Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Hard Times For Absentee Landlords \ Mississippi Agriculturalists Gives Information on Boll Weevil Conditions Clemson Oollegc, Jan. 10.?Last Call when Clemson College was pre paring to revise the report of the South Carolina Commission for % publication. Dr, W. M. Riggs, pres ident of Clemson College, wrote to agricultral leaders in states pre viously infested by the boll weevil asking for suggestions that might ^?sJielp in the revision of the "report. Replies from two of these. Direc !or :i. R- Ricks, of the Mississippi * Experiment station, and Assistant Director E. B. Ferris, of the South Mississippi Experiment station, con tain suggestions 'and information that should be of vahie to South Carolina farmers. Extracts from these, letters are given below: The revised Report of the South Carolina Roll Beevil Commission referred to above has been printed, as previously announced, and may J?e had by request from the Ex tension Service. Clemson College, S. C. "After, reading the Bulletin. I can not see that you can make it very m\ieh better'than it is at the present rime. It is a well written Bulletin containing much valuable information: I believe that a page or two could be devoted to the control measures that have been, and are at the present time, being rested by Mr. Coad at Tallulah, La.. \ as#well as_some of the Experiment: Stations. Since Mr. Coad has done more than all of the stations put together with calcium arsenate for ^the control of the blol weevil. I think his conclusion should be mere nearly correct than anything we j could get for you. Our results, here are very'' much the same as those obtained by Mr. 'Coad. As stated by you in your Bulletin, a dry June and July means more. I think, for'the making of a good cotton crop under boll weevil conditions than any ether factors. Under noli weevil conditions the crop must be fairly well set before fhq first qt Augost. and you have made it j clear in your Bulletin what is nee- j essary to get the crop before this j jime.'-?J. R. Ricks, Director. ;T -am hppeful th^.t the weevil j will never demoralize your agri culture, as it has done that in jnany of the counties you visited in Louisiana and Mississippi and for several reasons i do not think it will' In the first place, it appear ed.-to. me that your leadership, es piecally in the counties we visited, is away above the average of the sections that have been so * com pletely^ ruined in this state and Louisiana. My impression was that many of your best odtton growers lived on their own plantations . M'here .they had close supervision o^wefy farm operation, while in many parts of the two states men- ? ^ribfTed the la.ids were owned large- ] i7 by people who lived in nearby: tow&s and cities and were primar- ?? Dy/interested in other pursuits. Ij do not believfe. the planters we met around BennettsviUe, Florence, and Hartsville. with the ability to de- * yelop varieties of crops and meth- < ods of culture that have made their; names familiar to growers of corn ! and cotton everywhere will ever; let this dreadful pest gain com-; piete mastery over them. /?Again, my impression was that] the sections visited had a very de- i elded aavan tage over many other : parts of the south in the very large i percentage of lands in cultivation j with relatively smaller quantities of ] idfe'land to furnish hibernating! quarters for the weevil. In fact, j nearly all the. land was worked in j large fields and there was little of j the patch work so frequently seen in other places. In our state the ? weevil has never demoralized cotton J production in the well drained parts of the delta because, as I be- j lieve. the fields are very large and ' before he can spread from hiber nating quarters and cover any con- j siderable part of the cotton,'it has j had time to set a respectable crop of "bolls. The best farmers there } are now poisoning the fields near , the.sloughs or other woodland and ; in this way are getting a large part | of the early weevils, "Too. on the rich lands of our' delta cotton fruits much more rap- i idSy than on the poorer lands of j rhe hills and when an opportune \ time comes during the fruiting sea- j sgn can in a very few days set all tfee fruit stalks will ordinarily bring to maturity. * While your I lands of the coastal plain are naf- ' urally poor, they have been built j , from the uw of fertilizer to' wjftere they are ev<* richer rhan our! alluvial lands and will develop the | cotton grown on them just as rap- j id]ly. - Too. you can on your soils j by changing the composition of your fertilizers hasten the fruiting | affd retard the vegetative processes 1 t? a very great extent and this should be favorable to growing eot- ; ton with the weevil. For instance, I acid phosphate tends to hasten ] fFtiiting while nitrogen and potas sium in too large quantities might retard"the opening of fruit already! >et- This frequently happens on | r?ch_Jb!Ottom lands of our state ' **fhp*re growth is so rank, ? special- ? Jy jwith the weevil, that the hulls ready to open rot for the want of ? proper sunlight. J i "l believe you might emphasize; a" little more strongly the import-j ance of thicker spacing of the uot ton in the drills as recent work in our state seems to show that early fruiting is favorably influenc ed by a greater number of stalks. "On coastal plains soils here, i naturally numb poorer than yours.! wrrth a rainfall undoubtedly much heavier than yours, a ten-year av erage of 66 inches, we nr*- still growing respectable crops of cotton, growing last year a bale to the acre ; and practically as much this year.1 "In the parts-.of our state so j utterly disorganized^ when In- first came, the lands were largely owned by large supply non-chants or by others who Ii*.ed in the towns and [depended on renting their lands to, j tenants. In these places, too. the( land was not worked in large fields I such as you have in your state and ! evi-p when fields were large the' j ditch hanks were frequently ahH>w ! ed to grow up In bushes and briars j w hich furnished hibernating quar-j i ters for the weevil. ? j "'Our best farmers are now sue- j j oessfully growing cotton where once j / the w *evil practically got it all. j ! This is due to the fact that after a j few years he grows less active pos sibly due to the introduction of! I weevil enemies, but largely to the j ) practice of better methods of farm- I ing. better fertilization and the j growing*of varieties better suited to i I makiug. qua k maturity."?F. B. i j Ferris, Assistant Director. ] Why Nitrogen is So Important ! ' -?? ! j Clemson College. Jan. 17.?The* i living substance, both in plants and j I animals, is a jelly-like material J i called protoplasm. It is a mixture i j of substances which are so compli- ] j cated in themselves and are in such j j complicated relations among! i themselves that no chemist. bioTb- j gist., or any other scientist has yet ? been able to identify more than a I few of them with certainty. The j diffieulties can perhaps be better) appreciated by remembering that f the unit of life, the cell, is in cases > so small that it takes several hun- . dred or thousand of them together lo be visible to the naked eye: and yet the .protoplasm of each cell ex hibits the same complexity as shown by the largest mass. A few: things are known with I certainty about protoplasm, how ever and ?me of these is that in j plants at least, whatever else may j (be present or absent :? iron, mag- ? j nesium. calcium, potassium, car- \ I bon. hydrogen, oxygen, sulphur, j I phophorus. and ' nitrogen are al j-ways present and are necessary to t I normal growth. Of these sub-| [ stances green plants obtain carbon j from the carbon dioxide in the air. ; ; All other food materials are ????- ; ! tained from the soil, except that. 1 : as mentioned in former articles, j certain lowly plants can use at- ! mospherio nitrogen. Aside from water, a goodly pro- j portion of the living substance is composed of protein. In fact.) there is good' evidence that this' invtein makes up the framework 1 iof protoplasm, and that many of t the peculiar properties of the liv- j ing tissue are due to its presence. ? Now. the most distinctive feature of the protein, as compared with many other organic substances, is that it contains considerable amount of nitorgen and smaller amounts of sulphur m addition to those elements which all organic substances contain. Nitrogen, then j is an essential element of the make-up of the living substances i itself. , j Nitrogen als? enters into, the j composition of a number of pro- j ducts of the nature of excretions t or secretions Which have a marked stimulating or poisonous effect on living tissue. Some of these sub stances have an important use in I regulating the development of many plants and animals, say the , bacteriologists and soil specialists. I Nitrogen, one of the essential | elements of all living tissue is per- | haps the most abundant of them all. However the greater portion [ of it is locked up in the air in a j form .which is not available for any. but a few kinds of organisms, j To become available, it must be j combined tor "fixed**;, with some other, element. When so captured and put into the soil it tends al-j ways to escape in one way or an- ; other and eventually to get back in- j to the air. The amount in an j available form therefore, is always \ limited, and it is thus the high-'! est priced element which farmers { have to buy for fertilizer or feed, j The cheapest way to secure it, both for feed and for fertilizer, is to \ grow legumes; and the best way to conserve it is to keep something growing on the land . continually to keep the soil busy with a crop all the time. Poultry Breeding Problems. Clemson College, Jan. 17.?The! great aim in poultry breeding j should be the improvement of poultry in those qualities which j have a definite market value, such as increased egg production, qual- j ity and quantity of flesh growth. | and perfection of color pattern. All t of these qualities are associated : more or less with perfection of ! proportion or symmetry of the in- ; dividual, and any, improvement I which is continuous and . which I progresses toward a given ideal will materially improe the gen eral appearance of the progeny and conduce to uniformity. * The breeder should select his breeding males and females now. Advises N. R. Mehrhof. poultry specialist, who insists that only | vigorous and healthy birds that conform to the standard in regard j to shape, color, and weight should j be chosen. In breeding the. practice of a few j principles will help in perfecting i desirable characterist ics. 1. Breed from parents both of j w hich conform as closely as pos- | sible t<? tlx- standard. i 2. Breed from parents which | are as purely bred as it is possible to obtain them. 3. Study the individuals and endeavor to note them so that the! faults of the parents will be cor rected in the offspring. 4. Practice a rigorous selection! from hatching time <?> maturity, and especiallyv when mating the breeding hens. Consider environment nuch as housing and feeding conditions. - . ? ? ? ? It will soon be time io plant Irish 1 potatoes and every farmer and gardener sIjouW plant more or less of them. Those who do n?>; eure or are not ii^ a position to planrVm a large scale for market, should plant sufficient for home use. Irish potatoes are a quick food crop and will hell? to tide over hard times. There would be fewer bones of contention if there wer?- fewer boneheads. Pentientiary Opera ted at a Profit Superintendent Keports That Chair Factory Netted $155, 714 in Four Years Columbia, Jan! 18.?The chair factory in the state penitentiary has been in operation for about ?four and a half years, and in that time has earned net profits to tin amount fo $15">,714. according i<> the annual report of Col. A. K. Sanders, superintendent of the pen itentiary, made to. the legislature today. Of this total profit, the pen itentiary has received half, and the amount of money put into the chair factory when it opened was $44,195. In addition to this, the penitentiary has been credited with $52,138 for labor, and $1,657 in in terest, so that the prison's half of the profits of the chair factory has in the four and' a half years amounted to $77.$f>7. During the year 1921, the profits of the factory were $43,675, ac cording to the report. Of this the .penitentiary gets half. There is also a albor credit for last year of $2~>. 912. The chair factory is operated by the Fibre Craft Chair Co.," of Frankfort. Ky. The^ penitentiary was allowed less money far 1321, by the legis lature, than for the year before, but it came through the year with a balance on hand. At the same time there are 124 more prisoners in the penitentiary than there were a year ago. The report shows that the state farm, operate as 'part of the pris on system, produced in '1921 175 bales of cotton, as compared with 575 the year before, the difference being charged to the boll weevil. The farm, hoxvever. says the re prot, is well stocked with cattle, hogs and food crops. The women's quarters at the pen itentiary are inadequate, says Col onel Sanders' report, and the only relief is a' new building. The su perintendent also endorses the recommendation- madef by various women's organizations, for a teach er, of vocational subjects for the women prisoners. There were four Oeath.^ in the penitentiary last year, according to the report, showing that the health in the institution has been unusual ly good.' Southern Man is Wanted Washington, Jan. 1(1.--The sen ate late today confirmed the nom inations of Commissioners Atchi son and Hall, of the Interstate Commerce Commission, who wer*?*1 appointed by the president. The senate's action ends a protracted light waged by several southern senators against the tilling of the vacaneies by men from sections of the ooumry other than the south. Mr. Atchison is,listed from. Ore gon and Mr.' Hall front Colorado. Those senators who opposed the confirmation and who had forced delays in senate action several times were said to have made it plain that the'r^ opposition was not personal but that they had deter mined to press for southern repre sentation on the '"'commission and believed ^hat the best way to call attention to their claims was by opposing the confirmation of the two nominations. Senatqr Tramm? II. Democrat, of Florida, has a hill pending which would designate the" membership of the commission by rate districts and thfcs grant the southern terri tory a member. Senator Glass Attacks System Washington. Jan. 17.?Denoun cing atacks on the Federal Reserve system Senator Class, of Virginia, declared that more good can !??? accomplished if some senators would talk sense to bankers instead of nonsense to farmers. 'He said instead of telling farmers they are victimized they should he told to organize and not be the playthings for fanatics. H0UGHT0N AS AMBASSADOR Washington. Jan. 17.?The Ger man government ?Inas notified I'nited States Representative Alan son B. Houghton that he will be acceptable as ambassador. His name will be sent to the senate soon. Marriage T-iconse Record. The following marriage licenses have been issued: ('olored: Charlie Hinson. oswego and .Maitha Jones, Sumter. / Gadson Brown and Ruth Gard ner, Sumter. Lewis Green and Hattie ' .mes of Remini. Archie Blanding and Naomi James of Sumter. Osborn Hiekson and Irene Good man of Lynchburg. Rezekiah Dixon, Lynchburg an?j C?>r;i Lemmon of Shiloh. Bessie Dennis and Louis Logan of Borden. Xebuchednezer l>o\v and Susan Johnson of Pinewood. Trace Boykin, Rembert and Louise Brown Tindal of Sumter. Frank Math is and Indi;i Pear son of Dalzell. Lawrence Ransom Jennings and Sue Herioi of < >swego. ('ampbell < *ato of (lable and < tin Peterson of Alcolu. Walter McFadden and Mary Lou < 'h rriline of Mayesx ille, Edward Carte and llatrie Odom <<i Sumter. '.os Angeles. .Lin. IT. Tim second trial of Arthur Run h charged with tin- murder ??(' Belt/in Kennedy is set f??r March twenty seventh, following ;i h u n u jurv. ,\o wonder rations are short in Russia. Soviet em. IM 4.. "Miss Gerda Meyer of Denmark is coming to the United States this month to show us what real Danish beauty is. She recently won the f annual Danish beauty contest. Girls of Crosby High School, Waterbury, Conn., are giyinf: their -ur's the best of care to win a prize to be given by M.*C. Donovan, the principal; next spring. lie staged a "curl contest" to check the vogue of bobbed hair. The above girls won prizes in the first contest, recently closed. Left to right. Dorothy Smith, second prize; Jeannette Dowling, fifth; Sophie Phiiiotoo, third; Grace Connor, first; in rear, Ethel Costcllo, fourth. Adornment Is the Word > At the places where smart women gather scarcely a head is un adorned Jeweled combs have given way to jeweled bandeaus, tulle and circlets of leaves. The Lee arrangement of tinseled leaves, is worn quite low and is distinctively lowly for the slim of fare. From Russia comes the nigh headdress and for those w< men whose features are regular enough there is the wide band which covers the hair at the front Watson's Investi gation Drags On Little Testimony ^<rf ?? import ance Brought Out From Witnesses Washington. Jan. 17.?After pre sentation of testimony by way of denial war department records, submitted today to the senate com mittee investigating charges that American soldiers had been hanged without trial in France, showed that on the bodies of two men dug up in the little cemetery at P.azoilles . tin- ropes and black caps in whieh they were put to death on the gallows had not been removed prior to burial. Edwin E. Lamb of Hartford. Conn., a colonel overseas, testified that in the case of one of the men Imaged the body was placed quick ly in a coffin, and so far as he re called, the rope and cap were left just where the hangman placed them. But in both cases, other witnesses declared, they were re moved before the bodies were pre pared for shipment home to rel atives. Senator Watson (Democrat) of Georgia, whose charges concerning illegal executions led to the inves tigation, sharply attacked the bur ial of men hanged for "unmen tionahle crimes" alongside of sol diers who.fell in battle. Asking a witness if white men and negroes were buried in the same part of the cemetery, the senator was told* ' that they wen?that all were soL diers. Takirfg up the charges of former service men that bodies shipped here from France were handled in helterskelter fashion, without prop er effort to establish identity, of ficers and men attached to the J graves registration service declared there was no foundation for such assertions, and insisted that hot one body was brought home until iden tification had been positively -es tablish ed.~ Turning from burial methods, John Sebastian.-a sailor, of Jack i sonville. Fla., told how, when a prisoner at Gievres, he saw the ; bodies of two negroes lying face ; down on the ground, and was in i formed by the guard, that the two negroes had been lynched. He was unable, however, to say wheth ; er thex bodies were those of the men put to death by a soldier mob. Through the insistence of Sen iator Overman of North Carolina the committee of which he- is a member is determined to find out j how Benjamin King of Wilming ton. X. C. a soldier with the Thirtieth division, met death in France. All of the evidence thus far and war department records ; show that he was killed in action. His body was never recovered, and men who were near him at the time declared he was blown to ? pieces by a shell. Sent out in j command of half a dozen men. j King, a machine gun corporal, still was with his command when two privates were killed, according to witnesses. Some time 'ago, however, the story gained circulation around Wil mington that King had been lynch I ed by officers under order of "Hard [ Boiled Smith." who later served a ; .prison term for cruelty. Robert j. Harrison of Wilmington, testify - ? ing early in the inquiry, brought forward the first report at the hear ing about the .alleged lynching #of King, and since that time both ; Senators Ov*rman and Simmons have been trying by every means . at the disposal of the war depart ment to get at the facts. Called before the committee to day. Varney E. Wells of Wilming ton declared with great positive m-ss that while he had no direct j proof on the subject, it was cer tain to .the best of his knowledge that King was killed in action. Giv ing tno young corporal the highest record. Wells declared there were other North Carolinians with the nlatoon who could furnish evidence, ami they will be summoned.' ' Senator Watson sharply criticiz ed Wells for failure to telL King's I mother, earlier than a week ago, ? that reports of the alleged lynch ing were without foundation. Rut ; it was not until after publication i of the Harrison testimony that the talk becamo?general. Satisfied in his own mind that King was not lynched. Senator Overman indi- j cated that he was as determined to j ? dear away all doubt, regardless of i how many witnesses it might he! necessary to call. *- 1 Murder Trials in Lexington! 'Columbia. Jan. IX?Two import am cases, both charging murder. ! are to be tried next week in Lex- j ington. dates for the two cases bav ing been set today. The case j against J. C. Swygert. charging'] him with the murder of Dr. J. C. j Nicholson, of Leesville, has been ' :et for Thursday of next week, j This is the case which was order-i ed by the attorney general to be trie<] in Columbia last year. Dr. j Nicholson having died in a Colum bia hospital, but which the grand : jury later ordered sent back to, Lexington, the county in which the: killing occurred. The case against Newt Kelly, charging him with the murder of] David Shu It. a Columbian, who was killed when the two were calling on some young ladies in New I'rooklaud. just across the Con agree from Columbia, has been set for trial next Monday. The problem that Sumter coun ty faces this year is not One of making a profit but of making a j living and holding things together until there can be a slow readjust ment of agricultural methods to in eel new conditions. When ev- J cry one making a living at home on the farm, prosperity will be j found just around the corner. We've paid that fellow L:< fa vet t e. ! Ltird God of H?*as. be with usj' .Vet. I Check Forgers Puzzle Authorities Georgfa Bankers Identify Two Alleged Swindlers Aiken. .Ian. 17.?Latest do velopments in the case of the alleg ed forgers and swindlers arrested in Augusta Sunday came to light ? his afternoon, when L. B. Wya'tt land P. L. Hammett, officials of a hank in LaCJrangt?, Ca.. positively identified Lyles and Padgett as the two who successfully pulled a sim ilar gaiw to the one in Aiken re I cently on three La?.'range banks. I The Lad range officials stated i that on November 23 Lyles and Padgett were seen in LaG range i and that they were the two who at various times came into the lank, j Lyles is ac cused of doing the ae , tual forgery and passing the cheeks j ami Padgett is named as his ac i ?-omplice. ?n the other hand .a I committee of about 2?? prominent , citizens of Hepzfoah, Ca., came i here during the day testifying that I all of the four under arrest here . were i nHepzibah at work in the ! construction camp on "the date ! when the swindle was perpetrated i in Aiken. The day was Thursday of last : week. Cal Lamdr of Hephzibah, j prominent planter and owner of ex ; tensive kaolin fields near there. ; stated today while here in the in j terest of the alleged forgers that i Pad get r and Lyles had applied to j him for work on Friday .ana were j told to report Saturday, but did not I show up. The next day, Sunday. \ the four were arrested in, Augusta j at the Terminal hotel by Detec I tive \\Tiitehead of the Burns de ! tective agency and incarcerated in ? the Aiken jail here. ; It is understood that the pris ; oners have made application to j National surety company ,for bond. Solicitor Gunter has fixed the bond ; of the prisoners at $2\<:0O each for ! Padgett and West bury. $1,500 for ; .Mrs. Padgett, and a total of $4,500 I for Lyles on three forgery charges. I and also a charge of conspiracy, j None of the tqur has yet been re | leased. Ir is thought they will he i given a preliminary hearing this j week. -? f t n ! Near East Relief iTwo Hundred Thirty-Thres j Sunday Schools of State |* Contribute I _ - j Columbia. Jan. 16.?Collections taken up in 233 South Carolina Sunday^ schools yesterday for the Near East Relief are beginning to come into headquarters of the ; the Southern Presbyterian Church ; in Richmond according to advices received from T>r. R. E. Magill. Secretary of the Presbyterian Com mittee on publication here today. I These Sunday Schools have a total ! enrollment of 30.000 pupils, Dr. Magill declared. Tn North Caro line 4S2 Sunday Schools, having] 55.000 pupils, were appealed to < and in Georgia 200 Sunday Schools with a total enrollment of 2S.000 were asked to contribute. Dr Ma giii, himself, visited the stricken Bible lands to see the conditions first hand, and on his return re ported 'to the Presbyterian leader. The result was not only unqualified endorsement by nearly every Pres byterian Synod, but the decision of ! church leaders to make separate ! appeals for Congressman Lever's j organization. South Carolina is asked this year to, raise $100.000 to keep alive 1 .T>?; 7 orphans in the Palmetto States' two orphans at Trebi'/.ond. a port on ?*he Black Sea. These children svoUld die like flies, but for 'the aid South Caro linians give them. The parents of, ; some were*-killed in the great war. The-parents of others were mur dered during the Turkish depreda- | tibn . because they refused to re-1 pounce Christ and become Moham- i medans. "Hair Tonic" Men. Henry F. Marseca. Giovanni Ru- j Mno. and Charles De Angelis, offi cers and stockholders of The Gra matatl Company. Inc., and the j Herba Products Company of New : York City, who were charged with j trafficking in alcohol for beverage purposes, while ostensibly engag- ! ed in hair tonic, business have had) the sentence, imposed on them by j a lower court, confirmed by the United States Circuit Court of Ap-j peals in a recent decision. Mares ca was sentenced to terms of two years' imprisonment on Six counts of the indictment on six counts I of S1S.O?O: Rubtno to twenty months' imprisonment and fines J of: "$13.000: and De Angelsi to fif teen months' imprisonment and : fines of sl2,<ia0. The two opera ting companies were fined $17.000* each. Classy Highjacking. -p A New York broker returned to ; bis home in Roekaway Park. N. V.. r? short time ago to discover*that.j robbers had denuded his cellar of \ jpiorc than Si2.000 worth <>f prize; liquor. Three members of his fam- ; ily and some Of his servants were I home at the time th.liar was | entered. Neighbors of the broker j tis-.? noted the men. who called t ivith a motor truck, and thought}! lie was moving part of his house- j hold -cds t/? the city for tlm win HTp Po<kcts Immune. Brooklyn hip pockets are im- 1 nunc from search and the seizure if liquor being transported there-{ < n is not legal, even though such j. eizure is done by officers of The , aw under the New York State pro- , iibition laws. This is gathered , rom the fa. t that a grand jury, h Itting in Brooklyn, failed to bring ndiotments against eighteen out of J wenty-four su<h cast's presented j j ? > it. The number of cases being I, ?resented to the grand juries and x . the District Attorney's offices in I j ;cw iork is also declining. j ^ Gasoline Tax Bill Before Senate _ Provides For 2 Cents a Gallon ?1 Cent on Kerosene" - i - Columbia. Jan. 17?The Senate finance committee tonight reported a hill providing for two cents a gal lon rax on gasoline and one cent a gallon on kerosene. Fifty per; cent of the gasoline tax will be ap plied to roads and each county will get its pro rata share based on its taxable- property. The remainder goes into the general treasury. Seator Lhristensen today show ed the temper of the finance com mittee: when he asked for a night I session at /whieh to consider 'the inheritance tax bill. Chairman . ilnghes. of the ways and means committee of the house, is adopt-^ ? ing the same plan on the House* : side. The idea is to have the Gen ;eral Assembly definitely and expli ? eitely indicate what it wants to do with the various income bills' and I-then the two committees and the ! members will be better able to de jtermine how to handle the appro priation bill. J The senate has given priority to the inheritance tax bill and this ["will be followed by a considera ? tion of the gasoline tax bill. Today there was an extended i hearing by the finance committee on the gasoline tax bill and Messrs. : Moore, Thornhill and Senator j Young, all of Charleston, . and Messrs. Alva Lumpkin, Lambert i and Keenan. of Columbia, were ; heard on va^ioi s angled of the bill, i As Mas been insisted qpon. time and time again the real problem in connection with ine tax situa tion belongs to the state. With a State levy of twelve mills many of the counties have tax levies of three or four times that amount ! and practically all of the ciries in the state two and three times as ?much and there is where the real I punching occurs. It is ngure"d that, j if a tax of one cent a gallon is i impos? d for county purposes that j it would reduce the county levies j about two mills. j The overwhelming importance of ; the tax legislation that is pending i is largely indicated by the small 1 number of general bills that have i been so far presented". The temper ! seems to be to devote the most j attention to the various tax prob lems. Of course, there is the usual : Bumher of local bills which i* due i to the growth of the state aria the ; rapid development of the roads", I schools and other improvements by j the method of bond issues. - . Garden Suggestions. English peas should be planted j during January just as soon as the jsoil will /permit. Thomas Laxton, Alaska, Horseford's Market Gar den, and Telephone are excellent varieties. Laxton and Alaska are, early varieties, and the Telephone' late. The seed should be. sown h:ick*iy in the drill m rows three ft. w ide and covered ? to { inches ' deep. " I The hotbed should be prepared j now for sowing tomatoes, eggplant, i and pepper seed. It is not necessary j to sow the seeds before the last of January, but it is well to prepare the frame and have everything ready at planting time. If the hot bed is prepared now cabbage and cauliflower seed mav be first sown and when the plants are removed j to the cold frame in late February, i ttie bed may then be used fop sow j ing tender plants- such as tomato, pepper, and eggplants. Snowball* I is one of the n>est varieties of*caul iflower. Stone is one, of the stand ard ' varieties of tomatoes. New York* Purple is an excellent variety of egg plant. 0 Sweet peas may he planted throughout January. Sweet peas planted in the early spring seldom* ; give satisfactory results. In the j South they may be planted any^ i time after November V>. It is best lit prepare a trench and fertilize. Jioerally. and then open a furrow six inches deep a*nd sow the seed thickly.*1 ? - Raspberries do well in the Pied mont res-Ion of South Carolina, when planted on rich soil >on a northern exposure or when plant-* ed on the north side of a f^nce or building. The plants should be set in rows ."> feet apart and 3 feet apart fn the row. Cregg, Outhbert, and Golden Queen are excellent varieties for the So"th. Strawberry plants should be set out before March 1. It is best to plant them 18 inches apart in 3 foot rows, not on beds, but on the level and' cultivate level throughout the season. If the plants are-kept to a single crown a larger yield of ' berries' of finer quality will be* produced than when allowed to grow in? matted rows.. Lady Thomp son is the best variety for home*iise and'local market. Excelsior "is al-**" so a good variety hut it does not yield as well as Lady Thompson. Klondyke is a good variety for commercial planting. Plants set in the field now will produce only .-, few berries next spring, but a full crop may be expected the ? second season. To Rebuild Rheims. Rheims. France. Dec. 20? The. n't;.- of Rheims may be rebuilt within five years. This is the opin ion of Marquis Melchior de Poli gnac. president of the Cooperative Soci.-ty for the Reconstruction of Rheims. At the most he says, the work will not require more than -;\ or seven years* The amount of work remaining to be done is estimated b> thy Marquis to cost I.Hfot.oon iioc francs; of which loo.?OO.rt?n is for reparations and fiOo.000.000 for reconstruction. He ? ays that the society will have 2<i?. toe.oftO francs placed at its dis -.-s;J each year for the next five ? :,rs. This is by arrangement of ?redits with the Department of ?ublic Works. Government repented after tax ng the Lincoln Motor Co.. to h ath. We seem to remember that he other fellow repented after illing the goose tha* laid the oiden esgs.