Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1888-10-10

disseminating information on the multi
farious questions daily presented, and sue
cinctly publishing the news as it t%ranspires
he assists the people in forming opinions
and intelligently arriving at conclusions
on any business enterprise or public ques
ton thus presented. 1t is by this agency
that the press leads the way. To
its silent yet potent influence has -
been ascribed the power Ito Kill
or make alive" While this at
tribute may be superlative, its in
f~uence, with the aid of steam and
electricity, is hourly felt through
out the land. A free n nde-
pendent press is one of the BIRTH
rights of American liberty, and
early in our Colonial history,
crude and imperfect as then were
the facilities for printing, yet with
the aid of intellect impelled by
patriotic ambition and noble de-
sires, the press was an important
factor in throwing off the British
yoke.
The potency of the press thus
early recognized, its influence was II
extended throughout the States, 60
after independence was secured $3.50
by the establishing OF printing -
offices in the larger and more I'M -
portant towns. InS0uth Carolina, $3.50
Charleston was thus favored at an 49,
early period of her history, as was 49,
also Columbia. But while York $3.50
Vile was the second town in the 49,:
State, excepting Charleston and -
Columbial, in which a newspaper -
was printed, it was not until forty -
two wears after the. close of the
Revolutionary war that the press
first shed its benignant rays, in
the form of a newspaper, upon
the ancient people OF our town.
And singular to relate, in this
day of rapid transmission of in
telligence from the four quarters OF the
globe, the printing Office was established
here, not for the purpose of sending out d
newspaper, but to issue from its press
work on theology. For two years our Ar
cadian fathers possessed the advantages o.
a printing press in their midst without en-
loving the luxury of a local newspaper.
In those halcyon days, the guileless vii
layers evidently had no grievances to be ad'
iusted at the bar of public opinion "VoS
Populi" and "Pro Bono Publico," the vet
eran pseudonymic champions of the PEG
ple's rights, had not yet arrived; the tar
if question did not disturb the quiet rou
tine of their daily pursuits; their rura
tranquility was unaWakened by the rumb'
ling of the wheels of progress; and, In
short, the monosylabic but expressive
word "boom," in its broadcast and mos
expressive American sense, did not ente1
into their v%ernacular.
After the appearance of the first news
paper, several others have succeeded it
and, unfortunately, only the merest rem
nants of a few of them have been preserv
ed. No bound volumes of any of the ear
lier publications are known to be in exist
ence; and yet, dingy as we may imagine
the pages would be, and meagre the letter
press, what light would they shed to-day
upon the local history of the past! While
those newspapers should have preserved
the narrative of their times and handed
down to posterity the story OF their PERIOD
as chronicled week after week, their OWL
history, or that Of many of them, is nov
only traditional and to save their memo
nv from the sea of oblivion, with such data
as can now be collected, and other fact!
as remembered in chronological order, per
haps only by the proprietor Of The EN-
QUIRER, this sketch has been prepared.
AS we have said above, Yorkvilie enjoy:
the distinction of beiDgthe second town IL
South Carolina, outside of Charleston ant
Columbia, in which a newspaper was print
ed. TO Pendleton belongs the honor o
the first, which was known as the MES
senger," and published by John Miller, ar
EDglishman by birth, and who, it was said
was employed in the printing house o
Woodfall, of London, at the time of the
publication of the famous 'Junius" letters
The late John +. Grist, father of the pro
prietor of THE ENQUIRER, was an appren
tice to Miller in the office Of the "Mes
senger."
Sixty-four years ago, or to be accurate
in October, 1924, the first newspaper print
ed in Yorkville made its appearance. l
was appropriately entitled the %"Pioneer,'
and its editor and proprietor was Patricl
Carey, who, about the year 1872, was In
duced by Rev. Robert NJ. Davis to com
here for the purpose of undertaking the
printing in book form of a series of lee
lures on the New Testament, which hat
been written by Rev. VIM. &. Davis, faith
er of Rev. Robert NJ. Davis. The autho
of these lectures was a learned and abb
Presbyterian minister, who gave the copy
right of the work to his son. One vol
ume of The lectures was issued, but before
the printing of the second volume wa
completed, Rev. Robert M. Davis di"d
and the further publication of the w"rl
was abandoned.
Carey came to Yorkville from Rogers
vile, Tennessee, and as a printing outfi
brought with him two Ramage presses
and what at that time was thought by tn
economic disciples of Faust to be an abun
dant supply of type and other materials.
After the discontinuance of the work OF
the lectures, Carey's materials were unem
ployed, as so was he, and it was then tn
idea was conceived, and by him put int
practical execution, Of printing a newspa
per. This sketch is written and printed
close upon its natal day, siXty-four year
ago, a lapse of time in which many ant
marvellous improvements have been mad
upon the methods then employed. TIL
"Pioneer" was published under the pro
prietorship and editorial control of Care.
until the spring of 1929, when a new pape
was commenced by Cooke & Foulkes, un
der the name of the "South Carolin'
Whig." About the first of July of tina
year the "Pioneer" was consolidated will
the new paper, and they merged unde
the title of the "Pioneer and South Carroll
ma Whig." Under this consolidation, Ca
rey assumed the position of business man
ager. Subsequently the name Of the pape
was changed to the "Pinckney Whig,'
this title being adopted for the reason tina