The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1895-10-09

was wiling to have capital to come
mere under conditions of white slave
ry. Mr.. Prince replied in the negative
and declared that no factory president
IN the county that he came from dared
attempt to rule white people as slaves.
tie reclted what factories were doing
TOR the education of the children and
SAID that was the kind of oppression"
1t seemed they wanted to save employ
ees. from
Mr. Clayton opposed the amend
ment and Mr.. Burke favored it.
Mr.. Gage thought that this conven-
ton should not attempt to pass on
facts. They were trying to do it, and
what was the result? The gentleman
from Edgeheld declared that factory
hands We're oppressed: the gentleman
from Anderson said they were not; the
gentleman from Spartanburg stated
that they were. Now, the facts were
that none of them knew what they
We're talking about; one of them was
a United States senator and none of
them went into factory more than
once a year.
TilIman-Do you know anything
about it?
Gage-No, I do not.
Tillman-Then why don't you hush2
Gage-Eecause you have not.hushed
and won't hush. These gentlemen
come here and try and stultify them
selves by making statements of facts
when they are not informed and try to
make fools of u.s. They can't do it.
Where, said Mr. Gage, is to be vest
ed the power to say when town has
grown to be- sefs:sssor.yy fHsss r0-rs.-T There are
factories in many towns. Leave It TO
the legislature to arrange this matter
as provided in the committees report.
If the gentleman from Edgefeld will
read that report he will see that it cov-
ers the ground; he is a man of sense
whatever his faults may be, he has
sense. Let the legislature settle it.
.Tillman-That's the sting. It pro-
vides for petition and they can't Pc
tition- The legislature has enough
corporation lawyers in it to block it.
Mr. Gage-Then abolish the legisla-
ture. /:
Mr.. Gage went on to say that the
imputation of Mr., Tillman upon the
members of the legislature was un-
worthy of him. He showed that for
the last five years there had been an
average of twenty-five towns chartered
each year by the legislature.
Mr.. W. B. Wilson offered an amend
meat to section 2 reading as follows:
"A L towns having 1000 inhabitants
shall be incorporated.
Senator .Tillman accepted that
amendment.
Mr.. Stanyarne Wilson desired to
make. his position clear in the matter.
Perhaps the gentleman who had spok-
en-, about the, freedom of the factory
employees had not seen as he had,
cory presidents and superintendents
standing at the polls handing out tick
cts to their employees as they came
up, and if they did not vote them the
Leaders would turned off as warn
ing One of the main causes for the
large profits being made in the cotton
mills was the oppression of the factory
employees who received the least pos
sible compensation.
Mr.. Stokes offered an amendment to
make the towns of 500 inhabitants
come within, the provisions of Mr..
Wilson's amendment. It was declared
out Of order, two amendments being
pending.
Mr.. Haynesworth spoke against the
amendment. The people should have
local self-government, and the iabili
ties of municipalities should not be
forced upon communities without Civ
ing the citizens a voice in the matter.
Mr. George D. Tillman took the
floor and made an impressive speech.
1t had been said that the only thing
more timid than ore million dollars
was two million dollars. It takes
money to build cotton factories; we
have not got it. To get it we must 60
north or to Europe. He esretted the
effort to incorporate cotton factories.
He was 'astonished at the position of
the gentleman from Spartanburg, the
county whose wealth had been so
wonderfully increased by these facto-
ries: In the south we have but two
industries, growing cotton and manu-
featuring it. Cotton factories are our
means Of converting cheap cotton into
cloths instead of sending it to New
England and Old England. All cot
ton mill men coming south prefer to
locate factories on some waterpower IN
the country rather than in a city
where any Tom, Dick and Harry may
be ina position to plunder them with
taxes. Why not incorporate two or
three adjoining rice plantations on the
coast, having 1000 hands. To incor-
porate these factories would be dead
letter. Cotton mill men would con-
troll the property. They go into the
business to make money, not to fcuad~>
cities. II operatives are offsasiTe why
should they not be t55iida~-to 70 go. These
gentlemen ap0n the floor who en-
ploye& hands, he guaranteed, wished
70 have the privilege of telling them
to go" if they were offensive.
A Voice-They do do it.
Mr.. Tillman-Of course they 90.
The speaker then turned to the pro-
? oS1tlOn 10 eStabIlSh a bureau OF labor,
Win q labor commissioner. What
would that commissioner do, he asked,
except go among operatives and tell
them they were noL being paid enough
and invite them to strike. Up north
there were hundreds of tramp orators
who got good wages just to go around
and stirup strife. These ae:itators do
but harm.
Mr.. Tillman hoped that the sections
prepared by the committee
Would be adopted. He moved to lay
ali the amendments on the table. This
motion was withdrawn in order to per,
nit further debate,
Mr.. B. r. Tillman followed his
brother. He said the legislature could
not te trusted to protect this class of
factory employees. The influence OF
i,,> 1<E- Il, III