The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-03-12

and leave the river beds so unprofita-
ole that nobody will be able to work
them hereafter and the land mines will
be freed forever of the competition of
river rock. In that case the State will
have exchanged what promised to be "a
permanent source Of large and steady
income for two or three years of in
crease in her receipts from royalties.
It looks much like a fight between
| the land and river phosphate miners
with the governor throwing all the
power of the State On the side of the
land companies, with which the State
has nothing to do and from which she
does not get a dollar Of royalty, against
the river companies, which have been
paying her from Sl50,GO0 to S225,000a
year.
Attorneys, friends and representa-
tives Of the land companies have done
! the writing for the newspapers and the
work in the legislature against the
Coosaw company. We gee it stated
that attorneys Of the land companies
attended and advised the phosphate
com mission when it went to take pos
session Of the territory claimed by the
| Coosaw company; and it is broadly
hinted that those same land companies
are bacLing the new concerns which
have applied for river license.
It is the plain interest of the land
companies to have the river beds so
| picked over that they will be made
worthless in the future. That would
leave the land mines monopoly and
make their possessions far more valu-
able than they now are. We do not
believe these land miners are working
for patriotism Or because they have
suddenly developed such love for the
people and the State as to make them
spend money and labor to open up
river mines and increase competition
| in their business for the sake of the
people. -
! If Governor Tillman had intended to
relieve the farmers and break down
monoplies his best plan would have
been to abolish the royalty entirely. 1t
costs about the same to mine ton Of
rock from land or water. The water
companies have been paying the State
a royalty Of a dollara ton on their rock
and selling at the same price as the
land companies. That dollar the water
companies pay is added by the land
companies to their prices and means
that much more clear profit for them.
If the royalty can be raised to s2.5oa
ton prices will be raised in proportion
on land and water rock aud as the land
companies do not have to pay it the in
crease will be that much increase in
their profits. The land companies must
gain any way-whether prices are
raised or river competitors are driven
out or the river beds are ruined.
The farmer pays the phosphates roy
atty. 1t is the one tax nobody shares
with him. He pays It in the higher
price of his fertilizer in which the phos-
pbate rock is used. Added royalty on
phosphate rock is simply a round
about, indirect method of adding to the
farmers taxes while fooling him into
the belief that be is being helped. All
classes get the good Of big royalty pay
ments in lessened taxation, but the
farmers alone pay them.
The Coosaw company has mademuc
money, even when rrdened with the
dollar ton royalty. he land compa-
nies have not paid that royalty but
they have added it in their prices be-
cause they knew the river companies
could not undersell them and have
cleared enormous profits.
! Governor Tillman may be innocently
allowing the land companies to make
fool of him for their advantage or he
may be their willing tool for purposes
of his own. We cannot see inside Of
him and do not know. After consid-
ering the statements, the facts and
figures from both sides-and for a long
time only the side against the Coosaw
company was heard-we can not es-
cape the opiric" that he is doing one
Of the two I; IS. We cannot avoid
the conciusio.. that the legislature Of
1876 made fair, sensible trade when
it granted the Coosaw company the ex-
elusive right TO mine in seven miles OF
river at q dollar q ton and that the rash
meddling now being done after four
teen years is the result Of officious and
bull-headed fooiishneSs or of walking
the State into a plain trap, or is evl-
dence that-to use Governor TiIlman's
favorite campaign expression-'some-
thing is rotten in the State Of Den
mark"
IT TAKES OUT THE STAIN