The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1890-02-20
be- Issues nsthe Next Campaign.

meet Will. general approval. lne Ace
that provides for the establishment and
maintenance Of the Clemson College
places after Nov. j, 1890. the Hatch ard
oneshalf the Land Scrip fund into the
hands Of the trustees Of the said College.
The Farmers Association demand that
the Privilege Tax, also, should be used
to run this College. This demand is
reasonable and Just, and should be and
will be made an issue in the next can.
;vasa. These funds consolid idated would be
more than enough to support the College
at Fort Hill, without voting upon the
people 8 single dollar of additional taxes.
The funds Of the Department of Agri-
culture are being used in analyziDg for
tilizers, holding Farmers Institutes,
the resources of the State,
ETC, much Of which work, as stated by
the Committee, can very we'll be dis.
:pensed with, and that which is really
necessary as analy yzing fertilizers-
can bel moro economically carried on
under the board: of trustees elected for
the Agricultural College. Then, ne say,
abolish the agricultural Bureau as il
now stands. Let the University be di.5
vested Of its agricultural and mechanical
feature, which was started on purpose to:
defeat the object Of an Agricultural:
College, and let it become what it Was
beforehand, purely . literary institution
of 8 high order. Let there be, instead
sof. % professors to teach 230 students,
only about one:half that number, and it
viii take but very little more than one
half what il does now tosrun it. The
people Of this State pay about $40, ,00O.a
year, directly from their pockets, to sup.
port the University, !, and yet5if any one
wishes to send 8 son to; school there, it
costs just as much as TO send to Woford,
Davidson, or any other first. clas. college.
.-..T
And when the farmers Of the State ask
sto place permanently into the hands Of
The trustees Of their College these
funds above alluded TO-, the cry comes
up Oh, no; take your College, but
you must not interfere with existing in
situations. ~ IT. is plainly TO be seen.
that the farmers Of this State, to gain.
their point in this matter, must make an.
open and manly fight at the polls in the
next election. They can only get their
rights at the ballot. t.box. Let the people,
not farmers alone, hold that Convention
in March, adept wise and statesman:
like platform, then let it go before the
Democratic Clubs and be discussed upon.
its merits. It would be unwise tc nomi-
nate a State ticket. Two recent editorials
of the Cotton Plant, the Alliance organ.
of the State, express our. views exactly
upon this point. Those were wise and
statesman like utterances.
That Committee of the Farmers As.
sociation in some things strikes the key
note; in others it goes beyond the mark.
It's address, in language and spirit, was
too severe. It's thrusts at members of
the Legislature working in the interest
Of: phosphate companies was, perhaps,
uncalled for. The Committee appointed
by the Legislature some time ago to
investigate and report on the subject Of
the phosphate royalty may not have done
its duty fully, and the Coosaw Mining
Company, as stated in the address, may
be growing rich, but that Company paid
into the State treasury, according to the
Comptroller Generals report, for last
fiscal year 81, ,7S9.s7, nearly as much as
all the other Companies, and there are
five others, besides several individuals
who have rights from the State. to mine.
The phosphate royalty, at S1.0O per
ton, amounts to nearly 5000, 900 per year.
Now, if this royalty, as recommended by
the Farmers Association, should be in.
creased 100000, is it not reasonable to
that this increase would run up
the price Of gaano to cover that amount,
and the increased revenue to the State
would then be paid altogether by the
agricultural class of our people, while
other classes that do not use guano would
receive all the benefit in paying less
taxes. So it seems to be questionable
whether the royalty should be increased
at: all. The State should 80 control its
phosphate interests as TO- keep down 8
monopoly, granting rights to mine to
different companies, and not too much
to any one company, thus allowing com.
petition to regulate the price.
The recent proposal to sell the States
interest in phosphate beds will, in our
opinion, not amount to anything. Ifit
were known that 100000 could be
for those beds, half million
more than enough to pay off the State
debt, it might be q good thing to sell,
but the author of the bill upon this sub.
ject, when questioned by other members of
the Legislature for particulars, could
give no information that there was even
a probability Of capitalists offering any
thing like that amount.
But enough now upon this subject.
In a future communication we may allude
to some other points contained in that
address Of the Farmers Association.
A FARMER.
Equality, S. c.
E1-President Cleveland, in discuss.
ing his own prospects of the Presidency,
appears to hold, with Henry Clay, that
he would rather be right than be Presi.
dent again. The parallel might be car.
ried further, and it is said, with truth, that
! second election to the Presidency, is no
more necessary to Mr.. Qleveland's great
ness than first one was to that OF MI.
Clay. Whether chosen to the Presidency
again or not, MIR. Cleveland has immor.