The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1881-02-10
A TALK WITH GEN. GARY.

A TALK WITH GEN. GARY.
The Condition and Needs of South Caro-
A Reporter for the News and Courier
called on Gen. M. w. Gary at the Char
lesion Hotel last Friday to get an expires.
sion of his views upon the political out
look, State and National, and upon the
material development of South Carolina.
Gen. Gary said: So far as the political
situation is concerned, I am not in poll.
tics and my line of thought is not upon
political subjects. am now engaged in
the railroad development of my county,
and as one of the directors of the Edge.
field, Trenton and Aiken Railroad, I am
here in its interests. I and my associates
have succeeded beyond our most san
guine expectations. The people of Char
lesion have responded most literally to
our application for aid, and the commit
tee have been received with great kind
the County of Edgefeld, I wish to ten
der to the good people of Charleston our
thanks and best wishes.
Ibelieye that the future Of Charleston
is very brilliant one, and her past rail-
road policy, none will deny, has been a
series of railroad blunders, but no people
have contributed more to railroads and
received less benefit from what they con-
tributed than the Charleston people.
What they gave to the Charleston and
Memphis road did not bring back the
return that they had anticipated. In my
judgment their fatal mistake was in be-
ginning too far from home in the expen-
disure of their money, as evidenced in
the $1,000,000 subscribed to the Blue
Ridge Railroad. If a portion Of the
same money had been expended in the
construction of the road in the interests
of which 1 am now in Charleston, and
which forms one of the links in the
chain of the Air Line Railroad from
Knoxville to Charleston, which begins
at Knoxville and runs to Walhalla,
Anderson, Abbeville, Dorn's Mine aud
EGge6eld, on to Charleston, the trade
of Charleston would have been built
up pari passu with the construction of
this great thoroughfare.
When completed this grand trunk
line will give Chicago the shortest
route that can possibly be built to the
Atlantic coast. This road is more nearly
completed than most people are aware
Of Two.thirds of the road from Knox
Vile to Walhalla have already been
graded and tunuelled. Twenty miles of
the road from Anderson towards Able
vile have been recently let out to con-
tractors for the grading. 1t will thus be
seen that the distance between Anderson
and Edgefeld is the only gap in the
route.
Reporter: What do you think about
immigration, General, and the labor
question, which has recently been dis
cussed in the Ne,vs and Courier?
Gen. Gary: I have always been in
favor of immigration to this State, and in
years gone by advocated it. In my
Judgment, there is the same irrepressible
conflict between white labor and black
labor, as Seward said there was between
free labor and slave labor. To bring q
white immigrant to work by the side of
the negro I believe to be impracticable.
The kind of immigrants that this State
needs are the immigrants who will come
with sufficient capital to buy for them
selves small or large farms. We have
the cheapest and best agricultural land
in the United States. l do not believe,
as some have said that the white man
cannot work the year around in this
State without great physical depression.
In the Piedmont and middle counties, l
am certain they can work the year round.
Probably in the malarial counties bor-
dering on the Atlantic they might not be
able to do it, but am informed that by
the use of a little quinine at night the
effects of malaria may be prevented.
The only way to make the immigrant
who comes here as planter satisfied to
live in our midst is to treat him as q
friend and brother, and abolish the his
toric exclusiycness of South Carolinians,
adopting as our motto, Zone honest
white man is as good as another" There
must be an effective quietus given to the
aristocratic oligarchy that has so long
ruled this State adversely to the inter-
ests of the common people and to the
exclusion of all all foreigners.
Reporter Well, General, if you will
not talk about politics, what do you think
about the manufacturing and CONNER
cial future of the State?
Gen. Gary: I am in favor of estab-
ishiDg manufactures of every kind and
description all over the State. The last
war proved the stupidity of the policy
of only producing the materials for man.
ufacture rather than manufacturing all
articles that were needed in a civilized
community. I am glad to see that the
Clement attachment is being adopted in
different parts ofthe State. Capt .Searles
and Col. J. N. Dallis are now erect
Ing factory of this kind near the Able
vile and Edge6eld line, which is soon to
go into operation. The new railroad
will develop water power on Shaw's
Creek superior to that of the water
power of Horse Creek, in which Van
cluse, Langley and Graniteyille are stu
ated. 1 know very little about COM
merce. Since have been in the city,
however, L nave NeaIu Iepeateu Gull
plants from the merchants here that
there has been no appropriate legislation
protecting them from the competition of
drummers from different States, who sell
their goods by samples without paying
any license to the State, thus discrimi-
mating against QUE own merchants who
have to pay license when they sell by
sample in other States. This evil should
be remedied by speedy and appropriate
legislation. In fine am in favor of pro.
gress and material development for the
whole State and the best thing we can do
is to quit harping OH the past, bury our
past differences, and look forward to a
glorious future for our grand old Com.
monwealth.