The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-02-04

But IL Is not m at only that is stolen-every-
tempts the thief or the robber. It is much less
trouble to pick cotton by moonlight, and sell
it to the shopkeeper before day, than to plough
and hoe, and pick the year through, iu cold
weather and in hot. Honesty may be the best
policy, but there are some who think stealing
pays better. At all events, it yields quick re-
turns, and at small outlay of time and labor.
The consequence of all this is, that every bale
of cotton, every, sack Of wheat, oats or corn,
has to be carefully guarded, and piazzas. halls,
gaIrets, in fact every part Of the dwelling
house. is filed with produce. Farmers do not
constantly Under their eye. @ Ths uees of courses RI
cannot last. IT we are to have permanent
peace, we must have protection OF property as
we'll as life and Of liberty. From whaE'quarter
lature or the courts, 1 cannot surmiso, but
suppose, like other evils lit will correct itself
whatever that may mean.
In regard to the great questions Of labor and
of successful aRricultute, under the new sys-
tenn, think can observe an Improvement.
There is less despondency in regard to the ftl-
ture, even among the older planters, and both
seses the Dasf a Ss %
groes have worked t,s5 past few years, perhaps
not as much or as steadily rs under the old
system; still cotton can be successfully grown
staple has mueh to do. doubt not, with this i'm,
provement in public sentiment. When people
get twenty-five and twenty eight cents for their
cotton, even though they only made 'shalf o.
crop" they can manage to live, and even to pay
cid debts or lay up some money, and naturally
are in better humor, than when cotton brought,
ten or twelve cents, and the internal revenue
took two-and-a-haIf to three cents Of that.
The Christmas holidays passed off quietly,
Notwithstanding the usual quantum Of rumors
about meditated difficulties OF one kind and
another. As, in every other village in the State,
so here Christmas was sort OF freedmen's
saturnalia. Thousands and thousands Of them
were gathered here, standing in knots about
the streets, arrayed in their cheap finery, look
ing at each other, and at the magnifcence dis
played in the windows and on the shelves Of
the shops. This festive season was further en-
livoned by colored tournament-''a splendid
affair" as one of the participants proudly In
formed me. Said informant, tender colored
youth of sixteen or thereabout. painted, with
nament. Thursday, December "a, was the
time, the outskirts OF Darlington the place,
and sixteen colored gentlemen the principals
engaged in this knightly sport. Major r. F.
and acquitted himself with much credit to HIM
self and TO the credit of the sable knights.
The sixteen colored gentlemen, all on horse
or OF. mule back, made four runs a piece.
tournamenter, s'how to do all this r. 'Oh.
we seed how do white people did, and en- we
jes did de same" The contestants were as
follows: The Knight OF the Forest the Knight
ofJeringo, the Knight of Chicora, the knight OF
Buffers Silver Spoon, the Knight of the Black
Horse. the Knight Of the Pig Squeel, the
Knight Of the Lone Star, the Knish!of Darling
ton and the Knight Of Florence. Lawrence
Hunter is the name OF the victor, he having
caught six rings; and he forthwith proclaimed
as his Dulcnea the fair Anna Bacot, to be
henceforth known in the County of Darling
ton. State s Of 1 South Carolina, as the Queen Of
ourselves splendid" continued the narrator,
s'and in the evening we had a fne supper, to
which all the (colored) ladies was invited; 1t
cost fifty cents ahead" did you dance 2"
church; we jes sot and talked, but we had q
mighty good time" Aud I have no doubt
they had; and I am glad Of it. Healthy en-
joyment is good for man and beast.
Darlington rejoices in colored sheriff, ana
in sundry colored magistrates. II all, or even
o psrt of what heard is true, ghonld think
the negroes fare badly under the juiiicial aud
their own selection. The only idea the negro
magistrate or sheriff has of the administra-
zion Of Justice, is what he saw among the pro-
vost marshais, and other military officers !;
perhaps not altogether compatible with the
modern notions of civil rights. heard many
cases in point. One must suffice here. ne
gro was brought up before colored magis-
trate charged with cotton stealing. The guilt
was proved, the offence admitted, and the ac-
cused ordered to make restitution. As the cot
ton, however, was sold, the magistrate ordered
the thief to be fined twenty dollars in lieu. This
ne WAS quite Wiling 10 90, but only
had ten dollars. However, he said, another
negro in the same village owed him ten dollars,
which. il the magistrate could collect, would
make the twenty dollars. The magistrate at
owed, or was alleged to eve, the first named
ten dollars, and obliged him then and there to
produce ten dollars, or go to Jail. The money
was paid and the matter adjusted. This is
one Of the way they do things in China and
Japan. %
The tax executions are another feature Of
the '.new order Of things" very unpalatable 10
the poll tax, originally only one dollar, came
with costs to amount to four dollars and
eighty cents; and these colored and fiepubli-
can sheritfs make short work with the freed
it will be oil right one of these davs. Nj des-
perdndu7s. BIRD'S-EYE