Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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HEIL' -SOFTER -WATCHMAN, Established April, 1850. '' He "Josi and Tear noblet all the ends Thoa Alms't at be thy' Country's, Thy' God's and Troth's." THE TRUE SOUTHRON, Established Jose, 18*? ?j?n oUiiated Aug. 2, 1881, SUMTER. S. C.. WEDNESDAY. APRIL 4. 1906 Sew Series-Vol. XXY. So Z7 Published Every Wednesday, -BY 8STE?N PUBLISHING COMPANY. SUMTER, S.' C Terms: $1.50 per annum-in advance. Advertisements: One Square first insertion...... S1.5 0 Every subsequent insertion. 50 Contracts for three months, or longer will be made at reduced rates. All communications which sub l serve private interests will be charged ? for as advertisements. Obituaries and tributes of respects ! will be charged for. SENATOR TILLMAN'S?DDR^ HE OtJTIJNES HES VIEWS ON THE DISPENSARY AT GREAT LENGTH. But Taken Altogether it is More of a Plea Than a Defence of the System. He Charges That There is a Ring Forming in Columbia, Which is No News. Washington, 31. - Senator w March Tillman has issued his promised ad? dress to the people of South Carolina on the dispenasry situation in the State. FeCow^Citizens: It was only from a sense of the highest public duty that I feel called upon to address you at this time. Burdened as I am with national concerns nothing but obligations to the people induce me to take upon my shoulders the additional work of di? recting your attention to matters af? fecting the State alone. But I have never felt or believed it to be the wish sad intention of the people of South Carolina that my electron to the sen- ? ate should cause me to lose all inter esc and concern about home affairs. I j was a citizen and taxpayer before I j ever "held any office at ali and I will be a etizen and taxpayer after I shall cease to hold office. Therefore, it is unnatural and improper fronvmy point of view for rae to" take no interest and have no thought about what is going on in South Carolina. No Dictation or Bossism. I have received a great deal of ad? vice recently from the newspapers of our State to the effect that I should attend to my duties in Washington and leave others to discuss and direct af? fairs at home. The common trend of all of this advice is that I should dis- j cuss national questions in the coming j State campaign, be re-elected to the senate, with or without opposition, and ! not stir up strife. I am warned and i threatened should I not heed this counsel, but in spite of it all I feel compelled to speak to the people with my usual frankness and bluntness and let them determine the whole question. I have never sought to dictate to the people; ? have only told them the truth as I see it, given my opinions for what they were worth', and I am always willing to abide by their ac? tion whatever that may be. It is so in this instance. It gives me no concern that my return to the senate may be Jeopardized. There are things more to be dreaded than the loss of a seat In the senate, one is the loss of my own self-respect. I have been trusted by the people of South Carolina and have been honored by them' far be? yond my deserts, have been chosen as their leader and been followed loyally. * Now if after sixteen years I should from selfish motives, betray their con? fidence and allow ambition to draw me aside from the path* of duty, I would deserve and expect to ' receive ?- ? - i their contempt and punishment at the ? polls. I, therefore, scorn all sugges- ? tions of co war ly non-interefence in J State affairs. The people know me too well to be fooled by the assertion that ; it is my desire to boss or dictate, for j my sole purpose is to give them the j benefit of my experience and knowl? edge and offer such advice as in my judgment will be conducive to the pub? lic welfare. Then I will abide cheer? fully by whatever conclusion they may reach. "Teach the people and trust the people" was Jefferson's motto; teach the people and trust the people is equally my motto and that is all I shall attempt to do at this time. Ring Rule Threatened. Sixteen years ago there WAS a revo? lution in South Carolina which gave the common people of the State for the first time in its his'cry that recogni? tion which wns their due and made them in reality the masters of our pub lie affairs. r The old ring was over? thrown; the primary system, which gave every man. however poor and l umble. an equal vote with every other man. h uvever rich and high followed; the new State constitution gave us temporary immunity from negro dom? ination. the utmost freedom of discus? sion in all political activities was as? sured; and under these new impulses } # concern. It may be that receipts r be shown for the rebates which r have been returned and also for p ment of this piano which may h been received as was rumored to the satisfactory explanation in case of the Towill horse matter. Still we do not know the facts in gard to these things and think the 1 islature intended for us to investig such transactions as these as well other vague and uncertain matters which common rumor gives curren We must do. our duty in looking i: these things and you may pudge the above samples that we must hi much time in doing it. Furthermc it is not expedient and I would not '< prove of the committee h'olding a pi lie session every time Senator Chri enseri and I have done \ all we can, examining each claim. I recognize i fact that we may be chasing a "w o'-the-wisp" in all of these matt? arid that your clients may suffer the meantime, but, whether our effo be such a chase or not, it seems c tain that in all events our commit must walk through the mire. The opinion is so prevalent that 1 dispensary has been a breeder of much corruption that no one c touch it without the suspicion of so: one being aroused. Unfortunately, the case of our committee, the insir ation of this suspicion is cast upon in the public prints by one who, abc all others, may know of the innerm affairs of the dispensary as transact by its officers since ifs inception. I trust, however, that we will fin; ly emerge from our distasteful ta meriting the confidence and approx of all honest citizens. Believing tl this will satisfactorily explain our c lay, I am Yours very truly, J. Fraser Lyon. Senator Tillman Replies to Mr. Fras Lyon's Letter, j C. W. Moorman, the Greenville cc respondent of the State sends the f( lowing to that paper under Greenvi date: Senator B. R. Tillman was seen ye terday by a representative of T State as the senator was on his w; from Washington to Clemson colle to attend an important ^neet?vg-ef-?r board of trustees. He was asked if ' , had anything to say in reply to the li ter of Mr. J. Fraser Lyon, published the State Saturday. The senator h? not seen the letter, and when a co] of jt was handed to him, he read it ai grew wrathy as he read. Being und the impression that the publicat? shown him was only an outline of M Lyon's letter, he was at first disincli: ed to say much, but when he beean satisfied that he was in possession of ? complete copy of the letter, he thre off the silene'e and talked with cha acteristic freedom, denouncing the le ter as sneaking and Mr. Lyon's 'refe ence to the rumor that a whiski house had presented Senator Til?ni? with a piano, as <4a dirty, cowardly ia situation." The senator was first approached t the newspaper man as he sat in tl new passenger station at Charlot scanning a large number of South Ca: dina newspapers with which h traveling bag was packed. The int-e: view continued interruptedly on boar the Southern Southwestern Limited 2 far as Greenville. Grew Indignant. After reading the letter, Senate Tillman was indignant and grew m-o* so as he talked. "I am surprised," he said, ""that gentleman such as I thought M. L3ron to be wouid go in the papers i such a sneaking way as this. Eve the name of a lawyer to whom h wrote is not given, but whether h authorized its publicity or not. I as sume it to be authentic. *T have not attacked the investigat ing committee; I only warned it in 1 friendly spirit. And why? Either th $700.000 worth of claims against-th State board are valid and binding o they are not. I say they are not, be cause the whiskey was bought con trary to law and the State is not legal ly bound for payment. "The committee knows this now a; well as it will ever know it. Messrs L^-on and Christensen have blacklisted certain firms; the presumption is the> have discovered evidences of fraud. Il those firms have acted dishonestly the 3ld board cannot be clean; but leav? ing Messrs. Lyon and Christensen to hunt for proofs, to which I do not ob? ject, again I ask: 'Why the delay?' "Whether fraud is proven or not, no decent lawyer will contend that these large purchases of whiskey are legal: First, because there was not competi? tive bidding, as the law requires; sec? ond, because the law expressly limits the amount that may be on hand to $400.000 and instead of dickering with lawyers employed to collect the mon? ey, it is the investigating committee's plain duty to repudiate the whole transaction, forbid the new board to pay for any liquor and thus have an end tu it. Messrs. Lyon and Christen beautiful picture as shown in the news items about the recent murder in a blind tiger in Greenville, followed by a similar occurrence in Columbia, but upon the whole a man would be very much horrified to know how much money flows into the coffers of those journals from whiskey advertisements, while the same papers are exploiting prohibition and sobriety. A little calm consideration without v bias or prejudice will soon convince a man of ordinary sense that the whis? key traffic now as compared with the whiskey traffic under the dispensary is something like this: Liquor used to be sold by the pint and quart mainly through the dispensaries, ' it is now sold through the express offices by the gallon and keg, while the retailing is done by the drink almost everywhere as in the good old barroom days. The moonshiners ere, of course, getting in their work unmolested. There may be less drunkenness, though I doubt it, under the present regime than there was under the dispensary, but what is the actual condition? The poor man cannot get his liquor from Georgia or North Carolina, but must buy from the fellow who brings it in by express or ^ from the moonshiner who peddles it about the country. The rich man has I no such trouble and it makes little dif ! ference to him whether the supply comes from the dispensary or express office. How was this situation brought j about? Is it by the direction or under I the orders of the whole Democratic party? Oh, no. Did it come to pass by the votes of the prohibitionists? No. How then? The three elements opposing the dispensary, prohibition? ists, high license men and -moonshin? ers or blind tigers, all combined to vote the dispensary out. To make this the more clear, I have prepared a table which will be understood at a glance by any man who- reads it and ! which will show conclusively this fact; that a majority of the Democrat? ic voters in no one county declared against the dispensary system and that this prohibition which we now have in j these fifteen counties is in no sense the will of the Democracy. Why didn't the people vote at these elections un? der the Brice law? The answer is easy. Many of them could not because they were not qualified electors and more of them would not because they jvere disgusted by the mismanagement and 4 corruption which have been shown to exist in the state dispensary and in some of the county dispensaries. >i!s Under the Brice Bill. No Vote for Gov. Dispensary. Total. Aug. 1904. 761 1,173 2,594 845 1,22k 2,616 1,148 1,429 3,299 725 856 3.158 854 1,176 2,663 ?56 1,082 2,557 638 1,881 2,896 680 971 ? 2,403 667 753 2,918! 2,114 2,530 7.080! 858 1,241 6,767 l,l??^ a 1..867 5,66^ 205 * 579 i,5H! 425 623. 1,730 . 371 609 1,963 588 1.035 2,156 818 1.590 3,194 13,800 20,115 54,730 an one-half of the people voted, while r of no dispensary. ? j ned from the office of the secretary of ds of the Democratic state committee, e prepared which .it is also well for v ? ? ! . 1 : . : . !.., j 1 ? 1 : il Year Ending November 30th, 1905. rom Special Dispensary ry. School Fund. Total. 3 $ 4,620.76 ' $37,419.39 A 2,029.58 16,784.02 9 . 2,582.09 8,936.28 6 4,371.62 38,905.08 4 4.2*3.13 8.045.87 6 3,004.56 13,661.92 0 3,159.59 18,828,89 4 2,424.33 10.262.7? 8 2,796 03 10,535 71 8 1,971.32 4,241.50 '} 2.968.60 6,647.40 2 5,330.19 36,930 41 5 2,181.86 15,007 12 ) 2,543 35 7,137.85 20 S45,207.01 . $232.334,21 less our people have lost all capacity for self-government and are no longer abie to think and act for themselves, they will see to it that strong, honest, reliable men are nominated in each county fur the legislature and that each candidate that does not pledge himself to carry out the will of the majority of the people in regard to whiskey shall be defeated. The blind tigers, the barroom element and pro? hibitionists will doubtless all combine and support anti-dispensary candi? dates as they have hitherto done, for tiiey will hardly put up candidates pledged to their several policies. It is therefore the dispensary against the field and the only complication likely to cause trouble is the division among the dispensary advocates of those who want each county to buy liquor for itself and of those who think it can ! be more cheaply and honestly done through the State dispensary. There is therefore danger of the dispensary forces being divided into two factions and of the advocates of the county dispensary system aligning th?m selves with the other three elements. County and State Dispensaries. Let us consider for a moment the relative advantages and disadvantages of county dispensaries and state dis? pensary. I declare most emphatically my belief that by proper changes in the law along the lines suggested in the Raysor-Mannh.7 bill that all pos? sibility of stealing and bribery in the purchase of whiskey for the state can be prevented and it stands to reason that if liquor is purchased at whole? sale by one board, shipped by the car load, and bottled at one establishment that there will be a great saving in the expense. The county dispensaries would have no facilities for handling the whiskey, but leaving ali of this out of consideration the one crucical ?test of the relative merits of the two systems, state dispensary or county dispensaries, is simply this: If we cannot by law- so hedge about and con-1 trol one state board as to prevent stealing, how in the name of common sense' will we be able to watch and prevent thirty or forty boards from doing it? Because the retiring State board and its predecessors has en? gaged in questionable practices and was guilty of such gross mismanage? ment and malfeasance in office is no argument to show that the law cannot be changed so as to destroy all oppor? tunity for such practices. No law will execute itself, andrwhen those charged with the execution of the law fail ut? terly and there is neglect from the highest to the lowest, it follows, as a matter of course, that it is the duty of the people to elect men who will not flinch of neglect their sworn duties. Outrageous Condition. It is therefore obvious that the peo? ple must look more to the integrity, honesty, truthfulness of the candidates who ask for their votes than to the mere capacity to speak glibly, and the plausible address of the only politi? cian. The people should bid fence stra/lj?lers to go to the rear; they should demand outspoken declarations of policy1 and no man who failed of his duty in the past should be again en? trusted with office. Look at the pres? ent disgraceful and outrageous condi? tion in Columbia. The old board of directors of the state with about $700, 000 worth of liquor, bought on credit, in' open and direct violation of the law. Why are not these men arrested for malfeasance in office? Why were they not removed last-summer when the evidence of gross incompetency and mismanagement were first made public? Why did the legislature ever elect such men? Why in the face of absolute proof in1 the letting of glass contracts and in the purchase of la? bels to say nothing of the purchase of whiskey that they were guilty of gross misconduct, why I say did the legis? lature^ ret?se to* change the law when the house found that the senate would not consent to the abolition of the state dispensary? It was because of the influence of the State newspaper. Milk in the Cocoanut.' There is every reason to believe the house stood out to the last and refused absolutely to amend or alter the law in any particular in the hope and intention to have the state dis? pensary so far disgraced before the people that in the coming election it would be destroyed. Did these legis? lators discuss the question of abolish? ing the state dispensaiy when they were running for office in 1904? Did they have any authority fr^m the peo? ple to abolish the state dispensary be? cause of the mismanagement of the men the legislature itself had elected? Was not the failure of the house to accept any measure of reform in or? der to prevent fraud and peculation in the future due entirely to the in? fluences \Of the new Columbia ring? Was it not clearly shown that the pri? mary object was to destroy the state dispensary and thus pave the way for licensing the sale of liquor in those counties which wanted it, even provid? ing for wholesale license in Charles? ton with the purpose of having Charleston sell to the county dispen? saries instead of having the state dis? pensary supply the necessary stock? Was there not a bargain between the prohibitionists and the old barroom or high license element and is there any .nan in the state so brazen as to stand .ip and call this honest politics? Can 'he men who with their eyes opened to corruption refuse point blank to re? form the State dispensaiy have the im? pudence to ask the people to trust them again ? Fellow citizens, we need some hon? est polities in South Carolina; we need some straightforward, plain speaking; we neel aggressive and honest action by the masses to protect themselves. The people have been asleep. They have been lulled into in M? DISTINCTIVELY ? CREAM OF TARTAR BAKING POWDER It does not contain an atom of phos? phate acid (which is the product of bones digested in sulphuric acid) or of alum (which is one-third sulphuric acid) sub? stances adopted ior other baking powders because of their cheapness. \ action by the honeyed words of adroit politicians and it is time for them to awake. Eternal vigilance is th* price of liberty. Investigating Committee. Look at the present situation also. A new board is elected to manage the state dispensary under the old law. That old law was fatally defective in some particulars, but it has not been obeyed in the last two years, at least, with regard to competition in bidding for the right to supply the State dis? pensary with whiskey and in other im? portant particulars. The new board comes into office finding an immense stock of liquor bought on credit, and practically all of it bought contrary to law- The legislature gave to the in? vestigating committee full control and authority in regard to auditing and passing upon these accounts. The new board then is subject to the investi? gating committee and the situation seems to be this: The authority of managing and directing the affairs of the dispensary is now divided, the new board of directors having some of it and the investigating committee the balance. There is something like $600,000 worth of debts hanging over the state dispensary. Unless this li? quor bought on credit was bought ac? cording to law is there any obligation anywhere to keep it and pay for it? Is there not plenty of opportunity for more graft and secret transactions in regard to the settlement of these ac? counts? Will not the legislative com? mittee .be suspected of corruption if it does not get in the middle of the road and stay there, that is stand by th? law, obey it itself and require all oth? ers to do so ? Why so* much delay ? Demand Punishment. I mention this thus early in order to direct the attention of those most in? terested to this condition in the hope that the state's rights and interests rnay be protected by all those now in charge, and to serve notice that so fai as I am concerned I expect to spare no man in criticism whose actions in this crisis shall not bear the closest scrutiny and. if there is continued negligence and no attempt made to punish, those^ responsible for this anomalous and extraordinary state of affairs, it will certainly show that the people need to be aroused and another revolution is in order. I cannot lead it as a candidate for a state office, because it is not immodest in me to say that I believe I can be of great use to the people of the State in the senate, but if I misunderstood the temper of the people and they shall resent my effort to open their eyes and point out these glaring evils. I am perfectly willing to abide their wishes and will gladly retire to pri? vate life rather than to romain silent against the promptings of my sense of duty. Voters Must Watch Ont. There is one more matter upon which I beg lo warn the people. There are evidences in plenty to show that the same clique <>;. ring which is fighting tho dispensary and which lias always fought me intends or hopes to brin.*r about a change io. our primary regulation-; so as to prevent any Democrat from voting ia the pri? mary who is "??ot at th--' sa nu- time a qualified voter. They hope to use the o. 'b which has proved so effective in the Brice law. that of confining the election to qualified electors to obtain control of the Demjcratic party to re? sume their sway, undisputed until < 1890. I warn ?he farmer and all other Democrats, especially operatives, who are busily engaged and have little time to devote to politics, to attend. the next meeting of the Democratic clubs, fourth Saturday in April (28th), and get their names on the rolls amcL send delegates to the next county con? ventions who viii represent themv The allies and directors of the new Columbia ring will be ?n the alert and carry all of their forces to these club meetings and, unless the people take more interest than they did in; the Brice law elections, the next kate convention will be controlled by this; element and the possibilities are that the regulations of the Democratic primary will be changed to suit rheir 'purposes. The alliance men of 1890 I need not be reminded of the old anec? dote of the politician who told the farmers to "plow on" he would attend to their public affairs. Let all of the people take an interest in politics this> year, which is their duty in order tc? protect themselves against the schemes of these tricksters and all will be weH. 1 have felt it my duty H giV?^th?s"" warning and whatever the result I will bow to popular will without mur? mur. If the peole want prohibition, either the actual article or the hum? bug which we now have, I do not ob? ject! If they want county dispensaries^ instead of a state dispensary. I dO'notc object; what I do object to is.that -; they shall neglect to inform ti3fe*n=>y .selves ?and.be led by the ?.os? by de-" signing men. When the Democratic party has spoken authoritatively, I will bow to the will of the majority, but let it be all of tne D?mocratie party end not a small faction whicbi claims to represent our be?5t people. B. R Tillman^ ODD FELLOW INCENDIARIES Columbia, March 29.-H. W. HoI?J' way, who is employed by the comp? troller general to investigate incen? diary fires, claims that he has received, confessions from some ignorant negrcv members of colored Odd Fellow lodges that in Abbeville, Laurens and Orange burg, several recent incendiary fires were concocted at lodge meetings. According- to that story some of these lodges are engaged principally in devising schemes of revenge for real or fancied wrongs petpetrated on ne? groes by white men. McCaw. H. W. HOLLOWAY RESIGNED. Columbia, March 30.-H. W. Hollo? way, who has been acting as detective for the department of insurance of the State government, was asked for his resignation yesterday by Comptroller General Jones. Holloway had given an interview to some newspapers in which he stated that the department -aspects negro odd Fellow lodges of inciting some of the incendiary fires in*, tins state. The comptroller generaB seems to think that Holloway, who is employed by him under authority OL an act requiring the investigation of fires of suspicious origin, has beers taking a good deal on himself to talk of such matters publicly, especially as their publication in such an injudicious manner may upset some plans which' were afoot for the further i n vest i ga? tton cf tires which have been reported to the o??ice of the comptroller general. Mr. Jones has nothing to say- of the efficiency of Mr. Holloway in examin? ing c.ises heretofore, and his action is predicated entirely on the publication complained of.