The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, March 27, 1902, Image 3
AR? CARRIED MAILS
Bill Tells of the Difference Now and
the Long Ago.
?.*? ?*? Pftrnrvll .IIP
POSTAGE KAItS WtKfc tnuKfliuua
Receiver of Letter Paid the Postmcster
on Delivery of Letter ? Benefits
of Cheap Postage.
Xow you young people, girls an!
boys, excuse me for telling you a story
about the old times. Sixty-four years
ago, when I was 12 years old. my father
was ?h^ postmaster in our town and ;
had to make contract:-, for carrying the
:nai! to oi.cr noigeoonng towns, ru
gave these contracts to ntedv men an i
the pay was generally one dollar a day
One cf these men got sick and my father
rnaoc me take his place and Tithe
mr.ii to Itoswell all winter. It was
' T ^ "1,1A tUevt
L*> nines away ana i uiu i'j nuv utn
and back in a day. and ho paid me the
dollar for every trip. It was a bitici
winter and sometimes when I got home
I had to be helped off the horse, feu
I was frozen tip and helpless. Hut i
was a tough ar.d hardy boy and always
ready for the next trip. On my firsi j
ride the good old women on my roat<
did not know me. They used to knii
socks and send them to town by the
old man to sell and carry back som?
coffee o;- sugar or indigo, or copperas
or seme little thing, but they didu'i
know me. and I remember that one clc
woman came cut to the gate and said"Are
you the mail boy?" And I laughs
and said: "Yes. mam. I am net a f?
male boy." She smiled and said: "Yoi
are mis toy little to carry bundles, but
I wot:H like for you to take n conplt
of pairs cf socks and bring me bac!-<
the pay In coffee if yon will. I'll give
yon a little bag to put it in and you cai
hang i: 0:1 to the horn of the saddle.'
Of course I did, for I always i:ked :r
obliee the wemen. and besides my faih
er kept a stare and got the trade
Sometimes 1 had as much outsido c
the mad bag as there was inside, i
made fourteen silver dollars that winter
and felt rich.
But 1 want to tell you about the mai
"business as it was then. There were
no stamps or stamped envelopes?noi
any ether kind of envelopes. We wrote
on a long paper called foolscap. It got
that name from the watermark whicu
was a fool's cap and bells stamped or
the paper. After writing we could foK
the sheet up to the size of a letter and
slip one fold in the other?thumb paper
fashion?then seal it with a wafei
and address it. The wafers were round
and thip and were made or flour paste
and when held on the tongue a moment
got soft and sticky. In my young day:
the postage was paid at the end cf the
line by the one who received the letter
It was 12 1-2 cents if it did not come oi
go outside cf the State?18 3-4 if from
or to an adjoining state and 25 cents
if still farther off. But if it was to gc
to California it had to be prepaid and
sent by Wells and Fargo's express and
cost a dollar and was a month on the
way. Just think of it. Now it costs
only 2 cents and takes only four days.
That overland express almost made us
boys crazy. They published a booh
railed "Ton Years Among the Mail
Bags" and it had pictures in it?pictures
of boys riding the mail on Indian
ponies?riding on a run of 10 miles in
an hour, and then he was lifted off of
his pony and put on a fresh one for
Another 10 miles Thf> hnvs hn-1 n
weigh net less than sixty ncr ove:
ninentv pounds and had to make 40
miles a day?20 east and 20 west. It
took about two hundred boys and four
hundred ponies to do the work and I
wanted to be one of the boys mighty
bad. Part of the route was beset by
hostile Indians and the express com
pany had to keep soldiers at those sta
tions to guard the ponies, and the bov>,
had to keep a sharp lookout between
the stations. One of the pictures showed
some Indians shooting at a boy as
he bent over on the pony's neck and
was flying like the wind. He had left
the track and taken ronadance on them
and I thought that was heroic.
The letters were limited to a single
sheet cf yaper and a thousand to a bag
aud that made about twenty pounds of
mail. Eesldes the mail there were
some two-peny hacks with two drivers
and guns and these carried gold dust
from the mines to the eastern states
and were limited to two hundred
pounds, which was worth nearly $50.I1IU1
nnrl was a temntinir nri^o Wh
white and Indian robbers. But the gold
express ran at irregular intervals and
nobody knew when it was coming.
But now about postage. Not many
foolish letters were written in those
days. It cost too much and made the
man mad when he had to pay 23 cent?
or IS 3-4 or 12 1-2 cents for it. Th1
next cno the writer would send would
not be taken out and would go to
Washington as a dead letter. I reckon
you wonder why the postage was in
such curious amounts. Well, we didn't
have any decimal currency then?no
dimes or half dimes. The dollar was
divided into sixteen parts instead of
twenty: cne part was called a thrip.
which was 6 1-4 cents. Thrip is an
abbreviation for sevonpence. Two pans
was called a sevenpence and its value
was 12 1-2 cents. I don't believe I have
seen a thrip or a sevenp?nce in fifty
years. The government called them a 1
in and issued dimes and half dimes
instead.
In ruminating about the wonder?v.!
change in our postal laws since I was a
boy I am prepared to say that r.othln?
that has been discovered or invented
has wrought such beneficial results and
so much comfort to the people. What
pleasure at home is mere valued than
reception of letters from kindred an I
friends who are far away? Postage is
I
j only one-tenth what it used to be. but
j there nre twenty times as many letters
written by every person who can write
and there are ten times as many to
write them. The great northern mail ;
' used to come to our town once a week '
and a single sack in the boot of a stage
contained it. Now five times that quantity
cernes twice a day. I used to write
j about two letters a week and now !
write twenty-five or thirty and receive
more than I write. For I have quit anj
swering many letters that inclose no j
1 stamp. The number of letters increas- ;
es faster than the postage decreases. 1
When the postage bad to be paid at the j
end of the line it was pretty hard to
; receive a disagreeable letter and have
?'o pay for it. My father was a mer- ;
chant for nearly fifty years and sold
goods on a year's time, and sometimes
we had to write dunning letters to his
customers. He wrote one to a very
slow man and got no answer, so ha
wrote another and the slow man wrote ,
back that he would have to wait until i
he made another crop, and as postage
was high and silver was scarce, he advised
a very limited correspondence.
He wrote another to a belated custom- .
cr at Warsaw and another and another j
and then got a reply which said :
"I have received .vour letters hut thev
were a long time on me way. lr you
had sent them round by Atlanta and
Marietta and Rcswell I would have
rotten them sooner, for we have two
mails a week by that route, but only ,
! oae by the way you sent them. Hereafter
you had better send them that
| way. Our mail system is very imperfect.
It takes six weeks for me to get a
letter from Jack, who is in th~ Arkansaw.
You remember Jack. But I am
always glad to hear from you. Ycur
friend. WILL -A M WATERS.
"P. S.?As for thatMcccunt of last
year, which you say has run a long
time?as the boy said to the molasses,
just let run. W. W."
I wonder if our young people know
j who was cur first postmaster general?
; He was the postmaster general before
! th? revolution and was turned out by
King Ge orge b-cause he was suspected
of being a rch?l and his name was Bea
* jaroin I'ranklin. When the Declaration
of Independence was pasec.l he established
an independent line an 1 boycotted
the English system und afterwards
Gr?2n:ccd a system cf our own. Sir
Rowland Hill was the postmaster /ten-,
, oral of England and in 1724 established
; what was called the penny post. Tiefore
that the English merchants hired ,
men to carry ihclr letters. When iho
' battlp of the Waterloo was fought the ,
Rothschilds kited private carriers to
bring them (he news o{ the great bat- j
tie. English crrdii and bonds and consols
werp then away down to 23 cents i
or. the dollar,, for Napoleon was just f
running rcugh shod over kingdoms and
governments. The Rothschilds got the i
news of his defeat twenty-four hours
sooner than the bankers of London and i
1 they secretly bought up all the bonds;
and stocks and consols they could find.;
I and when the good news came cf the i
; great victory these bonds and storks
jumped up to par in a day* and the;
Rothschilds made many millions an.J
hie venc tbo hpfrinnlne of their great
| fortune. It was a mean, dirty trick. >
but they didn't oar?. For nearly a cen- j
tury they have controlled the financjes.
! of the civilized world and nation*
: could not go to war without consulting '
i tfc? Rothschilds. But now tiev have tc i
take a back seat, for Pierpont Morgan
and Rockefeller and a few others can j
control more money than they can. But
our postage has net yet got to the low-1
est notch. The people say it must be
i reduced to 1 cent, and a bill has been j
introduced in congress to that effect
and letters will soon be delivered at,
almost every man's r.or.so if he lives |
on a public highway. Verily, it pas- <
seth comprehension. I received a letter
and a paper this morning from Austra!iav
They had come 12.000 miles fori
a rpntc ami fnnnrl me. althoueh there I
are half a dozen Cartersvillcs in the
; United States. There is no system so
perfect as the postal system and no
man can steal from it without being :
caught.?Bill Arp, n Atlanta Constit'i
J ticn.
I
To Sorra an Oyster Cocktail.
Charles Kanhofer, tb<e celebrated
chef of Delnionico's, declared until the
last days of hia life that there was
nothing, aDsolutely nothing, new in ,
the culinary art; that no new dishes
had been invented in ?/ty years; that i
the so-called new dishes were only old
ones revived. Although the oyster
cocktail was introduced in the chop i
houses of New York about two years I
before Mr. Ranhofer's death he never I
included it in his list of dishes, and
as bis book was published before oys
ters were served in thi3 way, he does 1
not mention the cocKtail. Really, it is ,
only the fact of serving the oysters in
i o H-s! which nives the name to a cer
" ? ? tain
way of seasoning raw oysters
known for years among oyster dealers
along the Chesapeake shore and |
even at the stalls In the New York
oyster market. This is the way to
1 prepare an oyster cocktail: Put seven
medium-sized, freshly opened oysters
! In a tall, slender glass. Mix In a bowl
three teaspoonfuls of tomato catsup, a
S teaspoonful of horse radish in white
vinegar, four dashes of Tobasco sauce,
a tablcspoonful of Worcestershire
sauce ana a saltspoonful of salt. When
these ingredients are well stirred to1
gether pour the mixture in the glass
over the oysters and servo.?New York
?
j Press.
Tunnel Under Francisco liny.
The San Francisco bay is to be tunneled
to accommodate the traffic bej
tween opposite sections of the city
which now has to go around. The d!sj
tance 13 about five miles and the sabI
way will pass beneath an island In tfct>
lay.
4
HOW TO SEE THE BIG SHOW.
Some Timely Suggestions to Exposition
Visitors.
Staff Correspondence Columbia State.
The correspondent of The State
may be able to give information of a
general nature which will be of service
to the prospective visitors who reads
this article. When the train arrives
at Charleston the visitors will find that
the street car system covers nearly the
entire city and transfers from one line
to another may be had for the asking.
The street cars are operated on fine
schedules between the city and the exposition
grounds.
There are two gates at the exposition
grounds, but visitors generally get out
at the second gate. They then pas3
through a turnstile to the right of the
street car and proceed .to the gate in
front. Upon entering this gate the
visiter faces the great cotton palace
which is the background of the court
of palaces. Whatever exercises will be
held that day will take place in front
of the South Carolina building, which
is to the left of the cotton palace.
The State building is a good point
from which to start on a tour of Inspection.
South Caroliuans will be
surprised at the elegance of the exhibits
in the State building, which is
itself from an architectural standpoint
- i i?:l a: ? ? T/v
u vutauuiui uuiiuiufe. xu iuo icn
of the building is an annex in which
the splendid exhibits from Oregon and
from Louisiana are shown. Passsing
out of the rear door of this State
building the visitor enters a semicircular
colonnade in which the United
States government has placed its navy
and war department exhibits. The
postal service also has a very interesting
display iu this colonnade. A detachment
of United States marines it
enrampel in the court just back of the
State building. This colonnade contains
a postofltee where mall is received
and distributed. The Southern
railway occupies a prominent place
here. The United States government
also has exhibits from the department
of state and the gcodedic surveys, al9'j
exhibits showing the diseases of cattle,
etc.
This leads up to the cotton palace
where many interesting things are
shown by cotton mills, cotton seed oil
mills, guano factories, etc., concluding
with a splendid display of articles and
curios from the Philippine islands.
When this building is finished with,
another colonnade is entered, and here
are shown other exhibits from the government,
concluding with tho Smithsonian
institute's display.
This leaas up to the palace of commerce
where visitors will be entertained
by the representatives of great
establishments showing the manner in
which many articles of wear and of
food are made. Without caring to
show any partiality, this correspondent
would cite as an example of the exhibits
in this building the model of the
great establishment of Libby, McNeill
& Libbey in Chicago. The reproduction
in miniature of the buildings shows th >
cattle brought in on t:*ains, carried to
the top of the building where the im
mensp slaughter nens are located. The
process of slaughtering, quartering,
etc.. are shown in the buildings lighted
by a hundred tiny incandescent light*.
There are many such exhibits in tho
palace of commerce, which is the last
of the three great buildings which one
may visit without putting foot on
ground after entering the front door
of the State building. To those who
have plenty of ti -e, a whole day could
be spent here wich profit .
Those whose time is limited will at
this point go in search of dinner. A
good, clean dinner may be had at the
woman's building or at the Crescent
Inn. There are other places where
really nice meals are served?Heinz's
the Venetian Inn .and several cafes on
the Jlblway. Dinner may De naa at oo
to 50 tents, lunches cheaper.
After dinner a hurried inspection
may be given the auditorium, which
faces the court of palaces, and then the
Cuban or East Indian building should
be visited. The building of mines and
forestry is also in this group, near the
administration building. In the latter
Col. Arerlll, Col. Gadsden. Major
Hemphill and other titled officers of
the exposition do their work with the
assistance of an army of cierks.
1 There are a number of State buildings
which appear beautiful from
i without and in which a warm welcome
may be found. These buildings are as
follows, in oror of arrangement:
Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York,
Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Illinois, and
the Louisiana Purchase exposition or
St. Louis building. It does not take
long to "do" these buildings, but in
passing tnrougn mis not ui uuuum&s
the visitor must not pass by the art
gallery where Mr. Townsend has coi'
lected a beautiful array of pictures,
representative of every period and
kind of American art.
The women will, of course, go to the
' women's building, whiih is jus: beyond
- .... - J
, 4 - ; *- fr ' ' ^
! the Illinois l 'Gilding, but the men
. should go there w00, ^ be a revelation
to the men South Carolina,
I and a joy to the wotu'en. The negro
building should be visited by every
white person in order to bt-ome fully
| impressed that unlesss the wi;.te peo|
pie wake up the negroes will be competitors
ere long.
But even though this is the end of 1
the long array of buildings, there are
others to be seen. They lie beyond
Loire .Tuanita. the fisheries, transportation
and mechanical buildings. Each ?
ir. worthv nf an extended visit. Then '
cctops the Midway, which is at the opposite
side of the grounds, and is gayest
by the light cf the electricity which <
banishes night from the exposition '
grounds. In this list enumerated there
aro m'any buildings whose exhibits
! could not be thoroughly appreciated by
! a casaul visit, yet even a hurried glancu
will serve to convey to the visitor an
impression which will be wholesome .
and elevatihg. '
? '
Christ's call is Hi3 servant's consecration.
I
I
!
Redeeming Asiatic Tnrkey.
Asiatic Turkey is to be rescued from
semi-barbarism by the construction of J
$140.000,i>00 worth of railroads, one of
which will run through Euphrates valley
from end to end. The new roads
will follow the old caravan routes, and
they will touch all the principal cities
and towns of Bible laud.
i
ATLANTIC COAST LINE R. R. CO,
CONDENSED SCHEDULE.
TEAIN.H GOISO SOUTH.
Dated Jan. 15.1902 No 55. No. 35. No.51
P. M. A. Ml
Leave Wilmington *3 45 00 j
! Leave Marion 6 40 8 45
Arrive Florence. 7 25 i) 25
.
P.M. A.M. .
Leave Florence .*8 00 *3 30
Arrive Sumter 9 15 4 33
' r ' No. 52
- P. M. A. M ;
Leave Sumter*.,..-..... 9 15 *9 25 J
| Arrive Columbia 10 40 11 05 ,
No. 52 runs through from Charleston via [
Central R. R., leaving Charleston 3 00 a. nj- ,
Lanes 7!50 a. re., Manning 8 39 a. ra.
TRAINS 001X0 XORTB.
, ' . - No. 54. NO. 53. lia50 I
A. M. P. M. I'. M.
j Leave Columbia *6 55 *4 40
Arrive Sumter 8 20 6 13
No, 32
A. M. P. M.
Leave Sumter 8 20 *6 19 ...... I
?tji a M 7 HK +7 I
Ain> O r lUIVUW,^ m w ? ,
A. M.
Leave Florence 10 10 .... 8 15
j Leave Marion 10 53 .... 8 54
, Arrive Wilmington 1 40 .... 11 30
Dallv, fDaily except Sunday.
No. 53 run# through to Charleston, ft. C.,
via Central R. R.,arriving Manning 6 53 p.
m.. Lanes 7 35 p. m., Charleston 9 20 p. m.
Train No. 53 makes close connexion at
I Sumter with train No. 59, arriving Lanes
9 45 a. m., Charleston 11 35 a. m., Tuesdays
I Thursdays and Saturdays.
Trains on Conway Branch b-ave Cbadbourn
12 01 p. ni., arrive Conway 2 20 p. w.,
I returning leave Conway 2 55 p. in., arrive
! Chadbourn 5 20 p. m., leave Cbadbourn 5 35
i p. m.. arrive Elrod 8 10 p. m.. returning
leave Elrod 8 40 a. m.. arrive Cbadbourn
11 25 a in, Daily except Sunday.
H. M. EMERSON.
(Jen. rat^en^er akvow i
J. II. KENLT, T. M. EMERSON.
Gec'l Manager. Traffic Manager.
Our fee returned if we fail. Acy or
amy invention will promptly receive ou
ability of same. "IIow to Obtain a I
Secured through U3 advertised for sale
Patent taken out through us receive
TnE Patent Record, an illustrated ant
| by Manufacturers and Investors.
' Send for sample copy FREE. Ad
VICTOR J. E\J
[Patent At
Cyans Building.
Labor Saving
Busy Men an
$3.00 a year I TJT? S ll
A cent a day X lll-a Vx t
A Weekly Newspaper and an Illustrate!
of world-happenings every week in brief
is the Editor-in-chief, and Harniltoi
JACOB A. RIIS
The author of" How the Other Half Uvea" will
give in The OimooK an intensely huraan and vivid
| account of his experiences as a child in Denmark,
1 an immigrant in America, a workman, a traveller,
a reporter, and finally a student of tenement house
j problems, and an efficient aid to Theodore Roosevelt
| in reorganizing the New York police. Mr. Riis
writes with simplicity, humor and vigor.
LYMAN ABBOTT
will contifcute a seriesof important paperson funds- 1
mental political principles as applied to twentieth
I century problems. It will be called "The Rjckts
or Mam, and will define industrial, educational and
religious, as well as political, rights and duties.
Ts-fv %*rr
' f . ' I ? . ' -W- > >
i*. l I I 'l 11 > ? *| ~HI> llll HI??mm?I?MMMi?I
Skin Diseases,
For the speedy and permanent en re of *
tetter, salt rheum and eczema, Chamberlain's
Eye and Skin Ointment is
mtnout an equai. it reueves toe itcning
and smarting almost instantly and
.ts continued use effects a permanent
mre. It also cures itch, barber's itch,
scald head, sore nipples, itching piles,
chapped hands, chronic sore eyes and
granulated IWs.
Dr. fady's Condition Powders for
iorses are the beet tonic, blood purifier
md vermifuge Price. Scents. So Id by
7)|? I ar(y?t. and Most Complete
I siaMlsliment South.
3E0. S. ^AGK^ER & SON,
?MANTTFACTURKM OF?
Sash. Doors* Blinds.
Moulding and Building Material,
Sash Weights and Cord
. CHARLESTON, 8. 0.
Purchase oar make, which we guarantee
superior to any sold South, and
thereby sare money.
Window and Fancy Glass a Specialty.
Dyspepsia Cure
Digests what you eat.
It artificially digests the food and aids
Nature in strengthening and reconstructing
the exhausted digestive organs.
It is the latest discovered digestant
and tonic. No other preparation
can approach it in efficiency. It instantly
relieves and permanently cures
Dvspep6ia, Indigestion, Heartburn, .
Flatulence, Sour Stomach, Nausea.
Sick Headache,GastnUgja.Ctampe,ana
all pther resu Its of i m perfect digest*, n.
Prepared by E. C rv.witt a Co. Cbtcaj ?
Registration Notice.
The office of the Snpervieor of B?f
titration Will be opened on the Aral
Monday in every month for the purpose
of the registering of any person.
who is qualified *9 follows:
Who shall have been a resident of
the State for two years, end of the
county one year and of the polling
preciut in which the eleotor offers to
vote foar months before theday oleleot:on,
and Khali have paid,six months be.ore
any poll tax then due and payable,
and who can both read and write any
Kectioo of the Constitution of 1896
f obmiited to him by the supervisory
of registration, or can show that he
owns, and ban paid all tixee collectable
daring the present year on property in
mis State assessed at three hundred
dollar" or more. J. J. EADDY,
Clerk of Board.
iif
10 sending sketch end description of
r opinion frco concerning the patent'atent"
sent upon request. Patents
at our expense.
i special notice, without charge, in
Iwid circulated journal, consulted
dress,
rAWS & CO.,
tomcys,)
WASHINGTON, D. C.
'
; Reading for
d Women, in
jtlook r
i Magazine in one. Telia tike story
clear-cut paragraphs. Lyman Abbott
i W. Mabie the Associate Editor.
RALPH CONNOR
Under this pseudonym were written two of the
most striking of recent noveb, " Blade Rock " and
"The Sky Hlot." A new novel of Canadian and
Western life by this author will appear in Ths
OtmooK during the year. In spirit, humor, pathos
and strong character-drawing ft is mn superior to
its predecessors.
SPECIAL "To^Tntroduec h E J
O F F F R Outlook to new readers
wc will send it for
two months' trial for 25 cents provided
this paper is mentioned. Address'
THE OUTLOOrs NEW YORK
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