Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1880-11-04

ple that these laws should be enforced, then
they should be expunged from the Constitu-
ton and oblitersted from the Statute book.
And we shall stand before the world as peo.
pie having the courage of our convictions,
however extraordinary or anomalous. II the
duel is to be tolerated at all, it is due to our
people that it shall be openly legalized and
regulated under the law, and the Code of
Honor, so called, spread upon the Statute
book. Our people would then no longer be
subjected to the demoralizing influences conse'
quent upon habtual deficiencies of the most
solemn provisions of the law; condition Of
things which tend, to bring all law into con-
tempt, and amounts to confession of weak
ness wholly unworthy Of the people of South
Carolina.
If the duel were thus sanctioned by the
law and this form of homicide legalized, we
would at least comprehend the necessity of
training our sons from infancy to the skillful
use of the pistol, reeerse our ethical system
and omit from the Lords prayer so much as
"doth teach us of the deeds of mercy"
Gentlemen, l make no apology for detain:
ing you so lonr The subject is one of vital
Importance t. The State. The victim of the
duel is often AIKEN from the brightest of our
Jewels, the nc, est AID truest Of her sons.
A people who tolerate such sacrifices will
not be held guiltless, either in the just judg-
ment Of enlightened nations, or at the bar of
the Supreme Ruler of the universe.
CHARLESTON GIRLS IN 173S-A petition
was addressed, in 1:.733, to the Governor Of
South Carolina, by sixteen maidens of Charles
ton, which ran thus: "The humble petition of
all the maids whose names are underWrltten
Whereas, we, the humble petitioners, are at
present in very melancholy disposition OF
mind, considering how all the bachelors are
blindly captivated by widows, and our own
youthful charms thereby neglected; in conse'
ouence of this, our request is that your Ex-
cellency will, for the future, order that no
widow presume to marry any young man un.
til the maids are provided for; or else to pay
each of them 3 fine for satisfaction for inva
ding our liberties and likewise fine to be
levied on all such bachelors as shall be mar.
ried to widows. The great disadvantage it is
to us maids is that the widows, by their for
ward carriage, do snap up the young men,
and have the vanity to think their merit be
yOnu ours, WHICH lS SIedt I'LL lPoolItoh "i uS,
who ought to have the preference. This is
humby recommended to your Excellency's
consideration, and hope you will permit no
further insults. And we poor maids, in duty
bound. will ever pray" The forlorn sixteen
would have ve~y much approved the edict OF
the Portuguese King, which forbade widows
above the age of fifty from re-marrying on
the ground that experience taught that wild
ows of that age commonly welded young men
of property, who dissipated the fortunes mar
riages brought them to the prejudice of chill
dren and other relatives Chambers Journal
Cosr OF PICKING CorToN.-Some of the
papers have expressed surprise at the esti
mate made by correspondent Of Bradstreet's,
that it costs $4O,O00,000 to pick the cotton
crop; but as that estimate was made on the
basis of fifty cents per 100 pounds for picking,
and as fully eighty cents is the prevailing rate
in Texas, Will, as high as S1.25 has been
paid this year, it is probable that 100000
would better represent the cost of picking out
the cotton of the United States. Of this
amount probably s3OOOOO0O is paid to COL
ored men. The cost of picking has been
higher this year than usual. We see in an
exchange that there were recently received at
Columbus, Ga, two bales of cotton which
were ginned and packed in 1857. The bag
ging and rope we're in good order. The cot.
ton was sold and brought niue cents per pound
for one and ten cents for the other.