Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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WE GUARANTEE The Reliability of Every Adver tiser Who Uses the Col umns of This Paper. The Ledger. P. (J. HTAi’Y. rrmWfnt. J. O. WAHDf-AW. Vice PHoldout THE NATIONAL BANK OF GAFFNEY. Capital Sjo.oco,ro. W in, liuy rounty clnltni*. riTtMvf' und Inrki“ lllxTiil iouiitt on approved paper, i). ICoss. t 'asliier. A Newspaper in all that the Word Implies and Devoted to the Best Interests of the People of Cherokee County. ESTABLISHED FED. 10, GAFFNEY CITY, S. C.. THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 1898, $1.00 A YEAR. AS DRAWN BY ETTA JANE. THE SAGE OF Evidences of the Fact that This is Not Only one of the Best Coun ties of the Piedmont but of the State. Etta J am:, my lust letter to August ) 1.—1 closed the Lkdgkk at Blacksburg, from whence 1 went to Bullulo church on Monday and r mained in that community until Tuesday evening. A protracted meet ing was then in progress at Buffalo church. This is one of ihe oldest churches in this county. It ante dates the revolutionary war. I un derstand the worshippers are now occupying the fourth building erect ed for that purpose. The present building was erected about IS.ii). I had something to say of this church and its people in my “write up - ’ last year, and I propose to give a fuller sketch hereafter. Rev. G. V. Hamrick was assisted in the meeting by Revs. Bostick and Wash hurtle. I will take the liberty to say that Rev. Mr. Hamrick is one of the most zealous preachers I have ever met, his whole heart and soul is in ins work. The meeting began on Saturday evening before. The music at this church was fine. Many of the tunes sung were old, yet sung with that devotional emphasis that reminded us of the days of our youth. They have a good organ and well trained performers. The congrega tion is not backward in joining in the singing, which scarcely ever fails to get up a good meeting. A friend handed mo a list of the members of the Buffalo choir which I take great pleasure in reproducing for the benefit of our readers: John F. Moore, organist, Mrs. Grace Porter and Miss Palm Web ber, assistants; male members—Wm. Hopper, John M. Porter, R. H. Por ter, E. E. Port?r, Elijah Hopper, Claude Webber, J. M. Gaston, W. C. Durham, J. C. Wylie, J. J. Rippey, J. D. Wilson, L. M. Hopper. Females—Misses Bessie, Bertha, Lula and Florence Porter, Adie Webber, Haltie, Effie and Sallie Wylie, Mollie Hopper, Dora Gaston, Belle and Hat tie Sarratt, Vina and Edna Webber. Amanda and Minnie Rippey, Mabel Moore, Della Hoyle, Lula Adkins, Emma, Nannie and Dora Dawkins, Mamie and Vick Mintz. Perhaps there are others whose names are omitted but if so it was not inten tional. On my return to the western side of Broad river I met Capt. John Mintz who kindly invited mo to go into his melon patch and “help my self," which I did. I will say he has one of the finest farms in Cherokee county. Just across the river lies the Gaffney farm. The two, lying on opposite sides of Broad river, forms the largest body of bottom lands to be seen north of Columbia, and they are now covered with luxu riant corn, cotton, millet, sugar cane and watermelons. No finer crop prospect can be seen in upper South Carolina than that' now to be seen from the piazza of my friend, John Gaffney, with whom I spent a pleasant night. This is the best time of year to drive over the country tfnd see its resources. The crops alo:.g Buffalo, Kings creek, Broad river and their various tribu taries are certainly a good advertis- ment for those sections. What is true of them is equally true of other sections. Taken all in all we have the finest county—not only of upper South Carolina, but of the Piedmont belt as well. Capt. John Mintz, John Gaffney andJJMorgan Mil wood are living in sight of each other. I’ll venture to say that they have enough melons of different kinds to supply the county for a while, at least. Mr. Gaffney has melons that weigh fifty to sixty pounds each. At Mr. John Gaffney’s I met a pleasant, jovial Irishman, Mr. Patrick O’Riley, of whom I will have something to say later on. I had the pleasure of visiting Prof. A. G. Davis’ singing school at Grassy Pond last Wednesday and found it in first rate working order. He has just begun teaching there. He has a large attendance of scholars and they make good music. Hope to be with them again. My thanks are due the Asbury Sunday School for a kind invitation to attend their picnic last Saturday. Matters beyond my control prevented my attending. One of the most cruel murders is reported from the York side of the river that has been heard of in many years—if ever before. I refer to the killing of Ben Gore, an old and highly respected colored man. by some of his own color. It appears that after his brains were beaten out he was tied hand and foot and thrown into an old wtfll and rocks and brush throw, on him. After a long time the sf> ret leaked out through a young lad—his step son—which resulted in the capture and lodgment in jail of his murderers, It is rumored that the colored people of that community were much in favor of lynching the whole party connected with the dia bolical deed. If all reports are true this case is without a parallel for | cruelty and brutality. The child of Mr. Wm. I. Jones, of Grassy Pond, who was so seriously hurt some time ago, I am glad to note, lias recovered and is now the very picture of health. MissjDora Whitlock and Miss Lottie Inman were at Salem Sunday school yesterday. •We have been asked to give an ex ample and rule for finding the place where a plank of unequal width at the ends must be cut in two in order to divide it into equal parts. Here it V plank is twelve feet (or 1 11 inches) long, fifteen inches wide at one end and nine Itches at the other, where must the plunk be sawed so that each end will contain the same quantity of lumber, and how wide is the plank when it is sawed? Rule—Square both ends of the plank and take half the sum of these squares, extract the square root and we have the width where the plank is sawed. In tiiis example we find the plank is.RMWfiS inches wide where it is sawed. Add this number to the ends of the plank already given and divide the length of the plunk (111 inches) and the quotients in each case will give the lengths of Mio dif ferent sections of the plank after it is saved, to-wit: 5.2(»14 ieet and (5.73(55 feet making twelve feet in length. The crops of both corn and cotton in tiiis section promise an abundant yield this year. Mr. and Mrs. H. B. McDaniel, of Hickory Grove, are visiting friends and relatives in Cherokee county. We are glad ti note that the crowd at Gaffney last Thursday was the most orderly for its size we have ever seen, not even excepting the Fourth of July. We have a patriotic people who know how to behave themselves and they usually do so too. Our fruit trees are breaking down with fruit, especially peaches. Dr. Durham is now in this section practicing his profession of dentistry. Some cases of chills and bilious fever are reported in this and York coun ties. While at Mount Paran church week before last Mr. E. R. Sapech showed me the grave of Mr. Smith Dawson who died in this neighborhood and was buried there thirty years ago. J. l. s. CAMPAIGNERS IN CHEROKEE THEIR PERFORMANCE gWeN HERE THURSDAY. It Was a Rather Tame Affair, Lacking Spice and Ginger—The Can didates Notan Impres sive Lot of Men. on Hickory Grove Paragraphs. (Correspondence of The Ledger.) HiCKORY *Grove, Aug. 1.—Crops are fine in this section. We have a great deal of tvork go ing on in^liis place at present. We have one brick mill run by steam and two by horse power. These brick are being made for the purpose of build ing store houses. There will be four store rooms two stories high 100 feet long and from twenty-live to thirty feet wide. It looks like Hickory Grove is getting on a boom. Bob Sarr, Frank and John Watson are boring the public weil at this place. Rev. J. P. Knox is holding a meet ing at Smyrna this week, and Rev. J. H. Thacker is holding a meeting at Mt. Vernon. Whisonant & Castles are having a nice cottage erected row which will be oocupied by Dr. D. T. Teal. Mr. J. B. Martin lost a fine horse a few days ago. Cow Boy. • —— - —■ » Thickety News. (Correspondence of The Ledger.) Thickety, Aug. 1.—Crops are look ing line in our section. We cannot tell yet, what the harvest will be, but present prospects are truly flat- ering for the farmer. The new church house at Beaver- dam is nearing completion, and there will be protracted services there com mencing next Sunday Aug. 7th. The Pastor will be assisted by Rev. J. M. Bridges of yourjeity. a. D. o. A Clever Trick. It certainly looks like it, but there is really no trick about it. Anybody can try it who has Lame Back and Weak Kidneys, Malaria or nervous troubles. We mean he can cure himself right away by taking Electric Bitters. This medicine tones up the whole system, acts as a stimulant to the Liver and Kidneys, is a blood pu rifier and nerve tonic. It cures Con stipation, Headache, Fainting Spells, Sleeplessness and Melancholy, it is purely vegetable, a mild laxative, and restores the system to its natural vigor. Try Electric Bitters and be convinced that they are a miracle worker. Every bottle guaranteed. Only 50c a bottle at the DuPre Drug Co. Last Thursday was the day which the State Campaign Vaudeville Attraction was billed to appear in Gaffpey. The performance came off in the Court House and was wit nessed by about eight hundred of the yeomanry of Cherokee. Candor com- pells us to state that we believe the audience was sorely disappointed. The performers arranged their own program, giving the gubernatorial stars fifteen minutes each and the lesser lights five minutes. This was a disappointment, for no man could discuss issues of importance such as should be discussed in the time al lotted. We take occasion to state just here that the methpds now being pursued in regard to campaigns should be changed. The candidates should be divided and each county should have a meeting for each set of candidates. That is, the candi dates for governor should have one day in each county, the candidates for attorny general another day, and i so on down the list. We venture the assertion that there is not one man 1 in Cherokee county who has been I able to form an opinion of one of the ! candidates from the performance given here last Thursday. There is one thing that can be said to the credit of the meeting at this place. It was an ideal one. The citizens of Cherokee acquitted them selves nobly and there was a notable absence of anything that tended to ward sectionalism or partisanship. Each speaker was given good atten tion. Considering the mildness of the speeches it is a mystery to us how the speakers managed to hold the audience as well as they did. It would be a weary drag to have our readers go through a detailed account of the meeting so we give a brief sketch of the speeches as made by the candidates for governor only. Mr. Whitman made a good, vig orous speech on the educational ques tion, declaring that the light against higher education by the State was started by him years ago and that it is now the leading issue. His remedy for helping the common schools was to cut down the appropriations for the State colleges. Governor Ellerbe in replying to the charges against him said that he had displeased some of the little politi cians, who had no more patriotism than a Hottentot, because he could not give them certain patronage, and he dared them to meet him on the stump. Col. Tillman declared that many of the large court house towns would knife him from first to last because of his unceasing and unquailing advo cacy of small counties, but he didn’t care, as he always went in for a clean victory or a clean defeat. He did not know whether Ellerbe classed him as one of the “little politicians," and he did not care. Massachusetts built its educational system from top to bottom. New England’s ideas dominate this country, and this coun try will soon rule the world,, and it was the primary schools of New England that will be responsible for it. He was cheerful on his dispen sary views. He hoped the people would take the bit in their mouths and assert their rights of county op tion, so that each county can decide for itself under the constition. He was afraid this campaign had been framed, as he was the only man that denounced the dispensary. Col. Schumpert was satisfied to let the governor’s office go to the best man. He favored widening the sys tem of education so that it will reach every person in South Carolina. It was the State’s duty to support all existing institutions. He fought the dispensary with all his power until it was put in the constitution. Even then he wanted some of its provisions passed upon by the courts. As a solicitor he obeyed his oath and up held the law. The record would show that, notwithstanding that the law was against his judgment, as an offi cer he had upheld it so that he had secured more convictions than any other man. He thought prohibition would debauch the citizenship. If he had to choose between it and the dispensary, he would take the dis pensary with its salutary restrictions but he favored above everything local option with high license. Col. Watson said some of his friends I were disappointed in his size. He j would say to them that his backbone was big enough. Ellerbe’s only stock in trade was to pose as a perse cuted man, but ho vas mistaken 1 about having been slandered. If he ' was big enough to be governor it was not right for him to whine around about being foully slandered. No one said he was dishonest, and lie ought to stand up like a man and make his plea. The governor’s only hope of election was through the po litical machine. Only the other day Ellerbe had told him there was no use to be shaking hands around the country for votes, as a dozen men at each court house would fix the elec tion. He had a letter from State Treasurer Timmerman stating that Ellerbe did not fix any condition to his statement about removing the metropolitan police. Mr. Featherstone briefly stated, in reply to inquiries, his educational views. He believed in building up the primary system and sustaining the higher institutions. Discussing the idea that the time was not ripe for prohibition he said there would be no use for such a law if nobody drank whiskey. The opposition argued that you can’t legislate sobriety into the people. If this argument was sound, how could it be reconciled with Ellerbe’s statement that the dispensary had decreased the sale of whiskey 40 per cent? If there was such a decrease it certainly resulted from leg'slative enactment. Mr. Archer smote prohibition and the prohibitionists hip and thigh. He declared Featherstone desired the impression that he was the only pure and patriotic candidate. He preached a sermon on temperance, but did not present for consideration an iota of practical common sense, nor did he offer anything to better existing con ditions. When an amendment in suring prohibition was offered tf> the Childs bill in the house, Childs was the first man to make a motion against it. The proliibitionists did not want prohibition, but when you corner them you will find they are simply playing on your sympathies in order to get office. They joined hands with the whiskey dealers in trying to tear down the dispensary. There was enough world, flesh and devil here without tiie people trying to be angels. ' The other speakers were Messrs. Mayfield, Brown, McMahan, Rice, Bellinger, Mower, Epton, Derham, Gray, Stansell, Berry, Evans, Garris, Sligh, Thomas, Cooper, Tompkins, Bradham, Floyd, Blythe and Watts. JEALOUS . CRIME. ALMOST BLEW HIS WIFE’S HEAD OFF. His Baby Son the Only Witness—The Little Tot Brings the Horrible Crime to His Fath er’s Door. Spartanburg’s New Railway. [Piedmont Headlight.] By January 1st the trains on the Ohio River cfc Charleston road will be running into this city, and Spartan burg will take on such a boom as it never before knew. Most of the right of-way into the corporate limits of our city have been secured, and the lino has been surveyed to connect with the Augusta road just below the depot. We also learn that the prop erty of Mr. Bomar, on South Church street, between Mr. Becker’s store and residence, has been purchased for a depot and side-tracks, and ne gotiations are now pending for some lots on Spring street, back of the old jail. But is not believed that this new road will terminate in Spartanburg, but be extended to Greenville and thence on to Anderson, via, Reids- ville, in our county. From what The Headlight can gather, this is the programme. The new road is certainly assured for our city, and it will not only largely increase business, but make Spartanburg a competing point for freight rates and force this city to develop into a wholesale center. Let our citizens do all they can to encourage this new enterprise, for it will do much for the property and upbuilding of the “Queen City of the Riedmont.” , Anything Better than the Dispensary. [l>:trMiitfti)n News.] Would prohibition be impractica ble if the State would employ a lot of constables to enforce the law as is done in the case of the dispensary? If it cannot be enforced with con stables employed then the dispensary law has never been enforced. But the trouble is constables will not be employed to carry out a prohibition law because prohibition furnishes no revenue with which to pay the con stables. That is where the rub comes because the Legislators will not dare to appropriate money out right for such purposes. Anything, however, is better than the dispen sary which is eating constantly into the vituals of the body politic and causing many of our industrious sober people to believe that it is all right to sell whiskey for the State. A. E. Gonzales Ordered to Cuba. Wabhinwov, July 28.—Among the army orders issued today is one or dering Capt. Ambrose E. Gonzales, assistant quartermaster United States volunteers, recently appointed, to proceed without delay, via Tampa, Fla, to Santiago de Cuba, and report In person to Major Gen. William R. Shafter for aMignmcnt to duty. [Sprclsil to The Stated Union, July 30.—Yesterday after noon between 5 and ♦» o’clock one of the most shocking of tragedies hap pened about seven miles northwest of this place. B. T. West shot and killed his wife with a double-barreled breech-loading shotgun, using No. 7 shot. The woman was sitting in a chair beside the back door; West stood at the front door. The whole front of the woman’s face, from near the edge of the hair to half of the uose was entirely shot away and mutilated. West gave the alarm, saying that his wife had shot herself. Her brother, who lives about 200 yards from the house, was first to get there; he found the body in a sitting position in a chair, tiie gun lying on the floor in front of her and about three inches from her feet; the gun was lying at right angles to her feet, her hands lay naturally in her lap, The head was resting against the wall of tiie house; the wall and floor were covered with blood and brains, near where she sat. West said that lie loaded the gun, put it down, stepped out pf the house and called his wife’s brother to go with him squirrel hunting; that while doing so he heard the gun shoot; that he stepped back to the door and saw his wife; that he then walaed through the house and out of the back door and called her brother and said: “My wife has killed herself." , A jury of inquest was empanneled and a full investigation had. The jury made a thorough examination of all the surroundings—examined the wound and entire face of the deceased, and made practical demon strations, concluding that it was im possible for her to have shot herself; that there was absolutely no powder marks or burns about the face; that she could not have fired the gun and made the wound in the place and position, as the wound was straight across the forehead and not upwards as it would have to have been had she fired the gun. The only eye witness was the little threc-year-old son. He was question ed,but not sworn or examined by the jury. The child, when asked who shot his mother, said: “Papa shother;" then told where his father stood, and that he (the child) was standing be side his mother at the time shot. The verdict of the jury was that the deceased came to her death'by a gunshot wound; that the gun was discharged by her husband, B. T. West. It was brought out in the examina tion that West was jealous of his wife, and had threatened her and frequently beat and otherwise mis treated her. West was committed to jail by the coroner. A Pleasant Trip up the Country. Mr. Editor:—I have just returned from a short visit in the upper por tion of your county. 1 need hardly tell you that I had a delightful time! A visit to one’s “old home, and to mother' will ever inake our hearts swell with *gladness! On passing each farm I could not help noting the line growing crops of corn, cotton, peas, Ac. I never saw better corn grow on up land. The cotton stalks were literally covered in squares and bolls. You could also see abundant signs of wheat harvest ing at almost every house. So with the present glowing pros pects farmers should be the happiest people in the world, with “peace and plenty" on every side. I arrived at my old home about one o’clock-the dinner hour. Now Mr. Editor, 1 know that you and your readers remember well “our mothers good dinners," so 1 will not attempt to describe further than my way to the table; how long I staid, remains to be told. I spent a night with our mutual friend whom you designate as one of the “Old Battle Ground Boys.” Now to enjoy the hospitality of H. Z., you should make him a visit at his home, and I’ll assure you a hearty welcome, and everything good to eat. and his wife is a splendid cook. The table over which she presides shows suffi cient evidence of her superior worth. Our “Battle Ground Boy" is a model, and up-to-date farmer. He also showed us a lot of nice improved were as pretty as a not often get to see milk cow; I mean one that gives ail milk. No finer fruit orchard can be found in the up country, to say nothing of the big watermelons iying around in the back ground. It was through this gentleman’s kindness that we met with “The Ledger" the paper we like very much, and should be supported by every citizen in the county. We have several very dear friends in, and around your city and we are always glad to hear of them through the medium of your paper. I gould tell you of a lot of other nice people in that country, but space forbids. S. Tell. © the gun Ezell Locals. ■(Correspondence of The Ledger.) Ezell, Aug. 1.—There is some work needed yet on the farm. It rains so constant that the farm work is hard to dispose of. W. H. Martin went to Greenville last Friday on business and returned Saturday. Tj^e Sunday School at New Pleas- ani was a failure yesterday on account of the protracted meetings near by. The crops in this section are the finest that has been in the past ten years. According to previous appointment the singing school will begin today at New Pleasant. There has been a goodly number of candidates through this section in the past two weeks and all seem to be in good spirits. Mrs. R. D. Scruggs has been on the sick list but is on the mend at this writing. There is a protracted meeting going on at State Line church, conducted by the Rev. R. J. Tate. The public school at New Pleasant is progressing fine at this time. Blue Hawk. Bucklen’s Arnica Salve. The Best SMve in the world for Cuts, Bruises, Soros, Ulcer, Salt Rheum, Fever So ^s, Tetter, Chapped Hands, Chilblains, Corns, and all Skin Eruption, and postively cure* Piles or no pay required. It is gura- anteed to give perfect satisfaction or money refunded. Price 25 cents per box. For sale by The DaPre Drug Co. stock. The pigs picture. We do a real five gallon Mr. Sligh to Mr. Thomas. Gaffney. S. C., July 28th, 1898. To the citizens of Cherokee county: Mr. H. R. Thomas stated in his speech at the campaign meeting this day that I had absented myself while Railroad Commissioner from his of fice of said commission and neglected to attend to the duties of said office, and further that I had signed the name of Col. D. T. Duncan to a cer tificate or circular that he (Duncan) knew nothing of. Now, the said Henry R. Thomas, during the present campaign, made these same charges in the lower part of the State and I refuted them by reading to the audience the fol lowing certificate and letter from Col. Duncan, who was, during the two years of my connection with the office of Railroad Commissioner, the chairman of the board and who is now secretary of the same board : Office of railroad Commissioner, Columbia, S. C., July lltfi, ’98. This is to certify that in the pres ence of Mr. J. W. Bowden, I author ized Mr. J. A. Siigh to prepare and sign my name to the facts contained in circular he (Sligh) issued in regard to an attack made on him at the Newberry campaign meeting in 1894. (Signed.] D. T. Duncan. The following is an extract of • letter of Col. Duncan of July 4th, 1898: “In answer to your further inquiry as to when you were a member of the commission, I will say, that I always found you ready and willing to attend to your duties as commissioner and that you attended the meetings as regular as any member of the com mission had done since my connec tion with this office. In conclusion Mr. Thomas has as serted that I am a hum-bug and dead beat, ff this be true the peo ple of Newberry county, the place where I was born and raised and have lived all my life with the excep tion of the time I was in the civil war, are the greatest fools and the most ignorant set of men in tbe world. Whom will the people be lieve, Henry Thomas, or the people of my county, Respectfully, J. A. Sligh. Millions Given Away. It is certainly gratifying to ths public to know of one concern in the land who are not afraid to be gener ous to the needy and suffering. The proprietors of Dr. King’s New Dis covery for Consumption, Coughs and Colds, have given away over tea million trial bottles of this great medicine; and have the satisfaction of knowing it has absolutely cured thousands of hopeless cases. Asth ma. Bronchitis, Hoarseness and nil diseases of the Throat, Chest and Lungs are surely cured by it. Cal! on DuPre, Druggist, and get a trial bottle free. Regular size 50c. and $L Every bottle guaranteed or price re funded.