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ESTABLISHED 18650 NEWBERRY, S. C., WEDNESDAY, MY3,19.PIE$.0AYA STATE BANK5 OF ISSUE. Bandled with Rare Ability by an Astute Financier, Who Thinks Our Fathers Were Not Born Idiots. [Address of Col. John R. Godwin, before the Tennessee Bankers' Associa tion.] Mr. President and Members of the Tennessee Bankers' Association: GENTLEMEN-By request I have pre pared this paper on State bank issue and the repeal of the 10 per cent. tax by Congress. The history of banking extends so far back in the dim past that one scarcely knows where to commence in the discussion of a subject fraught with such vital Interest, not only to the bankers of Tennessee, but to the gen eral public. - The Bank of Venice originAtt d in 1171 in a loan to the republic, and gradually assumed the form under which it was for many centuries the admiration of Europe, and only ceased to exist -when the city itself fell at the conquest of Italy b) Napoleon in the latter half of the eighteenth century. The tank' of Genoa, established in the thirteenth century, is said to have flourished as a suceessful financial in stitution for over four centuries, and much the same conditions gave rise to its origin as did the Bank of Venice. The Bank of Amsterdam was estab lished in January, 1609, and bad a suc cessful. career until 1790, whea it was discovered that a large portion of its iminense' deposits had disappeared tiny years before, and yet -the bank's credit had not suffered during that period, nor until it became generally known was the bank obliged to stop basin~ess. - The Bank of Hamburg was estab lished in 1619, ten years after that of SAmsterdam, and for somewhat similar reasons. The.two.former banks men tio~ned above were the outgrowth of Ioans by certain wealthy citizens to their governments in time of great finaricial pressure; the two latter were estabhsbed to give a uniform valae to the various 'coins that were at that time in circulation, many of which were base, or partially so, some clipped and others gouged, producing a confa sion in values,.requirlng the service of an expert to determiie their real worth. The banks would reedive them on de posit at their market value, and give what they termed "credit of account" -On their books, which the owner could trasfer to others, but-could not with draw the coins. It would be interesting and instrue -tive -to give a more extended history of these noted financial institutions, if time and occasion permitted. - I, how ever, merely mention them to show that with their enormous capital, great influence and long years of business existence, they knew nothing of the power and efficiency of circulating baik- notes as a means of payment. -The Bank of England was chartered in 1694. The scheme of establishing this bank is credited in history to the genius of Win. Patterson, who for several years urged it on the govern ment with great perseverance, but it had to encounter, like other schemes -for banka, opposition from various quarters. . . The Goldsmiths, private bankers and -usurers, opposed it, as- likely to lessen the rate of interest and ther eby dimin ish their profits. The cautious and conservative regarded it as~a novelty fraught with danger to the country, and prophesied fearful results if the bank was chartered. The fallacy of this~opposition is glaringly apparent to-day to all who have the slightest knowledge of banks and banking. But - these objects were not peculiar. It has been universal in all countries and at all times, when a change in the finan cial or-banlking system of a nation or people was. suggested or: attempted, it stered not bow meritorious the plan ~proposed, scores of objections would be urged, because the change would neces * sarily interfere with those interested and.benefited by continuing the old system. The Bank of England, now proba bly the. Inost famous 'nstitution of its akind the world has ever known, has the -distinetion of being the first bank that * circulated its own notes as currency, and, and, singular as it ma~y seem, commenced the practice without au - thority of law, either charter right or . special act of parliament. It is said to have to come about in this way : - Bills of exchange, both foreign and domestic, were much greaterin amount in England at that time than all the * money and bullion in the country. Under these circumstances and to fa cilitate trade and commerce they first issued the bank's promissory notes to mature at the time the bills would be payable; but this was found cumber some and attended with difficulty, by -reason of notes having to be indorsed from one holder to another. To over come these difficulties and delays and to facilitate industrial development it was suggested by certain bold and in genious financiers of that day to go a long step farther and issue the bank's promissory 'notes payable on domand. This was decided on by the governors of the bank, because it would insure a large business to the bank and would bea great favor to the people. This bold and successful advance in banking that has since been adopted to a greater or less degree by every civ ilized -nation in the world has proven as great a boon to the business, coin merce and industrial development of the world as was the application of steam as a motive power to the me chanical induistries and development of a11~ enlightened cones. Tndeed' the reased -products of field, factory furnace and mine abundantly prove the truth of this assertion. The use of bank notes as a circulating medium has furnished the means to industry and enterprise, to progress and thrift that would have been utterly impossible, if metal money had been alone relied on, as it was previous to the adoption of the paper curreney. The progress of banking in the United States up to 1860 may be seen in the decennial increase which I copy from a trustworthy source : In 1782 there was one bank, in 1790 four banks, in 1800 twenty-eight banks, in 1810 eighty-nine banks, in 1820 308 banks, in 1830 330, in 1840 907, in 1850 824, in 1860 1,400. These were all State banks of issue. Now, the question I would like to have answered is: If these banks were not a public benefit why did they mul tiply so rapidly for a period of seventy eight years? Surely they were. Our fathers were not born idiots. But to prove these banks were a blessing, and not a curse, as some would have us believe, it-is only neces sary to refer to the census report for the last decade of this period, namely, from 1850 to 1860, which shows the largest increase in material wealth per capita and a higher degree of prosperity than had ever been attained in this.or any other country in the world's his tory. A very pleasant feature of the prosperity of those days was that it was general throughout the country, embracing not only all sections but all classes. This was notably true of those engaged in agricultural pursuits. These banks were pioneers and carried the facilities for enterprise and thrift to the very confines of civilization. It is unnecessary for me to state in this connection that our present bank ing system, or our financial system generally, is not at this time promot ing general prosperity. This proposi tion is so plain that he who runs may read. Any system of finance and banking that is dominated or controlled by the general government in such a manner, whether intended Po to be or not, as to cause cheap money in one section and. dear money in another, is faulty and should be so changed that all the cit izens of the government would be on an equal footing to secure industrial de velopment and enjoy prosperity, if they use diligence to acquire them. Why should money be worth 3k per cent interest in Massachusetts and 7 per cent in Tennessee, or why worth 5 per cent in New York and 10 per cent in Texas? We will not stop to inquire the cause of this inequality ; we wish to discuss it only as a well known fact. If flour was worth $3.50 per ba-el in Massachusetts and $7.00 per barrel is Tennessee, would any se.ne man say it was fair and just for the government to interpose to prevent Tennesseans from increasing their stock of flour and thereby reduce the cost ? Surely not. If plows were worth $5.00 each in New York and were selling at $10.00 each in Texas, who would justify the government if she should place her heavy hand on Texas and say, you must not manufacture plows ; if you do, you must pay 10 per cent for the privilege. Of course T7exas would kick, and yet this is precisely what the gov ernment is doing with State banks of issue. It is true that money is neither flour nor plows, and yet it is represented not only by them, but by every other arti cle or thing that goes to make up the sum of human comfor , convenience and happiness, and cuts a very big figure in the actual cost of living ; whether one borrows money or not, it is worth to him what it c'osts his neigh bor. I differ from some of my brother bankers in regard to the rateof interest as affecting the well-being of banks. My theory is, to have money plentiful, stimulate enterprise, promote general prosperity, increase deposits and make the interest charges low. Others take an opposite view and say maintain rates, let industries pay it and take care of themselves. This, however, seems a business im possibility under present circumstances and conditions. If we would have any thing like equal industrial development in all the States, we must first have something at least approaching equal interest charge for the use of money in these States. Suppose a manufacturing plant located in Massachusetts that cost $100,000; the interest on this amount for one year is $3,500; the interest on the same plant in Tennessee would be $7,000, and in Texas it would be $10,000. One year's operation of this plant will, we assume, produce a net profit of $7,000 over and above operating ex penses. Massachusetts would receive a dividend of 3} per cent above what they money would cost, or could be permanently invested at in that State; Tennessee would come out even, and Texas loses $3,000. That is, the money invested would have earned at the current rate of interest this amount in excess of the net earnings of the factory. These are the conditions that con front us when we talk about building up home industries, inviting emigrants and giving them employment when they come. It is nonsense to think about it while energy is paralyzed and industrial development balked by the scarcity and high price of money. Nothing will remedy this so effectually as for the government to 'ake off the 10 per cent restriction and allow the States to enact such laws as they may deem best for the citizens to supply themselves with sufficient currency to meet Lhe demands of the trade, com merce and industrial development pe culiar to their condition and location. Under the old regime of State bank issue this equality of distribution was as near perfect as it could be; for the re cord shows, as far as I have been able to ascertain, that the rate of interest charged by the banks under normal condition- was not greater than 6 per cent from the Atlantic to the Pacific, or from the lakes to the gulf, and that money as a rule was cheaper in the in terior than at the great marts, because the demand was less active. The subject before us is in no sense a question of good or bad money, but is essentially a question of abundance or scarcity. Money in Massachusetts at 3 to 31 per cent interest is as good as the money in Texas at 10 to 12 per cent. Objectors to State bank issues claim it will not pass current in New York, Boston, Chicago and other financial centers. I hope this will prove true for some time at any rate, because it will be needed at home. If we should visit those cities for pleasure or busi ness we are not expect(d to carry a bank in our pocket, or bank bills except in small amounts, for fear of being robbed or otherwise losing them. When people travel they use exchange, because it is safer and better. But one says: We want an interna tional currency that will pass the world over. This could only be true in theory. The bills of the banks of England and France are at par in every civilized country, but how many of them were ever seen in Tennessee? Probably not more than one person in 1,000 ever saw one in this or any other State, and so it is with the greenbacks in foreign countries; outside of entry ports they are not-known. One had just about as well think of taking his horse and carriage abroad as to take his money. Exchange is what people use for this purpose, and will continue to do so, no matter what kind of currency we have. As to whether Congress will repeal the 10 per cent: tax or not I am content to leave that in the hands of our sena tors and representatives, together with their good Democratic colleagues. They will take care of that part of the busi ness when Congress meets. But why Republicans or Populites from the West or South should not join in re pealing this unrighteous tax is past comprehension, unless they are actu ated by rank prejudice or willful per versity. "SAME OLD WHISKEY DEVIL" A Methodist Minister Pays His Respects to the State Dispenhary. A Florence special to the Evening Journal says: The Methodist church of this city was crowded last night to hear the Rev. E.O0. Watson, of Marion, deliver a lecture on the "Dispensary." Mr. Watson is the Grand Chief Temp lar of the 1. 0. G. T. of this State. He is a graceful and eloquent speaker, and, judging from his lecture, a deep thinker. Among other things he said that it was hard to tell which was the wvorst of the two evils; the barroom or the dispensary, and if the devil was cal'ed upon to decide on which.side he was on, he would rise up and say, "Where am I at?" He said the most dangerous part of the whole thing was that the Legisla ture had tried to make liquor selling respectable, and that is what the devil has been trying to do all the time. He vividly described the joy of his Santa nic majesty, when he heard that the Legislature of South Carolina had come to his rescue and was doing a thing that was impossible for him to do. A boy ruined by dispensary liquor, he said, is as much ruined as if he got it from the lowest grog-shop in the land. He sai<1 that several weeks ago the Tillman leaders met in Columbia, ostensibly for the purpose of discussing the railroad cases, but he was informed by a reliable gentleman, who was pre sent, that they decided that if they did not succeed in establishing dispensaries throughout the State to call an extra session o1 the Legislature and eliminate all rights from the bill favorable to prohibitionists, and place that right in the power of the State government. He paid his respects to "Christian" bar-keepers, and said that if their hearts were right there was somethihg wrong about their eyes, where their brains ought to be. He said that the dispensary was nothing more than the same old whis key devil dressed up in State uniform, with brass buttons and a sword. It is now run by "big bugs" instead of small ones. He concluded his remarks by saying that "Prohibition is what South Carolinians demanded at the hands of the Legislature. Prohibition is what we fought for, prohibition is what we voted for, prohibition is what we want, and prohibition we will have." He Was Struck with It, Too. "I notice that you are looking at the clock," he said, as the hour approached 11. "Yes," she replied, with a yawn. He went over to the mantlepiece and examined the clock attentively. "It is a very handsome'one," he said as he resumed his seat. If you desire a beautiful complexion, absolutely free from pimples and blotches, purify youne blood by the use of Ayer's Sarsaparilla. Remove the cause of these disfigurements and the skin will take care of itself. Be sure you get Hood's Sarsaparilla. ONE OF THE HEROES OF CnIME. The Sort of Fellow You Read of in Dime Novels-Wonderful Escape from the Columbia Penitentiary of a Cripple Negro Prisoner. [Special to News and Courier] COLiBIA, May 24 -Albert Jen kins, alias Moses Williams, alias Her schel Curtis, could put the most cele brated escaped convict to shame. He deserves the laurel wreath for skillful and daring jail breaking. It was a miracle how this supposed unsophisti cated negro worked his way out of prison walls, and if he were not such a daring character he might deserve his liberty for the unusual cleverness of his escape. In all the years of peniten tiary life another such c.ise has never been heard of; it was bold from begin ning to end, and the convict showed almost a master mind in the way he worked out every detail of the escape. It was several hours after his escape before the guards knew that he had gone, and on that account they have been unable to successfully follow him. Williams is an old jail bird and has once before made an escape from the Penitentiary, but not near as daring as this time. He was looked upon as omewhat disabled on account of a pinal affection and was not given very bard work; most of the time he was amployed in cutting wood, and in that way had access to the grounds and may have picked up the piece of iron be used in making his escape. The tracing of the footsteps of the convict is almost as interesting as the reading 3f any of the stories of Old Sleuth. But to the story. Williams was put on the ground floor of the main prison in order that he could be the more alosely watched. As he worked inside f the enclosure and had escaped on a previous occasion he had a ball and chain fastened to his foot. It appears that he had in some way broken the iron from around the rivet so that he ould take off the shackle just when he wanted to. For weeks, or perhaps months, he has been filing away at the bolts of his cell, and left the pieces of them in the holes, and it seems made false heads for them with some .old tar which he stole from the grounds. It was only necessary for im to take out two of the bolts to get the door disconnected from the main bar which locks the tier of cells. It is upposed that when the guard who is n that beat was going the rounds Williams stole out of his cell, and, either by going u p the froht stairs 6r the" iron screen, made his way to the fifth floor of the prison, which connects with the roof. A soon as he got to the top story of the building he made bis way to the shortest piece of ceiling and with the iron instrument he had with him tore off the board and made his way into the roof. He then had to walk fifty feet in the roof to aprofeet ing part of the roof and there he knocked off a board which was directly over a column that extended from the roof to the ground. The descent down this column must have beeu exceed ingly difficult, as it was about a hun dred feet high. Exactly what became of Williams after he got to the ground the authorities have not been able to as ertain, but they suppose that he was shrewd enough to find some way to get over the wall, and that he is now se reted in some house in this city, where he lived for a number of years. The first that was known of the scrape was when the guards went to et Villiams out of his cell and found the ball lying, there. The bolts had been put back in plac-e. It is not re garded safe for the guard to stay inside :f the building as he may at any. time be overpowered or injured by desper te characters. One guard is at the front door of the main prison, and as there is a strong light there he can see through the building. It is thought that Williams watched his chance and left his cell when the guard went to bhe neighboring buildlng, which is also in his circuit. The guard could not see wbat was going on on the fifth fioor. It appears that the guard who is stationed in the hospital thought that he heard a noise about the main prison, and that he notified the corpo ral in charge. The officer went arouDd the building and made a careful exam ination, but could not find anything wrong. The guard at the hospital re mained out on the porch for an hour to see if he could detect anything wrong, but Williams must have al ready gotten away or waited until the guard went inside of the hospital. Superintendent Neal has had a thor ough examination of the guards made, as he is not altogether satisfied that Williams has left the prison enclosure. The prison officials are unanimous in the opinion that this has been the "record-breaking escape." The escaped convict first went to the Penitentiary under the name of Al bert Jenkins from Edgefield County under a sentence of five years. He escaped a few months afterwards and was sent back fiom Chester under the name of Moses Willianrs under another sentence of five years for housebreak ig and larceny. Jenkins is described as follows: Five feet seven and a half inches, red hair, dark gray eyes, bright mulatto, burn in corner of left eye, third and little fingers off left hand at first joint. Of Course You Bead The testimonials frequently published in this paper relating to Hood's Sarsa parilla. They are from reliable people, state simple facts, and show beyond a doubt that HOOD'S CURES. .Why don't you try this medicine? Be sure to get Hood's. Constipation and all troubles with the digestive organs and the liver, are cured by Hoon's PILLs. Unequaled as a dinner pill. For the Herald and News. A TALE OF TROY. For Francis and Other Good Children. Once upon a time-for you must know, Francis, that all stories and his torief begin just in this way, "Once upon a time,"-once upon a time Paris, a fair young prince of Troy, sail ing about the world in a pleasure boat, now called a yacht, stopped at the house of Menelaus, one of the Greek kings, in fact King of Sparta, who had a beautiful young wife named Helen, who was the beautifulest woman in all the world. Paris fell in love with her and she fell in love with Paris, which she ought not to have done. But there was some excuse for her as her husband, Menelaus, was an ungainly old chap, not at all smart to look it, but a very kind-hearted, indulgent husband. If he had kept his wife under strict control I have no doubt it would nave been much better for all parties and saved much bloodshed and averted the ruin of Troy. Paris was exceedingly handsome, dressed to per fection and always kept his long black hair neatly curled in ringlets and per fumed with some odorous oil. The upshot of the visit was that Helen left her husband and went off with Paris. This was a very sad piece of business; but the trouble did not end with her running away. All the Greek princes made common cause with-Menelaus; gathered their armies together, the whole amounting to two or three thou sand men, and made war upon Troy for the recovery of Helen. This war lasted ten years; Troy was destroyed and Helen was restored to her hus band. She returned home with him and they say that she behaved herself quite well ever afterwards, but I think it rather doubtful. She must have been a witch. Prob ably she was, for an old story says that the true Helen was a good and virtu ous woman and was hidden away somewhere and that Helen of Troy was a beautiful and false image substi tuted for her. Yes, she was a witch, for every male and female Trojan of them all yielded to her wishes in all things; and the honest men, the bravest, all fought and died for her, as though she was a sacred divinity. Priam, the good old king, Hector, the brave eldest son, perfect model of a hero and a warrior, had no thought of giving her to her lawful husband as long as Paris claimed her. He, a graceless and cowardly scamp, with his hair curled and perfumed with rosewater and cologne, would never fight when he could get out of it. His idea was that discretion was the better part of valor, and acting upon this principle he kept out of danger as long as he could. The war lasted ten years, and the Greeks never could have taken the city had it not been for a cunning, seurvy trick the crafty old Ulysses caused to be played upon the simple hearted, credulous Trojans. So it came to pass that once upon a time towards the close of the tenth year of the war, when everybody was anxious to get home to see about getting in their crops and paying their taxes (as the Governor had positively refused to ex tend time), and taking up their liens, the crafty old Ulysses proposed to the Greeks to build a huge wooden horse and fill it full of armed men; and after the horse was completed and properly packed with soldiers, all the others were to go on board their ships and make sail for home, or pretend to do so. They led the Trojans to believe that the horse was sacred to Minerva, or some other of their gods or godesses; that they offered it as a farewell peace offering and hoped that it would be solemnly kept and taken care of as sacred to the gods. The Trojans, in their simplicity, believed this non sense; and when they thought that the Greeks had gone home, as their little ships were soon out of sight (but they had only sailed a few miles along the coast and hid themselves), they went out in great joy, in fact had a regular grand jollification, tackled the huge monster of a horse and dragged him up to the gate on wheels. When they got to the gate, 1o, and behold, the gate was not wide enough to let him through, so in tf eir simplicity they broke the wall down and pulled the horse through into the main street of the city, and not far from one of the finest temples in the whole land. By time it was about twelve o'clock at night, and all were rather tired and sleepy, though very, very well satisfied with their day's work. Poor fellows, it was the worst day's work they had ever done, though they did not know it until too late. Men never do know in time what is good for them. About three o'clock in the morning the whole city was roused from sleep by cries of fire and war and woe and desolation. Fire, fire was raging in many places; and Main street and all the principal streets were full of armed Greeks, kill ing whomsoever they would and sav ing some alive to be carried away as slaves. 0, it was a dreadful scene; but some Trojans escaped. The great Eneas, called the Pious because he was so good to his father, and the greatgrandfather of the builders of Rome, was seen trudging along with his father Anchises on his back and leading his litt.le son by the hand. His son was allout as old as you are now, Francis, but he bore up bravely and did not cry much, for he was the last of the Trojans and t he first of the Romans. So Troy was destroyed and Menelaus took his .wife abnd went home. Aga memnon, the great King and leader, was waylaid and murdered just before he ot home. Tilysses, the crafty, went wandering about the world for tei years longer, pretending to be ver; anxious to get hor.e; but in fact hav ing a good time, so called, with Ciro and other disreputable folks, such a Calypso in her wonderful cave or grot to. Ulysses had been for several year living with Calypso in great ease an< splendour, but was rather lonesome having no company but her and he birds. She sang divinely, but her bird did not sing. At last he grew tired o that life and wanted to go home; bu Calypso did r..t want him to go an< would not lec him, .s she would be a] alone by herself, with no company bu her birds, if he were gone. But h< grew more and more anxious ever day, as he had heard some rumor from home about the conduct of hi wife's suitors wasting his goods an drinking all his good wines, selling hi. best beeves and using all the mone2 for their own purposes. After awhil4 he asked Jupiter to help him out o his trouble. Jupiter was willing, a he thought he had been there idling away and wasting his time long enough. So he sent Hermes. other wise named Mercury, down to Calyps< with positive orders that she shoulR give Ulysses a boat, with some provis ions-a side of bacon, some ham sand wiches, a keg of wine or beer, two oi three bottles of water-and send hin off. Mercury went on his missior well pleased, as he was always glad t< do anything that would cause mis chief, or give other people trouble. A description of his entrance int< the cave of Calypso, and what he saq there, as told by the blind old Greet bard, Homer, is one of the lovelifsi pieces of word-painting I have evej read. I hope when you read Homei that you will agree with me. It i found in the fifth book of the Odessy and is thus rendered into Englisl verse by one of the old English poet -not Pope: "This took; he stooped Pieria, and thence Glid through the air, and Neptune'i confluence Kissed as he flew, and checked thE waves as light As any sea-wren in her fishing flight Her thick wings sousing in the savour3 seas. Like her he passed a world of wiider ness; But when the far-off isle he touched he went Up from the blue sea to the continent And reached the ample cavern of th( Queen, Whom he within found; without sel . dom seen. A sun-like fire ~upon the hearth did flame; The matter precious, and divine the frame; Of cedar cleft and incense was the pile That breathed an odor round aboul the isle. Herself was seated in an inner room, Whom sweetly sing he heard, and ai her loom, About a curious web, whose yarn shg threw In with a golden shuttle. A grove grew In endless spring about her caverr round, With odorous cypress, pines and pop lar crowned, Where hawks, sea-owls, and long biltones bred, And other birds their shady pinions spread; All fowls maritinial; none roostedi there, But those whose labours in the wateri were. A vine did all the hollow cave em brace, Still green, yet still ripe bnebes gave it grace. Four fountains, one against another, poured Their silver streams; and meadows all enfiowered With sweet balm-gentle, and blue vio lets hid, That decked the soft breasts of each fragrant mead. Should any one, though he immorta] were, Arrive and see the sacred objects there. He would admire them, and be over joyed; And so stood Hermes' ravished powers employed. But having all admired, he entered on The ample cave.' After this Ulysses went home, found his wife's -suitors having a high old time, killed the most of them and re covered possession of his property, and lived a few years in great content with his wife, Penelope, who seems to have been a model widman. After awhile he grew tired of living such a humdrum farmer's life; turned over all his property to his son Tele machue and set on a voyage of dis covery. The last heard of him he had just landed on one of the cannibal island: in the Pacific Ocean, and it is probabE that they ate him and all his crew. GRANDPA. A County Which Owes $1,000,000 in Taxes LOUISVILLE, May 24.-United State: Marshal Black burn, with 155 deputies has gone to Mulenburg County to col lect the railroad tax which the count; owes. He camped at Central Cit; to-night. The tax was original]; $400,000, and was voted twenty-fiv< years ago in aid of what is now th< Newport News and Mississippi Valle2 Railroad. The interest was paid regularly for long while, and then politicians ad vised repudiation. Attempts at 'com promise have failed, and with interes the tax amounts to nearly $l,000,000 The assessable property of the count; is only about $3,000,000. Marshal Bur chett tried to collect the tax four year ago, but failed. Boils, abscesses, tumors, and evel cancers, are the result of a natural effor of the system to expel the poison which the liver and kidneys hav failed to remove. Ayer's Sarsaparill stimulates all the. organs to a prope performance of ther fncns.n SERVICE OF THE PUBLIC PRESS . To H uman Rights and the Best Interests ol the People. 3 Among the addresses delivered Tues. day, at the press congress at Chicago, was one by William Henry Smith upon I"the public press as the advocate of hu man rights and the champion of the interests of the common people"--thus was the question framed, but when he came to apply the question to our own t time he dropped the adjective "com mon," as implying an antagonism, or at least a separation of classes not known to us. Mr. Smith's historical survey of the constantly growing service of the press in this cadse ever since there began to be such an institution-that, is, at the very time that the Puritans left En gland and Holland forAmerican shores, early in the 17th century-was full of interest. Not without struggle and hardship was the present liberty of the press gained in England or this coun try. What the great advocate Erskine said, when the prosecution of the press was at its worst in England, and Leigh Hunt was imprisoned for criticising the discipline of the army,was well quoted: "Other liberties are held under gov ernments, but the liberty of opinion keeps governments themselves in sub jection to their duties. This has pro duced the martyrdom of truth in every age; and the world has only been purged from ignorance with the inno cent blood of those wh6 have enlight ened it." Mr. Smith g.,ve a survey of William Cobbett's odd career as a journalist in this country and England; it proved a vivid illustration of the effectiveness of what Mr. Smith calls "plangent state ment," and the force of the mere im pulse of opposition. "In America he extolled the virtues of monarchy; in England he laughed at the whole sys tem of government. 'He is always,' says ]azlitt, of the militant, not of the triumphant party.' So far he bears a gallant show of magnanimity, but his gallantry is hardly of the right stamp. He wants principle; for though he is not servile or mercenary, he is the vic tim of self-will. He must pull down and pull in pieces. He changes his opinions as he does his friends, and much on the same account. He has no comfort in fixed principles; as soon as anything is settled in his own mind, he quarrels with it. We have had a good many imitators of Cobbett in the United States, whose hearts have been as devoid of principle as a pauper's grave of verdure; and yet, like Cobbett, their work has advanced the cause of humanity without that being the mo tive." Mr. Smith illustrated the services of the public press in America, and how, finally, after many editors and pub lishers had suffered from a contrary decision, it became established in nearly every State by constitutional or statu tory provision that the truth may be given in evidence, and is an absolute defense to a criminal prosecution un less the publication be malicious. In establishing its own right to exist, Mr. Smith said, the press was fighting the battle of the peoples In 1819, he ob served, when misgovernment had re duced the masses of the population of England to a state of degradation and of want almost inconceivable at the present day; when it was very doubt ful whether the press would win a vic tory or be crushed under the foot of tyranny; and when the stamp act was under consideration, Lord Ellenbor ough said: If he was asked whether he would dpprive the lower classes of so ciety of all political inform.ation, he would say that he saw no possible good to be derived to the country from hav ing statesmen at the loom and politi cians at the spinning jenny. This is not the sentiment of the England of today, thanks to the press and a more enlightened statesmanship. It has got been the sentiment in America since the republic was christened. We have honored statesmen who have gradu ated from the shoemaker's bench, the printer's case, the blacksmith's forge and the farm, and no man enters into full citizenship until he is a politician. The foundation of our republic is edu cation, an enlightened people. Study the exhibit of the "White city," where nations contend in friendly rivalry. Whose the brain that conceived it all? Whose the band that fashioned the marble, reproduced life upon canvass, created the marvellous machinery, wove the beautiful fabrics, produced the printed sheets, and brought under control the subtle forces of nature? Whose but the brain and the hand of the.citizen of the republic universal called sculptor, artist, craftsman and scientist? And as we give the greeting, all hail! let us not forget what has -been endured and sacrificed to make this possible. Let us not overlook the higher meaning of this history. Of little worth where the experience if it witnessed merely an increase in wealth and the privilege of its enjoyment n rmolested. There is a profounder significance relating to the spiritual endowment of -man. Looking back over the past we see that each step taken toward a larger liberty carried with it an increased re .sponsibility-an increased responsibil Sity for what? Clearly, for the promo - motion of whatever makes for right. 3 eousness. That nation which has em bodied this most truly in its laws, and in the execution thereof has been most faithful-has been the strongest. t The press has been the most respected and the most influential when con ducted on a high1level-when princi Sples were avowed and kept to the.front. Thenammes of Hammond, Greeley. Bryant, Raymond, and Cowles stood for something of value to society and humanity. They did not believe they were journalists merely "to raise hell and sell newspapers"; to flatter the vanity of the frivolous, or to encourage the vicious. They endeavored in all sincerity and truth to live up to their responsibilities. This lesson is derived from our sur vey: That the press has won and held the respect and confidence of the peo ple to the extent that it has been brave truthful and honest; and. possessing these virtues it has been instrumental in promoting liberty and the general welfare of society-thus fulfilling a high mission; what, from the public character of the press ought to ever be its career from choice; a consecration - to truth, to humanity. The Bilville Divide. The great divide at Billville-did you ever hear o' that? If you d'dn't, take a seat thar, on the pine box-hang yer hat On the hitchin' post. Terbacker? Here's a brand you haven't tried; An' while you're chawin' on it, I'll go on with the divide. It's the funniest thing, I reckon, that a fellow ever heard, An' you're goin' to kinder doubt it an' look jubious, I'm afeared; But it's true as the collection, 'an it's jes' as broad as wide, An' now I'm going to tell it-so here goes fer the divide. You see, we've got a town here! That is, we kinder had, 'Fore the lawyers hung their shingles an' jes' drove the people mad. But I ain't a wranglin' with 'em; it's the story rm a givin', Fer a town can live with lawyers, but the lawyers-does the livin'! Fast off, we had a Baptis' church-it kinder got in debt, An, the sheriff 'bout decided that it's six miles in it yet! They got to fightin' 'bout the lot-each feller had his views; Then, the lawyers got the pulpit. then the shingles an' the pews. An' next we built a schoolhouse, an' had ter run a bill; Then, the board o' edducation, they got mad enough ter kill, An' went ter law about it-can't tel the why er how, But the lawyers got the- schoolhouse, -an' they're-runnia' of-i9-now1 An' next, there come the town hall that's it jes' 'crost the way; The council had ter make a bond, an' then they couldn't pay; An' so, they went ter lawin' fer the cash they couldn't raise, An' the lawyers got the town hall, and the mayor's turned out ter graze. An' next-here comnes the grocery store the only one in town3;t The grocery man was honest, an' he marked his prices down An' smashed before he knowed it, fer his bills was fallin' due, An' the lawyers-well, they're kinder in the grocery business, too! An' next we got a railroad, with a signI that made a show: 'Twas "Look out for the engine when you hear the whistle blow!" We was proud of it as preachin'-put a4 flag up atthe tanks, Fer our train was second cousin ter the fiying "Nancy Hanks." But stockhofders got ter grumblin', on one drizzly, mizzly night The engine struck a feller an' jes' -~ knocked him out o' sight. An' then here come a lawsuit; the stock-it took a fall, An' the lawyers was receivin', an' re ceived the road an' all! - Now,yeu see,they got the meetin'house, the schoolhouse too, an' then The town hail when a squealin' like a shoat into their pen; An' then, the village grobery store, an' last of all, the road-I An' the brass band's blowin' fer 'em, jes' the best it ever blowed! So now, when they'd jes' gobbled all, did they git in ter a fight, An' go to law, an' fuss an 'jaw, a' cuss from left ter right? Not much! Why, brethrin, lawyers is the lovin'est of folks They're full o' life an.' laughter; makse you split your sides with jokes. Well, the lawyers give a dinner, an' they jes' invited down What little of the town was left ter represent the town; An' when they'd all got seated, a feller on one side Riz up an' said: "We're here to-night ter have the great divide." Then they shared the shinin' proceeds - of the meetin' house, the hall, The grocery store, the schoolhouse, an' the railroad, tanks an' all; An' when they'd done the sharin', an' 'twas gittin' time to go, They sung "Old Hundred," an' praised God from whom all blessin's fiow Now, this here is the story, an' the moral I'm a-givin' Is, a town kin live with lawyers, but the lawyers does the livini'. We uster have a town that was je., the country's pride, But now, its known here ter people as "The Billville Big Divide!" F. L. S. A stimulant is often needed to noor ish and strengthen the roots and to keep the hair a natural color. Hall's Hair Renewer is the best tonic for the hair.