Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1880-09-09

then invited any Others who might wish to
speak, to take the stand, when
DIR. j. B. ALLISON
announced himself as a candidate for county
commissioner. He pledged himself, if elected
to strive to serve the people faithfully and
efficiently; and on one point he would public
ly answer question which had been frequent
ly propounded to him, and that was on the
subject of employing clerk to the board. He
said, if elected, he would use his influence
with the other members of the board to do
the clerical work of the office among them
selves, dispensing with the expense Of en-
ploying a clerk.
The chairman then announced the speaking
closed, when calls were made for
W. wADDY THOMSON, ESQ.
Mr.. Thomson responded by making his ac-
acknowledgements to the people for the confidence
they repOsed in him by bringing his name for
ward for the House of Representatives, and
gave his reasons, which were of a private
character, for having to withdraw from the
canvass after his name had been announced
After Mr.. Thomson's remarks,
MR.. W. J. STEPHENSON,
candidate for sheriff, ascended the stand. He
said the office he sought not being political
one, he would make no political speech, hav-
ing neither the time nor inclination to do so.
He then referred to the fact that he was elect
ed county commissioner on the Democratic
ticket in 1876, and that he saved the county
S20 900 by reducing the taxes and cutting
down the fees of the county commissioners
from $24 to S6 per month. The county taxes
were also cut down from to mills, and the
taxes of the county had been reduced $40, 600.
The first year he received $159 for 10 months
services ;the last year it was something larger
S2O0-but he took only $76 He said that it
was charged that he had been anxious to ac-
cept commission from Chamberlain, but it
was infamously false. Mr.. Stephenson then
left the stand, when
r. II. GLENN,
candidate for reelection to the office of Sher-
iff, arose from his seat in the crowd and
begged their attention for few moments.
After addressing few words from where he
stood, cries went up-"Go to the stand, Sher-
iff 20 to the stand.'' ''No," he replied, ''the
last speech made was at Appomattox, when
l told the members Of my old company that
they had followed me through the war, and
neither they nor had anything to be ashamed
of to 60 home peacefully and quietly and be
good citizens, and they would never have any
regrets for failure to discharge their duties. l
needed no stand for that speech and as l was
not invited to this stand, can speak from
where l am" He then proceeded to charge
Mr.. Stephenson with making false pretences
in his claim for the office of sheriff by repre-
senting that he had discharged the-duties of
county commissioner in manner which the
facts of the case do not at all warrant. He
then referred to memoranda taken from diff
ferent reports of the board of county commits
sioners, from which he said it appeared that
when the old board retired they turned over to
the board of which Mr.. Stephenson was a
uo in Mr.
sons return S3,555.50. He said he also found
in Mr. Stephenson's return for 1878, cash Oh
hand, ST, 1873. 36; that Mr.. Stephenson charges
himself $3 per day for Is days. services; that
there was an Act passed on the 31st of May,
1877, reducing the pay of county commission
ers' from So to - per day-p. 235, Gen. Stat. !;
that the tax levied in 1875 was $14, ,694.85
that the taxes levied for the county of York
in 1876, were S1O,31S.65; that the taxes for
county purposes in 1877 amounted to $1O,
442. 79 :; and that by these figures the county
was saved about $1,000; but the credit for
this is due not to Mr.. Stephenson alone, but to
all the members of the board. He also charged
that the county commissioners took the full
pay of So per day, until their pay was reduced
by act Of the Legislature from So to ~. He
was unable to see where $40, 900 had been
saved to the county, in the two years which
anything was saved afterWard, the present
board of county commissioners is entitled to
the credit, and of this board Mr. Stephenson
is not member. He thought it very strange
that Mr.. Stephenson's colleagues, Mr.. Riddle
and Mr.. Hayes, had never seen it; and more
than all it was great oversight in the people
not to take public recognition of this great
service by returning him to the same position
in 1878. Sheriff Glenn also charged that the
reduction of taxes for which Mr.. Stephenson
claimed credit, was false economy, involving
the county in debt. The county is now buy
ing supplies on time at 20 per cent. advance,
and he has been unable, the whole of this year
and for portion of last year, to obtain pay
for dieting prisoners; and for the transporta-
tion of the last prisoners to the penitentiary
he had to advance the money himself, or re-
quire the people of the county to pay for diet
ing the prisoners, because there was no money
in the county treasury. In November, 1879,
and March, 1880, he advanced money to trans
port prisoners to the penitentiary, to save the
county the expense Of dieting them, and for
some time was out of the use of the money.
Mr.. Stephenson said in reply that of 81 $50
35, alluded to by Sheriff Glenn, S3, 600 had been
deposited in the Citizens Savings Bank and
was tied up in litigation when he went into
office that every claim in the office had been
paid; as to the reduction of pay, while the
commissioners we're allowed by law to meet
eight days each month, they met only two
days in the month, thereby reducing the sum
vdual efforts in the reduction of expenses, he
meant to say that it was done by the board, and
not himself alone; and as to the county now
running in debt, if the May installment of
taxes had been promptly met, the county
would not now be paying the 20 pr cent.
advance for supplies complained Of.
To Mr.. Stephenson's reply Sheriff Glenn re-
joined that he had unpaid claims in the COM
missioners' office, filed before the 1st Of No.
vember, 1879.
THE SPEAKING IN YORKVILLE.
Monday last was the day appointed for pub
lie speaking in Yorkville There was very
large attendance Of people in town, and at II
O'Clock they assembled in the coursroom.
The meeting was called to order by w. Porter
Good, Esq, chairman of the Yorkville Demo-
cratic club, who said it was to him a source of
pleasure to introduce
/. D. WITHERSPOON, ESQ.,,
the Democratic candidate for the State Senate.
Mr.. WitherspoOn said he knew of no special is
sue now pending before the people on which it
was necessary for him to speak, and he knew
not how better to employ the time allotted
to him than by encouraging the people to
make one more effort to secure the final re-
demption of South Carolina and York county
from the thraldom of Radical rule. The pres
ent canvass, he said, is family matter, in
which the competitors for nomination should
deport themselves towards each other in
manner free from bitterness or strife. He
hoped this canvass would be so conducted that
no bitter feeling could be engendered, and that
after the primary election all personal feeling
would be buried, and that all would labor
with the resolution that York county shall