The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1879-04-04
tsl's,ll = = =
Reply to '.Hs oa the iPosRtae ars'sioh,

xXJNuAhLhS48S, nitAoA -, Aoto-
Editor G;emt&e k~s -whis ID 6r citys
the eli letter a~sisisss Il rosis % ,dE +. =
in your paper Of the 10Th inst. I did not see
tho article of eli. E.,':- bns was amused with
"H.S % Inform. " III. I,Eisa ihsJash 10. Ra
the public, that the general impression that, in
the discovery Of tho phosphate deposits in The
streams on and near the coast of our State
mine bfrwosSlth has beyn found sufficient to pay
the State debt, and. possibly, to buy the State
of Georgia for renting purposes" lis all afarcs,
and to prove it "U., Informs al. f." that some
of these deposits have proven SO worthless, or,
in his own words, $50 Improbable that the
charters in one or two Instances have been sur
rcnded" .. .tI.~ n..E s.f rB ~
Now, in the language of Oh" to "II, e.
let me say to "II." that Il cannot say where
your correspondent ('I1.) got his Information.
but am quite sure that he ('H.) is mistaken
so far as the price of the rock in Charleston is
concerned" that is to say, .i alludes to rirer
rock. which is the 'bons, or rock, Of conten-
ton. 80;
In the first place ''the dear people" who are
licensed to dig rock by the Companies, after
furnishing their own equipments fats and
tongs, are compelled to sell TO the Companies
At such prices as the Companies may die
tate, while the Companies have nothing but
capital used to buy rock, aud their charter
granting them the right to dig and mine in cer-
tain localities, and that the price now paid rs
$500 per ton, and that at no time within the
past two years have they been paid more than
$3.50 per ton, ("and the writer has had occa-
sion to know.")
Now, rs to the one or two instances whei c
charters have been surrendered, permit ME to
say that know of but one, aud that was the
Beayort ni0cr Company about which SO much
fuss was made at the time, and that was sur
rendered upon the ground that the time allowed
fen yo tpNpp "a, GUAR nj teat 4 he IN
pany to put in machinery, &C., and the day that
the Board of Directors resolved to surrender
the charter, one Of the Directors said TO the
writer that if the Legislature extended the time
to twenty years, that it would be mnttor of
consideration with them. &C., Sc There was
the troublo-thc time. They wanted more time,
and thought they could get it by surrondering.
Is IN" and the people aware, that of the
mNiiioaS Of tons of rock lifted by tue "Coosaw"
and Bull River Companies, not an ouHcc Of
Il is used m tic United States Are they aware
that every pouui of this rock is shipped TO
Europe by an English frmf Is "H' and the
people ardrc Mat he CioOsdV Compdnys stock IS
rorth TO- day SSOO.OO for $4,000, and taut tie
CoOSdw Company pays QUARTERLY LIvIpEND If
70 per cant. and does not ''u'' agree with us,
that at this rate, there "has been discovered
n mine of wealth sufficient to pay the State
debt, and possibly buy the State of Georgia for
reutng purposes ?'' If the State had pract ctical
the benefit of the Commonwealth, great deal
might DC done.
Let me refer you Mr.. Editor, to the commu-
nication from Charleston to the New York Sun
of the 2lst inst, aud the editorial comments
upon that article, and in this connection ask
you to publish that article and the clitor's $
comments, for the benefit of "II." and the '.lear
people," Oh what pity it is that the people
of South Carolina do not read and think for
themselves Then they might learn rh@t I'cru
had dome for herseLf wM her GU0ao. and what i'm
povcrishcd South Carolina might do for herself
with her vast deposits of phosphate rock in the
beds of the streams of the State cUe" after stA-
s!y 10 orr orn turner's at cost, but, alas We
follow in the footsteps of the dcspoilers whom
we have, by the blessing Of God, driven from
our land, and. like so many Shylocks, execute
the lesson which they taught us. They had
Radical rings and we have Democratic rings.
They carried their viany with TN open
high hand in the broad glare of day VIC 10 it
in \ very polite and chivaric manner, under
of night and there is, after all, but little
TO choose between them, and there will not be,
until VIC get rii of ambitious politicians.
Respectfully, yours
CHARLESTON Rock.