University of South Carolina Libraries
'?*8UKns WATCHMAN, Established April? isso. "Be Just and Fear not-Let all the Ends thou Aims't at, be thy Country's, thy God's and Truth's." THE TBUE SOUTHRON. Established june. 1 ZHG Consolidated Aug. 2,1881. SUMTER, S. C., WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12,1898. New Series-Yol. XVII. 2?o. 24 jPtftllslKd E73T7 Wednesday? KT. <3r. Osteen, S?MT?R, S. C. TKRMs : $1.50 per ?noam-in advance. ADTBSTI8CMBST: Gae Square first ?08ertioq....^.".^...??$l 00 Srsry subsequentinsertion^.......... 50 Contracta for'three moates, or longer wil be made at redocri raws. Ali coooriaicat?on3 which subserve private interests will be charred for as adveriiemeots. Obituaries and tribales of respects will be tiMKTfred for, Rosds of a Country. AN HISTORICAL VIEW. Public Eoads the Physical Symbols by * Which to Measure Progress of Aoy Age or Peo? ple. It is trite remark that the roads of V country are an index of its civiliza ?on-that they are the physical sym? bol by which to measure the progress j?f any age or people? "If the com murnty is stagnant the condition of the reads will indicate the fact ; if they Ibave no roads they aire savages." Koada are not cn?y the first product ?f civilization, but reacting they be? come the chief factor in its advance? ment Look where we will in history we find that road building and pros? perity go together, that every great peo^tfe have made this one of the foremost industrial questions Indera the Incas, build great road, the remains of which attest their maguifieecDe Humboldt, in his "As peet of Nature." speaks of the moon tam road from Quito to Bosco, as 1 ' a marvelous work, not inferior to the most imposing Bomen roadways. It was from 1,500 to 2,000 miles io length, 20 feet wide, payed with stones IO feet sqoare, and bsd a run? ning stream and road of shade trees on each side." Prescott says : "It was conducted over sierras covered with snow ; galleries were cot through living rock ; rivers were ^ 'crossed by means of bridges swung suspended in the air ; precipices were scaled by stairways hewn ont of the native bed. and ravines of hideous depth were filled up'with solid mason rv.7> The streets of Boby?on were paved, h issaid, 2,000 years B C : and the highway leading from Babylon to Memphis^ was paved at an early date, and atong it rose the cities bf Ninevah Palmyra; Damascos. Pyre, Antioch and other great commercial .wrns. The' importance of the rosds to the weifere of cations was not unknown to the Greeks. The senate of Athens, the governments of Lacedaemon, Thebes and other states of Greece bestowed much care opon them The Carthagenians also were ey ste matic and scientific road makers ; and not a little of their commercial and military importance is due to that fact. The Kora ans learned the art of road building from Carthage, and in their banda it reached its highest develop mest. The earliest and greatest of Roman roads, the Appian way, was commenced io 312, B.C." The city of Rome was sfterwars connected with all the chief tot?ns by paved roadways. Later these lines of com? munication were extended through Ssvoy, Danphine and Province ; through Germany, every part of Spain ; through Gaul, and even to Constantinople ; through Hosgary, Macedonia and to the mouths of the Danube. Neither did the interposi? tion of seas obstruct the labor or daunt the enterprise of this great people. The lines of communication thus constructed to the shores of the continent of Europe were continued at corresponding points of the neigh? boring islands and continents-Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia: England, Africa and Asia were accordingly penetrated and intersected by roads forming the con? tinuation of the great European Hues These gigantic works were the most solid structures of their Kind which have been formed in any age, and many of them still remain, often for? ming the foundation of modern roads, and in some instances constituting the road surface now used. A trench was excavated the entire length and width of the roadway ; and in this the road materials were placed in four layers, having a total thickness of about S feet : (1 ) The statomen, consisting of large Hat stones laid in mortar ; (2 ) the rudus, composed of broken stone and mortar well con? solidated by ramming; 3.) the nucleus, a misture of bi ok en brick, tile, gravel and lime ; (4 ) the summa crusta, a pavement of stone, closely jointed, and fitted with the utmost nicety. Altboogh these roads were eminently durable, they were deficient in the for a good road,and Hora.ce states that they were "less fatiguing to people who travel slowly*" They were remarkable! chiefly for their lavish disregard of every obstacle, and are monuments rather of military despotism, than of engineering skill. Daring the reign of lawlessness following the breaking up of che em? pire these roads were infested with robbers and cut throats and were avoided and neglected by the people, and soon became impassable ; such intercourse ' as was maintained was conducted over rude paths. With the reconstruction of society the roads gradually became passable for animals and tue rude vehicles of the time ; but no serious attempt was made anywhere to replace the .-public highways until the middle of the sev? enteenth century. Road building was taken up in Prance about 1660 by Louis XIV, who had several fine roads made in the vicinity of Paris They were very wide, but were paved only in the centre The people very soon be gan to appreciate the advantage of good roads, but it was" not until the advent of Napoleon that the modern system of magnificent highways was inaugurated. 'The material and financial prosperity, thriftiness and contentment of the French people bas long excited the admiration of world ; neither internal revolution nor defeat from ^b road appears to have entailed upon them burdens too heavy for them to bear Students of economic problems ascribe this mar? vellous condition to the.far reaching and splendidly maintained system of highways, on which the obstacles to economical transportation have been reduced to the minimum." The almost incredibly bad state of the roads in England towards the lat? ter part of the 17tb century appears from the accounts cited by Macaulay (His b ? lil) The Encyclopedia Britannica says : "It was due chiefly to the mate of the law which com? pelled each parish Jo maintain its roads by statute 'labor " A hundred years later it does seem to have been greatly improved Mr. Arthui Young writing in 1770 of one of the principal highways, says : "I know not in the whole range of language, terms sufficiently expressive to de? scribe this infernal road." li was attempted to relieve this in? tolerable condition by a system' of toll roads, and about 30,000 miles were built by the end of the century; but they were so badly built that they were soon in as bad or a worse condition "They were managed." says the Encyclopedia Brittanica, "by igrnoraut and incompetent men, until Telford and Macadam brought scientific principles and regular sys tem to their construction and repair " The name bf Telford is associated with a type of road which had been used by Tresagnet in Fiance fifty years before ; "and the name of Macadam often characterizes roads on which all bis precepts are disregard* ed " Contemporaries, and in some respects rivals, to these two men England owes her present admirable system of roads Dickens says: Our shops, our horses legs, our boots, our beauts, have all been bene? fited by the introduction of Maca* dara " Moat of the paragraph? above have been condensed from "Highway Construction.'* hy A. T. Byrne, and from the "Encyclopedia Brittanica They would have been quoted out? right bad space permuted. In the United States, ?be road question came into prominence at a very early date. At the beginning of the preseut century congress set aside a ceiiaio part of the proceeds of the sale of public lands to road building. The ninth congress pass an act providing for Che construction of the "Cumberland Road," from Cumberland, Maryland, into Ohio ; and frcm 1810 to 1816 appropriations were made for continuing this work amounting to $680,000, and 850 miles were built In 1817 Jno. C. Calhoun introduced a oieasure "tu congress providing thai: ?he bonna .and dividends received by fcbe United States fro? its newry char? tered national baok be set aside for roads and casals, amounting to about ?650,000 per yea** Io support of thia iur. Ca ?boon said in part: "The man? ner in which facility and cheapness of intercourse add to the wealth of a na? tion has been so often nod ably disco ? ed by writers7 on political economy that I presume tbe house to be perfectly ac? quainted with tbe subjeot. It is suffi eiect to observe that every branch of national industry-agriculture, manu? facturing and commercial-is stimulat? ed and rendered by it more productive. Tbe recul: is to diffuse universal opul? ence lt gives to the interior the ad vantages possessed by the ports most eli? gibly situated for trade lt makes the country price, whether in the sale of the raw product or io the purchase of tbe articles for consumption, approxi? mate to that of the commercial towns. Io fact if we looks into the nature of wealth we find that nothing can be more favorable to its growth than good roads and oinals. * * * * Every portion of the community, the farmer, the mechanic and the merchant will feel its good effects ; and what is of greatest importance,the strength of the commodity will begreatly augmented, aod its: political prosperity rendered moro sesure." Henry Clay also spoke io favor of this measure, defending ?ts constitutionality, bat it was vetoed by Preside ot Monroe on the ground that it wa" unconstitutional. From 1806 to 1833 is addition to the Cumberland road, congress expend* ed $1,1)00,000 on various highways; one leading from the frontier of Geor? gia towards New Orleans, one from De? troit to Chicago, one from Memphis into Arkansas, and one from Nashville to Natchez. From 1854: to 1860, an? other psriod of activity, $1,600,000 was expended, chiefly in the territories, Soutfc Cirolina took up the road problem very early in her history. 0? the 26:b of May 1882. the Colonial Assembly passed tba first road law en? titled "An act for Highways.71 In 1737 an act vas passed directing a road to be built to Orangebarg from "the bead of the path that leads from Dorchester to Capt. [zird's cow pen." In 1742 an act was passed providing for a ferry across Saetee river and a road made in oonceotien with it "to facilitate the par sage of travelers from Charleston to Williamsburg aod others, the northwest ern parts of this province." From 1753 to1786 tbe following roads were pro? vided for : from Eotaw Springs through Manchester, Camden, and Lancaster court boase from Fort Mott to Fishing Creek ; from Society Hill to Bennetts ville, Mirioo, Coowayboro and George? town ; and from she same point to Darlington. Kin gs tree and Fort Mott ; from Orangebarg to Ninety-Six, Ab? beville and Pendleton ; from Angosta to Edgefield, Ninety-Six and Fish Dam ; and from Friday's Ferry on Coo garee River to Angosta. Io 1788 a general road law was passed, requiring 12 days work or a commutation tax of $2 00 per diem, aod io 1789 the foods derived from tavern licenses were appropriated to road improvement. . These early roads were, as a gen? eral thing, located with remarkable skill, and well built, as tba present condition of many of them wi I i prove. Draytoo's "View of Sooth Carolina," published in 1802. says : "The roads io the state are well adapted to travel? ing and transportation, eveo to the moue tains ; and hence wagons fiod no difficulty io coming from the upper counties, bringing with them the com? modities of that distant region. Croea* roads to and from each oourt boase are -made throughout the state, aod a wagoo road bas lately been made from thc north fork of Salada river over the in ooo tai ns to Knoxville, io the state of Tennessee, by which wagoos have pass? ed oarryiog loads of 2.500 pounds weight. * * * * Aod at this time a carriage and four may ba driven from any part of this State to the other, from the sea shores to the mountains, without soy other difficulty than such as naturally arise io loog journeys. As a farther proof of the high de gree of effioVsncy of these old state roads, the cost of transportation by wagoos between Colombia and Charles? ton in 1821. aa given by Mr. Robert Mills,, was only 17-22 100 cents per ton per mile. Standard authorities give the cost at 18 cents per too per mile on tbe very best earth roads, while the average cost io this state now is variously estimated at from 25 to 40 cents. Since the beginning of th- ailway era in the thirties thc history of the pablie roads in this slate has been en? tirely without interest, recording only a steady and unbroken decline. An effort was made about ten years ago by the writer to awake n some interest in the subject, bot it was soon crowded ont by other issues. It is to be boped that the present movement marks a turning point, and that with the begin? ning of the 20th century, an era of great ac.ivity io road building will be commenced. Chas. C. Wilson, Secretary. About That Interview With Senator Tillman. Special to the State. Washington, Jan. 4.-Referring to? day to notes made at tbe time of my conversation with Senator Tillman I find ?bat it ocoared Thursday morning, Dec 23, not Friday, Dec 24 During the call at the senator's residence Miss Tillman's piano was brought to the bouse. The senator was suffering with a revere cold and cough. His mouth was covered with ugly sores and alto? gether bis appearance and manner in? dicated serious illness. Reports of a grave nature concerning bis health caused The State's correspondent to call at bis residence. A brief reference to the matter appeared in The State on Dec. 24, followed by a faller account by mail. J B. H Anderson, Jan. 6.-The election to decide the question of the issue of bonds by the city for the building of the projected Black Diamond rail? road, was held today. The vote was practically unanimous in favor of the issue, one ballot being cast against it. For His Sweetheart. The Bomantic Trip of a ^Young Man Around the World in Eighteen Months Before He Can Wed His Sweetheart. As the party referred to is in Sum? ter to day, the fellowing story told by the Yorkville correspondent of the News and Courier will interest oar readers. Mr. T. Allen McQuary, who start? ed ont from Mountain Grove, Mis souri, to make a trip around the world for an Arkansas girl and $5,000 arrived in Yorkville last Saturday afternoon, and remained until this morning when he proceeded on bis journey. It is not probable that a eimilar task has ever before been undertaken for a similar reward, and under such peculiar conditions. The story is especially interesting in view of the fact that it is a genuine ro? mance in real life, and will be read with interest by all the readers of the News and Courier. Here are the leading facts : Mr. McQuary is a young man of good family, the son of a minister of the Christian Church, who lives at Neo sho, Mo , is about 23 years of age, and has undertaken, to make a trip around the world in eighteen months, to convince an eccentric but wealthy father of a beautiful young girl that young men of to day are made out of as good material as was in use when the old gentleman wsis young, and above all to receive upon his return the hand of the young lady in mar? riage. The full details of the story were published in many of the leading pa? pers of the country, including the New York Journal, the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. Cincinnati Post and others, when Mr. McQuary started out on his journey, but your cor? respondent will give it as told to bim briefly as follows. "After several years' experience as a printer and publisher in Neohso, Mo , -I am now 23 years of age I sold out my business and took work as a commercial traveler, My busi? ness carried me into several of the Mississippi Valley States, including Arkansas. Railroad facilities in por? tions of the latter State are not very good, and on account of this, in one lit tie town I was invariably detained for about twenty four hours on each trip. Here I became acquainted with a pretty little girl, and this acquain? tance was renewed upon subsequent trips, until I finally realized that 1 had met my fate. It developed that the young lady's father was a rich Ex-Confederate who owned many thousand acres of land and lived about four miles from the town. When my sweetheart and I ai last decided, thct we would get married,, we found opposition on the part of the old gentleman. She is his only daugh? ter, and her mother having died at ber birth, the old gentlemen is pecu? liarly attached to her. I begged and persuaded the old gentleman, until one day he tried to put me off with the assertion that yonng men of to day are not made of the same kind of stuff as when he was yonng ; that they did not try to do for themselves, but were always on the lookout, for rich wives with whom they expected to get a fortune without work. I in? sisted that the young men were all right if they had the opportunity to show it, and told him that I was wil? ling to submit to any test. He took me up, and a few days later banded rae a written document with a request for me to sign it. "The document was in the nature of a contract between us, and pro? vided that I must start out on the 19th of May, 1897, without a cent of money in my pockets, earn enough to buy a horse, clothe myself in a velvet snit, gird a sword about me, take two dogs and make the trip around the world in eighteen months. Must pay my way wherever I go, in an honorable manner, and must do 5,000 miles of the trip on horseback ; the other 20,000 by ship. I must get the signatures of the Govornors of the States I pass through and the postmarks of the towns along the route, I roust go to Cuba and get the signatures of the generals on either side. If I return within the eighteen months allowed, then I am to have the old gentleman's permission to marry bis daughter. It is a condition, however, that under no circumstances must I ever men tion his name until afeer I have per formed my task "When the old gentleman first gave me the contract to sign I thought he was joking I hesitated ; be banter? ed, and I finally signed it My sweetheart did not want me to under take the journey, and was willing to settle the matter in another way. She is true blue. For a time I thought the old gentleman would relent, and he thought I would back out. But I made my arrangements to start, and when he became convinced that I meant business he amended the con tract by offering in addition to the hand of his daughter, after I com? pleted the journey, the sum of $5,000 cash. "Well, I started from Mountain Grove the date mentioned, told the newspaper reporters of my undertak? ing, worked in various printing offices until I got enough money to buy a horse and the prescribed costume. Mr. James Douglas, of Mountain Grove, gave me my sword. I bought one of my greyhounds, and Chief Kennedy, of the Springfield fire department, gave me the other oo condition that it shall wear a collar eograved with the names of bis men. Slr. S. J. Immel, of Springfield, fitted me out with my horse furniture at the cost of the material, and other friends, helped me oat with small contributions in cash. "Thus, uoder :he most encouraging auspices, I started forth, and here I ?am. I have beeo through the States of Missoari, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Keotacky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia aod North Carolina. Gen? erally I have not had a hard time of it. The newspaper men along the route have generously given me work when? ever I have asked for it, and at two places I got oat special advertising edi? tions of newspapers. Up in Ohio I worked four days helping to grade a railroad, driving a scraper. From here I go to Lancaster, thence to Cam? den, thence to Sumter, tbeoee to Monck** Comer, and thence to Char? leston, where I will sell my horse ; bot still, with my dogs, will take a steamer to Key West, and from there will go to Coba "Up to this poiot I have ridden 2,400 miles. The water part of the journey will, however, be the most exacting drud ?erv, as I will have to come dowo to the hardships of the common sailor. I am corresponding with the New York Journal, St. Louis Globe-Democrat aod several other prominent papers. The remaining portion of the land journey commences at Sao Francisco, and will be by a e" lit?os route back to the. starting pobt. " Mr. McQaary explains as the reason for bis peculiar costume the fact that it will make bis ideotity so mach easier, aod the old gentleman's prohibition as to the mentioning of bis name, is to avoid oewppcper notoriety, especially on account of the young lady. It is possible that tbe old geotlemao and the yoQOg lady will be at Charleston, bat of this Mr. McQivry is unable to speak with certainty. Notice was sent out yesterday to the effect that Mr. McQaary wonld tell his story io the Court House last night, that the lecture would be free, and that everybody was invited. .Notwith? standing the very inclement weather a fairly good-sized audience, composed of the representative people of the towo, including a goodly number of ladies, were present. The story was told io simple cooversational style, in a plain, straightforward manner, with? out any attempt on the part ot the hero to magnify self, excite sympathy or anytbioy of that kicd. Everybody was pleased with the speaker and what he said, and the way in which he said it. Mr. McQaary has abondant evidence that bis story is absolutely trae, aod allows aoy who may desire to do so to satisfy themselves, and be bas no fault to find with those who imagioe be is a fake, or who think he is oat on a silly mission. He impresses one as being a high-toned, honest, Christian gentle? man, and a mao of refined tastes and sensibilities During his stay io Yorkville be set type on the Enquirer and proved him? self a good workman. If be completes his trip, and there is every reason to believe that he will, he will do doubt prove a worthy son-in-law to the eccen? tric old gentleman whoset for him such a remarkable task. He expects to arrive in Charleston duriog the latter part of next week, and it goss without saying that his reception will be so warm, cordial and free that the pleasant memories of it will linger in hts mind and heart long after many of the other pleasant and un pleas?ot incidents conneoted with bis remarkable undertaking have been for? gotten. Beaten to Death. Special to Tbe State. Clinton, Jan. 4 -James Hunter, a negro, died here this afternoon at 4 o'clock from a whipping administer ed this morning by parties from the country, or from a fal? received while trying to make his escape. Dr Robert L Daboey, D. D., L L D , the distinguished divine and schol? ar, died at Victoria. Texas, yesterday. Fie was Stonewall Jackson's obaplain Fall River, Jan. 5.-The doth mar? ket for nearby futures took another drop to-day and a small scale, rumored to be 2,000 pieces weekly was made for January. February aod March delivery j at 2 3 16 cents, a decline of 1-16 Itt is also reported that spots were sold at ! this figure, but this oaunot be verified. The reduction almost offsets the ben? efit derived by the redaction in wages and the consequent decrease of the cost of production. _ THE PENITENTIARY. One of the Most Prosperous Ste te I ostituitions. Tbe penitentiary is one of the most prosperous institutions of the state. Within a few days Superintendent Neal expects to pay into the state treasury $10,000 for the general fund, a sum made from the operations of the penitentiary This is the first time in the history of the institution that such a thing has been done and ie an indisputable evidence of the efficiency of the management. In addition to this the sum of $8,869. 72 was paid on the Reed farm pur? chase, being the last payment on the price of the farm-$10,000. The money to boy the farm was borrowed on a four year basis, but it has all been paid within two years. Even with these payments the in? stitution will have enough money on hand to run on a cash basis this year, paying for supplies, guano, etc., in? stead of purchasing them on credit. It is a splendid showing and one that the directors, the superintendent and the state should be proud ol-r Columbia Register. A New Theory. fiere is an interesting smallpox ar? ticle from the Yorkville..Enquirer: A remarkable fact about the alleged smallpox epidemic in Atlanta is that, notwithstanding the large number bf caaes, there has not been a single death from the disease Several who have had the alleged disease died while it was still on them, but the doctors report that death was due to other causes. Many of the doctors insist positively that the disease is smalllpox, while others claim dif? ferently. These latter are supported by a considerable number of outsid? ers. The story is that a eirena and menagerie, which went through the city some months ago, discarded there a large quantity of straw that had been used for bedding Negroes took this straw and used it for the same purpose, and it was among these negroes that the troublesome disease first made its appearance. The disease spread considerably ; but as yet the number of white victims bas been very small. Those who claim to know most about the matter, say that the disease, which manifests itself in an eruption that looks like smallpox, is what is known in Africa, and from there in other parts of the world, as "elephant's itch." JNo such disease is reaognized in the medical books by that name, but it is generally conceded that there are several eruptive diseases of a more or less malignant character which may be easily mistaken for smallpox. While the fact of the existence of the rumors, etc , outlined comes from good authority, our information is that nothing is positive and we give the matter only for what it may be worth. No More Free Advertising for the Pensions. , In some counties pension boards are advertising o ot ieee which are important to claimants. Heretofore ? ociciB of a ?ike character were publish? ed in Abbeville, bat sicco tbe authori? ties refused to pay anything at all fer the service, 6uch notices do not appear in the Abbeville papers The Abbeville printers have not yet discovered any plan by which their newspapers can be published without cost The newspapers at Abbeville have done more free advertising for the pen? sioners, and bave received less thanks for it, than for any work which tbey have done. ?. As soon as we go ioto the business for our health or conclude to continue it solely for the fun of it, we wiil take up the pension busiussi again -Abbe? ville Press and Banner. BUCKLERS ARSttCA SALVE . 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