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% $3attjj&as art jstorfjjran. PnVUshed ^Wednesday and Saturday ?BY? OKtEEX PUBLISHING COMPANY SUMTKR, S. C. i Terms: $1.50 per annum?in advance. Advertisements. One Square first insertion .. ..$1.00 Every ?ubsequent insertion.50 Contracts for three months, or longer will be made at reduced rates. All communications which sub serve private*interests will be charged for as advertisements. Obituaries and tributes of respect will be charged for. The Sumter Watchman was found ed in ISoO and the True Southron in 1366. The Watchman and Southron | now has the combined circulation and j influence of both of the old papers, j and is manifestly the best advertising j medium in Sumter._ FRIENDLY NAVIES. An interesting British view of the American plan for a larger navy isi that of the London Morning Post, j ? which says: "The proposal of the United States govtrnment as announced by Secre tary Daniels to build a more power ful navy should be entirely welcome to this country. "When Secretary Daniels talks of a supreme American navy being neces sary if the peace conference fails toj agree on the limitation of armament, j he is quite right. We would go fur- ! ther and say that if America will j stand the expense, she would be wellj advised to keep a strong navy in any case. For the United States navy, like the British navy, never has been used and, we are assured, never will be used, for purposes of aggression. "This country would be glad to see America relieving Great Britain of j part of the heavy cost of insuring the safety of sea communications for thej world; and whether that relief is af forded by the general limitation of I armaments or the increased naval j power of the western republic is com paratively immaterial. With our ex perience of the cordial and vigorous help of the United States during the war, we feel that its increased strength would provide the most pow erful guarantee of peace." This frank and friendly utterance j puts British sea power in quite a new j light from that in which most Amer- J icans have been wont to regard it in the past. It appears that Britain- has really been maintaining her naval supremacy not from pride, and not merely for self-protection even, but as . a sort of "white man's burden," in behalf of civilization. This, Ameri cans now generally admit, has at least been the result of her naval su premacy in recent decades, whether so intended or not. And now there is an unusual appeal to American self- f respect and American ideals in this encouragement oi a plan which would! abolish the supremacy of the British ? fleet by making ours its equal or su- j perior?on condition that we share its responsibilities. . ' It is urgently to be hoped that the peace conference will end in a uni- ? versa! agreement to limit armament ?which will make unnecessary the end less spending of vast sums on com petitive navies. In that case we might well bring our navy to equal- 1 ity'with Britain's, in order to entjr i < the international league and take up the job of policing the seas on equal1 terms. If such a consummation fails, it might still be possible, by friendly agreement with Britain, to have two equal navies cooperating in peace as they have in war for the safety of the world. SOCIALIST 'PRINCIPLES.'* Victor Berger. former congressman from Milwaukee, convicted of violat ing the federal espionage act through conspiracy to obstruct the govern ment's war program, declared hi court: "I have done no wrong. I have been living up to these principles for 37 years?those principles the jury has seen fit to condemn. I cannot account for the verdict." Here we have another evidence, more striking than usual, of the strange blindness which seems to have come over so many Socialist leaders during the war. ?.fr. Berger has repeatedly defend- j ed the sinking of the Lusitania. He regarded it as quite justifiable, ap- j parently, for Germany not only to take up arms against her neighbors, but to assassinate helpless noncom-j batants when the German govern ment happened to consider them as standing in the way of accomplish- i ing its military purpose. And yet he i has insisted that it was wrong for the United States to raise an army to de-, fend itself against such German at-1 tacks on American property, rights: and lives. The absurd conflict of logic in such an attitude is evident. The curious thing about it is that Socialists, of all men. should have thus champion ed German aggression and violence. Needless to say. neither Victor Ber ger nor any other Socialist of any repute preached for a generation be fore the war, the right and justice of such acts as the invasion of Belgium and the sinking of the Lusitania. Socialism^made headway precisely because it preached a gospel of broth erhood, justice, peace and good will to men. It is one of the strangest facts in political history that such a move ment, in theory so idealistic, should have oeen suddenly perverted, in this and various other countries, to a practical championship of a German' sv: em of political and military ag- j gre~sion which is the diametrical op- <! posite of what Socialism had always professed to represent. Socialism as a theoretical plan forj reconstructing society still exists, and j commands support among many! thinking men as one posible solution for political and economic problems. But any intelligent non-Socialist must wonder how men holding such views as those of Victor Berger and other like-minded Americans can still call themselves Socialists. THE CONQUERING PENNY The American people consumed, last year, 307,014,000 pennies. That is the number minted and thrown into J circulation, to add to the quantity al ready circulating. The total, if there were any way of finding it out, would certainly be an imposing figure, inas much as no less than 1,000,000,000 pennies had been minted in the pre vious ten years, and most of them are probably still in use. The fact that last year's production is three times the previous ten-year average shows what an important place the one-cent piece occupies in our present coinage. If the humble j copper was scorned in pre-war years, and in the early years of the war, it is scorned no longer. Mounting prices have only increased the demand for it. The principal cause of the great ly accelerated demand of late may have been the payment of the many j small war taxes running into odd j cents; but a still stronger influence has been the growing spirit of thrift, revealed in the fixing of odd prices for commodities and in the claiming of small change by many who used to scorn anything less than a nickel. Even on the -Pacific Slope the penny has won recognition at last. i I ? ! . j "The Soviet form of government is| the ideal form, only men have to be angels to work it successfully." says one political economist. At the rate at which they are killing one to other off in Russia there soon shouhi be angels enough to turn the trick. * * * "The attitude of Germany toward the war," says one writer, "reminds us of the small boy who puts a tack j, on his grandfather's chair and then, when reprimanded for the result."., says with an air of innocence and af fection, 'Tack ? What tack V " * # * There are not so many fat Germans as formerly, according to scme_ re-. ^ ports. Well, we understood that the course of exercise prescribed by the Allies in the last four years had thinned them a little. * * * The principal New York crops are so commonly supposed to be chorus *irls and lobster palaces, it comes as something^ of a shock to hear that Dver $800,000,000 worth of farm pro duce was raised in New York last rear. * * * "Don't spoil a good meal with a bad stomach," says an ad. That is all right: but it's better to get back to first principles, thus: '?Don't spoil a good stomach with a bad meal." * * * Uncle Sam will soon be singing that good old song, "How dry I ami" And nobody Will know how dry he is. because it will be beyond the power of human comprehension. -.S-?\\ THE V. M. C. A. I, To the great mass of thinking peo ple in this country, the attacks upon the service of the Y. M. C. A. abroad will be a matter of indignation and regret. That the Y. M. C. A. both here and overseas rendered a tre mendous service to our boys is un questionable, jj Of course there were mistakes, and ? since the undertaking whs a colossal ^ one. the mistakes may loom up with * proportionate lugness. But like everyj? otin-r institution in this country. itj, entered war service without oppor-jj tunity for preparation, it had to learn ? us it worked and learn in many cases |. by its mistakes. The same thing isj] true of every other institution and in- ' dividual in this country from presi-ji dent to plumber. \' rndoubtodly the men in the armyy who suffered from Y. M. C. A. blund-'< I ers were guilty of blunders them-r I selves before they fully learned their' [soldier business. Yet who would: [judge our army by anything but itsj ; high standards and the success of j 1 . . . i jits great majority in maintaining; j them? liefere the Y. M. C. A. is adjudged j guilty it is entitled to a fair hearing.; ;o ibe testimony of all the thousands, I of boys who found home in its huts, j [help in its diversions, who have stories' to tei] that would thrill the heart of 'the courtesy, the bravery and the gen- i j erosity of the Y. M. C. A. men with ? whom they came in contact. I The confession of Bill Smith, whose! I feet it deterred from straying, should i be heard, as well as the indignant avowal of Bob Jones, that ho needed no watching. The real character of its problems, personal and financial, should be un derstood before decisions are made. PRINCIPLES OF BOLSHEVISM. Peopie who have been trying, without much success, to learn pre cisely what Bolshevism stands for,j may derive enlightenment from the! statement of Dr. Oudendijik. Dutch | i ' i minister in Petrograd. As interview ed by the London Times, he says: "Translated into practice, the five points of Bolshevism really come to this: (1) High wages; (2) don't work: (?.) take other people's prop- } erty; (4) no punishment: ) no tax ation." ' He. speaks from long acquaintance j and careful observation of the old regime and the now. He has known Russia for 30 years. And as a result of more than a year of Bolshevism, "never have the working classes of Russia suffered as they are suffering j at the present moment. I have never/ seen or creamed of the possibility of such corruption, tyranny and the ab sence of all semblance of freedom as j there are in Russia at the present moment." He concludes that the future of Russia, is hopeless. But surely there ! is hope even in the extremity of stich j an evil situation. A social and po-j litical disease when it becomes bad j enough tends to cure itself. Surely} the Russian masses will understand, j sooner or later, the origin of the evils! they suffer, and repudiate the svstem ! which is responsible before they! i themselves are utterly destroyed. If j not, we are tempted to lose our faith j riot merely in human nature but in that common sense which is supposed to be the heritage of all races. ROYS AND REVOLVERS. A bill has been introduced in con gress to prohibit the shipment of ex plosives and firearms to minors. It is meant primarily to prevent the pur- j :hase of revolver:: from mail-order j louses by lads likely to misuse them. This is a step in the right direction, j ^uch legislation, if it proves legal j Uid practicable, should be stipple-j nented by State and'municipal lawsj calculated :o keep certain types of I firearms out of the hands of minors! md also of adults who have no busi ness with them. Rifles and shotguns for legitimate J lunting or target-shooting are one :hing: revolvers are Quite another j thing. It may be granted that even j >oys, especially in rural districts, may] properly possess the former if they j lave skill and sense enough to use hem properly. But the time h^Si' >assed, in almost every American : iommunity. when it is necessary for1 inybody. young or old. with the ex :eption of police authorities, to carrv >r own pocket firearms. Most of the crimes of violence now idays are perpetrated by youths with j evolvers. Most of the cases of ac- j Mental shooting are due to having | oaded revolvers in the house. It is ine to class revolvers with whiskey md deadly drugs, and restrict their listriution. GOOD GTVXXG. Congress is mostly reported bv ad- i i 'erse criticism, and justly so, yet oc- j ?sionally something gets done which jj ;an be approved by the American j a'tizen without reference to party or unities. Of this nature is the Vocational irbilitation Act. by which the care of I { mr maimed and disabled soldiers be-'i j j >omes a federal undertaking. A fed-.' ?ral board is given charge of the de-jj ails, with a fund of S2.OfiO.oor? audjj power to cooperate with the Army and jj I A xu A * * We GriTjd I^enses. examine the *^ i ?> <?11 't eyes scientifically and tit eye- * \ g glasses perfectly. Let u? work *; * for you. f'\ We havp ali prescriptions ? ? on tile. Broken lenses replao ?*. ed promptly. Graduate Opto a ^ metf ist and Optician in charge I W. A. Thompson, $ J KWET.E ? OPTOM3ETRIST. -m ? * ?- j ??- > ^ ?--?--?iJf.A.Ti.Ti-*--*-*?1 *l r I Vxl rVVV1I i rVTvTrYTTTVr'? ? mm m fertilize! wmm c. If you have cotton to sell, see us, it will pay you. If you have fertilizer or fertilizer materials to buy it will pay vou to see us before you buy, Cash or approved collateral. 9 West Liberty Street Navy in getting- men restored to ac tivity and placed in jobs which they can swing. As Collier's Weekly says: "It is a good law and a glorious work. And section 7 gives all the rest of us a chance to help." ' Section 7 says: ?"The board is here-1 by authorized to receive such gifts a nd donations from either oublie or i i private sources as may be offered un conditionally. All moneys received as; gifts or donations shall be paid into the Treasury of the United States and shall constitute a permanent fund to j be called the "Special Fund for Vo- j cational Rehabilitation.' " The hoard is to direct the disburse- j nient of the fund, and report annual-1 ly to congress. When the casualty lists are finally: completed, it is going to be unhap-j pily .evident that there was great! need of this legislation, and that the field for donations will be* a large; i one. The suggestion is made that1 1 people who profited greatlv in war: j work may well contribute largely, but I the donations should not be limited to this clas alone. Any patriotic ? American who has something to give! should be glad to give part of it to this; work of restoring to usefulness the i .?tan who gave his physical perfeo-1 tionr for his country. 1 Ii 11 111 1 il? hi ? mi ii im 1111 ?i 1 11 ?? PASSENGER PIGEONS AGAIN. | j Apparently authentic reports are | coming to public notice that pas-; senger pigeons have been seen re- j cently in flight, or roosting sufficient-} !y near for the observers to determine j without o.ucstion that they were speci- j mens of what loner has been mourned I ?; a vanished race. The annihilation of the passenger! pigeon is one- of the blots Upen ourj ?a^*?^?l>M^lff^^rl?i^aea^o?lJ^^?l^, omMmccaiemmamKBmmmm mm j ? history. It ranks wich the destruc | tion of our white pine forest in the j early lumbering days as one of the ! colossal blunders rooted in ignorance and fostered by greed, with which the history of new lands is too often ! stained. The folly of their destruction was recognized too late for the tardy game laws to do any good. Attempts were then made to breed the birds in cap tivity, bv. they are essentially chil dren of tite open and perished almost as swiftly under man's nature as un der his gun fire, the last known pair dying in 1914. Rewards offered since then for the discovery of passenger pigeons have gone unearned, and until this latest news revived it. hope that they still existed had been abandoned. Perhaps they have indeed been breeding in some secret haunt, as has been claimed, and now are ven-j Turing forth, tempted by whispers of j world disarmament ' or stirrerf byi jealousy lest man with his new found | wings shall wrest from them their ? records for long and speedy flight, j Perhaps the laws destined for their ! protection were not in^vain after all. j and continued safety has bred return ing confidence. In nay event their reappearance will : be. hailed with delight by a nation : coming, though slowiy. to an appra-' cir.tion of the value of its bird citizens, | and their protection now will be as j ) great a maUer of public concern as. their former destruction was of pub- j lie neglect. Xo Action by Committtoe. YV^shinsrton. Jan. 16.?The house j merchant marine committee unani-i mously voted today to attempt no ac- j tion this session on the administra- j tlvo measure proposing government j acquisition of nil wireless stations. Cotton Market LOCAL. P. 0. bowman. Cottoa Buyer. (Corrected Daily at 12 o'clock Noon). Good Middling. 25 1-2. Strict .Middling, 25 1-4. Middling. 25. Strict Low Middling, 23 1-2. NEW YORK COTTON MARKET. Yesfdys Open High Low Close Close Men * .24.90 25.46 24.75 25.23 24.58 May . 23.30 23.96 23.27 23.78 23.12 July . .22.4 3 22.95 22.25 22.65 22.10 D. II. TOMPKIXS DEAD.* Former Secretary of State Passes Away. Columbia, Jan. 16.?Daniel Holland Tompkins of Ninety-Six, former sec retary of State and private secretary of Gov. Tillman, died at the Colum bia Hospital yesterday morning at 9.MO o'clock. NORTH GERMAN REPUBLIC. Brunswick Takes the Lead to Form New State. Copenhagen, Jan. 15.?The govern ment of Brunswick has issued a proc iamation proposing the formation ct central ' North German Federal Re public," with preliminary constitutions resembling Switzerland. The combination of speculators, financiers and cotton manufacturers has succeeded in beating down the price of cotton in the face of the shortest crop in years. What has oeen done to cotton shows the power of co operation and money and should teach the farmers a lesson, Thsy could win the fight by cooperation in holding the cotton that a naked world needs and that the mills must havt to run until the next crop is made. . m Fertilizer with Personality Royster Fertilizers are the life-work of one man; F. S. ROYSTER. Their excellence is the result of 33 years of continuous effort to perfect a plant food es pecially for Southern crops and Southern Soils. Is the knowledge and experience of a life time worth anything to you? Then ask for REGISTERED. ORDER EARLY AND AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT F. S. ROYSTER GUANO CO. Norfolk, Va. Richmond, Va. Tarboro, N. C. Charlotte, N. C. Washington, N. C. Columbia, S. C. Spartanburg, S. C. Atlanta, Ga. Macon, Ga. Columbus, Ga. Montgomery, Ala Baltimore, Md. Toledo, 0.