Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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tuft tTMTER WATCHMAN, CtMtUtoted Aig. 1> 188 ?it oiHattbman an* Southron. rubllshed Every Wednesday, ?BY? t TEEN PUBLISHING COMPANY SCMTEH. 8. C. Il.lt pur annum?in advance. One eqear* first Inatrtlon.ll.Ot Beery subsequent Insertion.10 Q*s tracts for three months, or tossjfcr ?rill as macs at reduced rates. AB communications which sub essri private Interests will be charged #ce sat cdvurttoemsnto. Oast certs* and tributes of respects for. DBMVERY OF COTTON. at ah Naur York Exchange to Inquire Into Maw York. July If ?The Board of at the New York cotton ex a resolution for the ap ef a special committee to aeahe a complete investigation of the atamt contract for the future deliv? ery of cotton aa required by the rules ed the exchange and to Inquire Into ether features of the Institution's po holes. The action of the board of managers folloved a conference held recently with the spinning Interests In the North and South which have ujttlcilecd the methods of the ex a* The ?pect?I committee will be ap? pointed late, and wMl be composed of seven member-. Including President George Bronnecke of the exchange, who la direct-V by the board of man? euvers to endeavor to obtain the active participation of the United States bu Preae of corporations in the inquiry and Its sdvlce upon the formulstlon ' ed the reeu'ts. Herbert Knox Smith, commissioner of the bureau of cor? porations, recently criticised the New York exchange for Its methods In the handling of cotton contracts. The * special committee Is directed to re? port by Sept 1. Is a BsneO Insanity Is not a disease of tho brain.'' says Dr. William Hannu Thompson. In the July Everybody's, "because no anatomical Investigation, microscopic or otherwise, can show the Itast difference between either brain cell or fiber of a person dying Insane and the healthy brain of one hilled In an sccldent. But the same absence of brsln changes Is notice? able In a whole class of Important chronic nervous disease*), such as migraine, neurasthenia, hysteria and epilepsy. None of these shows post snort sen any characteristic changes from normal brains. "Now. no one can minimise the Importance of these nervous dls. Insanity alone to serious >ugh Whsn that dread specter appears, there Is no getting used to it Years of familiarity with It. both hi private and In official relations, de not lessen my, ueooll from the spectacle of a permanent. Instead of ? 1 as with drugs a temporary, men? tal derangewcU. .But It Is facts con with these seme Insanities by drugs entering the blood which awaken the hope that we msy Bad elsewhere then In. the brain the cause, end. therefore, with the cause, the beet treatment for this dreadful asTectkm. as well us also for the other seus) dteeaeee which cause no brain If the brain of a man who been addicted to Imense doses of opium for years etfll shows In It no trees of this nrlrid-derengtng agent, who* chemistry quickly finds the re? actions of this drug In his blood, the mistake of years on this whole sub? ject begins to come Into view. It Is singular how long the sway of that error has continued, for even yet meny physicians. Including some neu rologists, csnnot see the two sides of the problem." \ RHi OAT CROP. T H. Farmer Gather* 140 Ru?liel* One Acre of Oats. T. S. Farmer, a very progressive planter living a few miles west of the city holds the record for the finest oat crop In the county, If not the finest In the State. Ma Farmer rais? ed 140 bushels of oats on one acre of ground and 2S0 bushels on two acres. This Is a remsrkable yield wben you take Into consideration that the average yield of this grain up entll a few years ago was from r>o t<> to bunhels to ths sere In this state South Csroltna Is fsst getting to the place where she can boast of her grain crops A South Carolina farm? er won first prise on corn sometime .?Florence Time*. shed April, 1s60. 'lie Just ai 1._SU? mm odds lowebT - LLOYDS WKKE PKACTH.tLI.Y OFFERING tt TO 1 AGAINST HIM. Tbl* ?c;<h^i Thing" Knapped Lp? Then Odds Are Hack'd Down to 6 to 1 Finally?H?Hur *noo Against Loss If Bryan Wins. New York. Jury 17.?Gamblers, race track men and others who are always eager to make what they be? lieve to be a good bet uweoped down today upon the officers of several In? surance brokers, who, as representa? tives of the Lloyds of London, had been writing Insurance against a Bry? an victory at what amounted to bet? ting odds of 9 to 1 against the Ne brasken. As a result the odds shortened quickly to I to 1, then to 7 and finally to i to 1. All of the Insurance the Lloyds would write at that figure was snapped up Instantly, and It was pre? dicted that tomorrow will see the odds shortened to 4 to 1. Publication of the fact that the Lloyds were Issuing policies against loss of business In the event of Bry? an's election drew a whirlwind of of* fleers from the West and Middle West Business men and politicians all through the country wanted to anap up as much as they could of the In? surance at the published odds of 9 top Before 10 A. M. today a score or mere well-known sporting men ap? peared at the office of one of the big? gest insurance brokerage firms in the South* William street region and wanted to take all the insurance the firm would write at the published fig? ure*. It was this demand that sent the odds diwn. Thursday two or three of the big firms who handle business for the L'oyds wrote thousands of dollars of Bryan Insurance on a basis of 10 per cent, which Is the same as odds of 9 to 1. When they cabled this morn? ing to know how much more the Lloyds would ta?*e at the same figure they were told that no more would be written on a 10 per ent. basis. The?e Gobbled Vp Quickly. A few thousand were offered on a ti&sTs of 1?" per*"eent, wlilch were1 quickly gobbled up. Then there war a quick Jump to 14, and all the offen at that figure were snapped up in? stantly. Early In the day word came that the Lloyds would take a small lump on a 16 per cent, basis, and that was Immediately subscribed. Prom the number of telegrams re? ceived from men In the Middle West It Is evident that Democrats out there think a f-to-1 bet against Bryan Is a good one to pick up. First of the "bets" placed was made through the firm of Bertsch mann A Maloy. A member of the firm. In talking with a friend about the unusual risks the Lloyds take, said he saw no reason why they should not, for a proper percentage would guarantee brokers and business] men against loss in their Investments In the event that Bryan is elected. A cable to the other side brought the re? ply that the Lloyds would take such a risk on the 10 per cent, basis. May Have Written $1,0*0,000. ' Just how much Insurance was writ? ten at this price could not be learned. It was rumored that the amount was In the neighborhood of 91,000,000, but leading broker* declared that It was lese than half that sum. They asserted that the total amount would be much less than 11,000,000. "It Is true," said Mr. Bertschmann, "that we wrote considerable Insurance today and the dsy before, but we are not writing any more today. A* soon as the word spread through the dis? trict that the Lloyds were guarantee? ing against loss on a basin of what amounted to odds of 9 to 1 against Bryan they swamped us. The per? centage went right up until It was 16 or M 1-1." "Are you still Issuing policies at that figure, which Is the same as odds of 9 to 1?" was asked. "\V<j have written all that the Lloyds will take at the present time." Contrary to New law. Pnder the new antlbettlng law In this* State recording bets on an elec? tion Is as great a crime and may be visited with as dire punishment as recording bets on the ri.cetrack; but London Lloyd's will write Insurance against the election of Bryan, Just as in many cases these venturesome in? surance brokers h..ve wrltvn policies against the birth of twins, and In at least one recent case have injured a man against molesting his mother in-law. The policy is of the form some? time!* laOOOty described as a wager or honor policy, and whll* it may not be enforclble at law the standing of the Lloyd's brokers gives the bettor ample protection against any welch ud Fear not?~Let all the ends Thou Ali ITER. 8. C WEDNI ? lug on the part of the broker. The I taking Of sueh policies in large num j bers yesterday practically opened .the betting on the presidential election of this year. The new method of election betting owes its origin to a manufacturer who felt very confident of a sharp revival of business following the election of Taft and was anxious to run his plant at full capacity in the months preced? ing the election, if only he could pro? tect himself against the contingency of Bryan's success. In this predica? ment the manufacturer went to a firm of insurance brokers in this city and asked them for a policy Insuring his business against Bryan's election. They cabled Loyd's for terms and re? ceived off hand a quotation of 20 per cent., which Is equal to odds of about 4 to 1 against Bryan. The manufac? turer considered the rate too high, and yesterdday after reflection. Lloyd's brokers offered to write the policy at 10 1-2 per cent. The offer was ac? cepted and Insurance to the amount of more than $100,000 was taken at the quotation named. The manufac? turer will put all hands to work im? mediately. A Rush for Policies. Wall street brokers and stock mar? ket operators, hearing of the policy taken by the manufacturer, applied for policies in large numbers yester? day afternoon. Some of them wanted the policies as a hedge on purchases of stock, fearing a break in the stock market in the event of Bryan's e'ec tlon. Others considered the odds in? viting at this uncertain stage of the campaign and took policies as a pure wager, either for the reason that there was a good long chance speculation or in the expectation of hedging profita? bly on later campaign betting. The form of contract, insurance or wuger, comes under the Lloyd's class? ification of commercial hedges. In this classification it is known In the parlance of the International insur? ance men as a "P. P. I." policy?that la, a policy with proof of intere-t. The contract provides that the insured must state the estimated loss to him on a particular eventuality. That es? timated loss is the face of the policy, and, according to the strict terms of the policy, the insurer may demand proof of loss in case of the happening of the particular contingency. The clause to that effect, however, Is en? tirely formal and is designed to pro? tect the contract in accordance with the English law. As a mater of prac? tice, the contract is as Inviolable as that life insurance contract which Is written "Incontestable from date of issue." An insurance broker who should refuse to pay the face value would be treated In the same manner as the bookmaker who welches at Tattersall's. Quoted In (Guineas. The brokers quote the premium in guineas. A 10 per cent, premium is a premium of 10 guineas on the bun I dred pounds sterling, and since the i guinea Is one shilling In exces of a I pound the quoted rate of 10 per cent. I Is really a percentage of 10 1-2 and the quoted rate of 15 per cent, is a percentage of 15 3-4. The percentage, at the same time, only Indicates the odds, for the reason that the broker retains the premiums in the event of loss by him, while in ordinary betting the bettor's stake as well that of his opponent goes to the winner. Thus on a contract of the face value of 11,000 with a premium of 10 guineas percent, the insured deposits $105 approximately, or about 20 guineas. In case of success he receives the $1, 000 face value, but no more, so that his net return from the Insurance would be 895, or about 8 1-2 to 1 for his money. At the closing odds of the International Insurance market yes? terday, with 15 guineas per cent, as the quotation, the odds were approxi? mately 5 3-4 to 1. Several brokers well versed in Lloyd's practices, among them two or three members of Lloyd's, said that yesterday's transactions were the first In straight Insurance?or betting?on a presidential election. One of them recalled making a transaction a bit similar to the Roosevelt-Parker cam? paign four years ago. The Insured was a man who had bet $8.000 on Roosevelt and figured that he could not lose unless Roosevelt dropped dead. He insured himself against this contingency with Lloyd's at a nomi? nal rate. Rut this policy, it was re? called, was similar to the policies ta? ken on Queen Victoria's life be? fore her Jubilee by London tradesmen or before the toronatlon of King Ed? ward. It was life Insurance rather than a pure wager on the election. Edward Mclver, of Cheraw, special master to take testimony and report, Is holding a reference In the case of N. R. Dial vs. the Ware Shoals Manu? facturing Co., at Greenwood. ivn? i as't at be thy Country's, Thy God's an SSDAY. JULY 22, 19( FAMED As PIANIST. "Blind Torn" and His Kcinarkablo Glftl of Memory. Compiled from various Exchanges. Three weeks ago, as Blind Tom sat before his piano in the home of Mrs. Eliza B. Lerche, the widow of his old master, at 60 Twelfth street, Hobok en, N. J., singing the old melodies with which he had thrilled great au? diences before the civil war, he sud? denly stopped and fell face downward on the floor. Mrs. Lerche, who has cared for him for more than 20 years, ran into the room and, help? ing him up, found that his whole upper right side was paralyzed. But Tom could not understand that he was different, and soon went back to the piano. When he found that his right hand could not strike the keys he said, with his voice quavering: "Tom's fingers won't play." Again and again he tried. Finally, when he realized it was useless his big blind eyes filled with tears and he wept like a child. Each day he returned to the piano and with his left hand started some favorite piece. Discords came quickly, however, and then, with tear-moistened cheeks, he would rise and pace the floor until late into the night. His old mistress sought to comfort him, but he would only sob out: "Tom's fingers won't play no mo'." "Blind Tom's bouy lies this morn? ing at the m dertaking room of the Frank E. Campbell Company, where it was taken by Mrs. Eliza Lerche, with wh<?m he had been living in Hoboken. Mrs. Lerche is the widow of John G. Bethune, son of General Bethune. After the death of her husband, who had been the blind man's legal guardian and manager, she succeeded to his immensely val? uable guardianship of the blind mu? sician, after a long fight with her father-in-law in the courts. In early childhood he imitated the cries of farm animals, the call of birds and the sound of the wind and rain for the amusement of the house hold. By night he would steal into the 11.0USC of bis master to imitate in undertones on the piano the pieces he had heard others play during the day. He was destitute of invention, but marvelously imitative. During his public appearances he frequently played one melody with his right hand and another with his left, sing? ing or wistling a third, as fre? quently the classic compositions of Bach, Chopin and Mendelssohn as "Yankee Doodle," "Sailor's Horn? pipe" or other pieces of that class. On occasions he played pieces with his back turned to the piano. He could Imitate the sound of other musical Instruments and deliver con? nected addresses in foreign lam guages without understanding a word he uttered. The eccentricities of "Blind Tom" on the stage pleased audiences as much as his playing. He always 're? ferred to himself as the third per? son, and would announce his pieces by saying, "Tom will now play a beautiful piece he heard recently. He frequently jumped about wildly and started the applause himself when he finished a numoer. His mother, Aunt Charity, died In Birmingham, Ala., on November 23, 1902, at the reputed age of 105. She had spent a few years in comfort in New York with the musician, but never was really comfortable here, and finally went back to the south. "Blind Tom" had a geat fondness for watermelons and could always be induced to play for any one who offered him a piece of the dainty. His money affairs were in the hands of the Bethunes, and no accounting of his earnings was made for some time. Several suits were brought against Mrs. Lerche, but nothing defi? nite ever came of them. Just how old he was is unknown. Stories vary, but he was born prob? ably between 1849 and 1853 on a plantation near Columbus, Ga., where his parents lived as the slaves of Gen. James N. Bethune. He made his first appearance in New York in 1861, played in Chicago the following year, at the Empire Theatre, Lon? don, in 1867, and in California In 1873. His last work in public was at the Circle Theatre, New York, in 1904, when he amazed many who be? lieved he was dead by repeating the feats of his earlier years. The fear of death was strong in Blind Tom in his later years. If he felt the wind blowing against him he would exclaim: "Tom's In a draft. He may catch cold and die. Wouldn't that be terrible!" But he was spared the agony of the fear of surely ap poaching death, the stroke of apo? plexy striking him unconscious, and the end following In a very short time. 0tttl} d Truth'*." THE TRU )8. Sew Ser When Colonel Bethune bought Charity Wiggins she had In her arms a pickaninny, blind, feeble, and not considered valuable as a slave asset. So Tom was "thrown in" by his mother's former master. He was a I vey small boy and when he discoveed I that for the loss of his sight and the blight upon his mind his Creator had endowed him with a gift so strange and yet so productive of hap? piness to him that he has, in a way, been a living subject for marvel dur? ing the last half century. The boy began by repeating words that he heard about him, mimicking every one and trying to imitate all sounds that fell on his ear. When he first heard a piano played every note of the music was stamped in his mind, and, groping to the instrument, he found that he could reproduce the music he had heard. With the instrument he could imi? tate the tinkling water in a fountain, the fall lof rain, and the noises of the storm. His own composition, which gave him the most delight, he call? ed "What the wind and the waves told Tom." While he was always known as "Blind Tom," he was never totally blind, and coiid always distinguish between light and dark. Mentally, he was never little better than an im j beeile, and those who saw him on his I first concert tours, nearly a half cen? tury ago, will remember that he would always stand up from the piano and clap his hands with the audience, which was applauding his remark? able skill. This was a trick which he retained os long as he appeared in public. "Blind Tom's" death has been an? nounced many times. It was said that he perished in the Johnstown flood and several other times, but those who saw him when he ap? peared In the Circle Theatre in 1904 recognized in the aged white-haired man the ?ame wonderful pianist they had seen years before as a boy pro? digy. He had appeared frequently in vaudeville during the last few years. After one of his recent concerts Tom sat for some time as a target for questions. They came from all over the house, and Tom answered them without hesitation, except for a certain hesitancy which evidently be? longed to his speech rather than to his memory. He spoke two or three words and a pause?rather au? tomatically?and never was known to fail to take a civil "sir" on to every one of his replies. Among those who questioned him was E. D. Gallon, of Washington. D. Cm but formerly of Lynchburg. "Tell me, Tom. did you ever play III Lynchburg?" "Yes, sir." "What year was it?" "It was?in 18?79, sir!" "So it was; so it was?in the sum? mer, wasn't it?" "No, sir; it was in?January? sir!" "He's perfectly right," admitted Mr. Gallion, whose trap had failed. W. R. Brackville, of Bellfnnlc, Pa., tried his hand next at Ihn mysti? fying of this mystery. "Tom, were you ever at Bellfonte Pa.?" "Yes, sir." "When?" "I was there in 11171. sir," came Tom's reply In a noncommittal tone. The gentleman looked astonished, and, leaning over, whispered to his wife, "Well, he's wrong for once, for we didn't move there till later than that!" But the woman's wit solved the trouble. "Well, Tom, you were there more than once?" "Yes, ma'am; I was there the sec? ond time in 1878." "That's it," said Mrs Brackville; "that was. just after we went there." "And, Tvm, what did you do with yourself on Sunday?" One of Tom's most exciting recent experiences was his first encounter with a graphophone and a large mu? sical box. The latter particularly reduced him almost to a delirium of ecstasy. He had his chair rolled up close to it, and insisted on hearing Its entire repertory, and astonished his manager and his audience by giving some selections from that repertory in his next concert. Blind Tom rattling off the latest popular marches. Blind Tom playing "Flora dora" was a novelty. Admiral Rojcsvensky Dead. Pad Nauheim. Germany, July 20.? Vice Admiral Rojcsvensky. who com? manded the Ill-fated Russian fleet which was annihilated by the Japa? nese in the Sea of Japan in May, 190r>, died here last night from heart tremble. It is believed that the heart effec tlon resulted from Injuries received by Admiral Rojcsvensky In the battle of the Sea of Japan. E SOUTHRON, Established June, ISM ies?YoL XXVII. No &k SOUTH CAROLINA NEWS. Items of Interest Condensed and Par? agraphed for Quick Reading. Luke Scott, of Union, attempted to commit suicide by drinking lauda? num. W. J. Aiken fell irom a scaffold in Columbia and broke his left am and leg. The Rikard Knitting Mill at Lex? ington will begin operation this, week. Robert Jeter, colored, was kiltedr by a Southern passenger train near Union last week. James Harrison and A. H. S. Jay, well known citizens of Trenton, C, are dead at their homes. Experiments have shown that Jap? anese matting rush may be success? fully grown In this State. J. E. Jeffries has been appointed; auditor of Cherokee county to serve* out the unexplred term of Col. D. Camp, deceased. A trolley car in Columbia got away from the motorman arid crashed into a freight train. Several passen? gers were slightly injured. Two colored women of Charleston became involved in a quarrel andl one bit off the right ear of the other. James Henry Rice, of the Audubor* Society, has sworn out warrants for the arrest of three prominent citi zens of Orangeburg, charging their* with dynamiting fish in the Edista river. The postoffl.ee department has no? tified the county ofilcia's that the* public roads must be improved or the rural delivery mail service will be discontinued. A gang of crooks and flim-flam ar? tists are said to be operating in Co? lumbia. Five fisherman have been arrested in Beaufort county on the charge of violating the fishing laws. Seven hundred young women of South Carolina took the examination for scholarships on July 3. There were three fires in Rock Hilt Monday. The barn of Pride Ratteree was destroyed, loss $500; the resi? dence of Mr. A. Fried ham was dam? aged to the extent of $10,000, and the kitchen of Ed Garrison was partially burned. Joe Herring, white, was drowned Sunday afternoon at Campbell's*, bridge, near Latta. A number of business men of Charleston have purchased the stock of the Coleman Wagner Hardware Co. The new company will be* known as the Enterprise Hardware Company and will be capitalized at $25,000. J. M. Weeks, a well known citizen of Elloree and for many years dis? penser at that place, is dead at his, home after a long illness. The Eutaw, a steamboat worth $10,000, sold at auction in Charleston for $105. The steamer Planter was bid in for $500. Congressman Lever, Comlmsioner E. J. Watson and Col. M. V. Richard* of the Southern Railway addressed a? meeting of farmers at Union Monday, Will Suber, colored, shot by D. <\ French at WilUamston Saturday af? ternoon, is dead from the gunshot wounds. French Is in jail. WEEKLY WEATHER BULLETIN^ For the Week Ending July 26, 190*; ?General Summary. The week was the warmest of th? season. The precipitation was gener? ally below the normal, and there wan much more than the usual percent*, age of sunshine. The mean temperature was from 2 degrees to 4 degrees above the nor? mal, the greatest departures having occurred in the eastern division, though the highest maximum tem? peratures were recorded in the cen? tral and north central counties. The* extremes were 99 degrees at Black ville on the 15th and Rock Hill on the 13th, and 64 degrees at Bowman on the 14th and Cheraw on the 17th. The daily maximum temperature* were in the nineties on four, or more, days on the coast, on an average of six days in the interior, and on two, or more, days In the mountain dis? tricts. The precipitation was poorly dis? tributed. The northeastern counties received practically no rain; the coast sections and the western counties rc recetved light and widely scattered showers; a considerable area, com? prising portions of Parnwell, I^exlng ton, Dorchester and Richtend coun? ties received approximately normal rainfall. The Wateree valley and smaller areas In various parts of the State are suffering from drought* while over very much larger areas the surface soil Is very dry and rain would be beneficial.