The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, September 05, 1895, Image 1

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T RI-WEEKLY EDITION. WINNSBORO, S. C., SEPTEMBER 5, 1895. ESTABLISHED 1844. OUR NICOTIANA TABACUMI' p THE GOLDEN WEED THE TRUE d "PEARL OF THE PEE DEE." e St tc Two "Breaks" in Florence--Facts and Figures on Tobacco Culture, h T e( The Staff Correspondent of the Columbia State has this to say of South tr Carolina'3 tobacco boom: The genus 10 Nicotiana, the beauteous and seductivo th golden weed, leaved like the palm, the di weed that has since the discovery of 3% America soothed many a worried brain D and over-taxed nervous- system, and th its growth for the market in the Pee at Dee section of South Carolina is that To with which I have to deal today, and he after witnessing the mad rush of buy- it, ers and spectatorsamong the hundreds sh of piles of yellow le-vesinthe different m warehouses, at the Florence "break," ul I feel. that I will mske ao "break" in at citing here what Burton in his "Anat- fo omy of Melancholy" says of the puz- hq zling weed, the rapidly advancing foe di of the fleecy staple as our standard F] product. Burton puts it thus: "To- co bacco, divine, rare, super-excellent to bacco, which goes far beyond all the tei panaceas, potable gold and philoso- wi pher's stones, is a sovereign remedy in et all diseases. A good vomit, I confess, Sel a virtuous herb if it be well qualified, sa: opportunely taken, and medicinally 'wl used, but, as it is commonly abused N4 by most men, which take it as tinkers 25 do, 'tis a palgue, a mischief, a violent -cr< purge of goods, lands, health-hellish, wi devilish and damned tobacco, the ruin It and overthrow of body and soul." gr Both extremes of the use of this mystic to weed are here presented. Have a in, "break" and weed out the excesses and be one finds left a glorious panacea for po the nerves, whether the tobacco be the famous Persian Tumbiki of Shiraz, sh or the still more famed Latakia of the English smoker, produced in the pro- th vince of Saida, in northern Syria, or D< the beautiful "bright" tobacco of the co Pee Dee section of South Carolina. W There is now no longer the shadow M of a doubt that South Carolina soil is is among the best adapted in the world for the cultivation of fine tobacco and that The State's advice so often and c emphatically given, that unprofitabe eros QLLU? ne MIRVDEOL U1LUV thl has been taken. The ball bas been set t in motion; the Pee Dee section is now ha recognized as a valuable tobacco rais- to, ing county, and the record made this year is calculated to astonish the na- th tives. Ct But before-the:;e pleasant facts are Bi detailed, a glance backward should be an .:taken to see what is known of this val uable comrwodityr--The plant is known in Spain as "tobaco," in Italy as "ta- th bacco," in France as "tabac," and the name comes from that given the pipe a in which the Indians or Caribbees P smoked the weed, being later applied an to the weed itself. The word eomes from the name Tabaco, a province in d Yucatan, where the Spaniards first of saw the pipes; some say it took its G name from the Island of Tobago, one of the Caribbees. The plant is a native of America, known in the botanical izI world as "nico'tiano tabacum." Before P1 the discovery of Aunerica in 1492,noth- e ,ing was known of the existence of such d a weed. In 1502 the pipes were seen in the mouths of the Caribbees by the t Spaniards, and thence dates the dis covery of tobacco. Heaven knows what the courtiers prior to that time did to ~ bring about the effect produced by to bacco. Imagine the world deprived of Fi it today, end hear the wail that will m Sarise! Europe never knew what tobac- C! co was until 155S, when Francis Fer 'nandco was sent by Philip II to find out about it. Itsintroductioninto Eu rope was due to Jean Nicot, the French sh ambassador to Portugal, who sent some to Queen Catherine de Medici. at In recognition of this act, bis name was .pr given the plant. It was introduced into England by Robert Lane and Sir Fran- cr cis Drake, who brought tobacco and tal pipes to Sir Walter Raleigh. So much c for the origin of the weed.f In the new continent the weed thi thrived, and Cuba, Virginia and North th Carolina became noted for its produc- w tion. It was soon transplanted to Per- t sia, Syria and other countries, but wi American soil has always held its own' to In 1881 472,000,000 pounds were pro duced on 70,000 acres of land, netting ac $45,000,000. Since then the inerease be has been marked-.t Tobacco is a new commodity in fg South Carolina. For years it was c thought that it could be raised on a South Carolina soil, and the present h. condition proves this surmise correct, but its cultivation was attended by so y many peculiarities, the tobacco plant it, being very tender, that no one dared experiment. b Finally about ten yeai ago, Mr. F. th M. Rogers, the tobacco farming pio~ ti< neer of South Carolina, a planter liv- er in.-r ten miles from the city of Darling torn, began to expcrimentwith tobacco, tb hoping to find a staple crop that would to take the place of cotton, for cotton's v prices were rapidly falling off. His ex perim ent proved that the soil of the in l'ee Dee country would'produce a to s Dacco said to be finer in color, charac ter and texture than any section of the bright tobacco belt of North Carolina is or Virginia; that no tobacco was finer for smoking purposes, though the "ma- a hogany" tobacco needed for plug man ufacture was not forthcoming. He had not solved the problem of cheap pro- 1 duction, however, and the farmers were chary of embarking in the culture a. of the weed. They did not wish to cultivate anything at a loss. Mr.lPog ers lost money. But the seed was sown, and in 1889,when a planter, Mr. is D. M. Smoot, planted five acres, the on. r~tn o t tooink a, freh im.. a atus, the proper method of cultiv on, drying and curing by heat, ha g been hit upon, and in the last ft ars the growth of the tobacco inar y in this section has been without trallel in the history of the Stat 'hen all the talk came about the r iction of the cotton acreage the fari: s hereabouts remained quiet and i: cad of talking only quietly plant( bacco. The principal towns in the sectio ve been recognized by the Amerien )bacco Company and other big cou rns as valuable markets-particula this place, which is the real di ibuting market on account of i: cation and railroad facilitics-au ey have stationed buyers here to coi et their leaf transactions. In Jul ,226,005 pounds were bought i inville, and it seems strange, bi is market is close behind the note d etablished one. The America )bacco Company has even erecte re a three-story leaf factory, wher purchases are stored, graded an ipped by the company's eflicien mnager, Mr. W. F. Clare. There ar wards of thirty buyers here now d ten other leaf factories are ope: r the use of these buyers. The ve been as hard at work for sever ys in Darlington, Tiniionsville ai orence as so many Trojans, wit] ats discarded. I am told that between ten and Ii ,n million pounds of leaf tobaee, 11 be harvested and put on the mark in the Pee Dee tobacco region thi son. The average vield per acre i .d to be very nearly 1,000 pounds dile the average yield per acre ii >rth Carolina and Virginia is abou D pounds less. The per cent. of in ase in the tobacco crop this yea i be enormous in Florence county is a noteworthy fact, so tobacco )wers' from other points say, that i n that is a tobacco market quickl; ,reases in population, and when i comes the market of a section, th pulation quickly doubles. Florence seems certain to become i Drt order the central distributin lrket for the Pee Dee sections fo a reasons given above. In the Pe e tobacco-raising section are th anties of Florence, Darlington illiamsburg, Marlboro, Clarendon trion, Sumter and Horry. Theri in the warehouses to-day, tobacci >m five counties and some from out e the State. Florence is the ver; Atre of the district, and at leas -thirds of the territor * crops must pass th'rough florene gain any market at all. Florenc s a net-work o*f roads-the Wilming 2, Colum~ia and Augusta, nort a south; the Cheraw and Darlington Latta Branch, the Wilson Shor t, the Northeastern, the Hartsvill anch and the Charleston, Sumte d Northern. Florence has two magnificent tobac warehouses,. It should be state it all leaf tobacco sold to buyers i1 ocal market has to be placed in i .e on the floor of such a warehouse dsold at auuion. When a ware use has been stocked and opens it siness for the season, the openini y is called a "break,"annd thousand pounds of tobacco are disposed o: The two warehouses at Florene re e'-ected by-stock companies-of cit ms. Expert tobacco handlers ar ced in charge, and tobacco auction rs experienced in the business con t the sales. It is difficult t >get closely estimate, nres as to the acreage in tobacco il e Pee Dee section, but below will b md what is considered a fair esti ite: Acres rington.........................3.5 rence........ ............... 38 rion..........'................ 150 tredoL'. Willamsburg, Iforry. Marl oro, sumter................... 65 otal 15,37 ft is estimated that this acreag ld average 850 pounds to the acr least, thus giving for this year adution of 13,067,750 pounds. Iti ssible that it will go higher, but th >st conservative men place the tott p at not over this figure. This crop siamnmum ayer age price of 1 ats a poundl, ought to bring to th -mers $1,569),130. It is estimate it the average cost of production c a t~lbacco is only 815 per acre, i: ich case, tak inRg the acreage as given atotal cost of production of the ero: 1 be Sfi91,875, leaving a profit to th~ acco farmers of $876.255. Iti Sto see what a handsome profit pe r~e these figures allow. Some of th s farm ers tell me that they do nc k the average profit pe acre wil 1 below 825, under any circumstam Swhatever. If cotton were 8 cent ounad, they tell me, it would b rdly pos~ible to make more than S r acre. The diflerence speaks f< Relf. In Florence county there are 300 t< ,cco farmers, who arc members< e county tobacco growers' associa >n. There arc about 600 altogeth gaged in the cuhaure of tobacco. I am able to give whnat are said to 1 e exact figures as to the acreage bacco in Darliegtou county for th a and last, showinlg an enormou vance in the industry. The increa: acreage has been very much th mec ia othier count.cs, it is said: [..,1 . aes 89. bars 45.10 c. 1 59 ha in e5b9 br911: E-:"' -1 4. acres 4. barns 1: 1895. nert V.. Me niv1e-1991, acres 200. barus i5 ars 410. aa 0 ~ar~tsvl -. .a-- '' e 48 bar' 21. 1 Palmett-- '4. a $ reae 11rs 0: 189 iuadelphm-n. acos 20, barns 4; 1895. a' res 200. harr 36. V- L-avnsw orth -18i. a-ri-s S5, b-arns 11; 1895. ares 270. bra- :x. s- Total-1114. a-res S24. barns 150: 18'J5. na res 3,->75. 1,a rns 57-5. The followin -shows the numnber of warehouses in the section not includ e- ing the storage warehouses used by - the buyers: S Florene................................ 2 , .telingt->n............ ..-- .-- .-... ........- - 'ininiflsville............................. 1 L -o City (Williansburg)................. 1 n Sumter .*................. ...--- 1 3.1 M'lius........................... I .................................~ t. CARZOJANA TEA CULTURE. t I rlhis State Has the Only Tea Farm in Amerlea. Y The Columbia State says: South Carolina is regarded by the people of c' t other Statts as being he only State in the Union that vma produce a Ben Till mnn and a dipensry. 1w this as it miar, it bears the real distiniction of being i he oiy St.ite in the Union with I t soil fit for the culture of tea, and the ouly one that has an acreage devoted E to successful tea culture. The aereage devoted to tea culture is as Vet smnal], but the industry has proven most successful and profitable. South Carolina's only tea farim-- the only one in Amnerica-is located in the b subirbs of Summerviile, at "Pine hurst," and is owned by Dr. C. U. Shenard. It consists of twenty acre., ar t and this is the harvesting period. A good crop will be produced this year. There is a tea factory on the plaee for the curing of the product and putting it into shape for the market. The t factory is equipped with first-class ma chinery, imported for the purpose of t putting the leaves in proper condition for the market. The government, it will be remem bered, established a tea farm near this place some fifteen years ago for the purpose of experimenting with tea cul ture. It was not properly ma-naged and was consequently abandoned. Dr. Shepard took it up about seven years 1 ago and has met with remarkable suc- r cess. Exactly what the production 2 r will be this year, it is impossible toas O certain. C e This much, however, is known- r that Dr. Shepard is to have a splen- 1 did exhibit of tea plants and of the I e method of the. manafacture of the ' 3 product at the Atlanta exposition, and c - it will be one of the greatest attractions 1 F not only of tiho South Carolina exhibit, i t but of the exposition itself. r 3 at once planted, and given such atten- t D tention by experienced.attendants that c - by the time the exposition is on they 2 will be at their prettiest, affording 1 many who have not traveled abroad i t and visited the tea-growing countries, E D their first ight of a growing tea plant. r In this tea garden there will be sev- i enteen tea plants of the Assam hybrids of different types, and one each of the I I Chinese, Japanese, Darjeling and Kan i gra plants. Dr. Shepard finds a ready I ' marret for his tea, and it has proven I a profitable business. Truly, South - Carolina soil is a remarkable soil, pro s ducing, besides cotton, corn, rice and g grain, a particularly fine celery, aspar s agns, melons of every description, .fruit in endless variety, grapes, r' to e bacco, claimed to be finer than any in - he States, and tea--not to mention . e the crops of "all kinds" of statesmen. ] . The Girl Evangelist. The young colored girl evangelist, a Claretta Nora Avery, who has been a creating such a stir among the negroes e in this State, spent last week in Ben - nettsyille, preaching in the Colored Baptist Church. During her stay in .Bennettsville your correspondent 5 heard her tiwice, the first time she 'preached by special invitation in the Courthouse to a large audience corn ' posed of whites and colored and va -riously estimafed at from 500 to 1,000. SHer text on the former occasion was, e "Behold how good and how pleasant a e thing it is for brethren to dwell to a gether in unity;" on the latter, "Ye S must be born again." She is a mest e remarkable negro. She is only nine 1 years old, yet her pronunciation is - , distinct, her English is good, her read 2 ing is excellent and her delivery easyy 0 graceful and childlike. There is in Sher discourses, however, no logical f sequence of thought. She is evidently a a phenomenon on thie "Blind Tom" ,order. She possesses a remarkable P memory, and in her day has heard e some good sermons and is able to re s peat about one third of each of them. r Your corresp~ondent was impressed G with the marked similarity between t each of the sermons he heard. It is 1I curious, however, to 'note the supersti tions among the negroes regarding her, ssome of thenm believing that she is an eange] sent from God. >Clarendon Crops. Crops in Clarendon County haie > done all the impai tial farmer can ex >f pect of them for the 5s'on of '95. - The experienced farmer can go through r the fields now, and quite accurately judge the yield per acre. The cotton ecrop is very inferior coimpar~ed to the acrop of '94. Ninety-five per~ cent of is the cotton of this section has complet-. *s ed its mission of '95, when in other eyears the top crop~ is niaklinig at tis eseason. Cotton is about 80J per cent compared with 1894. Corn is very 5goodl, that is there is a larger a ereage this year, hnt several exp'rieniced i farmess estimate the yiei I is 1-5 per cent off comparedl with 1894. This is 5-due to unfavorable seas-ei and the sml quautity of griano used. Atlanta's First New Bale. Th-- first ne-w bale of --otton was received in Atlanta Friday afterinoon and was placed in the' warehouse of the 3Iaddlox-Rucker 5. nkin-g Company. The baic was shipped by 31--'er-. Gray & Hunt. of Fort Valley. 1. Tne iirst I-ale re-eived last year was shipped 8: to tie warehouse of the 31addox-Racker Banking Company from Cullodlen, on Au -u m i0h.nsttwra lanter. 'AL4ETTO PEN6ILLINGS. 1CCURRENCES WORTH NOTING FROM ALL OVER THE STATE. Hog and Hominy in York. There has, perhaps, been less corn nd bacon sold to the farmers of York 'ounty daring the present year than uring any year since the war, and Le outloak now is that even less will e sold next year than this, as the corn creage is the largest in the "history f the county, and according to the re rns as made to the connty auditor, here hasbeen avery gratifying increasc a the number of hogs that will be eady to be converted into bacon,hame nd lard this winter, as compared to ast,-and that of last winter was larger ban in any one year within the recol ection of the writer. There has been to considerable increase in the supply ,f home raised flour, but it is to 1) Loped that now that there are local acilities for producing first-class roller rocess flour, the farmers will tLke -id. antage of their opportunities and aise all the wheat necessary for making heir own biscuits on their own farms. verybody, or almost everybody, an icipates a great improvement in the usiness affairs of this section during he coming fall and winter, as compared ith the past three or four years. Vhile the cotton acreage is not so irge as last year, and the yield will ot be so great,it is the general opinion hat better prices will be realized, and s a consequence there will be more ioney than usual with syhich to do usiness. OUR EDITORS AT AT.\N F.\. 'hey Are to Go in a 3Body WiLh Their Families on October 31st. The following of int -rest-to all the iembers of the South'Carolina Press ,ssociation has been issued: "Members of the State Press Asso iation will remember thit at our- last 1ecting we decided to t &I'e in the At int:1 Exposition on the 31st of Onto ,er. About the first of next week I ill issue a circulir to the members utlining the trip, an -I want you to egin thinking ab ut it. 'Before I can o anything towar.ls mnkiug the ar augemnents I will have to have sonic irect from there to Atlantt. "I will do my best to secure trans iortution and arrange for reduced ates at a good hotel. I ask von to -ive me your corporation. I think re can make this a pleaiant and profit ble trip. "Arrangements will be made only or members of the aszociation and nembers of their faImilies. Be realy o give prompt response to tl. ciren ar. "E. H.. AUL, Preside-it." First Bale ait St. George's. St George's received her' first bal< new -!otton Tuesday afternoon. Ii vas brought .in by J1. H. A bbey, rosprous and well-to-do farmer, 'esiding about two miles fron town. [ho bale weighed 425 pounds and wiu >urchased by Messrs Murray & Co. ix 3-4 cents. Fatal FIsticuff''s Duel. In the Longtownl section of Fairfieh onty the other night David Fierb2 bnd Max Bush, negroes, fonght witi iaked fists, and Bush killed his oppe xent with a blow on the neck. Busl s in jail. The crops of Marion county are vr rood considering the small. quantity o 'ertilizers used. The corn crop is ex ~eptionally. fine. The farmera ,ho planted 'tobacco sre bus) urig and grading, 'and grea hi ngs are promised from the crop. * arge tobacco warehouse has beei ~rected at Mullin's, and the first si f leaf tobacco took~ place there las eek.. It is reported that sompe of th< ~obaco farmers have sold out. thei rops already at a handsome profit. Spartanturg farmers have just be un to pull fodder and save their lat rop of hay.~ They say the corn ero, will b very abundant, and it is be ieved that the price this fall will no be more thai1 30 to 35' cents a btishel f much of it should be placed on th anarket early in the season it may fal] ixelow that price. The first bag of sea island cotton wa feceived 'Wednesday by Messrs Ravenel & Co.; it was grown by Mr Francis Y. Legare, of Mullet Hall, S. i, and shipped to Charleston by th xteamer Clarence, and classed a Governor Evans has offered a re wvard of $50 for the apprehension an< :nviction of the party or parties un known, who last week set fire to at lestroyed thie dwelling house of Mr T. A. Rice, in Laurens county. A negro excursionist on his wa rom Charlestonl fell between the ear tt Montmorenci, on the- South Caroli na and Georgia railroad and waskilled The people of Florenoe are bus; p::eparing for a big celebration c La'hor Day. worth Carolina's New Secretary c .State. On onday Gov. Carr appointed H )Z Charles M. Cook. of Louisburg. Seere-tary< state vice Octavus Coke. deceased. Capt. Cook is a popular and able nin. El las served several terms in the L.tislatu tnd has been Speaker of the Hou-w. 11 yn" of the most prominent luputists in ti sttnt. He gave bond and took~ the oath a Puesday. The bond is $20.000J. Capxt. Cooc s a native of Franklin, was ednxcnted Naake Forest. is one of its truste. serve rahlantly durxinxg the war andI was ax dmitte . the 'ar in 1557. H was appointe' s i .or +of tb Raleigh dlist rict by Gioverno r Van e TH E FLORENCETOuACCO BREAK Immense Sales at Good Prices. The News & Courier says of the to bacco break at Florence last week : It will be remembered that last year the Florence market for the sale of leaf tobacco opened on September 4. At that "break" about 40,000 pounds was .old. This year the market opened up just one week earlier, yet the crop was at least two weeks behind that of last year. Last year wehad only one small warehouse. This year we have two immense warehouses calculated to hold, when ready for sale 500,000 pounds of tobacco. As to prices they ranged all the way from 2 1-2 cents to 48 cents. Mr. J E. Tomlinson, of Shiloh, Sumter Co.,. sold one special lot of golden leaf wrappers at two dollars and twenty cents per pouid. This sale was at the Farmers' ware house. The averagC priec paid at the Farmers' xare house will be about 13 cents, while at the "Florence" ware house it will probably be about 22 cents. Now as to the cause of the difference in the average at the two warehouses; The tobacco that was sold at the "Farmiers' " warehouse was of a far inferior grade of leaf than that sold at the "Florence." Another troiml4e was that -the tobacco was not cured as nicely as that at -the -Flor ence." Most all of the tobacco that was brought here Thursday classed as "lugs," which is the lowest grada that is put on the market. Besides being "lugs" it was as a whole in too "high order," or, in plaiu words, it was Cn tirely too damp, soft and pliable. There were nine tobacco counties represented in the tobacco '*break" today-Marlboro, Sumntor, Clarenlen, Williamsburg, Darlington, Marion, Horry, Kershaw and Florence. There were hundreds of people in the city today and the hotels were taxed to acco'mmodate those who tame here just to be present at the "break." During the enitire sale the very best of humor prevailed, and with the ex:. ception of a few men all were well pleased with their sales. There were sonic tag turned 'down and the toba.co even taken from the floor, but in these cases the weed was entirely too highly' cured or classed in a lower grade than its owner thought it should be. The Bank of Florence kopt its doors open throughout Thursday and Friday in order to cash all the checks foi- the farmers who sold their weed. This was. a great advantage to the ware house men and buyers, as well as the S-,b ir weed here For the sncceC'lfttMrAY%- m adjoining conutieF, the citizens o Florence and the business men of the city should.congratulate the Florence boird of trade, inasmuch as it has done what..nothing would have done without it. For instance, it has been the means (f uniting the business and professional men of the city into one strong body, and through the board of trade we have two immense tobacco ware houses and a number of immense prize houses. It was through them that we got a set of first-class buyers. It was through them that the American Tob~acco Companj sent buyers here. Therecare otber instances where the "'board of trade" has done much good, and th.e wish of every Florentine is that the board of trade will continume to be a va uable and indispensable ad junet to the prosperity of the city. Florence County alone has rhised, it is said, at least 6,000,000 pounds of. tobacco. Over ~ 80,000 changied hands. Al least $20,000 of that amount was carried back to the homes of the to bacco planters, something never known before in this section of the State. Since the closing sale the actual Knumber of pounds of tobacco sold. on the first day foot up 89,000 pounds; T'he manage-i-sof both ware houses, as well as the citizens of Fiorene~ . and the 'Pec 'Ded toba'ceo planters, are highiv elated'oyci- the sales. ~Col. J. y. Hill, maaer of the.Floience Ware kltuse, telegraph his firm at South Boston~,.VYas, tha~t. "the .sale. was a grand snees;.e louse full.. It was the -finest.opening I. have had. in ..thirty .years':...xperdenee.'.'. Mr. .Clare,:buyer .for the .Amierican-..Tobaoco .Com.pany, -says: .'It was an. extraordinary break. >Some of the very.,. best tobacco .I've seen, and good prices. prevailed?'. .. bSuch were the oxpressions of men wyho knew whereof they spoke. The dontinumation of the sale of io 1bacco. that wvas brought to Florence for Thursday's "bireak" and~which coul~d not be sold. on account of darkness was resumed o~n Friday. The prices were better sthan at .the openimng ."break," as the lowest price Spaid was 6 cents and the highest 58 cents, while the average exceeded that of. Thursday and -.is thought to be Iabout 25 cents, The nighttrains-from the north brought-in from North Caro lina and Tirginia a number of addi tional =buyers who- *-will settle here. IThis will run the number of resident buyers up to about thirty-five. - It is-shown that Friday's sales run up the total to 125,000 pounds.. Fo very pound of tobacco sold here the planters received the clean hiard cash, which amounts to between $10,000 and $20,000. -In addition to t-his between $1,200 and $2,000 was fpaid out 'yesterday for help in the warehouses, freights a'nd other inci, dentals., Th-e far mers paid out att lesA' 8 2,000 to the merchants. A Woman's Suffrage Decision in Utah. At Salt Lake. Utah.. the T-errit,.riail $a pi-eme. Court rende'red1 its decisioni on the 0woma.1n:s - suffrage question, holding thit only 'male citizns. are" entitled1 to vote on the adoption or r'ej'.tion of th' Statto -onstit': - tioanmd for the' ir t 'at o 0fti-rs. i. basi for thn'i-s d.ision. na -z~jted' by the co-urt. -as that thv' EI i'-T-k r avt. Wh-h disfrain hised w 'a'n' in th*' Te-rritory- of Da.istill int for - and appldiiale util it ist r.eeal#d or the Te.rritory actually beomels .. tate A mOuinte .Tut-ti." vow '1Mnte-d. WASH*NGTON LETTER. The Nicaragua Canal Commission Re port. The Muddled Kentucky Campaign. By Our Regular Correspondent. The official report of the government en gineer commission which. in accordance with an act of Congress, recently went over the route of the Nicaragua Canal for the purpose of making a minute investigation of what has been done and what the present plans will require to be done, will not be made public until congress meets, but the main points c the rep rt have become known in a sort of scmi-offleial way. The commission reports the general plan upon which the Canal company has been working as feasible, but suggests, if the woTk is to be completed, a number of minor changes. And, as was generally expected, the commis sion reports that the estimates of the cost of the work which have been submitted to Con gress were ridiculously low. According to the estimates of the commission it will re quire not less than $115,000.000 to complete the canal. .70.000,000 was the estimate of the Canal Company. England wants to be let into the control of the Canal, if this gov ernment is to build it. and when the matter comes up In Congress some lively- speeches may i6 looked for on that subject. The arti-silver democrats of Kentucky want Becretary CarlisJc to come out and make some more speeches in the campaign, but the Secretary doasn't take kindly to the idea. Having succeeded in his fight to con trol the platform a-lopted by the State con ention he is loth t; enter upon a new con it which h:r might lose. A close personal ind of S-retary C.rlisle says nothing sliort of a personal request from President Cleveland will cause Secretary Carlisle to get himself mixed up in that muddled Ken tucky campaign. The politicians regard S-mator Quay's per sonal triumph in Pennsylvania as having a very important bearing upon the republican side of the Presidential campaign.~ It will give Mr. Q.1ay control of the Pennsylvania delegations to the nominating convention, which probably means that the solid vote of the State will.be cast for Reed. With -the Immense vote of Pennsylvania to start with and the -shrew manipulations of Senator Quay thet politicians think that Mr. Reed w'11 go inu the convention with excellent prospects of capturing the nomination. These predictions are based upon Senator Quay's declaration for 31r. Reed some time ago. roliticians have been known to change their minds, and even if Quay wa really for Reed when he said he ma .tot be for him now, or if he was for.hi ei* he might not be for him when the een tion meets. Nothing is.more uncertain th politics. Bradstreet's report for the- past week s.vs: The concluding week of August surprises even the more optimistie. with a striking In crease in the volume of business with jobbers in staple lines at such centers as New York, Baltimore, Boston. Chicago. St. Louis. Kan sas City. St. Paul, Minneapolis and to a more moderate extent, at distributing points in South Atlantic and Gulf States, among thew Charleston. Chattanooga, Atlanta. Savaninah, Jacksonville, Birmingham and Dallas In dry goods, millinery, shoes. hats, clothing and groceries. the autumn demnand i:- making itself felt, with the prospect for a further improvement in immediale scvaeding weeks. The total volume of genera: trade for the summr has been larger tha in I$9i aind in many instances than in 181. witlb the out-. look to-day for e-venl a better demand than many had anticipated. Thue upiward and on ward impulse of this week is noticeable. All winter lines of goodls ha'-e felt an improved request, and manufacturer-s and jobbers im dry goods. hardwart andl groceries announce he receipt of many orders for September deliverv. Even-in Texas. where atth. south the State has suffered fromt dr-ut,t and at the north from contint'ous rains-andl where the cotton crop is to be short ini e-n.eience, outry merchants report aj bett'ir feing in all lines and a fair demnand fro-m wholi-salers. Cotton is rising as if the-re e-.re. a.:- sur plus o.f 3.)000.000 hales American :-;rriedl ever to the' ivw .ropi whni'h lgin., ,.-\t wv'ek. Whther exaggerat.:dl or not, repo rt- of Inju ry haive impressed tradiers. :tn-1 inre-ies in tiree -lays -have unto'in~te.1 to 153.00 'i:es. The priec hats adivan. --.l to S.1 I entiii. :i nd as thereis nio helrge snupily of a-t'a! ottonl rsalabhe at thits time.. the" market pir;-e can le easily moved. Ilit if tin- n eid is as short as hunvers believe. it i- iiot i geo.1 sin for bsiness at the South..ei- the aInhumbino of old 'cotton in foreign miaries nit hinder exports at higher Ir-ie duin im very months in whieh planters are forced to sell n1ost of their prolnet. Already di-.patie- indicate that the retail trade at many Soutihern pointissak. The volume of dome-stie trade is but slightly bet te than in the prev ious week. exee.ding last ye-ar' -. v 18.8 o l-ie-int. ::gaiinst 16.3 for -arder wea 'e ine mnith. and i falling S.1 er cnt. heo 1- a-gUi5s )-1 in catrlir weeks.l II rlroad ear~n ings in August have 'en hardy ;; per 'ent.jlarg'-r thain last y-ear, ut 16.3 nor .-cnt. ,,ma her th;an in 183h2, the loss of. (irangersi a:i. Sounthw~esterni roads be ig'hire. .Temfan~ge east-lbound from Chiaio was 8(i.73- in' ioiur weeks of August, 191.788 hist iear, an'd 207.69f: in 1892. Faiiuries in thei three weeks of August - show b.abilities f.66.! O.%, im faturing 357377, and tradiing $2.$'>2,9C0. In the 'a'me weekshast year 1 lh ies were $8.214. 470, manufacturing. 42,845.338 andl trading &$84 414. Ft-.ihureosfor the week have been 186 in the Unit~ed Stato agins~t 1961ast year. and 42 in Canada against 40 last year. UNCLE 'SA31s -ACCOUNT. thepts -and Expcnditures for the . Past Fiscal Year-. he borrdeted'offidial statemnbnt of govern mntreceipts and expenditures for the past Ifis4i y:car'has been 'ba~de public at the treas ur depar'ment. It. place. the total re ceipts at 6:313.390.075.11 derived~ from these sources- Customs. $152.158317; internal renue. 143.4t21.672; sales of publ~ie land. $1103,34: mis.:ellan'eo'us $ 16.706.438. Ependitu res are stated at $356,195.298. of whch 14t1395228 were for pension? Among the expenditures is an item of $1. 136.36, which was placed to the credit of the sinking fund. During the past three years about $8,000.000 has been placed to the creit of this fund. Prior to 1893 th'e least amount for any one year for a number of ~years back placed to the credit of this fund lexceeded $37,000.000J The exact deficit for -189- is stated at $43,'J41,589.61. This . is the amount wvhi-lh will go on record. - Prices andi W ages Advanced. Adlvices received from Birmingham stak that tho Tennessee Coal. iron and Il-tirior d Crpany advani-ed, the pri-e of Pig Iro 'ifty -ents pr-r ton for all .ira l2s and Iwages are aer-ordingly advatncd 2 1-2 ee-nts Ip-r ton to eoal mniner.-. Coal itining in the Birmingham distri-t is now at the highest ptic poa for three vears. THE LARGES1 TELE~SCOPE; A -Remarkable Lens Made by an American Firm. The Clarks have accomplished what has long been regarded as an impossi ble thing and one which no European manufacturer of lenses could be in duced to attempt. This is the mak ing of a perfect lens of more than three feet across the face. So one but the American manufacturer ever thought of exceeding the twenty-six inch lenses which are in use at several observatories on both continents, one at the Naval Observatory at Wash ington, through which Mr. Hall dis covered the long-sought satellites of Mars and many double stars. The highest power was supposed to be reached when the Lick telescope 1t California was put up with a thirty six inch lens. The difficulties to bu met in the production of a perfectly clear lens of great size are so many tliatEuropean observers who have wanted anything above twenty-six inch lens have had to take to the reflecting telescope, which has a con clave mirror. It requires, of course. a much larger reflecting telescope to zet the same amount of light and the same magnitude of objects. The making of this 41- indh lens is regarded as the crowning work of Mr. Alvah Clark's life. It is probable no larger lcns will ever be made. Under existing conditions a.larger telescope than the Verkes-the telescope of the Chicago U- ersity Observatory, for which the s is made-would b - of no great value. To increase the magnifying power is at the same time to increase the obstructions to clear vision. When the object is magnified the atmospheric agitation, is increase& to such a degree that distinctness is virtually .acrificed when the object glass is larger than 41" inches. It is doubtful if the Yerkes will be any m'ore useful than the Lick. Some day it may be possi ble to remove the obstacles to clear ness in the case of a powerful lens, though the only reason for suggest ing it is that Erofessor Tyndall was. able to construct a alass by which the blue of the atmosphere -was dis sipated in looking through a deep - space. If the Yerkes glass answers expec tations it will enable an experienced observer to catch occasional glimpses of the Mars canals, which, though drawn so firmly on the Vatican maps, are vague and wavering. and almos3 imaginary through any glass. They can be seen at all only by the trained. observer. The great- telescope wil b'O --neL &-afuZ inl at~~u~ ouble crs. MAY BE KING OF ENGLAND. This Baby is His Royal Highness. Prince Edward. The pictures of the Queen's grand son are displayed all over London, one of them but a few weeks old, and they all show a clear-eyed. intelhi gent-looking little fellow, with plump arms and wavy hair. A report has been circulated for several days that Prince Edward, who is the only child of the Duke and Duchess of York. and the heir to the throne of Great B~ritain, is deaf and dumb. .It has been impossible to ascertain the source of the report. but there is no doubt that it is in a circle fairly near the court. There is nothing in tile expression of the face or in the attitude to indi cate the slightest mentail defect. It in regarded as a little remarkable t hat, in case the boy be deaf, the in firmity was not discovered some months ago, as lie now is more than a year old. The Duchess of York has not been seen often in public recently, and those circulating the reports regard ing the Prince say tha~t her reclumive ness is due to her grief. This. how ever, is bare supposition. As yet no effort has been made to correct the story of the Prince's -:: fimity, although the curent gossup must have reached tile ears of Ibis Highness' parents and grandparents. An Old Pioneer's Plea. A curious scene was presented at the meeting of the Yosemite Valleyf Commissioners in San Francisco, Cal., when Old John Hutchlins, th., pioneer of the famous valley. witi tears streaming down his face, begged for thle privilege of livin.g until his death in the cabin whtic m he built over thirty years ago andbI'. the side of whlichi his.wife and daa-:b ter are buried. The Commissionec d had leased the cabin and five :ierv around it to the neighboring hmote-, but tile old man's tears moved ther & and they gave the use of the hlousa and one acre of ground to him fot the rmaminderaf his life.