar
methods of his reasoning made itis calibre
and his creations widely different
from those of William Shakespeare.
The latter wore the mantle and ero^
ployed the method of Aristole, whoso
school Bucon spent his life in hating and
supplanting. Strange it is that no light
from the JVovum Organvm breaks
out in any of the tragedies or sonnets.
As Dr. Lipeomb delares, Shakespeare's
power lav in internrotinc moral nnrl
mental laws: Bacon's exerted itself
in interpreting the laws of physical
nature. Each was a master in his
line, but it has hardly been given ^
to mortal man to be transcendent in
both.
Shakespeare is more than a myth.
The plaj-s which he wrote, which he rewrote,
which he copied, created, revised
and adnntpil. mnv hnvn K?on m?n%r ?<"
them, woven around plots and plans
furnished by stage manuscripts and old
translations of many literatures, but tho
stamp of the playright and scene-shifter
is dis distinctive and bis manipulation
Iihs been strong enough to leave the
" lies indisputedly and royally Shakes*
pearean.
It is a reflection alike upon 8h*kospeare
and upon Bacon to say that th&latter
was the author of the plays?
upun uju uuc vj HiippuHe mai ne snouia
have stolen bo great a crown ; upon the
other, that should have been ashitmed
to own, so groat a product of his
brain. The burden of proof is still
upon the objectors to break the will
which bequeathes to the fame of William
3hakeapeare the glory which has enob>
bled England's literature, as her admiralty
; has enriched her commerce, and
which has sfeed upon all languages,
the splendor and the witchery of her
drama.
Ooo<l Results In Every Case.
t
9. A. Bradford, wholesaler paper dealer of
Chattanooga, Tenn., writes, tbat he was se
rionsly afflicted with a severe cold that settled
rm his lungs: bad tried many remedies wihout
benefit. Being induced to try Dr, King's New
Discovery for Consumption, did so and Was
entirely cured by use of a few bottles. 81nee
which time he has used it in his flunily for all
Coughs acd Colds with beet result*. This is
the experience of thousands whose lire* bar*
been saved by this Wonderful Disoovery,
Triel Bottles free at Cothran k Perrin Dru*;