Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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[MtlOAY, FfcBRUARY 3, 1909. taemter Watchman was found la lift aad the True Southron In The Watchman and Southron combined circulation and of both of the old papers, la snaatfestry the best advertising Irena aa Humtsr. tat Roosevelt In hla Outlook |> deunnclatory of the predatory aad unscrupulous end ruthless seeking office-holders, uncon nasty draws a remarkably accurate of himself whsn he deucrlboa -marks of the statesman who ?ye his country In seeking sei* aafjtmndlseansat. Roosevelt is sll and than he says the people should la a statesman. a, a a Alderman blgbn offered a rssolu SSs ta council meeting that our rep ?saaa trees In ths legislature be ro? ll use their Influence to have Had a law requiring property pay one-half the coat of is* aad street paving. This la tee strong a dose of public leeeeessent to be sndured by the property-owner, and we truat Sesater County representatives be slow in acting oa the uugges A taw of this character would an Intolerable burdon upon ?party-owners while others t. eaoept for ths small lea of the one-half the coat o' Staring that would be paid out of tho ?satt/ trsaaury. What Justice would dSsSPS he la forcing the property-own essa am Mala street to pay one-l alf th? -asset ef concrete sidewalks and rltri SsaSl erica street paving, which are red necessary by the fart that happens to be tho chief leghfars ef the town and there ueed by every citlaen, tan-payer non-tax-payer? There would be In requiring a property to per a fair proportion of the of a sidewalk, but to make him for street paving would bo going Sees far. Street paving*?like sewer Sjge aad a sanier supply?should be eiasasrtakea gad paid for by the munic? ipality aa a whole, ths bujrden being e) asset I y aad fairly distributed by tax a Hen. Ws hava been informed by a lawyer?oas wio ia credited with ejesae knowledge of the law?that an Slot along ths lines auggested by Al? derman Ligon could dot be enforced abacs it would be in conflict with the esaaetltuUoej of ths State and to legal? ise asjch an act It would be necessary 11* amend shs constitution. ? ? ? ? * The city of Humtsr has a city hall that cost within a fsw dollars of 888, ?HH when material and labor were far leaver In price than at present; this saasthr and Imposing building stands ?im acne of the moot desirable and valu Jtate lets la the city, worth not leas taw~i I18.0SO to 818.000. If valued at I ski i ssvsee rats par front foot as other laaUi la the same locality, hence the <Hy hall property represents an In ifSJBtsneot of'not leas than $53,000. The <en|y aaces for the expenditure of $38. IH1 for ths sraction of a building on a last worth 818.0000 was that the cltj <sf fesmter must have a city hall, the ra house and store rooms Incorp i*S/d therein being of secondary con itton and merely to bring In some fsseome. Now. howsver, the city coun estt hasi decided to abandon the city Stall far public uses and erect another asalMlng. Tho rentals now receive*, from the opera house and atore room: ta the building aggregate 81520 a year sand it Is estimated that when the city nmic? the offices now used for tnu I pal purposes thj rents can be in led to spproxknstely 82.000 a year in income of lens than 4 per cent the value of ths property. If the a ts erect a combination Are de Mit. city prison and city office Standing la farrled out. the next atei lid be to unload ths city hall white sphant. which seems to be absolute vaJaslses for ths purpose for which aa? erected, for the city of Sumter ist afford to carry a $53,000 In tment In a store snd office bulldln yields an Income of less than g#*r csnt. When the plAns were drawn for the aaalldlng which will soon be known a* the ea-clty hall and which will serve no pwrpime Insofar aa the public af emJfcrs of the city are concerned, except saa a somewhat costly foundation fo th* cHg clock tower, the architect ?asuiin \t??ed the probable maximum coat at *:#.**? snd city hall bonds to that amtwin'. were authorlded by an elec Clan and daly Issued. Neveri hele?:> th ?aauuuUe cwtH of the bu'.ldlng was with Sa 83,100 ef double fee Initial estl Now that the city I* about in another public building ex BjSgrlBeaat. the need at a fire engine fnopse affording the txcuse for th wsmtwra. the Initial eMlmate of th ga-ebable cost of the educe Is s litt tossr ths a 812.S00 II will be Interest tag to make a note of t hi - entlmute for reference. Public buildings a habit uf becoming more and ibltloos as they take shape. Ute the architeet'a estimate may apvrexlmiately correct for the orl il sketch, the final cost of the ac tual building It another thing. An architect can come very near guaran? teeing that the coat of a building erected In accordance with hla plan? and specifications will not exceed a certain aum, but he cannot approxi? mately eatimate what an Idea will coat by the time it is transformed into a building. City council haa an idea that ? three-story combination fire de? partment, administration and prison building should be erected on East Liberty street?the future alone will reveal what it will cost. i ? e ? Mr Taft's insistance that Dr. Crum be confirmed as Collector of the port of Charleston before March 4th indi? cates a shifty disposition and affords good ground for questioning the sin? cerity of the sentiments enunciated in his Atlanta possum supper speech. He knows as well as anyone that Dr. Crum is not 'acceptable to the people of Charleston and If he really meant what he said in Atlanta he would wel? come an opportunity to undo the wrong that Roosevelt did Charleston. I We hope Senator TUlman will succeed I in holding up the confirmation in? definitely in order that the Crum mat? ter may be put squarely up to Presi? dent Taft and the sincerity of his pro? fession put to the test. I ? ? ? The long fight for the repeal of tho lien law appears to be nearing a suc? cessful termination. There are pow- I erful and Influental interests antag? onistic *to the repeal, however, and it Is not safe to rejoice over the victory until the bill has safely run the gaunt let of the governor's signature. The I lien law Is not without its merits and in years past has been of benefit to the farming Interests, but it is a ques? tion whether or not the sum total of benefits have not been Infinitesimal as oompared with the injury that has re? sulted from the operation of the law. A few years will be required for things to become thoroughly adjust? ed to the new conditions, but the con? census of opinion is that the ultimate effects will be beneficial to the farm? ing interests. ? ? ? If the volunteer fire department should be disbanded as one of the re suits of the consolidation of the city prison with the Are department head quarters the city would have to face the problem of establishing and main? taining a paid department. There oould be no hesitation or delay about I it either, for the property owners of | the city could not afford to be without some sort of protection against dre even for a day. What would be the annual cost of a paid Are department? I Those who have given the matter I some thought say that the cost would not be less than $6.000 to $8,000 'a year, and these figures are conserve- I live and it would require the strictest I economy to maintain a very modest paid fire department on an efficient basis for this amonut of money. Is I the city ready for a paid Are depart ment? Is the city able to bear the expense of a paid Are department 3t this time. Would there be a sufficient saving in consequence of the reduc- I tlon in Insurance rates to counter-bal- I ince the additional taxation? The in-I surance men could probably answer I this queation?we have no Informa? tion on the subject. ? e a President Roosevelt should Ay to the rescue of his friends CromweiV Lodge. Charles Taft and the rest of that high-browed bunch of grafters and begin a suit for libel, slander am! lese majeste against Congressman Ralney. That gentleman said hard? er and more damaging things about, the Panama grafters than did the Mew York World, and he asserted hli ability to prove his charges. Per? haps Mr. Roosevelt will Ignore Mr. Ralney's speech In tho House and enter suit against the Congressional Record for printing and circulating the damaging indictment of the Presi? dent's cronies. If the city prison Is put on the third story of the new administration build? ing what will Henry McKagen do when he arrives at headquarters with a 250 pounds drunk? How will he boost his captive up to the third floor. The western section of the sewerage system is now completed and connec? tions can be made. How many tax-payers do you sup? pose are in favor of the new adminis? tration building? A majority of them are not. but a bare majoirty of city council has more power than ninety*1 nine per cent of the tax-payers. Has ihr city sufficient land on Baal Liberty street for the proposed ad? ministration building, or will it be ab? solutely necessary to purchase an Othsff lot to provide the necessary room? A prominent official of the Sumter chamber of*commerce is authority for the statement that things have been looking up towards Sumter from out? side flnanclnl centres In the shape of propositions for establishing cotton mills here. One opportunity has been permitted to go by, but there remains another yet to grab at. What will the verdict of our business men be? WILL STANDARDIZE COTTON. COMMISSION APPOINTED BY SEC? RETARY WILSON MEETS. Three Day*' Meeting Begun in Washington ? Two Resolutions Adopted ? One Establishing Nine Standard Cotton Grades and the Other Urging Congress to Require Courses of Instruction in Grading in all Agricultural Colleges. Washington. Feb. 1.?The advisory commission on cotton standardization, selected by Secretary Wilson under authority of a resolution of Congress, assisted by three expert classifiers, be? gan a three days' session at the agri? cultural department today. Two resolutions were adopted at to? day's meeting, one establishing nine standard grades and the other leaving to future settlement of the question whether these nine grades shall cor? respond to the commercial grades now recognized, and recommendation was made that the Government for? mulate courses of Instruction in grad? ing for all agricultural and mechani? cal colleges. The nine grades agreed upon are based upon good ordinary, with middling fair as the highest, and are as follows: Good ordinary; strict good ordinary; low middling and mid? dling fair. Thee three experts will take nine samples of cotton, deter? mine which is good ordinary, and grade from that up to middling fair. This grading will then be adopted by the commission. The commission is of the opinion that the system of maintaining the grade of cotton can be made self-sus? taining by having samples of the nine grades enclosed in boxes, with glass tops, and placed on sale. The need of uniformity among cotton factors is the primary cause of this movement, which began with the introduction of the resolution in the house. It will be seen that the principal cotton pro? ducing States are well represented on the commission, yet the result of the commission's deliberations will not necessarily change the rules of the cotton exchanges. It is believed that the standard agreed upon by the ex? perts will tend to impress the general trade and ultimately will be the sub? ject of further legislation. The mem? bers of the commission hope that their efforts here will influence the Liverpool and other foreign markets to co-operate with the American fac? tors in maintaining a universal stand? ard. Liverpool now sets her own standard regardless of the classifica? tion recognized here. THE MASS MEETING. The Work of the Civic League Was Enthusiastically Endorsed by the People of Sumter. The coldest night of the winter did I not prevent a large attendance at the mass meeting which was held in the I opera house Sunday night in Interest I of the Civic League, and while the au- I dlence was probably smaller than It I would have been on a warm and pleas-1 ant niKht, the meeting was represent alive and those\Who were present will I dissemminate through the city the en-1 thusiasm and interest that was I aroused in the work that is being done I by Miss Sudie Furman, the City Nurse, I under the auspices of the Civic I League. The regular Sunday night service.-1 In the several churches had been call- I ed off by their pastors in order that I all the church people of the city might I be free to attend the mass meeting I and cooperate In the benefieient work that the Civic League is doing for the I poor and Ignorant of the city. Rev. I C. C. Brown, of the First Baptist church, who presided, made a brief in- I troductory address explanatory of the I object of the meeting. Mr. C. M. Hurst made an address in which he I reviewed the work that has been done I by the City Nurse and stressed tho I necessity for such work, not only for I the relief of the poor and ignorant but for the protection of the entire com? munity against disease and other ills that affect a community as the direct result of the neglect of sanitary pre? cautions in sickne:-8. ! Mr. Nelll O'Donnell read the report of the City Nurse, which was a con- I crete and striking summary of the work done in the performance of her regular duties. This report gave a better Idea of the Importance of the work that has been done and the value of what has been accomplished than the public has heretofore had. Rev. C. C. Brown then delivered an address, which partook of the nature of a sermon, In which he emphasized the necessity of cooperation in the work of charity. Rev. H. H. Covlngton spoke briefly but earnestly in support of the Civic League work and urged the people of Sumter to support the Civic League and to maintain the City Nurse. Following the speeches a collection was taken and a substantial sum In cash was realized and a number of pledges of monthly payments for the support of the City Nurse wore re? ceived. I The programme was interspersed with music and appropriate hymns were sung and Prof. W. S. Schumach? er played a violin solo. IXTER-STATE LIQUOR TRADE. Hard Fght to be Made to Pass Hill to Prevent Shipments. Washington, Jan. 31.?It Is learned here upon good authority that a first class fight is going on behind the lines to have Speaker Cannon name a man as chairman of the house Judiciary committee for the next congress who will he favorable to the passage of a bill prohibiting the shipments of liquor from one State to another. The term of the present chairman, Judge Jenkins, of Wisconsin, will expire with his retirement on March 4, and for some time there has been noticeable activity among the advocates of such a bill. Last year and the year before the Llttlefleld bill was the principal meas? ure of the kind under consideration, and the efforts that were made to have it passed as well as the work done in opposing it are still fresh In the minds of persons who followed the course of legislation. Not only did the house tackle the question in all of Its knot? ty forms, but the senate also when It took up the TUlman bill endeavored to find some way of legally getting around the Wilson law. One of the best posted lawyers In the house gave It as his opinion today that there was, beyond a doubt, a practical method of passing a law that would prevent inter-state shipments of liquor Into dry States, provided con? gress really desired to pass such a law. It will be useless, however, to again make the fight of last year, unless there Is some assurance that desired results will follow. For the present, therefore, nothing more will be at? tempted than to work on Speaker Cannon with the hope of having him make such changes In the personnel of the judiciary committee as would at least permit of such a bill being fav? orably reported to the house. Judge Jenkins, as stated, has for many years been the chairman of the committee before which bills of this character were referred and as head morgue-keeper he has been a decided success in the opinion of those who wanted to pass a law that would ef? fectually put a stop to the shipments of liquor Into dry or local option States. Judge Jenkins's influence Is of the widest kind and his long famil? iarity with the rules and customs of congress, as well as the extent of his friendship among other members has made his opinion highly valued. Be? cause of the defeat that he suffered at the polls last summer, however, some one else must be chosen to be? come to the head of the judiciary com? mittee upon the assembling of the ex? tra session of congress. The other members of this commit ? tee are: Representatives Parker, of New Jersey, who according to the present custom of the house, will suc ced Judge Jenkins; Alexander, of New York; Tirrel, of Massachusetts; Ster? ling, of Illinois; Foster, of Indiana; Pannon, of Ohio; Moon, of Pennsyl? vania; Die Kerna, of Michigan; Mal by, of New York; Caulfield, of Mis? souri; Higgins, of Connecticut; all Re? publicans, and Representatives De Armand, of Missouri; Clayton, of Ala? bama; Henry, of Texas; Brantley, of Georgia; Reid, of Arkansas and Webb, of North Carolina. It is a fact well worth noting that each of the Democratic members of this committee comes from a State that has In recent years declared bold? ly for prohibition. There is not a sa^ loon in Georgia, few counties in North Carolina allow liquor sold for any reason; Alabama is dry and many por? tions of Arkansas and Texas do not' permit the sale of intoxicating liquors. It would be easy to see, therefore, how the Democratic members of the com? mittee would vote were they to be al? lowed to do so at this time. In ad? dition to this many of the States rep? resented by Republican members of the committee have come out for pro? hibition in one form or another and against the open and unrestricted sale of intoxicants. Besides Judge Jenkins there will be one or two other retirements from the judiciary committee when the pres? ent session of congress ends. It Is In? teresting, therefore. to speculate whether Speaker Cannon will appoint the same members for the next con? gress, with the exception of those who retire, or whether 1 e will name no such committee for the extra session, in which event further consideration of an inter-state liquor shipping bill would necessarily have to await his pleasure and the next regular session. In the meantime the advocates of such a measure are actively at work with the idea in view of having the Speaker ] appoint a committee that at least would not be as stubbornly opposed to a bill of this kind as that now exist? ing. Good roads and new factories, an extension of trade territory, and tho Betts Lumber Company railroad art three things that Sumtej- needs badly, among a few other things, to make things better than they are. Mr. U M. King has lost two flnt mules within the past week, one from blind staggers and the other lrom 1 lock-jaw. SPECIAL SALE 1 OF ? ???SHIR TS i ? ? ? *atE have about ? 76 do z e n Negligee Shirts that we are clos? ing out at 38 cents each. Not a one in the lot less than 50 cents. We also have about 25 dozen White Stiff Bosom Shirts, open back, an open back and front, that we are closing out at 75 cents each. Nearly all of these were made by The J. A. Scriven Co. Not a one in the lot less than $1. Terms Cash. Tie 1.1 ? Phone 166. Sumter, S. C. I SEED POTATOES, "i ? m m m m m m ? E ? f I ^ HE season has about arrived when those who plant 1 Red Bliss Triumph, And this brand seems so well adapted to our soil and climate, that we have practically eliminated every other variety. It yields liberally, and its eating qual? ities are excellent. We have now in stock and in transit ? ? m m m m u m m m * * u u gardens will begin to think of their Seed Potatoes, H for there is no garden complete without them. Several years ago we introduced in a small way ^ ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? * * n * u One Hundred Barrels Of this well known brand, and we would suggest to our friends the advisability of getting their seed with as little delay as possible, for our past experience has been that those who wanted this brand and deferred their purchases until late in the season were disap? pointed in getting them. We have also a limited quantity of \ The Irish Cobbler A seed of recent introduction and one which some of our friends think well of. We would recommend as an excellent fertilizer for potatoes our ? Ashepoo 8=3=3 ? Those who have tried it express perfect satisfaction ? %% with the results. H *- * S O'DONNELL 6 CO. 1 ? ? Thanks From Civic League. At a meeting of the executive com? mittee of the Civic League held Mon? thly, a resolution was adopted ex? pressing the thanks of the Civic LemgU? to the Ministerial Association, and other citizens who assisted in making the mass meeting Sunday night a success. Thanks were also extended to Manager Ryttenberg for the ute of the opera house, to Rev. ('. C. Rrown, Rev. H. H. Covington. Mr. C. M. Hurst and Mr. Neill O'Don nell who made speeches, to the ushers for services, to Dally Item, Watchman and Southron and the Sumter Herald, for advertising, and to ^ill who assist? ed in any way. The committee realizing that many who would otherwise have attended the mass meeting were kept away by the exceptionally cold weather, re? quest, that the statement be made that any one who may have intended to contribute toward the support of the City Nurse can still do so by send? ing the contribution to Mrs. F. M. Spann. All contributions will be ap? preciated a? a larger income Is ur? gently needed for the prosecution of the growing work that the City Nurse finds to do.