Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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fi? * . ... . p? ? ;' ' ' k- - " ' ' * ' I THE TOWN OF UNION HAS j| ~W~ W~ ^ ~M r ** J- ^?v m ~T - * /|T^Th"^t'OWN.OF TiHON HAb Uj ?tess^-THE UNION IMES mb? ''**! ? - * - JLi V/. ..IX V/ -a 1 _1. I. f JL JL14 kyi 5 Throe Graded School.. An.. 8 /C7 H Electric Light.. ft * * ? ,|an Water. Population 0,500. j) -^r*?^ ^ V ^ - _ __ . __ , _ - ? .-t-_^ ^ VOL. HI. NO. 40. . UNION, SOUTH CAROLINA, FRIDAY, NOVFMRER iXToO^ ~ #1.00 A YEAR: .A.?- r- ' - J TEXAS LETTER CONTINUED. A South Carolinian Becomes Rich in Texas. The Owner of Hunter's llend Went to Texas a Poor Mun. Income from Rents Now $ao u Buy. Denver, Col., Nov. 5.?1002. Jno. It. Math is, Editor, The Union Timfs: Your issue of Friday, a week ago* reached me though somewhat delayed. The delay was caused by an error in the address. The anxiety while waiting was much the same u I/\/\L in M rA> f hn nriMifrtl /if n It. ma j\sw?iif? ivi buv c?i iii uA ui a MCI" corned friend. I note with pleasure the new correspondents from Cedar Bluff and Pine Grove?at least they appear new to me?and I hope they will weekly add a few notes from their respective neighborhoods. I must admit that 1 had the honor as well as ploasure of meeting the charming young lady, Miss Ada Duckett, o! W whom the writer frOm Cedar Bluff speaks ot having just married Mr. Bishop. I met her just a year ago and heard that such an cveut might occur but had no idea it would be so long doferred. The novelty of getting a pig in a new pen as they do at the Bluff iR certainly amusing as well as instructive and if the peoplo want to use this new idea they had best not let some of the editors know about it, as a certain editor might have it COPYRIGHTED. Well, I am still hoping to hear some more news from old Cross Keys and Sedalia. Maybe when tbeelcetion is over and the fail rains sot in somebody will give us the news from these places. I promised to tell samething about the Texas Deode around the famous * A agricultural district known aa "llun. ter's Bend. The doar readers will not imagine that the name implies j hunting for game or anything of the J kind, though there is all kinds of hunting out there, in fact about as much aud of as varied types as one could find anywhere in this country, I imagine, except iu the very large cities. Some of the game will be spoken of later on; but as my last letter said, the name of this famous Bend originated from the first settler who first acquired legal rights to part of the land embraced within the great circle of the Colorado river. The man who seems to have planted civilization in this once barbaric, semi-Indian and Spanish settlement, was Will D. Hunter of Martin's ?tapot, now known as Coldville, Laurens County, S. C. As wealth, is the prime factor for notoriety the world over* wo will observe that Texas and the people of Texas are a part of the world and have much of tho worldliness as found at other places, though many of their ideas, virtues and vices are quite difFersnt from those most prevalent at other places, but as I have > said, wealth is the great factor for notoriety and nearly every ambitious young American lias been reared to believe that notoriety ia some kind of a virtue, or that to be happy one must possess either wealth or notori ety and that ttie possession or tiie lormer is sure to bring tho latter, therefore he strives with all power to gain the wealth of this world; never lor a moment stopping to think that happiness exists only in the material mind. I sincerely hope the many readers of Tiik Times will not think for a moment that I have any respect for wealth or for the man on account of the wealth which he possesses, for such is not the case. Respect is dua only to tho real man who is a man all the time, whether rich or poor, but I will have to attribute more - ; space to the principal owner of Hunter's Bend, because ho has so much moro vital acquirements. , Will D. Hunter was born and reared in Laurens County, 8. C., married Miss Smith, daughter of Bill Smith, of the same county, was ' married in 1857, at the Cedar Grove cburcb, .Laurens Uounty near Luoref river, and moved to .Spartanburg County the same year. From Spar . - Unburg county be and family came to Travis county, Texas, in 1859 * and made his boms immediately in Hunter's Bend, though at that time , he could not make a living on the farm even though he enco had a thousand acres of the wild land as it was called at that time, and for years and years ho was forced to raise chickens, pigs and later on vegetables for the Austin market, while he hauled freight to little towns twenty or thirty milos away. Year after year ho would find himself a little ahead, and tae little ho had made always found a ready place of deposit in the way of buying out some poor discouraged farmer who had only been there a short time and had concluded he had better get away while he could. The people have been 6teaddy coming and almost as steadily going all tKocn ?v* n*\TT ?^ ^ ^ UK vi.lou UJUII V YCttlSj HIJU LU[. nunter has been buying every inch of land that was for sale at a great bargain. I mean he has only been buying land in thia famous Hunter's Bend. Land has steadily advanced in price and he says it is worth more now per acre than he once thought it would ever sell for, but still he is buying at this time whenever he sees a pick-up and he always knows one When it is presented. He says he came there to stay in the fir?t place was why ho made a success but others attribute his great financial success to his economy more than anything else, at any rate from your correspondent's point of view ho made two grand successes, he has been married three times, his first two wives having died. He went to a large plantation down the river where he had heard of a young girl whom* ho thought would suit him, she was picking cotton, he told her his buBintss and they were soon married, and it is said she is an ideal wife, and managed the step children well, though some of them were older than she. Mr. Hunter has six children, one by his first wife three by the second and two by the last, all of whom are married except tho two girls by his last wife, and thev are hardly grown yet- Mr. Hunter haa five thousand acres of as valuable land as I have seen in Texas?valued at from forty to eighty dollars per acre, So you dear rradcis who have plenty of time can figure out the exact value. He has three large ginneries though one was not used when I saw it. He has more mules and horses than I ever saw in one drove, and cattle by the thousands, though the cattle are principally owned by his son-in -law J. N. Littlepogc. He has abeut one hundred and fifty houses on his land and a beautiful residence for himself and family as nearly modern as could be away out in the country. There are about one thousand negroes on his firms and about three hundred white people, also a few Mex'cins. The houses for the negroes and poor white people are nothing more than we would chll a shack or shanty and rarely have more than two rooms and I saw a family of fourteen living in two very small rooms but three wore several of them who were growns and there was not room for all of them to lie down on the floor, so they backed a wagon against the house and and part of tho family would have to get into the wagon in order for all to have room to lay down. The houses are all built of very light material as lumber is very high at this place. They get the cheapest they can and they never cover a house as long as a mad dog can't jump through the top. The | houses are so light that they rook like a cradle when those heavy south wind-) blow and some times they fall off the sticks they have them set on. Tho houses are built in bunches as they were back in Carolina before the war, though not in straight lines as they were back there, T>ufc in all directions of the compass and with sides to backs and backs to fronts and every other way imaginable. Tho reason of this bunch business is to only have on 3 well for each bunch hnnaoa vnn arm n wall nnf fVi?? ? V* ^ vw vvv * ?i v?i VMM vu?J n has to be about 40 feet deep dug in eand and a terracotta curbing which costs about 05 cents per foot. So you see the economy of having a lot of houses in a bunch. There are many houses on this place where the water just pours in every time it rains and I heard that some of the families had a tub dishpan or large bucket for each one of the family and when a heavy rain cq.me they would gather all the bedding and wearing apparel into the supposed safest place in the house then each member of the family would put his tub, pan of bucket over his head and sit on top of the bedding or wearing apparel until the shower passed. No -? V. * ' u doubt God has some feeling for the inconveni(nee of the poor, thus it never rained for more than a day at this place. Mr. llunter is ge'ting a little feeble and his young wife wan'ed to take the girls to the city for as education and for refinement, so they have a nice home in the city of Austin, where they stay most of the time, though Mr. Hunter comes out to the farm several times a week and keeps^ chickers and vegetables growing for tbe family in the city. Last year he leased out all the farm except his little garden, orchard- and his handsome home. His rent for tho other part of r l:- . < ? j ? nuc uiui ucio uiiu iwenty-iour uouars per day. Ileis a valuable member of the Decker Branch Baptist church though he seldom attends and the preacher hinted that Mr. II. did not pay as much as ho ought and went on to urge the members to see that each and every one should bring in tho tenth of all he possessed. I will hare to continue this in my next letter as there are a great many South Carolina people around this place, of which I would like to make mention. With best wishes for Tiie Times and its many readers, I will promise to let you hear from mo again. W. G. B.vtr.ev. [Just keep on grinding pard.?Ed.] THE NEWS FRONT~5ANTUC. Pretty Poor Prospects for the Rnral Free Delivery Reutes. Personal ami Other Notes. 'In autumn when the dajs grow short aud nighta are chilly, then We hate tho drenching rain and wloda and wish That it were Spring again." The nights are growing chilly now, The thermometer has touched .32 dpgreefl but wo have had no ice yet aid only partially killing frosts. Rabbits are getting fit to eat and it will be nip aud tuck between them and the birds as to which will bo persecuted most. Miss Taoah Randolph, ot Landrum, after a throe years' residence with her p&ren'.s there, is now visiting relatives at this place. M \ El J iter, of Jouesvib, township was visiting his mother here Satu.d ly. I ?iu giad that Ivy Green has come back. 1 like to read her letters, and I havo missal them. In i&ct I like to read from all the correspondent, but miis d I/ey Green because she hal been s > long absent. I read the lot ters irom correspondents before I read the other news. The election here last week was the taints. thing that we have ever rem. Thd people did not know it wrs to be or were coldly indifferent to it. I am a'r-iid if wo are not more patriotic and exercise our rights, those northern republicans will make sorry for it soma day. Since writiug about the negro be ing burned to death here list week, I fnve heard that the boy wis a quiet, sob9r one, aid never drank at all. it is strauge, then, that he was burne 1 to death in a house with iw> doois, aud windows. But it is bard to say exactly how a negro really nnniAn tn a (l4Ath. whftt.Kor it ia by fjul pay or not, whore so many are concern d S-nall grain is looking well, but very little is sown as yet. Farmers have bten busy gathering hay, c>rn, etc. I think there was plenty of stock ferd raisod, aid it has been saving this that has kept tbem back from plowing. Cotton ginning is gatting very dull now. For awhile the gins were kept so busy that people had to wait a long time for thoir turn. This is evidence that the crop is about ginned up. If other sections are like this I cannot see where the big crop is coming from. I fell in the creek a few days ago when the. water vns waist deep, an 1 the way I equirmed to keep from going down was a record breaker, you might have thought a hippopotamus was in there from the splasbsng. It d d not hurt but it was a slip that I didn't relish. Did you ever notice a gander strutting along with a pretty goose, wnilo another sto'd some distance away balancing himself first on one foot then the other, preterding to be amusing him elf, when really he felt "down south" and onlv h?d the dry grins. I fuatQ "B. B." and mytelf have been in placet where and when we felt just like that lonely garder. At the e'ectiou here, when the people learacd tl at the proposed amendment to the Constitution was to knock out the payment of railroad boads, Up/ took hol4 with enthusl-' Mm, and every vole cast 1 ero wr.s lor the amendment* The j ooplo ?r * i trilling their eyee opm and have had ( enough of paying bonds, for roads that were never built. In Fairfield coun- , ty last yrar the levy was 13 mills and , ours was 16 mills or over, and these extra mill? was fo*r railroad herd* ( that ate doing us no good. So tme j people would have like<1 to vote twice on t'nis amend mint if ihoy could. I fully agree with "Vox" in what he m'l about boys in knee pants 1 couttiug little girls with short dresHJs. ( I have always thought it was disgust- 1 ing, at d this way of being trained to 1 ta k abo"t iwselhrar s before they ' can talk p'ain, is equally as disgust- * ing, and I balijvc it is the cause of so I many ehiidron ruuniug away and t marrytng ; J> at tho most disgusting \ of all is to see grown men prancing 3 mviuu tensing nua sou talking to t th?ke girl children. a M >ther has a yourg Soiich collie i dog, that is trained to keep tic chick \ ens out of the hous* and <><1 the grain sunning. It is oaly noo* snry to say ^ shoo, if it is not already on duty, aul r instantly that dog h in m >ti:?n. The ?. cows know the dog's name better than ^ they know their own. It one openB the lot gate to drive the cowa in and ^ thev are slow or indifiercnt, a whistle ? at.d a mention of that dog's name 1 electrilies them, and thev try to see which can get through first. No one ever regrets feediug a good dog. s A pondrous freight engine, No. 92, 1 eight drivers, broke d? w? here last 1 Thurrday, and while it wa3 r.ot run -t into the blacksmith eb<?p, the owner 1 of the shop, Mr. W. O. Jeter, was t called upon to patch her up ?o she y could travel. We made a big clip t to replace a rocker bolt which was 1 broken, put it on and after s >rae hours d day she pulled out f?r Spartanburg ( with tho full train. That locomotive , was the biggest machine I ever saw < repaired in a blacksmith shop. , There is somo rfFwrt being mtde to ( gat up s >ma rural delivery routes. ' 11 bad it recently Irom undoubted au thority, Goagre smun Johnson himself, that there was a move for two. After studying tho routes or part of thorn* I do not balieve we can get them soon. T n>a,ln '1 - *> jk u?iv IUWVIV aviug D ?JT U1 IUQ XV. X? . D. busiue s. and if a special a^eut is 8">ut. arornd according to specifications la:d down, ho would find liula to c >:nmei d th(8), or at least one. In the firat place there are too many unbridled creeks to crrsi, then there are bo many hills to climb, ani the roads are not up to the specification. We have got '.o get nearer up to date, we most have improved roads that the mail rider may be able to make his | trips ou time, before we hope to hare , free rural dilivery. Bid roadi and free rural delivery are incompatible. Hey Denver. i POLITICS IN WASHINGTON. J (From Our Regular Correspondent.) * The winter political population is < gathering in Washington. i Familiar faces are once more seen f in the hotel lobbies, in the Goveru- { ment offices and about the White ( House, or rather about the Prcsi- 1 dent's office building, and the. news- 1 paper correspondents are hurrying t hither and yon and getting "tips" { and getting them denied, vigilrntly I watching for "news" in regard to the J great congressional "Derby" which, t probably will not bo run for r a year, but which has for its prize t the speakership of the House of t T"> ? ?* 1/* * ? ivepreseniauves ana lor wnicn tnere i will be many entries though but one 8 contestant can get the place. 1 As a result of the lower chamber 1 numerous candidacies have been 1 announced. The first actual contestant \ to come to Washington and proclaim { his ambition was Representative t Dalzcll of Pennsylvania, tho apostle t of proteotion in its highest form. 8 With an almost solid delegation back t of him and many high protectionists favorable to his cause, Mr. Dalzell t will make a vigorous fight and t believes that he will have the moral < support of Senator Ilanna. It will t be no easy race, howover, advices t from Mr. Cannon of Illinois, states i that he has established headquarters ] in Chicago and that he ''proposes to t win." Ilia Inner RprvifA iu chsii'mon 1 of the committee on appropriations he t believes entitles Mm to recognition but that very office has made for him < many enemies whose cherished appropriation bills have fallen before ( his merci'oss axe. Although New York already has the presidency and the secretaryship of war, she is not content ant) will ] put two contestenta in tho field, < Representative Payne, now chairman of the Ways end Moans Committee, ami Representative Sherman ol Utica. A handsome well dressed man appeared at the White House recently and had a Ions; talk with the President. It wras Represeneative Dverstrect, secretary of Congressonal Campaign Committee, lie efused to state positively his mission n Washington but it is understood hat he is here to present the claims )f Representative Babcock who hafi record of fivo successful campaigns vliieh he has managed. Up in Main hero is a gentleman, regarded as ypicd of the new dispensation, who las serious hopes of presiding over ho House. It is Mr. Littlclield, vho was heralded last summer as the roung David who would destrov the rust Goliath. Mr. Babcock has ilto cotue to Washington and is on he watch fbr every new arrival who lo'.ds a congressional vote. As if to add interest to the eituaion, an unconfirmed rumor has cached Washington to the effect that Speaker Henderson would resign ti e peakcrship this winter and thus irccipitate the fight. There is little jround for accepting the report but t m ikes tilings more interesting. A report has been received from lOwu to the effect that Mr. Ilenderioti would contest the gubernatorial lomination With Governor Cummins text spring and that he would have he support of Secretary Shaw who is limself credited with aspiration for he vice?presidency. Mr. Shaw, when seen after the eabnet meeting it the White House, denied that he lad farmed any alliance with Gen. Henderson and professed no knowljtlge of the Speaker's intentions. It s not likely that the Secretary of the Treasury will form any such alliance while he is still in the cabinet, but that is not saying that he would not favor Speaker Henderson's ambition to be "vindicated" and to remove Mr, Cummins from an active share in Iowa politics. The members of the Cabinet arc now hurrying back to Washington to prepare their annual reports and give ail the assistance possible to the Pros idcnt in the preparation of this message. The lirst Cabinet lasted two and a half hours. It is understood that the President briefly outlined the features for this message to his advisors. In most instances the Cabinet officers are bringing their families with them and the social season will doubtless open in the near future. Numerous members :>f the diplomatic corps have returned Lo Washington or arc on their way ind Secretary Ilay is busily engaged with Colombian and Cuban trea:ics cn both of which it is said pro5rc3s is being made. General Corbin, adjutant general )f ihc army, has made public his innual report the most significant eature of which is, perhaps, his urgent recommendation that the canteen >r past exchange at which the sale of )cer was permitted be restored. He sated that the cases of desertion ind the infraction of disciplin have jrcatly increased since the sale of >eer was fordidden by the act of Feb. 3, 1901 and alleges that none ire more anxious to see the exchange estored in its proviou3 form han the officers of pronounced emperance views. Senator llcverdge has returned to Washington ind will mako HrrnnirAmonto Crv? ? -J-,? " '? ?"? * >rief tour of Oklahoma, Arizona ami !"Jew Mexico, who are knocking so oudly at the door for statehood. It vill be remembered that the Senator promised Senator Quay hat his committeo would report o the Senate the bill of admission ilready passed by the IIouso before he Chistmas adjournment. The President leaves Washington onight for New York. lie will ittendthe dedication of the Chamber >f commerce building there and will hen go south, lie will be present it the reception of Luck E. Right, nee governor of the Philippines, at Memphis on Nov. 19, and will at;end the Union League dinner at Philadelphia Nov. 22, then will reurn to Washington. lATURALRESOURCES" OF THE SOUTH. Oar Greatest Resource Is the Roys and Girls of oar Country. Time was when the opinion prevailed that the natural resources >f the south were mainly agricultural. ?-yr The wealth of the portion waa found in the grain fields of the 1 oorder ptato and the cotton plan! tution of tho father Routh. It was known that there were iron and coal and copper in our mountains, aud vast forests of timber; hut none of these was then thought about by the people of our country generally as oeing a source of great wealth. In the last quarter of a century, tln-re has heen a change of opinion on these m ilters. It has been found that one of the chief of all our nat iral resources is tho minis deposited by nature in our hills aud uiountai is, and it has been d^uions'ratcd that we may become a| manfitcturing peop'e, ih.it it is not nccessarv that w.? should scud aw \y our rjw matoru 1 and bring back fiuished product. We can do thiugs bs well hb other people if we will only try. There is, however ono thing that we have been slow in finding out. hut there is evidence of an awakening now. That is, it is not possible for us ro accomplish the h?8t result and to help ourselves, without first training tue minds ot our young people so that they will know how to do that which is to be of self drfence.if there bo no higher motive. The people of the south must be equipped by ulucation for tho work to be done or else they roust have men i nd women from the outside come ia and do the work for theui. We aro now pretty well acquainted with the natural resouco of tho section; will wo prepare ourselves to tako advantage of and develop them? If we mean to do thie, it follows beyond all doubt that our young people must be educated, and whatever the cost it must be provided for and it must be done. To undertake to keep our place among our sister communities, find to compete in the industrial world with them, [without educating our boys and girls, would be as un* reasonable as it would be to undertake to build a great railroad line by the employment of one-legged and one-armed laborers, and to expect it will be done as well and as expeditiously as with able-bodied men with all their members strong and perfect.?Knoxville Journal and Tribune. m GENERAL NEWS NOTES. Gathered Here and There and Con densed for Quick Reading, The governor has pardoned 'Millard Johnston of Spartanburg. lie was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to six years in the penitentiary. lie has served five and a half years, and Solicitor Sease recommended the pardon. * * * * The German imperial yacht Ilohenzollern, with Emperor William on board, accompaniel by tbc escorting Uerman cruisers and a flotilla of British torpedo boats, reached Port Victoria at 8 o'clock Saturday morning. The annual report of the Secretary of War which is nearly cotnpleo, will contain special recommendations regarding a general staff for the ariny war college, and the annual held manouvers. Also a very emphatic recommendation for the re-establishment of tho army canteens. * * Following the time-honored custom of the association and in company with the young men of the Young Men's Christian Association of North and South America, Europe, Asia Africa and the islands of the Ben, the Cloumbia Assocation is to observe Saturday, November 9tb, as a day of prayer for young men of all lands. * * Saturday night at 12-20, at Cameron, on tho Coast Line, between Orangeburg and Sumter, the store of Bull & Taylor was entered by safe blowers anil between SfcHOft ftl nnn was secured. The robbers u?cd dynamite and the explosion arouspd eome people in the vioinity. With guns and pistols they went * to the rear of the etore while the robers escaped from the fkront, having had ample time to secure the contents of the safe. Several shots wore fired at them but without effect.