The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, 1885-11-03

terprisc.
We now for the first time learned the
true situation of things in Aiken. The
opposition may be footed up thus: The
Dutch element. which has the controll-
ing influence, financially, in town and
ere always opposed to progress, is solid
against the road. I'd. All the objections
urged against the enterprise in town
were merely local, such as "The road
doesn't run where it should it oueh
to have gone through Mr.. Jones' lind,
and not by Mr.. Snith's.' "Anothcr
rout, would have been chcaper,' &c.
3rd. The citizens back in the township
opposed it because they thought the
town ought to build it,
We pity Aiken. AS one Of the visit
ors said, who is well acquainted with
the place "She is dead cock IN the
pit" Heretofore we have not been able
to appreciate the condition Of our friends
there who have been laboring so zeal
ousiy. Now we are. This dirty, low,
Dutch element has complete control of
the town Of Aiken. They have all the
business houses except one or two.
They allow no American to come in.
They arise as one man and crush him
out. If cotton buyer comes in they
pop cotton up and crush him. AS the
thing now stands. Aiken. with $500 in
habitants, has one cotton buyer, Dutch
man named Haun. Haun is as complete
an autociat of Aiken as the Gear is of
Russia. After the war he was worth
$lO; now he is worth $l5O,OOO, and is
unScrupulous. When Haun takes snuff
the Germans Of Aiken sneezc. and they
control the business. The whole town
of Aiken is in the clutches Of this Dutch
element, and as far as prosperity IS con-
cerned, she is in the coils Of a golcunda,
that is gradually squeezing and sapping
the life blood. If ever town needed II
railroad it is Aiken. We did not sec
single house being built.
However, we found our railroad friends
working as in death throe, and num-
bers Of them said that if they lost they
would emigrate. They had posters
stuck up of the barbecue and speaking
Wednesday and Wednesday night. An
extra, setting forth the advantages Of the
road to the place, was sent out and was
we'll gotten up. The trouble was tha,
the opposition would not meet the ad
vocates of the road in debate or attend
the meetings. nor allow any one they
controlled to go. "A few nights previous
to the barbecue meeting was appointed,
and they got up negro dance and gen
eral drunk in the adjoining building to
drown them out
From $50 to 400 persons attended the
barbecue and the speaking, and near the
same number that night, in the town
hall. Gen. Hagood, Senator Callison.
Prof. Hood, George Bradley, ESQ, Mr..
Jordan, r. s. Galloway, and Slmkins, n
colored man from Edgefield, addressed
these meetings. The enthusiasm was
unhounded and the cheering reminded
one of '76. The railroad cause gradually
strengthened up until the polls closed
Wednesday night. The friends of the
road in Aiken were confident they had
won late that evening. They did carry
Aiken, but not by so strong majority
as to counterbalance the country pre-
cincts. Neither side left stone un
turned to carry the election. We have
never seen so strong feeling existing
among citizens over civil elections. They
all say this is the hottest election that
has ever occurred in Aiken. 1t was
stnbbornly contested inch by inch that
day, TO our knowledge, But 'the long
est pole will knock down the persim-
MONS" and the Dutch had the money
and used it. A colored man told us that
German merchant offered him $40 for
his influence and $25 for his registration
certificate. There was plenty OF liquor
there that day. All these things were
factors in the election andsused. Then
Mont Morenci hoped If this election was
defeated she might get the road. and so
her voting place OF abont 40 votes went
solidly against the road.
These are the circumstances surround
ing our friends in Aiken--a combination
of circumstances resulting in the defeat
of the road. To show something of the