The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1883-05-16
The Addresses On Monday.

Col. :. :. Ciittendcn OF this County. nnd
C"l.D. Wyatt Aiken, Of Abbevilio. addressed
the Grccnville Agricultural and Mcciianirn
Association In the Court House on Monday
last. The attendance Of farmers and citizens
generally WIS go0t.
Capt. Mills. Pie.ident Of Tie Association
for nearly an hour, and interested and enter
tnincd hts audience. We have not the space
I. 10 give ~ synopsis Of 1t in this Issue, but vii
publish H. entire next week.
r Coz. Aiken followed. and we give below
brief outline Of what he said. Although l
mere skeleton We think DIR readers Will rca
|: lie the main thoughts OF his discourse.
-. We are compelled to deer until our ncN
issue Intended comments oil each Of these
speeches.
tni. Aiken said:
MIR. PRESIDENT y FELLOW ClTIzESs-,
labor under some embarrassment in appear
, Ing before you. and feel that | cannot speak I,
you as | ought. The exhibition OF Jersey
cattle on y0L streets to-day Is far ahead .
| anything | have seen In South Carolina. ant
! I feel humh!ed TO try TO speak t. the farmers
!. Of Grcrnrillc county and yet they deserve
10 credit 70: this eXhihltion-onlya few mrr
!, do such AZ the President of your Agriculture
Srcirty aud II few others. They drserveti
credit Trey are making mill; for the children
AMI butter for tho old folks. knocking dow
and killing Outthc cotton stalks with clovc
who else does IL? He can harvest his twt
acres Of clover and with proceeds huy out an,
ten acres Of your cotton. No m"n can tel
what ii costs to make q pound OF cotton. Int
' can tell very near what y0u will Lct for it. IL
, will harvest his crop OF clover in May, an,
. can say what it is WORTH and get it. Not So
with you for yonr cO~tton-after ten months u
hard work In making 1t mt that. You can SCI
this. and | beg yOn To think OF IT,.
| do not know how to address yOl-.for
T. have received much encouragement from
what have seen in your mldSt-and 1t Is very
;. little generally that | do receive concerning
the agricultural Interests Of our country here
at home, and IL cnharrasSrs me-in fact ] fee
nonplusscd. l met q farmer to-day and asked
him chow he and the farmers were setIine
aiong-if they were improving their lands
Implements. and doing well "FirS,-ratr.'
said he. Are you buying bacon ?" "Ycs.'
So Tits everywhere. and that does not suit mt
should raise more hogs. Reminds me OF II
Republican I knew in Congress when I first
went there he was n always abusing tho SOnit
) and loved To do it-csperially South Carolina
He used to say TO MS In his speeches. IF YOU
would 20 home and tell your penplr 10 raise
less he'll and more pigs. it would he better iOl
Them Aud so 1t would be better, If We wnuld
raise more pigs-nt least his advice was good,
Now. one main object If my address to-day
Is 10 get you to show an Interest In The .Agrl'
cultural and Mechanical Society. to urge YOU
to come to 1t. How many Of You will do so
Now yoa may come. look upon the exhibits
OF pigs. cows. horses and other products and
say. why. ! have got II finer pig or cow and
, better products than that at home" DC you
think SO ?'Wcll. bring IL. You may have 10
change your mind, md see that You are mis-.
taken. Come: all Of you. see each other face
to ace; talk about iScSc and kindred matters:
IL will brighten your intellect. expand your
mind. do you good and learn you much that
will be greatly 10 your profit In learning OF the
doing's of men elsewhere. / speak ~ II
! farmer to the farmers, and we should talk not
only OF what we raise ~ products but Of lcgis-
latinn-thr doIrES of our public men. There
is not enough of This. The farmer Is not social
enGagh. He does not visit enough, hut stays
at home like IN oyster In his shell. lie IL not
like those who live in town. He thinks he
can not find the time. and sure enough II is SO
-~ s,At ttln. /, ri 1 4 La. ,.tttt. Ia, ,.,,.t 49,, l. ~,
the plow mus stop il his wife wishes TO visit
II Is the wrong time" and II Is always the
wrong time with a farmer. People In town
can always ten a rerSon from country. Do
they can tell them : and IL Is because they do
not visit enough or are not as social as they
are In town. where II Is easier 10 hc Sntinl and
10 visit. and there IS more OF IT,. There should
he more Of II IN the country to rub off this
grccnneSs (or whatever you may call ~ for
you are all intelligent enough. equal to any
set of people in the world and as to asking
questions, | will put u farmer against anybody
In the world.
ANOTHER latter rs THAT OF LlENS.
Glad 10 50" III city papers the other day that
fewer liens IRE given in Grccnville County
than ever before. Who made the statement ?
cess t. sure with liens. 1t will not he so. lie
Is Il slave who has Il lien on his crop. 1t may
not lie Il heavy lien or too much, hut 10 Is
more than 1t Is worth. hccnuSe he does not
! w. DlSS, Ni'Ntl anu a S'S vi blllc IlO-
ducts. Merchants are not to blame for High
prices. As soon rs Il man asks for credit, he
rXcitrS suspicion as TO his credit, and he wOnld
not trust him outdoors or on anything: but
on the book lie has an account on that crop 10
be raised by ten months OF sweat and toll by
you In order to pay 1t. Are you not his slave ?
Is ~itjuSt? Is 1t right? Another Ihrmer-hon-
est. energetic, induStriouS-buys goods on
credit and does not ask for Il lien. Merchants
note this. and yet char.c him the same price
to try and make up the money advanced on
the liens. Is 1t right? Yet the Lien Law, and
not the merchant. Is to blame. The Lien Law
woul! have don" perhaps years ago when fist
established. II was q charity tlen-a curse
now: and he who gives n lien on his crop Is
1t costs morct to make u crop with II lien. You
go first to one merchant ana get In his debt
then you go TO another. avoiding the first.
who beroricS your enemy. You do not care
20 SEQ or speak with him. and you know Ii. 1t
Is human nature. The farmers OF thi>c country
are so crazy to get money to make crops with
to borrow or raise it lay liers-that the
character Of the State rs such has gone abroad
and legislation has come in for the money
lender. Last yenr You could borrow at7 per
cent low IL is 10 per cent. IT cnStS3 per cent.
more to make crop In 1888 than It did In
ISL. Who loses by this" The man who tolls
! has to pay the difference.
You >ay we had TO pay 10 per cent. at the
bank last year If W" borrowed. No matter.
The bank official violated The law. and shame
on him for SO doing. ! borrowed at seven per
cent. last year, and going to the same person
now he charges me ten Per cent Legislative
interference is to blame for 1t. Money Is not
Il commodity to be SO treated. II Is for our
good. The Bih!c says. The love of money Is
the root OF all evil" and legislation should
keep the use Of It (as n value OF exchange,
down and not have tempered wtth it so. the
money holder how leads a. ten per cent.
interest. II Is the contract of course; the
merchant has 10 pay more and you viii! have
to hear the cost. Thrcc-iourths of orr mcr
chants hayrto borrow money TO merchandise
than last y~car-and you help bear the cost. lie
Is no much bcn"fact0r rs TO pay three per cent.
more and yet sell his wares rs he did before.
This usury law SO tainpcr"d with hy leglSla.
ton Is Il great evil. DO you agree with me ?
Some do not. Well, VIC can a:rec to disagree.
It IS one Of the subjects you can talk about
when You meet together and see IL 1t Is not so.
Ninc.,en'hs Of the people are Interested In
agriculture. The muses. DEPEND upon your
bone and muscle. As you often hear, they de-
pend upon your bcautiiul hands. "ihc horny
lands OF me sons OF t"il:" ALLUDED 10 me,
statute legislation on the subject. We have Il
renitcntlary-iis very name suggests Il place
for confinement :nr punishment OF criminals -:
Northern capital has come in nnd have the
use OF $50 conhictS for ten years TO make shoes,
cheaper than 1t can be done outside; 80 more
for ten years to make stockings. cheaper than
they can be made outside. Who gets the bcne-
tit Of this? \ burglar, thief or one convicted
Of manslaughtcr sent there Is put to wo!k.
learns the trnde-m0rnlS and character are
left out-lecomrs 81 skilled expert at the end
of his term and Is turned out Ms Il competitor
ofnn honest. upright inGi, idual- my boy per
laps-who has iaborcd hard as an apprentice
for five years under Il master, and now has ~
compete with this eX-convirt In the trade: Is
1t right? Is such just "-guilt and crime
rductted into skill In II rascal, against honest
labor? ! saw Il hoy In Rock :Ord. Illinois,
Superintending twelve stOckin machines
making $50 pair n wcek-at Sl.O II day; 1t is
no trouble only to watch the machines; q
thread never breaks from first to last. So ofa
burglar who goes to the Penitenliary-l like
to have said tho legislature. same thIng-and
comes out M expert, when he had better hc
cracking stones on the public roads. which
would soon solve that question now agitating
the public mind. And 1t Is the only way II
Will be solved. All knOw the way public
roads are now working Is n farcp-it Is a frolic
to Il man notified to work the roads. He leaves
home half an honr 10y sun and returns at the
same time: forty clrws of tobacco, fifteen
minutes work, q little pine brush and dir,
here there. and that Is all. Take these con-
vlcts out Of the pcnilentiary. put them I"
work macacdmizing the roads, as have seen
hundreds doing in New York and Pennsyl.
rania, and II VIII bc done.
ANOTHER SUBJECT
I wish to speak upon. II is a delicate one too.
yet our duty as farmers to talk about It. In
1913 we lived under carppt-bag rule. some
here remember what that w;,s-nore have for
gotten II. We were ground down by Ia xation.
Where we paid n dollar then. II is 80 cents
now. N"o one had money. If they did it was
hidden .away-waS net put In manufactures
or anything. TO encourage industry and
manufactures they were exempt from taxation
for ten years. | don't think ii Is right. The
farmer, If he invcst>in real estate or improrcS
his property in any way. has to pay for it but
If he takes his money out of all such and
puts II in manufactures he does motif Is free
and exempt from taxation. Two things are
said TO be northumberland aud taxation
There are fine manufactures in Grrcnville
County and | am glad of II and | welcome
them, but do not like them free from taXation.
1t is said that they bring In Northern capital
very well. we want that if the profits they