South Branch intelligencer. [volume] (Romney, Va. [W. Va.]) 1830-1896, 1878-03-01

CAROLINA Report IF tie CURasttiee on
F"a"is.-The feature OF Tuesday sess-
ron oftbe South Carolina General As
sembly was the report OF the committee
on frauds, which was presented in both
houses. 1t gives startling exhibit OF
the manner in which the Official plumb
erers squandered the money OF the poo
pie or that State up to the installation
of the Hampton government. The re-
port shows that for .refre shments' OF one
sort s3J0000 were spent during one ses-
sion OF the Legislature. and the State
paid the bill in the form Of contingent
accounts The republican members and
three democratic members were regular
~ supplied with costly wines, heightened
liquors. and fragrant cigars. A refresh
ment room was KEEP. in the State House,
where the members anl their friends
smoked, drank and ate from early morn
TO dcvy eve to their fia. and when they
went away filed their pockets with ci-
CARS and champagne.
The House had no bar-rooin. The
practice was for the members to order
" hat they wanted and the ) ate paid the
bills. From Hardy Solomon, in three
days, the purchases Of liquors, &c, a
mounted to S3,483. Another dealer,
for some time, supplied liquors to the a
mount $3.50 day. The calculation is
that the State paid for enough brandy
and whisky to give one gallon day TO
each OF the one hundre,i and ffcty-six
members of the General Assembly,
with few bottles Of wine and ale thrown
in. In the way of cigars, the State paid
for one dozen day for each member.
In former years the bills against the
State for furniture amounted to $780,
900. Fhere remains in the State House
furniture that cost $l7Tl5. The rest
has been stolen, or was paid for and not
supplied. private houses and others,
bedrooms, caucus rooms. executive cot
tages were luxuriously furnished at the
expense Of the State. At the end Of
each session the furniture disappeared,
and was renewed as soon "a the states
men returned to their lahors. There
was vast stealing in paying tue bills for
furniture. One sach divide was Sl2.319.
There was Competing as we'll rs furni-
ture. 1t is shown in the report that l.
800 yards Of carpet will cover the whole
State House and every room in it.
In one session the State was charged
with four thousand six hundred and fifty.
eight yards. Private rooms were car.
peted with the finest Brussels, and the
session. For stationery about sixty
eight thousand dollars q session were
spent. This included 'Webster's I'm
abrige L and any other articles the Sem
ators were in need OF, from soap TO
combs. II was a common thing TO use
up one hundred dollars day in postage
stamps. The State even paid for the
private tclegraphS ofthe m1mJers Of the
Legislature. There was likewise Jewell.
nv to be paid for the rings, tu,is. and
damon l. Of the members. The report
showed that Congressman White
more secured costly watch. At that
session he is recorded rs having made be-
sides the watch ten thousand dollars.
! Professional services were well paid for.
| Whipper colored man of bad repute.
whom the Legislature in 1875 attempted
to elect as circuit judge, charged the
State fifty dollars a day for forty-thr ee
/ days as council for the committee inves.
| tigatipg the Eank Of the State. lie got
| his money. I'm wood anil copi there was
the same stealing. For one session the
State paid for one thousand cords OF
wool am one thousand three hundred
and twenty tons of cosI There was
not n wood-stove in the State House.
IY- Senator Hereford, Of West Vir-
I gini a, las added greatly to his reputa-
ton by lis speeches upon the Silver
Bill. His speech was one OF the earli-
est and ablest made during the long de
bate. The Washington correspondent
of the Richmond Ira nscrjpt says:
During CargenCs speech toward the
close Of the debate, when he attempted
90 deny the charge that silver had been