Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

"God Bless His Memory!"! -- Judge Reagan's Tribute to the j Confederate President. Delias, Texas, Apn 29 -The Con federate monument erec^d through the efforts of I he Daughers of the Confederacy, of Ballas, was unveiled this mor ni g. It is of Texas grauite, the shaft being fifty feet high. On the top of the column stands a private and at the base stand four pedestals on which are life-size statues of Jeffer son Davis, R. E Lee, Stonewall Jackson and Albert Sidney Johnston Jefferson Davis Hayes polled the cord that unveiled be form of his grandfather Lucy Hayes did the same for Robert E Lee, white a little ! granddaughter of Stonewall Jackson completed the unveiling by pulling: the cord which removed the veils ? from the statues of Jackson and Johnston After a number of yoong ladies representing the different Southern States had decorated the monument ' with flowers, the Hon. John H. Reagan, the last living member of the Confederate Cabinet, delivered a eulogy on President Davis. He said io part : . "To me has been assigned the duty of saying, in a brief way, something . of the character and services of the President of the Confederate States, the beloved Jefferson Davis. My as sociation with Mr. Davis during our great struggle and the very high opinion I formed of his disinterested and patriotic devotion to the caose of the Confederacy and of his un varyingconstancy and courage makes the duty most agreeable, except that I recognize my inability to give such an account cf his services and por traiture of bis character as is due to his memory. "To say that be was an honest man, a brave soldier, an able states man, a sincere patriot and an earnest * Christian does cot give the fall idea of his character. In one respect there was some missapprehen eioQs of his character It was sometimes alleged that be was self-willed, imperious and stubborn. Those in close contact and associa tion with him did not so regard him. 4*I nave heretofore expressed the view, andnow repeat it, that practi cally he had. two characters, or rath er two methods of thought and ac tion While io his private relations he was gentleness and kindness, in the discharge of his public service he seemed to be guided' almost wholly by a sense of duty. And he seemed to expect those who conferred with bim about public matters to address themselves directly to the matter under consideration, and was not t all times patient with such persons as sought to occupy his time in g n ral conversation or as to matters about which they could give him no information. "It will readily be understood that one who occopied bis position, in which his whole time was necessarily given to the discharge of important public business, could not permit that time to be wasted io commonplace conversation or in listening to men who could give him no real informa tion. This doubtless created the idea with such persons that he was self willed and imperious. "Another mistake as to his charac ter made by some persons bas been that he would not listen to advice about matters of importance. More than four years of constant contact with him as a member of his Cabinet enables me to say that this was a great mistake. His habit was when he bad to act to exhaust ail available sources of information, oo it before coming to a conclusion, always con suiting freely with ' the meru bera of bis Cabinet and with others who might be able to give him iLforma tion. After doing this and reaching bis co nein si on the matter was settled with him, unlesB the presentation of new facts required further considera tion He had no time to consider questions upon the same facts. In the position be occupied vacillation i would have been about as bad as the erroneous decision of the poblic ques tions. "1 speak on these points because I think iu these respects some injury bas been done to his memory . lu solitude President Davis wonn ed for the success of the Confederate army, and often in places under heavy fire. "At the battle of Seven Pines (Fair Oak s) I saw him, Gen. Lee and Gen. Magruder a heavy fire of mus ketry, and remonstrated against bis so .exposing himself, for there was no necessity for doing it. During the several days' fighting near Richmond be was exposed to toe enemy's fire, and Gen. Lee ordered him to quit t e field. Some days after Gen. Lee ap peared iu the Cabinet. Mr. Davis jo cu i arly said be bad supposed h was commander-in chief, and- that Gen Lee was under him even in the field and on the day of the battle of Rich mond and Petersburg I saw Mr. Davis in company with Gen. Lee and Beauregard und r the tire of the enemies's sharpshooters for a long time, while several persons were be ing hit, aod one soldier boy standing near the President had his arm shot off by a shell. The officers urged him to retire from the field, as this exposure was unnecessary. He said be felt as I did that he could render no service there, but that it would have been an unpleasant thing to ride off under fire "Mr. Davis had the chivalry of a Richard Coeur de Lion and the con stancy and iove ot liberty ef a Cato i God b!ess his memory. WILL BE PROSECUTED. The Guilty Parties in the Beckroge Trunk Case. Assistant Attorney General To^n* send yesterday began a thorough in vestigation into the Bedkroge trunk matter under instructions from Gov- ; ernor Ellerbe. Previously he had gotten the statement from Colonel ' Gaston which was submitted to the Governor, but owing to the pressure of other business Judge Townsend bas been unable to secure such fur ther information as would warrant him in iu8titutinga prosecution He says he is going to examine witnesses and probe the matter to the bottom, and the guilty parties, whoever they may be. are to be prosecuted under Governor Ellorbe's instructions It is possible that he may get all the facts necessary by this afternoon upon which to proceed Governor Ellerbe said, in sapeaking of the matter, that he had instructed Judge Townsend to Heave no stone unturned to arrive at the truth. He had instructed him to "hew to the line, let the chips fall where they may." He evidently is determined to sift the whole affair and to see that the guilty are pun ished. Talking further, the Governor Raid that he intended to see that all Dis pensary officials shall strictly obey the law. He will have no compro mises and makeshifts, but if any of ficer in the Dispensary, local, con stalbalary otherwise, violates the law or exceeds his powers, he has given positive instructions to the Attorney General to immediately have war rants sworn out against them The Governor's attention was called to the fact that there bad been a number of Dispensers short heretofore, "and al though there has been much talk about prosecuting them, nothing had ever come form it. He replied that they had not occurred during his ad ministaration, and, while he did not intend, to crititicize his predecessors, he had firmly determined to see that all such defaulters, duriog his term, shall be tried, and, if possible, pun ished He mentioned the fact that a Dispenser and a clerk in a Dispensary bad been found short and. he had in sisted on the boards of control swear ing out warrants against them. Some thing may be heard from these later The Governor, referring to criti cisms in the 'News and Courier, to the effect that he bad been somewhat late in investigating the Beckroge case, said that as soon as he bad heard of it he immediately sent Judge Townsend to investigate it. and the Gaston statement was the result. Owing to sickness in Mr. Barbers family, it bas been impossible for him to remain io the city for more than a day or two for some time, and conse quently all of the work of the office had fallen on Judge Townsend It was utterly impossible for him to at tend to this and the numerous other Dispensary cases of importance he has had to attend to in Charleston alone. However, as he has some time now the investigation will be vigorously poshed.-The State, 4th. THE CUBAN CONGRESS. Will Meet and Elect a Presi dent-Everybody in Har mony. Puerto Principe, Camaguey, Cuba, April 17.-The representatives of Orient, Camaguey and Las Villas in the general assembly of the Cuban republic, which will probably meet 'in May at Gcaimarito, have already arrived at the headquarters of the Coban.government near San Jer ni mo. Delegates from Matanzas, Ha bana and Pinar del Kio are expected 'to arrive soon The object of the assembly is the revision of the constitution proclaim ed September 16, 1895. A special law will also be voted prohibiting the chiefs of the army from receiving proposals of peace from the Spaniards, and declaring to be a traitor and lia ble to the death penalty any Cuban who shali make such proposals unless they are based upon absolute inde pendece of the island and addressed directly to the government. According to the opiuion of the majority of Cubans, the re election of Salvador Cisneros Betaocourt, the incombent of the office, is almost certain. 0 Under the circumstances which tba war has imposed the administration of President CiBnercs bas been a model of prudence and wisdom in ali civil matters. Never, in spite of ali contrary reports sent out by the Spaniards, has the president of his government interfered with the func tions of the commander-in-chief of thc army and of the local chiefs in each province. He has always aimed to preserve unity and discipline, and Lae showed his patriotism and his capacity as president in a manner that has won their respect and confi dence. The Cubans who very sin cerely and properly wish lo preserve their ranks undivided before the ; enemy, prefer at this moment to se j lect a man who has acted so wisely, ? rather than to try a new man, who j may perhaps have more brilliant en I dowments without equaling the pres ent incumbent in equanimity and good sense. Attempt to Kill the Dispensary Law. The Vandercock Co. Assert the Right Ship and Sell Liquor in This State. Charleston, May 3-The much litigated dispensary law is about to be put on the rack and another at tack made upon the well-nigh dead j or apparently rapidly dying relic of I Governor Tillman's administration ! The law has been pretty thoroughly ! riddled already but another attempt ie j to be made to kill its practical opera ! tion and life entirely. That it has survived the many attacks made upon it, has been a scoure of wonder to many The law is in effect the same to day as it was in July 1893, when it was put into operation. The law yers, however, have managed to weaken it in many particulars, until it stands to day but a mere mass of verbiage, with no legal support, save that given it by the administration officers. It is to knock this prop from under the law that action was instituted in the United States circuit court to-day. The papers in the case were filed by Mr. J. P. K Bryan, who has much experience in fighting the law The case is brought by W. fl Van dercock & Co., of San Francisco, Cal , and Constables S W. Vance, W N. Bahr, J. N Scott. W Living ston, C S. Mosely, M Peterman and others are made parties to the suit. The plaintiff's bill of complaint is quite a lengthy one and deals fully with the particulars of the several seizures of their liquor by the con stable during the past months, with which the public is familiar It states that the Vandercock company has suffered to the extent of $5,000 already and that with the other ship meut8 of liquor now on the way here, they will sustain a loss of 10,000, should these shipments be also seized by the constables as they threaten The complaint asserts the rights of the plaintiff' to ship liquor into the State for direct sales, storage and ware housing and states that the seiz ure and confiscation of this liquor by the constables is unwarranted and that so much of the dispensary as authorizes these acts is in conflict with the Constitution and laws of the United States, and therefore nuli and void. he plaintiff prays relief of the court from these interferences with inter state commerce and damages to their trade *and business. It asks for an injunction restraining the constables from seizing its liquor and also de sires to be reimbursed for the dam ages done. Upon reading the bill of complaint ; and the accompanying affidavits setting forth the facts in the case, I Judge Simonton signed the following order, which was given to the marshal's department to be served : The United States of America, Dis trict of South Carolina-in the Circuit Court, Fourth District. W. A Vandercock company, a cor poration created under and by the laws of the State of California, I complainants, against S. W. Vance, W. N. Bahr, J. M. Scott. W. Liv \ ing8ton, C. S. Moseley, H. Peter I man, citizens and residents of the j State of South Carolina, defend I ants. On hearing and filing the bill of j complaint herein, and on motion of Bryan & Bryan, complainant's soli citors, it is Ordered, That the defendants show cause before this court on Monday, May l?th, 1897, at 10 a m., or as soon thereafter as counsel can be beard at Charleston. S. C., why the injunction as prayed in the bill should not issue. CHARLES H. SIMONTON, 3d May, 1897. Circuit Judge It has been known all along that the Vandercock company was mak in preparations for such action. Mr. Bryan was engaged several weeks ago to recover the carload of liquor which had been seized, or its value, and to secure such protection for the company's shipments as might be i necessary. The State has refused to I surrender the liquor to its various j consignees, and bas thrown every im I pediment in the way of the com j pany's trade -Tthe State. Wheo fevers aod other epidemics are around, safety lies io fortifying tbe system with Ayers Sarsaparilla. A person baring thin and impure blood, is in the most favor able contition to "catch" whatever disease may be floating in tbe air. Be wise in time. Rock nill, May 1--In a difficulty here to day, Mr John Harvey Neely was stabbed in the back of the neck y Mr. Sam Neely of this county. Mr. Neely is paralyzed and is in a critical condition. Greenville, May 1.-Senator J. II. Earle is considered by his physician to be a very sick man. He is suffer ing from kinney troubles, which have ' resulted in violent headaches, nausea : and restlessness. He cannot sleep without the aid of opiates. The Secretary of the Treasury will j recommend the r duction of the rev enue tax on distille 1 spirits and an ; increase in the tax on beer This i action will be taken on the ground I that the present tax of l 10 per gal lon is above the revenue producing i point. Mr. Mc onald Furman Writes uo Pretty and well Known Lit tie Town of this County. j "Qive us as big a boom as you can. V all love Wedgefield very much. We ba' some verj nice people around here." Such was in substance the language whi( feh from vbe lips of one of Wedgefield's plea aut citizens while engaged in conversatic with your correspondent on Tuesday. Se eral months ago we were invited to "wri i up" tts is pretty little town and we are no ! going to do so. We were tbere from Tue I day until yesterday afternoon for the purpo j of gathering material for this article. Wedgefiied is situated in the western part this county, about two and a half miles fro the Wateree river swamp, and is the bighe point oo the railroad between Wilmingtc and Columbia-it is eighty feet higher tba Sumter. Tbe grade from there to the riv swamp is seventy feet to the mile. The country surrounding Wedgefield rolling and quite pretty. The place itse may propeirjy be described as a scattere< pretty little county town of residences, store groves and fields. The population nombe about 300, colored predominating. The tow is unincorporated It may be stated be that the principal street stands on the ol Charleston and Camden public road, c which, according to a tradition which doubtless.entirely correct, Lord Cornwall traveled during the Revolutionary times. 1 troublous times of a later date, Gen. Potti and his federal troops travelled this san road. Tbere are biz general merchandise ston kept by white people as follows: J. Aycock and Sons, John B. Ryan, Frank I Thomas, H Coben, and W. B. Troublefielc Tbere are two stores kept by colored peopl T. W. C. Mintz and D. W. Williams. Wedgefield also bas a millinery store, whic is kept by Mrs. R. B. Gamble. She and Mi Annie Rowell are the dressmakers of tt town. Dr. F. M. Dwight represents the medici profession. Mr. E. M. Gilchrist is the depot agent an telegraph operator. About 2,5C0 bales < cotton are shipped from this point during season. There are two resident cotton buyei -Messrs D. B. McDaurin and W. W. Andei son, Jr ; the former represents B. B. Ford an the latter Alex Sprunt and Sons. Two mails are received here a day. Fo the last three years Mrs Cleo Troutman ha been postmistress and has filled the positio so efficiently that the Wedgefield people wis ber to be retained in the office. Presiden McKinley would not only do the proper tb inj bot also a graceful act, to accede to the wish es of Wedgefield's citizens in tbis matter. The Wedgefield section is famous for it farming lands. With ordinary manur Dj from eight to twelve hundred pounds of see< cotton is produced to the acre, and the aver age yield of good corn is from fifteen ti twenty-five bushels to the acre. The white Baptists, Presbyterians an; Methodists have neat church buildings; tb pastors are the Revs. T. Hartwell Edwards of Richland ; John Bailey, of Clarendon and W. J. Dowell of Wedgefield. There is J uoioo prayer meeting alternating betweei these churches. The Metbodiats have com pleted a neat, four room parsonage. Tbe colored people have three cbnrcbes Baptist, Presbyterian and Methodist-the pas tors are the Revs. Harmoo and Seabrook o Sumter and Miutz of Wedgefield There wai a public school ron at the last meutiouec church, but it is now closed. The late Mr. James H. Aycock, the promt oent planter and merchant of this section who died iu the autumn of 1895, gave thi land on which the Baptist and Presbyterial Churches stand ; be as buried near the las mentioned church, and bis grave is marked by a handsome monument. The Aycock res idence, which is on the edge of Wedgefield, is a large and handsome building. Ooe of the most important things ic Wedgefield is the white Graded School. Th building, which is cot yet finished, is a veri large one, and when it is completed, will bc highly creditable to the town. Mr. J. A. Merin, an earnest young educator, is tb principal, and is assisted by Miss Elise Sin gleton and Mrs. Meritt. This school is ruc from eight to nine months, and is free. There are seven grades and about 54 pupils. Latir is among the studies taught, and the highest mathematics taught is algebra. Both South Carolina and United States history is among the things taught. Mr. Meritt is a warm ad vocate of teaching our own history io scboolt io preference to the history of other coon tries One tbiDg taught at this school, which is ex tensively taught io both the private and pub lic schools of tbe North, but seldom in tb Sooth, is drawing and modeling. Tbis de partment is taught by Miss Singleton, and the modeling is taught io connection witt and preceding drawing. Prang is the system used. We saw some of the work of the pu pils which was free band drawing, and ad mirably done By tbis work is taught the basis of higher mathematics, building, archi tecture and other things. Independent of bet work at tbe Graded School, Miss Singleton bas a studio of ber own, which she kindly showed us, and which we found to be a room of much interest. We paid more than one visit to the school, and not only were we greatly pleased with it and the teachers, but also with the pupils, who are an interesting and pleasant body of young people, whose ages range from about six to about eighteen years. Wedgefield can certainly feel proud of ber excellent and progressive Graded School. The travelling public are cared for at the DuPont Haute, which has a pleasant reputa tion among the drumn ers. Ditferent newspapers are represented here by corre pondents. The Messrs. Aycock and Mr. Frank E. Thoma? have public ginneries. There also is j a mili a;:d gin mn by a jiint Stock company of colored people. Mr. R. L. Wright is putting up a wheel wright shop, and there are two blacksmith ! shops io town-ooe of Mr. J. N. Nunnery and j ! the other of Tom McLeod (colored). Tbere . is a colored brass baod, composed of twelve i .' members ; the bund master is A. P. Fielder, ! '?? who is also the town butcher. Another col ! ored mao ho deserves mention here is Fran i eis Rhodes, the shoemaker. ' ! During cur visit we were the guest at tbe I pleasant home of that, genial gentleman - Mr. I Peter Meliett, than whom there is HO more 1 bosoitable man in South Carolina. Mr. Mel i lett not only belongs to the we known Mel j lett family of Privateer Township, but was ( ; himself a Privateer boy. ! We are much indebted to those who kindly J i aided us in gathering up our material for this j ! article, and we will state that our objact is I not to "boom" Wedgefield, only to describe | I the pretty little tov.n and its pleasant people j as they really are. The memory of th'u visit j will ever remain with us as a very pleasant j one MCDONALD FORMAN. Ramsey, Privateer Township, April 29. Oswego Ramblings. Mr. Editor: You have been faithful to me and can say I have not been true to you. We have bad a bard time on our flat lands this year getting ready aod planting. Lands btf.ve been plowed too wet and hastily pre pared for the best results, and yet we may make a fine crop. Dry weather has caused bad etands of cotton, but the late rains have counteracted to some extent tbe effect of the dry weather. When I get my cotton up every year I think of Capt. Jas. McLeod's saving, "8ixty days will decide our fate as to a crop," and I reckon price to . Oats are looking very well in some places. Good stands of corn, bnt it is suffering from sand by the former heavy rains. 1 don't think there is any tobacco aroond here, except what is being chewed and smoked, and a wise conclusion, I think. We farmers are too easily drawn from one crop to another that somebody else has made money ont of. Let our money-crop price go down and the last son of a man wants to try something else. A new grass, weed, berry, squash, sugar beet, and some take up the hog and corn, melons and fruit, and finally return to tbe beautiful white staple and oily seed, convinced that cotton will make more mooey per acre and get you more credit than any thing we can grow or raise. I favor diyersi fled industries, but do exempt me from planting everything that grows and promises a dollar. Some for one thing aod.same for another, is an established truth that cannot be downed. These agents are clever fellows areot they. Once in a while they condescend to stop a night with us and tell us bow to make a fine crop, and a paying one, and why we dor't prosper. This, tboogb, is only human nature, for I have often thought if I had my neighbor's farm I could do so much better than he, and men have often said to. me if they only had my land they would be independent. Now and then you stumble on a brag who thinks be has the best land and makes more on it than anybody else, with less manure and work. You want news Mr. Editor, not so much common talk you will say, but how can J give you what I haven't got. If there bas been anything of the kind in this commnoity lately, I have not heard anybody 3ay any thing aboot il. Tbe churches under Revs. Rushton and Richards are movfbg on nicely, with live Sunday Schools. Prof. Covington's school at Bethel will continue another month as a public school, and may run another month as a private school. Patrons are highly pleased and will employ bim for another year if they can. Children's Day-third Sunday in May will be observed at Bethel Church. Last Friday Mr. Clyde held his Second Quarterly Meeting for Oswego Circuit. The rain made the congregation small, but we bad as big sermon as a big crowd wonld have bad. Tbe lunch wa3 quite an attraction in our large and comfortable school house. To have our official members and friends all seated around a long table well loaded, is re freshing io more than one way. War seems to *e on in good earnest over the water. A christian war they say, but don't seem to arouse Christendom to their help. Tbe great powers seem to be afraid one of the other, and when the two little fel lows were about to bitch all the big boys ran up in their great ships to see the fight Why don't they do like we did, appoint a commission and make a settlement for them. I hope this letter will reach you in good time, for sometimes it takes from two to three days for a letter to go from Oswego to Sumter. TI MMONS VILLE KOTES. Meeting of Florence District Con ference. Timmonsvilie, April 30.-The Florence District Conference met in the Methodist Church here yesterday morning at 9.30 o'clock, Presiding Elder Hodges io the chair. ' Rev. Jobo O. Wilson preached last night. Prof. C. B. Smith of Wofford College, will lecture to-night. To-morrow closes tbe business of the Con ference, but tbere. will be preaching in the different churches Sunday. The Conference promises to be very inter esting and profitable to those who attend. $100, Reward, $100. The readers of this paper will be pleased to leam that there is at least one dreaded disease that science bas been able to care io all its stages, and that is Catarrh. Hall's Catarrh Cure is the only positive cure cow known to the medicial fraternity. Catarrh being a constitutional disease, requires a constitu tional treatment. Hall's Catarrh Cnre is taken internally, acting directly opon the the blood and mucous surfaces of the system, thereby destroying the foundation of the dis ease, and giving the patient strength by building up the constitution and assisting nature in doing its work. The proprietors have so mnch faith in its curative powere, that they offer One Hundred Dollars for aoy case that it fails to cure Send for list of testimonials. Address, F. J. CHENEY & CO., Toledo. 0. Sold by Druggists, 75c. New York, May 3.-More demands for gold for export were made at the sob-treasury to-day with the results that $1.500,000 io gold coin was removed for shipment for steamers sailing to morrow. The total withdrawals since the movement began a week ago have been 7,977,000 Seoator Tillman aod Senator Morgan engaged in bitter personalities while debating the public land biil jester- j day. Mrs Marilla M. Rtcker, a member ! of the Wat-biogton bar, is aD applicant for the appoitjtmeut as minister to Colombia. I Fitzsiromons has declined to fight I ?! Joe Choynski, who must first whip I ! Corbett and Maher, Fitz says. ST. VITUS DANCE. A Physician Prescribes Dr. Miles' Restorative Nervine. Dr. Miles Medical Co., Elkhart, Ind.: My daughter Mattie, aged 14 wis afflicted last spring with St. Vitus dm.ee and ner vousness, her entire right r. ic was numb and nearly paralyzed. We consulted a phy y..._*&*^&Lo ; 1^ sician and he prescribed Dr. Miles* Restora tive Nervine. She took three bottles before we saw any certain signs of improvement, but after that she began to imp'rove very fast and I now think she is entirely cured. She has taken nine bottles of the Nervine, but no other medicine of any kind. Knox, Ind.. Jan. 5, '95. H. W. HOSTETTER. Physicians prescribe Dr. Miles' Remedies because they arc known to be the result of the long practice and experience of one of the brightest, members of their profession, and are carefully compounded by experi enced chemists, in exact accordance with Dr. Miles' prescriptions, as used in his practice. On sale at all druggists. Write for Dr. Miles' Book on the Heart and Nerves. Dr. Miles Medical Co., Elkhart, Ind. Dr. Miles' Remedies Restore Health. t S tern Detective Af CHARLOTTE, N. C., DO ALL KINDS of legetimate Detective Work at reasonable rates. ARSON, MURDER, DIVORCE SPECIALTY. March 10-6m* SUMTER RESTAURANT. Reduced Prices Regular Meals 25cts. Private Dining Room for Ladies. Dec. 30. I To Ton I Who Use PENS, INK, I Paper, Blank Dooks.-; At H. G. OSTEEN CO'S j You can get everything that you < want at the lowest prices. Weare so J situated that we can afford to make prices closer than any one else. All Goods are new and of the best quality,, No shop worn goods. We make a specialty of School Supplies and also keep a foll line of Stationery, Blanks Books, Etc Come and inspect our goods. HIM & CO, j LIEEBTY STEHST, SUMTEE, S. C j O Dip no more-wheo you be gin Let your pen slide 'till you're done-you eao/t do it without a Waterman Idea! Fountain Pen. \sE SELL THEM. H. G. OSTEEN & CO, LIBERTY ST. D. M. YOUNG, ATTORNEY AT LAW. Prompt attention to ill business entrusted to him. Office on Court House Square, in Blacding office.