The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1877-07-05
FENCING SIN" VS.. FENCING "OUT,s

The FACT that We ME soon to vote in
Anderson County upoh the proposition
to change the system Of Fencing which
has beeh pursued III South Carolina from
its early settlement to the present time,
induces us to present few thoug hts to
our readers this week in advocacy Of the
change. We do not expect nor desire
our citizens to support the measure with
out first carefully considering its advisa-
bility, and therefore we believe there
ought to be the fullest and most uhpreju-
diced discussion OF It's merits and demer-
its. A system which has prevailed for
more than century ought not to be
lightly overthrown, but if after mature
deliberation a better plan of fencing than
our present one can be discovered, every
one ought TO be not only willing, but
anxious to adopt it. Many of the old
customs of life have given place to mod
ern progress. A traveller would scarcely
go from here to New York by stage be-
cause that was the old way of locomo-
tion; neither would he take passage
across the ocean on a sail vessel because
it is the ancient manner of navigation.
The same principle is applicable to every
department of human action. Men are
always willing to do what is best, and
old systems are constantly giving place
to new and improved ones. It should
apply to our fencing as we'll as to any
other subject, and if it is shown to be
better to fence in stock than to fence
them out, every voter should assist in
adopting the change in the law necessary
to secure the advantag Assuming,
then, that every voter is actuated by the
desire to ascertain what is best for the
whole County upon this important SUBJ
iect, we shall endeavor to address what
ever we may have to say on it to the
reason and not to the prejudice nor pas
sion of our readers.
The original settlers of South Carolina
came, as is known by all, from England,
where the enclosure of lands to prevent
the trespassiug of stock has not been
practiced for very many years, if it ever
was done, and when they reached Amer
lean soil they would no doubt have enacted
laws requiring the fencing up of cattle
had they been allowed to frame their
own legislation, but on arriving here they
found themselves under the dominion of
British Lord, who gave such local laws
as suited his interests, and we may rest
assured that these laws we're framed, not
for the interest," of the poor man, but for
the rich and more influential. Only the
wealthy at that time had cattle, and as
they were not engaged in agriculture to
any considerable extent, they were will
ing enough to make their tenants fence
in all crops in order to allow their stock
to run upon the fine pastures the country
then afforded.
At the time when the Revolution set
Carolina free the system of fencing was
continued as il was established in colo
nial days, because the cultivated fields
were ready fenced, and there was an
abundance OF timber to maintain fences
for long time, and the pasture lands
were at that period in their original per-
fection. Thus the system arose, and has
been continued to the present time. Is
it wise longer to maintain it? We think
not, for several reasons. First, the phys
ical benefits to be derived from change
of system are very valuable. The aboli-
ton of our long strings of useless fenc-
ing would allow our woodlands to grow
up, and the fencing of cattle would give
our old fields luxuriant carpet of grass
within two or three years, the result of
which would, as science teaches us, in a
few years increase the rainfall of our
country, and thereby add to the fertility
and productiveness of our soil, as we'll as
tend to prevent extremes of temperature.
That all may comprehend this we have
but to illustrate by simple example. If
person blows his breath, which is hot
current of air, upon pane of glass,
which is cold substance, the result is
that moisture is formed and settles upon
its surface. So, if large forests are grow
ing in our country, when the hot currents
of atmosphere are passing over in the
summer they will, by coming into con-
tact with the cold surface of forest
leaves, be condensed into showers; and
when our fields are growing up with
grass much of the rain which falls will
be retained instead of rolling off to the
creeks, and the tendency of its retention
and evaporation will be to lessen the ex-
tremes of heat, which we sometimes have
IN summer, and which nave Deen notlced
to increase as the clearing up of the
country has progressed. This would be
of advantage to all planters by securing
to some extent an increased productive
ness of the soil planted. Another of the
physical benefits would be the increased
healthfulness of our climate. Persons
who imagine that malarial fevers arise
entirely from unditched creeks and ponds
make a very great mistake, for it is a
matter of experience that these fevers
have been gradually extending as the
country has been cleared. If they were
not caused BY the clearing of timber,
why is it that the mountain creeks,
which frequently accumulate large guam
titles of debris, do not cause fevers =?
The correctness of this position is attcs-