The watchman and southron. (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, March 30, 1912, Image 2
?ESS Iii [I SUCCESS.
Meistersingers Capture Hearts of all
Present?Many Encores.
Nearl) Three Hundred l"rr???iiM l?reM
eot ?I \ii uml Meeting of Chamber
lommrnv?Lice I lent Supper
NTvnl and KIih* 8|>o?x*Im>* from
Hm-fUlrtfSi McKewnd, Man-limit
ami Rniwi?rtw? Hotel ami Sea?
board Situation?C. K. A hbunut
Hapiain* Cummlmlon P'nn of
?.?????mm.-it with City Maim^ r.
Th.-r* mete nearly three hundred
persons pffJMfJl at tho annual busi
area) meeting of the Chamber of Com
amerce Tuesday, which, from start
to finish, was successful. The occa?
sion was replete with interest for the
people of Sumter and many matters
oonneet ?d w th th*> Chamber of Com
merce. the welfare of the town, and
the future prosperity of the "Game?
cock Oty" wsra set forth.
Chief of the attractions iy the meet?
ing was th? famous Meistersinger
quartet frorr Charleston. Again and
again these sweet singers were en?
cored, the audience being of one mind '
hi their desire to heir more from
them. Mr. Charles E. Ashburner.
first general manager of Staunton,
Ta.. made a short talk and explain?
ed fully the operation of the plan of
city government such as that desir?
ed for Sumter by the Chamber of
Commerce.
The reports of the president and
aeeretary of the organisation were
heard with interest, as was the an?
nouncement of the appointment of of?
ferers for th-? ensuing year. The re?
ports of Mr. H. I. Manning on the
situation with regard to the construc?
tion of the Seaboard Air Line and of
Mr. E. la Wltherspoon concerning the
hotel situation wore received with In- .
IsresL
Following the completion of the
business of the evening several com?
mercial aecretarle* from cities In this
State, who were present, were called
en to make short tnlks along lines
connected with their work, all of
i
which were very interesting and som*
ef which were very witty and pnt
the big crowd, some of whom had |
mnmer. : ' ?svtng In n ttc ?d humor.
Th? business part of the session?a
part *hi' h was generally very much
enjoyed by all?commenced shortrj.
Letfore t o'clock when all of 'hose
present were Invited up to the Arm?
ory Hall, which was tastefully dec
erated let the occasion, and seated
along the ft e rows of tables which
extended the length of the hall,
where a substantial repast of chick?
en stow was nerved by the ladles of
the Aid So i jty of Temple 8anal who
had perjured for the large crowd
gresent.
* Meistersinger*.
The Meinterslngers. Following the
supper, many for the first time heard
this famous Charleston quartet. The
selections were appropriate and the
first was so well received that anoth?
er was demanded at once from the
Singer* ~he n.rori.1 selection brought
en % third and there were many who
elapped and applauded the singers
gee still more of their music. From
their first appearance \n the hall.
When th.-v were roundly applauded,
the sinners were applauded at every
turn. ?'? to -pe;ik mil it Is possible
that -had they nung more, many of
those present would have been wil?
ling right Mway to go to Charleston
to hear nrnn? In th* near futur".
The eat gi sun* by the quartette
were mostly mHodles and coon son its
and WOfi till light, catchy airs which
were "the kind that took." At sev?
eral stau???) during the proceeding!
the Meistersingers mere called upon
and ? ' h t n e they responded, and as
one per ?an *ahl. "each song |s just a
uttu a tter than the dm before/' lad
then ' UMed\ if that were pea
alble." That Is Just the wry th
memoers of t h. Sumter Chantbsf <-'?
Commerce looked at it last night and
that is the afal they will thln< of it
for maSJJ da] I hi "me.
The coming of the Meistersingers
sdded much to the pleasure of the
occasion and It in safe to say that any
time they e\er want a warm Welcome
snywhere they are sure to Und it In
tfumtcr the hearts of whoso people
were teftalfit) i.ipture.l last alghl by
the.r tiiusl- .
It* p"l t s.
I?r Maker then made his annual
report showing what had !>? 01 done
by the committees under him and
What mould proh.ildv he d00h dUflng
the feggaai ? ir.
Following l?r Laker ? ime S ?< re
tary Snell mho ha* worked so faith*
fully for the Chamber of i "..mim ic,?
during the iirne ht has bOOg hers
Mr Sn l| mode a ? I" ir report ? f what
had tat ?? lone by the Chamhef
through him working with traftOtta
committ. s ind their alms foi tie
figeajr/ev Nh report hi printed etesH
Where In full a* will not be entered
Into h? re.
Mr. It. I. Manning was next called
upon to tell of the work on the Sea
hoard Air Line and the plan that rail?
road has for the future. Mr. Man?
ning* said that he had already told
everybody all that he knew about the
Seaboard and therefore there was
nothing more that he could aay on
that very Interesting subject. He said
that there was one matter that he
would like to (all to the attention of
i
those present. This was tho matter j
of securing Pullman service on A. C.
tu trains 63 and 52 between Charles?
ton and Greenville.
He said that the first mistake was
made when the Greenville Board of j
Trade claimed the credit for having '
secured this convenience, the second
wben the Charleston Chamber of
Commerce claimed the credit, for in
truth, so far as ho knew, the matter
was first taken up by Sumter Chamber
of Commerce and the Pullman ser?
vice has been secured after many
efforts on the part of a committee ap?
pointed to obtain this service.
* He stated that the promoter of the
South Carolina Western Railroad.
Mr. Bonsai, was a elose-mouthed man.
but that the road was putting down
heavy rails and that Mr. Bonsai had
''isisted all She way through on se?
curing as near an air lino as possible
and stated that this wes because of
the through freight which would
run over the road. He (Mr. Man?
ning) stated that he could see no
other reason for thi3 than the fact that
the railroad was trying to secure a
port for the Seaboard and ho believed
that Charleston was the objective
point. If this was true, as he be?
lieved It was, it opened up vast ave?
nues of trade which would in the
future greatly develop those cities on
the line and especially Charleston, as
It would prove a gateway for trade
with the I^itln-Amerlcan countries
which would be of vast Importance
and of Immense value. He thought
thf expenditure of the city and coun?
ty to obtain this line from tho coal
fields to the coast was the best in
roctmonl thai had evor be^n made in
Sumter. He stated that h? aas as?
sured by Mr. Bonsai that the rall
d frould be n OfJOffatl u to Sumter
I unset i^t.
Mr. E. L. Wither3poon made his'
message concerning the hotel shirt
and sweet. He stated that he was as?
sured beyond a reasonable doubt that
the people of Sumter would be given
the chance of eating their Thanks?
giving dinner In the new hotel build?
ing. This news was received with a
great show of enthusiasm, as was the
news given by Mr. Manning concern?
ing the railroad.
The report of the canvassing com?
mittee, announcing the election as di?
rectors of the Chamber of Commerce,
Messrs. S. C. Baker, R. B. Belser, L.
I>. Jennings. G. A. Lemmon, D. R.
McCallum. Jr., J W McKeiver, R. I.
Manning. D. 1>. Molse. Nelll O'Don
nell. was made by Mr. C, M. Hurst In
a brief statement.
l>r. Baker Ite-eloctcd.
Following this report Secretary
Snell made an announcement of the
election "f officers fof the CMUlng
year, lie stated that Dr. S. C. Baker
bad lion re-elected president of the
organization; R. B. Belser, 1st vice
president; D. I>. Moise, 2nd vice-pres
nbnt. ami I >. R. McCallum. Jr..
Tr? i.-?urer. l>r. Haker mad? a short
inaugural address In which he stated
that the Chamber Of Commerce was
to be congratulated on having re?
tained the services of Mr. A. V.
Snell as secretary.
I ?r. Baker in his inaugural address
stated that it was with reluctance that
he again took the mnagement of
Bumter'fl commercial body as there
ST as nothing In his line of training
which made him peculiarly fitted for
this poaltlon? However, he appre
lated the honor winch had been con?
ferred upon him end thanked the
people for having re-elected him. He
would do all in his power to make
the coming year as successful or more
successful, than the one just ended.
He \sas fluttered at this mark of trust
ami while be had in tin peel com?
mitted errors, he would try to learn
hj whit h.ui been don- wrongly to
do ^eii in the future, He Ihnnked
the members <>f the organisation f??r
ihe support which they bad glvt n him
in tin- past and asked for their con
Untied efforts, "and," he declared,
Thor*?, wa- nothing too great t<> as
pi re to or too difficult to accomplish
with lime and perseverance and
'flumtef Spirit" and Sumt. r soil."
He belle*! ed that the a elfart of Ihe
elt) w is indsssoluhly knit with Ihe
welfare of the county and ihe tu
must work band in band to for In
urban development* He stated I
he eras even more Impressed i
than ever before with Ihe nbeol
net eeatty of diversification of f;'
producta and industries. He urged
tiie people to establish their own can- i
Ring factories and instead of having
goods shipped in to have enough for I
themselves and some to ship out. Ho
thought that a large canning factory
would bo located here In the near fu?
ture and thought it would prove a
great help to the community. He
urged tho farmers to plant grain and
raise their own pork and beef. He
thought that corn was a money crop
which demanded especial attention at
this time.
Mr. H. W. Boall later took up the
matter of making corn a money crop
and showed how this was done In
the west and how it ntight be done
In the South also.
Committees.
Next came the announcement of
committees. The heads of each com?
mittee was announced as follows:
Department of Industry?J. W. Mc
Kelver in charge; New Industries, E.
L. Witherspoon; New Business, D. W.
Cuttino; Manufacturing, F. C. Man?
ning.
Department of Membership, Enter?
tainments, Conventions?D. D. Moise
in charge; Membership, B? Walsh;
Entertainment, L. I. Parrott; Conven?
tions, Qeo. L. Bicker; Quarters, J. A.
McKnight; Expositions. fairs, car?
nivals, J. J. Wescoat.
Department of Transportation?R.
I. Manning in charge; Traffic and
Freight Rates, J. K. Crosswell; Public
mittles, J. P, Glenn; Postal Affairs,
QfO, D. Shore. Railroad Extension,
Passenger Ser\'ce, H C. Haynsworth.
Department ol Publicity and Edu?
cation?G. A. Lemmon In charge;
Advertising, H. G. Osteen; Press, H,
A. Mo>es; Industrial Excursions,
Henry Moses; Education, S. H. Ed?
munds.
Department of Commerce?Neill
O'Donnell in charge; Wholesale, Abe
Ryttenberg; Retail, J. H. Levy; Fin?
ance and Banking. C. G. Rowland;
General Business, W, B. Cpshur.
Department of Civic and Public
Affairs?L. D. Jennings in charge;
Health and Sanitation, Dr. H. M.
stuckey; Parks and Bulldings, E. C.
Haynsworth; Fire Protection and
Building Code. R. S. Huod; Legisla?
ture, G. W. Dick.
Department of Rural Relations?R.
B. Belser in charge; Highways, H. J.
:.'< Laurin, Jr.; Home Market. R. F.
Haynsworth; Farm Improvement,
Diversification. H. L. Scarborough;
County Fair, W. B. Boyle; Immigra?
tion. A. J. Stubbs.
(Only the heads n? the committees
ar< num< d. )
Mi. ( E Aghburner,
Dr. Baker Introduced Mr. Charles
B Ashburner of l.j ncbi/urg, Va.,
"the man who had made one dollar
do what three dollars had done pre?
viously and do it better." Mr. Ash?
burner is not what one might call an
eloquent speaker, but he impressed the
audience with the fact that he was a
man who knew what he was talking
about when he spoke on the manage?
ment of city affairs. He made
only a brief talk and then offered to
answer any questions which were put
to him In his line, his answers to the
questions asked being clear and in
every way convincing.
Mr. Ashburner stated that the
Staunton plan was not the best plan
of city government, but It was a great
deal better than the old one. The
Sumter plan comprehended the tWO
forms of commission government in
i more business-like way than any
other plan he had heard of and he
hoped that the people of Sumter
would choose the form of government
with the three directors and the city
manager. He said that about fifty
years ago South Carolina had taken
tip a big proposition that was not
carried through as she had desired,
but he Imped that this proposition of
her own people would be carried
through successfully. He said that
he had been over Srmter during the
day and that the peo?de here owed
a big debt to the men who had made
her, She was now a fine city, but I
how much better a city would she
have been bad she been run in a more
hUSlneSS-like way? The members of
council might be men Of exceptional
ability, but they were tot? much ? n
grosed in their private affairs to waste
their time on the city's business
when they were not paid for this
work.
Ii.- stated that the city manager
should have absolute charge of
everything connected with the man?
agement "f tho Pity, but ho must not
handle the funds of the city. lb
was to in- Htrtctly an executive officer,
j Everybody was to be under bis su?
pervision. All expenditures were to
!>?? made by him and he must keep a
record of them and balance bis books
with tho treasurer's books every
month. In answer to an inquiry as
to which wiu tho better plan of gov?
ernment) tho regular commission
form "i Ihe commission form having
n city manager, Mr. Ashburner stnt?
I'd that Ihe form with tho hoard ol
directors and i it\ manager was tho
best if tho regular commission form
led here and ' ho m in Were not
od to give all of their time to
u k ib.- elty would suffer. What
eeded wn? a man of ability In
who should "give all of bis
time and his heart as well." This was
tho business side of the proposition
and the best feature of it.
Mr. Ashburnor was heard with the
deepest attention, shewing the great
interest which the people of the city
have in the new form of government
proposed for Sumter and how they
are trying to learn something about
it and its operation before they go
to the polls to vote on it.
Secretaries Talk.
Mr. A. W. McKeand of Charleston
was glad to visit Sumter again and ]
congratulated Sumter on its endeav
crs to put the city government on a
firm basis. He had known the man
who drew the first charter for
the city which first adopted the com?
mission form of government and he
believed In the man and in the form |
of government. He hoped that Sum?
ter would adopt this form of govern?
ment and the plan with the city man?
ager was a good one. He said that
while Sumter was trying to set its
affairs on a firm basis, Charleston had
accomplished a work that would be
of gre;.t value to her in the future?
the establishment of a dock commis?
sion SO that she could not settle her
own port disputes. She was also to
have municipal ownership of docks so
that any ship which wanted to could
come into Charleston harbor. He said
that "natural advantages had damned
more cities and people" than any oth- I
er thing?it was not natural advan- j
tages but the "pull together spirit
which accomplished things."
Mr. H. A. Merchant of Orangeburg
made a short talk and told a few
jokes. He stated that he was glad to
be in Sumter representing the
Orange burg Chamber of Commerce
and hoped that he would in the fu- j
ttire have the pleasure of seeing
more of Sumter people. He read a!
stanza from "The Houn' Song" and j
stated that the South had been a
"houn" dong" long enough and peo?
ple "just had to quit kickin' that dog
around." lie stated that the percen?
tages of investment in the South dur?
ing the past thirty years had been
greater than ever before and gerater
than In other parts of the country
and that the South now offered wider
fields for Investment than any other
part of the country. Ho urged the
people to raise at home more of the !
things they needed and not to send
off for them. He was thoroughly in
accord with the idea which had
emenated from this body for a State
Hoard of Trade.
Mr R E Browne of Rock Hill
mad ? ,i ih >rl 'Aitty talk which highly
pleased bis . i.dlence at the late hour.
He told of trie wonderful street tar
jtne in. Roc* Hill with Its todern mo?
tor cars which had made the repre?
sentative of the French government
say thai Rock Hill was the finest
town in the United States. He got
uff some good jokes about Rock Hill
ana Sumter and stated that Sumter
would always find Rock Hill willing
to work with Sumter in any line
which tended to the betterment of
Rock Hill, Sumter, their counties,
their Fiate, and the whole nation.
The evening was closed with a se?
lection from the Melstersngers, the
Good Night Song. It was nearly 1
o'clock when the body adjourned and
after one before most of them got
to bed.
Secretary Morgan from Florence,
Secretary Hamby and President Her
1 ert of Columbia and President Gad
sden of Charleston were unable to
come to the meeting.
Report of President Baker.
Gentlemen of the Chamber of Com?
merce;
As the official head of this body it
Is my duty and pleasure to submit to
you at this the close of the term, a
report Of the work done or attempt?
ed by the members of the several de?
partments during the year, which
ends with this meeting. This 1 shall
endeavor t<? do aa briefly and con?
cisely as possilde.
Through the efforts of the commit?
tee on membership, headed by Mr.
1>. 1>. Moise, 2H7 members were en?
roll, d and about $4,200 pledged at
the beginning of the year. These
member! however pledged themselves
for 12 months only. Under the aus
plcei of this same committee, with
the assistance of Messrs. BartOW
Walsh and A. J. tSubbs as captains,
respectively, of the Blues and the
Red! with their lieutenants, another
campaign has just been ended with
the result that '?>'?'<*> membere are now
upon our roll, all pledged as perm a
I . ?:t member! with dues of not less
'than $10.00 a year, each. While this
will no! aggregate quite !0 large an
amount as was subscribed last year,
it is to be remembered that certain
organization expenaes, such as furni?
ture and Ho- like, have I.n i?? *i?1 for
and will not occur again, We have
abundant income to meet our fixed
expenses for the coming year, with
some t" spat e, and should an extra -
ordinary demand arise we have but
in cull forth the efforts of the finance
committee, and pas| experience hns
pic en ihn the "Sumter spirit" will
rise to the occasion and provide
ample means for the emergency.
Mr. O'Ponnell the chairman of the
Finance Committee, and Mr, D. R,
McC&lium, <>ur efficient Treasurer,,
have worked together most har-1
motlh'USly und have given us a strict
account of all funds raised ijy or en?
trusted to them.
Mr Heiser, ehairinan of the Com?
mittee on Highways, has b en able 10
get through such legislation as to
guarantee to the county commteeton- J
ers, 1 y increased commutation tax j
and from other sources, sutllclent j
funds to meet Th-> good roads situ?
ation without a further bond issue.
Ho has also aecured provision for a
road engineer ?and. if the rains ever
give up a rhanc to get to work, we
may hope for steady and permanent
road Improvement. Mr. Pitts has
been constantly proving to us the
value of the split log drag.
Mr. Glenn's Commute on Streets
has been badh' handicapped by the
unprecedented rainfall this winter.
One new street, however, opening up |
desirable territory in the northeastern
section of the city, has been put
through, and there are others in
prospect.
Dr. Dick's Committee on Legisla?
tion, with the assistance of his fellow
members of the Sumter delegation,
has secured for us the passage of
three measures in which we were
vitally interested. 1st. The oppor?
tunity to vote upon the commission
form of government, which will
come up this summer. 2nd. The
provision for the map of Sumter
County showing township and school
district lines, and ??rd. the assign?
ment of sufficient money from the
county funds to secure the Seaboard
without private aid. a matter which is
entirely proper since the increased
taxes paid into the county treasury
will soon repay her for the money
expended and ever afterwards leave
0.11 further payments as a net gair .
The parlor car on the Charleston
Greenville train has passed the ex
per'mental stage and will continue in
service to the satisfaction of all con?
cerned. Since then home seekers*
rates have also been granted to Sum?
ter and there has been much improve?
ment around the passenger station.
No question of freight rates has
been referred to the committee in
charge of that department but Mr.
Crosswell has held himself and his
committee ready to act when called
upon. The matter of re-organlzin
the Northwestern Schedule will com
up for consideration before the Rail
road Commission here in Sumter o
May Xth.
Mr. Mnnr1ng'r Committee on fiel
road Exti nsion has almost complete
its i;rst iseignment, that of landing I
tin Seabi ard for u*. and w? may as* !
gines as they hurry on to the "cit
by the sea." Mr. Manning and h
committee deserve the hearty than!
of all our citizens for their untlrir
efforts in this work. In passing I wi
say that we are just six months nea
er to several other railroad project -
elective and otherwise than we were
at our last report.
Mr. McKeiver's Committee on Man?
ufactures has about landed one more
proposition since last report, viz. the
?hoe factory, and there Is no telling
what new thing in the shape of can?
ned goods he has up his sleeve for the
coming 12 months.
Mr. E. L. Wltherapoon of the Ho?
tel Committee has apparently made
good in his department, unless he is
only treating us to a picture show
Let us hope that the 7-storied affair
he has told 113 of is not "all stories,"
jesting aside, the committee has every
reason to believe that work on the
new hotel will be started by April
15th.
Mr. Oateen of the Advertising Com-,
mlttee has pushed along the work a^
foreahadowed In our last report. We
have all seen the beautiful moving
pictures taken in and around Sumter
and we must pause to thank Secre?
tary McKeand of Charleston for the
idea. You have had the advertising
booklet presented to you tonight and
a little later in the spring the adver?
tising trip to Richmond, Baltimore,
Philadelphia and New York will be
pulled off.
Mr. Chandler's Committee on Ex?
tension of Trade, with the assistance
of Mr. Levy's organization of retail
< rs put through their bargain day
program as planned In November. As
a business venture it was a success
and the athletic contests at the time
were enjoyed by all. in the past few
weeks th. National Biscuit Company
and the S. and S. Packing Company
have established brandies here.
The Refreshment Committee un?
der Mr. Parrot! has again proven It
' pelf able to cope with the situation,
especially when assisted by the ladies
of the Jewish Aid Society.
The Committee on Rural Relations
continues to foster friendly inter?
course with our brethren of the coun?
ty and we may expect a bountiful
We are sorry that Mr, Scarbor?
ough's Committee on Parm Improve
nn nt was not able to land the agricul?
tural experiment station which they
worked for so earnestly last fall, hut
Klorence had mote winning ways.
However "he laughs beat who laughs
i last" and Mr. Scarborough may have
better luck in his next venture.
f the
return in votes this summer.
Mr. Ryt ten berg's Committee on Rn
e uragement of Home Supply is still
standing by its promise to help the
f rmers market their product and
v. II '.?o glad to co-opt" i'e with Mr.
Dab* s and the Karnit i .-' i 'nion in the
l iy end development of scientific
in riieting.
Prof. Edmunds' Convnittee on Ed
ion is to he congr ktulated upon
pi ting through the mutter of the
<? i 'y map. To this committee must
a!s< be credited the estnblishment of
a i ranch of the Southern Commer
c!al school in this eity. Its location
here will enable us to hold many of
our young men at home while pur
nuing their business courses instead
of K<?ing elsewhere. I do not know
under what more appropriate depart?
ment than that of education ran be in?
cluded the magnificent Y. M. C. A.
building, at the head of which Prof.
Edmunds has also stood. Education
Is not to be confined to book learning
alone, but to the better fitting of man
in every way for his environment, to
his development, morally and phy?
sically, aa well as mentally. The first
two of these the Y. M. C. A. is pe?
culiarly fitted t?t accomplish.
I do not feel that I can say too
much in commendation of the work
of Mr. Snell. our efficient secretary,
and his office force. He has proved
himself resourceful and thorough and
the Chamber is to be congratulated
upon retaining his services for the
coming year.
This summarizes the work of the
17 committees and offices of tb^
Chamber of Commerce for the pis
one-half year. "With the sum of their
achievements, it scents to me we have
reason to be proud. We began the
year unorganized and inexperienced
in civic upbuilding and more than
doubtful of ourselves and of each
other. Through the year we have
striven together. Each success has
givn us greater confidence. We come
to the end having faith in the abilities
of each man and confident that team
work will count That is the great
Idea?"team work"?I give you a
slogan, "One for all, and all for one
?Sumter?the Game Cock Citv.
Report of Secretary Snell.
The Constitution of this Chamber
provides that the Secretary shall sub
innual report at this time,
?port I shall attempt to sum
s briefly as possible the re
t have been attained and to
ho work of my office for the
n? cue-half months that 1 ha'?
? OftVen nd Directors, and
?retary, that is not brought to
SO of the public, but which is,
?less, of much consequence,
tributes to th<> general result,
y the more important matters
e brought to your attention,
should constantly bear in
I nat the ultimate success of
such an association as this depends
in great measure upon the spirit and
co-operation manifested by the indi?
vidual members. Wrhile the officers
plan the campaigns the real fighting
force is the membership.
While the year 1911-1912 has been
exceptionally trying upon all busi?
ness and has hindered the general
progress of the South, yet I believe
that Sumter has reason to be proud
of the record that she has made as
evidenced in material results and gen?
eral advancement and improvements
in almost every line of civic and bus?
iness endeavor. These accomplish?
ments are self-evident, are of a ????;
manent and lasting nature, and are
foundations upon which still great* r
results must eventually follow. I be?
lieve, therefore, that we have every
reason to congratulate ourselves up?
on the showing that has been made.
Personally I desire at this time to
thank the membership of this Cham?
ber as a whole for the hearty sup?
port that has been given me in my
own particular line of work. A great
deal of faithful work has been per?
formed by individual members and
the thanks of this body is due these
men. In fact our thanks are due to
every man and woman who, without
reward, has tried to do something
for the community in order that it
might be s better place In which to
live. As a whole your Hoard of Di?
rectors has served you faithfully and
While they are all busy m- n of affairs,
they have sacrificed many hours of
their time f"r the community's good.
Your president, especially, has labor?
ed faithfully for the up-butldlng -?f
city and county. No man could have
done nuue. few have done as mu> h
for Sumter as be.
Organization.
My first task, upon taking posses?
sion ,.f the office of secretary, was to
organize the same upon a business
basis. At that time there were no
hi s oi membership, no reports of
woik accomplished heretofore, no re?
liable data as to the city and general
improvements year by year, no report
of building operations, facts relative
, to annual freight :,u*i passenger BM r
v i. e. as to schools, churches, homes
! and generally such facts and statis?
tics that are universally on file In
every Chamber of Commerce in the
mintry and u'hich must be had be