Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20,1907. The Smiler Watchman was founded in 1350 and the True Southron in 1866. The Watchman and Southron now has the com 5) Ir ed circulation and influence of both of the old papers, and is manifestly the best -advertising medium in Sumter. IMPORTANT NOTICE. Subscribers are requested to ex l ?mine the label on their papers, which show the date to which the .subscription has been paid. Those who find that they are in arrears are requested -to call and settle or remit at the earliest convenient date. The amount that each subscriber owes is ?mall, but in the aggregate the amount due us for subscription is .quite large-and we need the money. The offer of the whiskey dealers to purchase the entire stock of the State iciispensary at invoice prices does not ?Dear out the often made and generally believed charge that the old dispen? sary board paid more than the liquor was wrorth. The more the dispensara? is stirred the less one knows what to believe. * * * The reorganization of the Chamber of Commerce is a good thing for Sum? ter and if the business men will support the organization with a rea? sonable degree of unanimity and a modicum of enthusiasm, liberality and .public spiri; it can be made a positive force for the development of the town. The Chamber of Com? merce, however, cannot run itself nor can the officers alone accomplish all or even half what is expected of it. * * * Immigration Commissioner Watson says that he is satisfied with the most xecent interpretation of the new law .by President Roosevelt and Attorney ?General Bonaparte and has gone to 23-urope to continue his work in the interest of immigration to the south. Watson is a hard man to down and so long as he is not discouraged there is no reason for anyone else to lose ?ope. * * * "The sewerage problem has been settled and all that remains is to construct the system in the best man? ner and at the least cost compatible with good work. The next improve? ment that we wish to see under way is the electrict street railway and then will come better streets and side? walks. * * * The great railroad speculators, Harri'man and others, have piled up such overwhelming burdens of bonds, preferred stocks, etc., that the rail? roads can scarcely stagger under them. It is impossible for th,e roads to earn the fixed charges represented by the interest on the hundreds of millions of bonds and stocks and at the same time maintain the equip? ment and make the necessary im? provements needed to handle the business. Now that they see the penalty of the reckless issue of wa? tered stock and bonds staring them in the face they are crying aloud for the government and the public to come to their rescue. The only way they can continue to pay interest on the watered stock is to be permitted rta take it out of the public. If the water was squeezed out of the stocks and bonds held by the railroad kings, "the railroads would be better off and the public would not have to pay ex? cessive tribute. TO MARX SUMTER'S GRAVE. The Commission Meets at Columbia and Organize-Stone Similar to the One at -Marion's Grave to bc Erect? ed. Columbia, March lo.-The com? mission to mark the grave of Gen. Thomas Sumter met today and organ? ized by the election of Col. John J. 3Dargan as Chairman and Mr. R. I. Manning as Secretary. The other members of the commission are: Messrs. W. A. Courtnay. H. E. Ra ve? nd and J Babcock. The members are ran: in the Act providing for the c?.mn -. ,r., u'-.d for that reason it wa? held chat the resignation of Capt. Courtenay; which was tendered some time ago. need not be accepted, as there was no one to receive the resignation and no provision for ap? pointing a successor. Capt. Courte? nay resigned because he had been tendered the place on the State House grounds commission, but as neither position is one of profit lhere is no le S2d reason why he cannot hold both positions, and at the request of thc other members he has consented to clo so. The commission decided to have a stone placed at Sumter's grave similar to the stone which marks the grave of Gen. Francis Marion, and it will b< ready if possible by August 14, the birthday of Sumter. Dr. James H. Carlisle, of Wofford College, was se? lected to write the epitah. A man never gets much fun out of showing his wife how to fix her sew? ing machines rnless he knows how to cuss.-New York Press. MAY BUY THE LIQUOR. Attorney Stevenson Gives Dispensary Commission Opinion on the Clarke Liquor. Columbia, March 19.-The attorney I general, Mr. J. Fraser Lyon, and Sen. I ator Francis H. Weston, who repre? sents Clarke Bros. & Co. of Peoria, UL, the liquor concern which sold the famous $100,000 order to the State dispensary, went over to Cheraw last week to consult Hon. W. F. Steven? son, attorney for the dispensary com? mission, as to the right of the com? mission to accept all of the Clarke goods. These "goods" were received at the State dispensary before the local op? tion law went into effect, but the leg? islative investigating committee, of which Senator Niels Christensen was chairman, reported that these pur? chases were illegally made ?ni order? ed that no more money be paid to either Clarke Bros. & Co., or to Leh? man & Co.-which, it might be stat? ed, are practically one and the same firm, according to the testimony. When the commission appointed under the special act to provide for winding up the affairs of the State dispensary took charge it was decid? ed to accept and pay for none of the Clarke and Lehman goods except what had actually been accepted and used. The Clarke concern has black? listed itself by sending a sample case of whiskey to a member of a county board. * Mr. Wm. E. Hull, president of Clarke Bros. & Co., appeared before the commission and offered them the goods at a price considerably less than the original invoice price. At? torney General Lyon was requested by the commission to go to Cheraw and consult with Mr. Stevenson in re? gard to the proposition. He went over Thursday evening of last week in company with Senator Weston, at? torney for the liquor concern inter? ested. The matter was place3 before Mr. Stevenson and he was requested to furnish the commission with his opinion as early as possible. - Mr. Stevenson takes the view that the commission has the authority to accept any or all of the Clarke and Lehman purchases, but h-3 ?cos not advise the commission what to do. He says that it is a matter of discre? tion. The evident purpose of the com? mission to probe to the bottom all irregularities connected with the transactions of the officials of the late dispensary and to assist the attorney general in securing evidence against persons who have been guilty of vio? lating the law is revealed in the fol? lowing senence of Mr. Stevenson's let? ter : "It shall be necessary and desirable for the legal department of the State to prosecute such officers as have of? fended against the law in the pur? chase of liquors and this discretion to return or not the goods to the per I sons' who have sold illegally to the I State was probaly intended to give an additional leverage to the com? mission to procure evidence of the facts relating to such sale from the persons selling. "The commission can and should require a full exposition of the com? missions paid to the person securing the order under investigation, the method of payment, the person to whom paid, and whether any of the same ever came to the hands of the member of the board making the purchase and whether his expenses on his trip to Peoria, UL, were paid directly or indirectly by the seller or the seller's agent." While Mr. Stevenson holds that the commission has the right to accept all of the Clarke purchase if it sees fit, the above extracts from his decision indicate pointedly that he will not recommend the acceptance of these goods until the matter of the manner of their purchase has '-'m^one into fully, and not until the commission is convinced that there were no rebates paid to any official of the State dispen ? sary in connection with the Peoria purchase. LAMAR HERO A SCHOOL BOY. Young Man Who Will Get a Carnegie Medal Wiil Go to Clemson. Lamar, March IS.-Wade Plum mer has not yet received the silver medal awarded him by the board having in charge the Carnegie hero fund for his heroic effort in saving John Gibson from a watery grave in Lyncher river on May 2d, 1905. He was notified several months ago that he had been awarded a medal and the sum of $600 to be expended for educational purposes. He is now at? tending the Lamar Graded School, preparing himself to enter the next session of Clemson College. The young man is very unassuming? He says that ho only did his duty to? ward his fellow mun. While strug- j giing with Gibson in the water, was j urged by his father and others of matured age to desist in his effort to save Gibson from being drowned. He j did not heed them, but safely carried him out to the banks, where Gibson, j after two hours of hard work, was. resuscitated. NEW FINANCIAD POLICY. Administration May Reverse Secre? tary Shaw's Policy and Eliminate Railroad Bonds as Gilt Edge Se? curity. Washing-ton, March 19.-Informa? tion from a trust%vorthy source that the administration has about decided to make- a striking change in the financial policy of the government. The action, if taken in one particular, will reverse the policy of former Sec? retary Shaw and almost eliminate certain railroad bonds as guilt edge securities. It is understood that Sec? retary Cortelyou has even more de? cided views on the subject of what are acceptable securities than Presi? dent Roosevelt. It is said the present head of the treasury considers certain methods of finance unsatisfactory. Secretary Cor? telyou wont admit that a decision has boen reached as to the class of securi? ties hereafter acceptable to the gov? ernment, but he admits that the sub? ject is under careful consideration. The amount of railway bonds now held for public deposits is about fif? teen million. No Institutes at Clemson This Year. To the Editor of The Daily Item: Will you please notify the farmers through the columns of your paper that the board of trustees of the Clem? son Agricultural College will be forc? ed to suspend the farmers' institute at Clemson College this summer be? cause of the preparation they are making to admit 200 more students to the benefits of the institution? The dormitories will be placed in the hands of the contractors ".o be remod? eled and arranged for the admission of these extra students, and it will be impossible, therefore, for them to be put in shape for the accommodation of our visitors during the farmers' in? stitute. Our institute work through the State will be considerably enlarged and extended through the year, so that the benefits of the work will be given to the people wherever desired. With the use of the cars, placed at our disposal by the Southern Railway Company, we can do much more work for the benefit of the farmers than we were able to do in the past. Very truly yours, P. H. Mell, President. Clemson College, March 15. THE CORPORATION TAX Nullified by the Supreme Court-The Law Discriminates Against Home Companies in Favor of Foreign Companies. By a decision of the supreme court handed down recently it is likely that the corporation franchise tax law, en? acted in 1904, will be practically nul? lified. The decision certainly effects the taxation of foreign corporations under the act and may effect the tax? ation of domestic corporations as well. The decision is in the case of the British and American Mortgage Co., vs. the Comptroller General of South Carolina, a petition for an injunction restraining the comptroller general from enforcing the act of 1904. The petitioner held that the company was licensed to do business in this State under the act of IS93, and that the further tax imposed by the act of 1904 was in violation of the contract made by the State with the corporation when the license under the act of IS93 was granted. The supreme court in effect upheld this point and grants the injunction. The decision will af? fect every foreign corporation doing business in j this State which has se? cured a license under the terms of the 1S93 act and if these corpora? tions are exempted from the provi? sions of the act of 1904 the domestic corporations may come in and claim that the act of lb04 is a discrimina? tion against domestic corporations and in favor of foreign corporations may secure exemption. The State re ! ceived last year from domestic cor ! porations the sum of ?43,397.83, from | foreign corporations the sum of $3,- i ! 334.56, and from public utility corpor- | j ations the sum of $22,595.SS, making a total of S69.2SS.32. This year it had been expected that the total from this source would reach at least $75, 000 and it will be a very serious mat? ter if this revenue is cut off. -: To the modern world a"calender" is merely a harmless necessary remind? er of weeks and cays, to be hung up on New Year's day and consulted in dating letters throughout the year. It has no such mournful sound as "cal endarium" -iad for the ancient Ro? mans. The cilginal "calendar" of their times was t ic money lender's account book, so-ca 'led because interest was due from t ie debtor on the calends, or first day of each mon ch. Seneca speaks of "calendar" as a word invent? ed outside the course of nature on account of human greed. Letter to White & Mccallum, Sumter, S. C. Dear Sirs: Every job Dcvo.- is done with less gallons than ever before with any other paint. S J Field, Indianola, Fla, says: "All houses h< re are painted Devoe. The li<>t ir is too trying for other paints. One coat Devoe i-: better than two of any other paint, so far as we know." Yours truly S2 F W DEVOE & CO p. S.-The Durant Hardware Com? pany sell our paint. If a man-thinks he can outwit a widow he is entitled to another think. Chicago News. ON MONDAY, MARCH 8 A. M. TO 7 P. M FINE MILLINERY. We cordially invite Inspection to this showing. An authoritative exhibition of Imported Hats from the foremost Paris Modistes. Quite a feature is the exclu= sive models of our own creation, distinguished for cor= rect style and individuality, which proclaim them "en tete." By far the best collection it has been our pleasure to display for your inspection. Miss McCabe, of New York, our Head Milliner, wiH take pleasure in assisting or suggesting. . arch 25th, 8 a. m. to 7 p. m. EASY TO - WEAR You'll find our Hart Shaffner & riarx Varsity suit not only good to look at and easy to pay for, but easy to wear. We'll fit you per? fectly in it ; and you will think so your? self. All wool qual= ities here. KNOX HATS, ECLIPSE SHIRTS, ARROW COLLARS, Keiser Neckwear and Wilson Brother's Fur= n is h i n g Goods. Copyright 1907 by Hart Schaffner 6? Marx 0 g G CO., Phone 166. Sumter, S. C. LAWN FENCE OF STEEL AND IRON 03 ffl > e H Tl n ? < m The most MODERN and^ ARTISTIC designs of LAWN Fence Structures to choose from. We thus meet ali tastes and requirements. Nothing so mar the beaaty of our city as the unsightly yard fences of a by-gone age. Call, Write or Phone us Today. Estimates Promptly Furnished. THE DURANT HARD WARE COMPANY.