The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1890-01-30

attempting to sWindle the State out of
its dues. No wonder Charleston is in
love with the agricultural bureau, and
cannot bear to see that ''existing insti-
tuition" disturbed.
The recent proposal to sell the States
interest in the phosphate beds is fortu-
nate, because thereby the attention OF
taxpayers is attracted to this most i'm
portant matter. The Farmers Asso-
citation proposed in 1856 to increase the
royalty as means Of lowering taxes,
and we believe this can be safely done
to the extent of 100000.
A legislative committee was appoint
ed to "investigate" and report on the
subject. This was only done to give
| time-waiting ten months until the
market had been manipulated, etc.
This committee proceeded to show
how we'll it had been chosen "not to
do it," There was no honest effort
made to get at the real facts as to the
profits of the business and its ability to
stand an increase Of royalty. and after
it had been "wined and dined' and
brought into suitable frame of mind
that committee came to Columbia and
actually proposed to give the six lar
gest companies a monopoly for less
| q, oil to1 1,on la Ctof fn I,
receiving. Only one Senator, to whom
all honor is due, dissented from this
outrageous proposal. What was the
result?
Of course the General Assembly did
not act favorably upon it, but all
thought of an increase Of royalty was
also abandoned, and this was what the
corporation attorneys who were there
in the interest Of their clients and not
of their constituents had been working
for. "The goose that that lays the
golden egg" was not killed" existing
institutions" were not disturbed. Phos-
phate rock, which had been manipu-
lated down to $40 per ton, advanced
in two months after the Legislature
adjourned to Sc, and has since ruled
between $3.50 and $3.50 per ton. The
golden eggs are still being laid, but not
in the States nest-whether some Of
them have not gone into pockets,
which they ought not is an open ques-
ton.
Now we want to warn the people
that the character Of the Coosaw Com
pany-obtained by bribery, it is said,
of a Radical Legislatue-expires in
1891. This company, which has grown
fabulously rich, claims to have a per-
petual contract, with exclusive right
to mine in Coosaw River and pay only
one dollar ton for the privilege. The
next Legislature must act on this
question, and the next Attorney Cen
eral may have to test these claims in
Court. The whole question of phos-
phate management, or mismanage-
ment, must be settled. Can the tax
payers afford to allow any but true
men to go to the Senate, or elect a
corporation lawyer as Attorney Gener-
al? Shall the politicians choose him,
or shall we, casting about among the
many honorable, patriotic lawyers of
the State, make the selection our
selves?
The Legislature, which has just ad-
journed, has other sins to answer for,
or rather the Senate must be held re-
sponsible. The people demanded that
the railroad commissioners should
have something to do besides draw
their salaries and spend them. We
want protection against the greed of
the gigantic corporations owned at the
North, which regard South Carolina as
lemon to be succeed and care moth,
ing for the welfare of our towns, our
State, our people.
The railroad laws of lS--made the
commission a power to defend the peo-
pie against imposition. The same Leg
islature which enacted it, having been
! bamboozled or debauched, at the very
next session left it only as q sinecure,
with fat salaries and no power. We
have just seen the same disgraceful
farce repeated. The law was vastly
improved at the session of 1855, but
after year which has shown the
weakness and unfitness of the present
incumbents, for they have done very
little, the Senate peremptorily refused
to make any changes.
The railroad commissioners now in
Office have been 'tamed.n so to speak,
by the railroads, and men who have
not been so long under their wing
might have done something in the in
terest of the people; but that same
Senate which has again and again
thwarted the people, which refuses to
reduce salaries, which fought the
Clemson College and yielded at last
to necessity only, which is the strong
hold of aristocracy with its non-pro-
gressive, lmpracticable ideas, which, in
word, is dominated by Charleston's
rich DOliticians-that senate resolved
to maintain this 'eXisting institution"
too, statu quo.
Ofall the taxes we pay, the pensions
to Confederate veterans are submitted
to most willingly, and we regret that
we cannot increase the pittance they
receive But the continuance Of men
in office as political pensioners, after
their ability or willingness to serve the
people is gone-when the interests and