Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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SATURDAY, FtBrtUARY 12,1910. The Surnier Watchman was found? ed la 1850 and the Trut Southron in 111! The Watchman and Southron oow has tha combined circulation and influence of both of the old pipers, end la manifestly tha bast advertising medium In Sumter. Mil. lit AS KKS POSITION. Mr. T. B. Fraaer's communication, which la printed today, throws addi? tional Ufht on the Maater'a salary question. It la a plain, straight-for? ward statement auch aa waa to be ex? pected of Mr. Fr?ser. Ha aasumea entire responsibility for the bill now before the legislature and glvea hla reasons for introducing and advocat? ing tha bill. While we do not agree with the conclusions that Mr. Fra eer arrives at, yet wa appreciate the force of hla argument. We can and do heartily endorse the position he aaaumed In declining to fall In with the recommendation of a majority of tha Bar Association that the f??ea of tha Maater'a office be abolished and the office be made a salaried one, the salary to be paid by the county. Of the two plane, the one advocated by Mr. Fr?ser Is greatly to be preferred, for his plan relieves the tax-payers of the county of a part of the addl tlnal burden sought to be imposed upon them. In our opinion It would be a mistake to adopt either plan. We do not believe that the office of Master in Equity is a necessity, at most it ia a convenience, and when \ there la a great deal of bualnesa of thla special character to be disposed of It ia facilitated by having a Mas? ter to handle It. When there ia a large volume of business rendering tha office a necessity for Its reason? ably prompt transaction, the office is self-sustaining and the fees In the aggregate pay the Incumbent an ade? quate aalary. When the feea are not sufficient compensation for a compe? tent man. the office is no longer a ne? cessity, for there Is so little business for htm to transact that his time la not occupied. THE MASTER'S SALARY RILL. Representative Fraser Eplalns His Position ami Gives Reaeona l'or Paying a Fixed Salary. Mr. Editor: I wan! :o rsume entire responsi? bility for the Master's aalary bill now before tha rouse. The bill Is as near aa I could reproduce It, a bill I drew aaveral years ago. The Idea Is entirely my own. I mentioned the matter to tha bar association several years ago. It did not meet with en? tire approval, aome thought the faea ought to be abolished. While I am a member of the association I can not allow It to control my act Ions as a legislate , aa my position on the county court matter shows. The propoeltlon to devolve the duties of the office on another office Is. in my Judgment, forbidden by the con etltutlon and I am sworn to obey that Instrument. That idea Is therefore excluded. In my Judgment It |a very Import? ant to have a maater. Some counties do not have a master and appoint for each case a special referee. These spclal ref?reis give no bond and keep no records. The work of a master en- lea the court to try In half a day a cas? that would take two days, 'sometimes, and presents the case in a much m >re satisfactory way. In cases where long accounts arc to be examined and sifted, the court would take a week or more, and can not even then handle the case properly, unless It hud been sifted and the Issues narrowed by the work of the master. From the time the master starts his work to the time he gets his pay Is sometimes six months, sometimes a year and sometimes Nee years. 1 acted as ipecfal referee in a case in whieh the master was disquali? fied. The case has been going on for I 4 lean lltail four years ana it mm i be i real or more yet bet?re i can ?efl anything out of it. The maater can't practice law. but in the meantime must live. The re? sponsibility and requireuenta at this otfh :e are ?;rcat. In foreclosur *! and such like cases and cases where infants and parties with no one to leak eftef their Interest, Ihe entire (I.if ml. nee Is upon the ability and Integrity Of ||M master It Is said hs . in.- mat the mast i is i judicial office and no f?-es or costs ought to be demanded There Is much force In this but tnxo* hi net <arly Iiubt and as f< * are provided by law I think thev ought remain. The bill provides that they shall still be colhcted and paid to the county treasurer to rcttOVi the taxpayers of the burden of the ?nlary as much as possible. If we would safe guard this very Important othVe and insure a com? petent man. we must provide for t*?a master, a living. Now if the work eeeeita very heavy and the master In f - b indie large Farmers' Union News ?AND Practical Thoughts for Practical Farmers (Conducted by E. \Y. Dabbs, President Furniers' ?Union of Suniter County.) '? The Watchman and Southron having decided to double its service by semi-weekly publication, would Improve that service by special features. The first to be inaugurated is this Department for the Farmers' Union and Practical Fanners which I have been requested to conduct. It will be my aim to give the Union news and official calls of the Union. To that end officers, and members of the Union are requested to use these columns. Also to publish such clippings from the agricultural papers and Govern? ment Bulletins as I think will be of practical benefit to our readers. Ori? ginal articles by any of o?r readers telling of their successes or f ures will be appreciated and | ubllshed. Trusting this Department will be of mutual benefit to all concerned, ? THE EDITOR. All communications for tl Is Department should be sent to E. W. Dabbs. Mayesville, 8. C. WAY TO BUILD UP THE SOUTH. An Address by Clarence E. Poe, Ed? itor of the Progressive Farmer. Columbia. Feb. 9.?For some time the University haa been expecting a visit from Clarence H. Poe, the versa? tile editor of the Progressive Farm? er of Raleigh, N. C. He came here yesterday on his way to Atlanta to attend the cotton products conven tlon. His address In the University chapel inspired the young men. President Mitchell says of him: "Clarence Poe is one of the sanest thinkers In the South and In this ad? dress he has given the gist of his thought as to the best way In which to build up our country. His mind is eminently practical, and he has built concretely with the constructive forces at work In the south today. Mr. Poe Is liberal, sympathetic and structural In all his plans to promote the welfare of the people In this re? gion. He is a self-made man. "He has epitomized in his own per? sonal experience the difficulties 'In? der which the south in the last half century has labored. By sheer force of character, clearness of Intellect, and dint of perseverance, he has forced on his way to the front as a leader of public thought. Through his admirable paper he exercise great Influence, especially as regards better farming, growth of community lift in the rural districts, good r>ac?s. better schools and independence in thought." His address st the university was so timely, pointed and direct in its Import that it Impressed the entire student body and faculty. Mr. Poe stands for a practical programme of progress in the south which neces? sarily appeals to the aspiring youth. His address was another In the series at the university of practical talks on present topics. Mr. Poe met the large auddience that listened to his able speech, of which the following Is a synopsis: We have neglected our average man: His has been our great trouble. Talk about a State's resources, there Is only one resource, the man, the child, the citizen present or future, and his Intelligence, character and strength?his average Intelligence, character and strength. This is the measure of all other values, and In speaking to you I am going to lay down this as my first and primary propooltlon: To develop our state we must de? velop the Intelligence and efficiency of our average pooulatlon. and the material resources of the State?min? erals, soils, water powers, climate, forest or what not are valuable or worthless in production to the effi? ciency?the intelligence, energy and character of your avernge citizen. Secondly, I declare to you with no less emphasis that the prosperity of every Individual man measured by the prosperity, the efficiency?that is to say. the efficiency and character of the average man in the community. No matter what trade, business or profession you may follow, you pros? per just In proportion to the Intelli? gence and wealth of the average man With Whom you have to deal. In i ther words not only doei the pros parity of the st.ite as an organisation and of soci'tv as a whole depend on I he prosperity of the average man. i it the prosperity of every trade, art ii! craft in a community and the sums of money, he ought to have some compensation for the extra Work., It may be the costs and fees will not pay tin- salary and th^ county takes thai risk s<?, the bill provides, that after payment, the ?ulary, If any thing is over, it shall be divided between the master and the county. This plan seemed to mr to be |hl '?est that could l?e done and the bill s,? provides, I want to r- - pe.it it. i alone am responsible for the bill. while i did my oolleagues the courtesy to se.- if they had say objections lo the *>iii. nlether of them Iras present when tin- bill passed, as both of them were sick Respectfully, t. it. Praser, prosperity of every Individual in the commmunlty from the boy on the street who blacks your shoes to the master mind who organizes your railway systems or governs your state ?the prosperity of every indi? vidual, I say, depends upon the effi? ciency of the average man. The great principle of democracy to which our American government is dedicated, is not confined to the world of politics, but applies with equal force in the economic and industrial world. We must revise not only our old aristocratic ideas of government, but our old aristocratic ideas of wealth and industry as well. These old fatal misconceptions have shack? led us too long, and there is no hope for us only in realizing that business Is, by nature, not aristocratic, but democratic. The poorer every other man is, the poorer you are. The richer every other man is, the richer you are? not the reverse of this, as too many people have long beliveed. Every man whose earning power is below par, below normal, is a burden on the community; he drags down the whole level of life and every other man in the community is poor? er by reason of his presence, whether he be white man or negro, or what not. Your untrained, inefficient man is not only a poverty-breeder for h'mself but the contagion of it curses every man In the community who is guilty of leaving him untrain? ed. The law of changeless Justice decrees that you must rise or fall, de? cline or prosper with your neighbor. You will be richer for his wealth, poorer for his poverty. And so today every man who is tilling an acre of land in the south so that it produces only one half what Intelligently directed labor would get out of It, every man who is doing poor work of any kind, every man who Is creating and earning only 50 or 75 cents a day instead of from three to ten times as much, as intelligent labor would do, every efficient man no ^matter in what line of work, is a burden on the community is drag? ging down the level of life for every other man in the communlay. Suppose you are his fellow citizen; then because of his Inefficiency, his poverty, because of his failure to con? tribute to public Improvements, you must have poorer roads, poorer schools, a meaner school house and courthouse, a shabbier church, lower priced lands; your teacher will be more poorly paid, your preacher's salary will be smaller, your news? paper will have a smaller circulation, your town will be a poorer market, your railroad will have smaller traffic your merchant smaller trade, your bank smaller deposits, your manu? facturer diminished patronage, and so on and on. The ramifications are infinite, unending. On the other hand, every efficient man, every man trained to do good work, whether by the schools or by any other method, is making the whole community richer. If by doing better work he earns $2. $3 or $5 a day instead of 30 or 50 cents?does not that mean your merchant will have more trade, your bank larger deposits, your newspaper better pai ronage, your preacher a larger salary, your county and State better resourc? es, so that your roads, schools and school houses will all feel and aho?v i the thrill of a new power that Sims come to them. Gevry man who conns into the community with new talent or skill, a German say, every man trained by any method to greater efficiency and dynamic Intelligence every such man lifts the whole level or prosperity for the community. So matter what y<?u have to sell your muscular labor, your skill, your scientific know? ledge, your manufacturing product, your land you c,, \ for it in propor? tion to the efficiency and proaperlty* of the nverage man with whom you deal and the great masses in the com? munity must be the intelligent and effich nt i!" the general level of proa prlty is tu be high, '"rbf farmer, the common laborer of any -tort, needa no training. Bdu CatC him and you spoil him. The poorer you keep him the richer will be the upper classes." These hav? been our great pet fallacies. And a long time have they been preached. | Hugging this vampire delusion, the southern plantation owner has seen ' vast areas abandoned to broomsedge and gullies, in spite of the fact that intelligent handling would have kept them productive for 1,000 years. Preaching this fatal doctrine, the merchant has sold western meat and scooters and tobacco, when, with prosperous patrons, he might have quadrupled his profits by selling sulky plows and harvesters and carriages and pianos. Deluded by this fallacy, the states? man has struggled against fate, only to die and be forgotten by people too poorly educated to read his bio? graphy, and too poor in property to build a monument to his memory, while smaller and meaner men In sections unshackled by those ancient errors, are famed In song and story. Writing editorials In support of the i aristocratic instead of the democratic theory of industry, the editor has sfen his patent-outside weekly fall of support, when a properly trained and educated people would have brought him wealth and the head of a pros? perous daily. Fighting public taxation for better schools and methods of training or enriching the average man, your manufacturer has struggled along with a small business, when a pros? perous average man would have given us great industries like those in the north and west. Still aruging that education and training would spoil the workingman and that cheap labor is what we need your banker has complained that the South offers no opportunities for the great financier, forgetting that cheap, unprosperous labor menas small, un prospcrous banks. Your doctor, lawyer, preacher, teacher?each falling In line with the ancient heresy?has paid the pen alty in diminished fees, diminished salaries, diminished influence. Victims of the vicious teaching I am pointing out, our men of talent? artists, sculptors, poets, orators.?have too often fled to other sections or else among a people untrained to appre elate their genius?when but for these things you might see statues of southern leaders In all great American cities the work of southern artists in the world's greatest gal? leries, the thought of the southern poet the common heritage of man kind. It is not that we have had no mighty dreamers; it is that they sleep In neglected graves, trampled under foot by war and waste and error. Now, war and waste, thank God, are behind us. Let us also put error behind us. Of all our errors, our greatest has been the failure to recognlize the fact that the prosperity of every man de? pends upon the prosperity (and there? fore upon the Intelligence and effi? ciency) of the average man?and In many cases the actual acceptance of the doctrine that the state is benefit? ed by having cheap, unintelligent labor. We now see, on the contrary, that such labor Is a curse. And our second great error has been like unto it?the belief that even if prosperity of every man does depend upon the prosperity of the average?we are too poor to train him. The truth is that we are too poor not to do so. The fullest and freest training of the average is the one and only positiv?? guarantee of southern prosperity, and by this I mean the prosperity not only of our section and of our institutions and of society as a whole, but the prosper? ity of every Individual?every farmer, every laborer, every merchant, every manufacturer, every professional man, every inhabitant?from the boy who blacks your shoes to the master mind that builds rairoad systems or governs your state. CASTOR IA For Infants and Children, The Kind You Haw Always bought Bears the Signature Simply a Matter o! Taste if you want eye glasses that will be? come you. as well as prove beneficial) come to us. You will And our prices are no higher than elsewhere, yet \\ e give y< u better service. Gradu? ate Optician in charge of our opti? cal parlors* W. A. Thompson. Jeweler and Optician. Phone 333. - No. 6 S. Main St. 1 <;1 ALCOHOL 3PER?EN? AVcg^abl^rVepar?1on6rAs SuTiHat^fheFbod^Rrtfuia (tog rJte Stomachs andBowekof Infants /Childrkn Promotes Di^iloi^CkoM ness and RestXontalns otter Opiuni.Morphine nor Mineral Not Narcotic. J^afOktlkSIMLWmm AmptioSmd JMeie Softs AimeSeed* I* Carton* S*la + WvmSeed CASTORIA For Infants and Children. The Kind You Have Always Bought Bears the Signature of Aperfect Remedy forCorafla* t ion, Sour Storach.Dt&rrtm Worms Convulsions JPeverisfc npss and Lo SS OF SLEEP. FacSnnie Sigpawre of NEW YORK. Atb months old J5 Doses-JJCents Exact Copy of Wrapper. In Use For Over Thirty Years CUSTOM TNB OirtTAWB ?OIIP? NT. NC? TO lift CITT. WANT A WINDOW? sash or blind, a door or a dozen, or a hundred of 'em? No better place to get them for miles around than right here. We have the goods at saving prices and can deliver them quickly and correctly. This is a de? pot for such building materials. Wo have a 'phone and we want your or? ders. The Sumter Door, Sash I Blind Factory, J. W. McKeiver, - - Proprietor. Birme's Drug Store, 5 W. Liberty St. Sumter, S. C. -Dealer In Pure Drugs and Medicines, CHOICE PERFUMES AND FINE TOILET ARTICLES, COMBS AND BRUSHES, PATENT MEDICINES AND DRUGGISTS' SUNDRIES, A FULL LINE OF CIGARS AND TOBACCO. :: :: :: :: :: OUR MOTTO: PURE ?ND RELIABLE GOODS. IN Our stock is complete and we cheerfully solicit your patronage. :: :: :: Banking. (> Large, strong, sale and progresive. Wo offer unex? celled banking facilities and want your business. The Farmers' Bank and Trust Co. Sumter, South Carolina. No Man Can place a limit on YOUR possi? bilities, but a GROWING bank account with a GROWING bank will increase them. We solicit your banking busi? ness. 15/>e Bank of Sumter.