The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1882-02-02
How Shall Convicts be Utilized.

| money contributions.
How Shall Convlcts be Utilized.
In an extensive review of the convict
question, published in the Greenyille
Ners, the Hon. George ID. Tillman,
member of Congress from the Fifth Dis.
trict, takes the position that the State
can SO regulate the penal institutions as
10 accomplish three grand objects:
ISL. 10 carry out vast system of what
may be called internal improvements
such as the building Of railroads and re.
claiming swamp lands.
"a. 10 create large and permanent
public school fund.
ID. To at the same time humapelv
govern her criminals, while-to the best
Notwithstanding their morals and
deterring Others initiating their example.
MIR. fillman contends that South Caro-
mas present method of dealing with
offenders against her laws is the most
expensive and illadvised of thateof any
state in the Union. It is very simple.
and has but one central idea for each of
her Two classes of criminals 1st. To let
petty offenders, sentenced by Trial Justices
10 thirty days i'll Jail, eat up the substance
of the people without doing any labor to
repay the cost of their prosecutions or
keep I'd. To let out Penitentiary conyicts
10 the highest bidder. Either petty
offenders should be hired out to contrac
tor for repairing the public highways, or
they should be let out TO some railroad or
corporation in the county. Otherwise
they should not be imprisoned at all, and
the whipping p st should be revived for
their special benefit. To let out conyicts
to the highest bidLcr, Mr.. Tillman says,
IS IN many respects the very worst dispo.
sition that can be made of them, because
it virtually restores ante. .bellum slavery
as tar as the convicts are concerned, since
any one who pays the highest price for
labor must necessarily exact the utmost
amount Of toll, or lose by the bargain.
Humanity and the spirit of the age for
bid this. Common sense and the first
elements of craftsmanship also forbid it.
because for the State to let out convicts
to the highest bidder is merely to make
all the money she can out of her criminal
classes, without regard to their reforma-
ton or deterriug Others from initiating
their example, and without regard to any
general policy for developing the indus
ttAhi iCcpuiSCS VI tIlC CUuULIy.
The labor Of the five hundred conyicts
the State has MIR. Tillman estimates to be
well worth 100000 year, and itshould
be used for the permanent benefit Of the
whole body polite and not for the pass
ing good Of any particular individual or
interest. He contends that the State has
hundreds Of vast water-powers which
could be utilized ty the employment of
convict labor in their development that
the million and quarter acres of swamp
lands in the low country could be re.
claimed by the construction of canals and
dikes which convict labor could build
with just private capitnl enough to guard,
feed and clothc them, aud that the con-
victs could be employed in the construc.
ton Of the projected railroads in the
State with great benefit to the public.
Discussing the question in its relation
to the creation of common fund for
educational purposes Mr.. Tillmah says
South Carolina now has the opportunity
from her convict labor and phosphate
beds, il she shall but be true To herself
and to the cause Of popul.. education,
10 create within the next quarter of a
century public school fund of which
any Commonwealth might be proud II
is to be hoped our people will insist TINT
a Constitutional Convention shall DC
called, and that one Of its most important
duties shall be to set apart forever for
school purposes all surplus revenue from
convicts aud phospha,es."
Mr.. Tillman gives his views at great
length and with much force. The treat
ment and disposition of the convict labor
of the State is most important matter.
Any settlement of the question that will
do the greatest good to the largest num-
Der of people must commend itself to the
consideration of all who feel an interest in
the prosperity and the proper admistra-
tion Of the various public institutions
THE PHENOMENAL FIDDLE-Harry
p. Cain, violinist of some note, has
recently come into possession of a rare
treasure. It is nothing less than violin
made of wood that grew before the food.
Some forty years ago workmen engaged in
digging a mill.race through the farm
owned by Daniel Bulla discovered, at n
depth of six or eight feet beneath the
surface, the trunk Of a tree in a good
state Of preservation. 1t vas lying across
the line of the race and they had cut out
piece of it several feet long before they
could go on with their work. Local
geologists say that the " ood is many thou
sand years old.
Recently the wood was taken to a. B.
CLARK, who was engaged in repairing Gre
mona that was captured in the siege of
Mexico. Clark was delighted. It was
the very thing. He made models of the
old Cremona and in the course of three
months had given the finishing touches
to the new violin. The belly was of
the old antidiluvian wood and the back
and neck Of wavy maple, cut in Pennsyl-
vania fifty years ago and RATED down the
Ohio to Cincinnati, and carried on to
Dayton for an old cabinet maker, who
was never able to use it. The figure of
the old instrument was followed exactly,
an hen the new one was finished it
was an exact fac-simile of those built by
Stradivarius.
When the bow was drawn across it the
two connoisseurs went into ecstacies Of
delight. The glue was barely set and
the yarnish was still green, but when
they played the room was filled with the
richest, sweetest melody. There was an
absence of the thick, raw quality that
marks new violin. The notes came out
sharp and clear, and when the lower
strings were set vibrating they gave out
rich, mellow music that reminded them
OF the vioins of Amati and Guarnerius.
= The pecan crop of Texas this year
is valued at $2,000,0 900.