The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1897-01-20

Law-Other Matters OF Grave Importance
tc the State.
The following is the annual message
of Governor John Gary Evaas to the
General Assembly:
Gentlemen OF the General Assembly
1t is the duty OF the governor under
the Constitution to give you from time
TO time Information Of the condition
of the Stale aud 20 recommend such
measures for your consideration as he
may deem expedient. I shall confine
myself in this my last ann Dual messags
TO giving YOU such information as
have been able to obtain as to the con
djtion OF the State, leaving to my sue.
cassor 10 make recommendations as to
any future legislation or policy.
Two years ago was elected COVER
nor to succeed leader of a revolution
who, to use his own language, was the
worst hated and best loved" man
who has ever entered the politics of
our State. The policy that should
| pursue was already formed by the
| people and the only issue made was as
to the enforcement of the dispensery
Ilaw-whethe it should be aggressive
with view Of destroying the Illicit
traffic in liquor or whether 1t should
be of a milk and cider form as our
lenemies would have it with the hope
of its final repeal. Ny nomination
and election meant the former and l
have endeavored to be true to that
| policy. Il would have been an easy
matter for me to have placated my
|enemieS and the enemies Of the Re
form movement by giving ear ID the
Iovertures of the whiskey element and
their allies in the cities of the State
the daily press. These people who
slandered and vilifed the trainers Of
the dispensary law have continued
their stubborn warfare to an extent
that would barely be tolerated by a
less conservative people. They have
not been content to express their con-
tempt Of the law, but have attempted
ito drag down by lying and slandering
Ievery official connected with the ad-
ministration OF the law. Every error
in bookkeeping Of ar inexperienced
disper has been magnified into an en-
bezzlement. Every arrest of an illicit
dealer in liquor by a constable has
been characterized as 7iles: oppression
of innocent and law-abiding citizens.
1T perchance an offender is killed
while resisting the officers and carry
ing on his damnable traffic, it is class
ed as murder most foul. These re.
ports are sent out to the world as
truths, when as matter Of fact they
are brazen falsehoods. 1t is disgrace
! ful spectacle that South Carolinians
should descend so low as to SANDER
their own government from political
malice.
The dispensary law is stronger to-
day than at any time since its enact
ment and is better enforced as will
appear from the statistics later on. :.
This is the most important matter
with which you will have to deal, and
1 would respectfully call your atten-
ton to the excellent report of the
board of control, with the request that
you study it and think well before
making any changes in the present
system.
THE DISPENSARY as A BUSINESS.
| Up to the time of my induction into
office as governor, the dispensary had
been in operation about is months.
The governor was charged, not only
with the enforcement of the law, bat
as business manager in the capacity
OF chairman of the board of control.
The business had continually increas.
ed until it reached over 81. 600, 900 an
nually. Realizing that as a business
it was tentative and that it had not
been placed upon what could truly be
called business plane and that it was
burdened with crudities of which it
must be divested before it could reach
the expectations of the public as NOR
al reformation and a business success,
my first official act was to give its for
mer management thorough investi-
CATION in order to ascertain its hnan-
cial status as well as its weak points
| I was met by many difficulties, politi-
cal as well as business. To commence
the business the general assembly Of
1892 voted an appropriation of $50,
1000. For the first Is months of its
existence the dispensary experienced
many vicissitudes and when it was
placed in my hands I found it still
embarrassed and hardly able to stand
alone 1t had not paid dollar into
the State treasury in net earnings and
the $50, 600 appropriation was still un-
iliquidated The statements of its
growth and progress as published from
time to time by the former commits.
sioner were unsatisfactory TO the pub
lie, for the reason that the system OF
bookkeeping was Chinese puzzle and
no one could tell exactly the true sta
tus of the business. This fact gave
color to the adverse criticisms Of the
administration of the law and invited
the terrific accusations that were made
against those charged with its man
agement. The last statement of these
assets and liabilities and profits which
| the former commissioner made was
for the quarter ending January 81,
1895. In that statement, the profits
claimed to have accrued to date
amounted to S151, ,295. 81. Bookkeep-
ers OF experience could not cipher this
out and claims were made that the
profits were fictitious I determined to
change the business management and
adopt full and satisfactory system
OF accounting. An expert bookkeep.
er was employed and it was ascertain
ed that the profits claimed had not &C.
ccued, but that the accrued profit to
that date was forty-odd thousand dol
lars less than the amount. This was
simply mistake IN bookkeeping and
in crediting to the profit account what
had not accrued, bat what was expect.
ed to have accrued in the hands CT
county dispesers. After thorough
dissection of the accounts it was ascer-
tanned that the profits had not reached
lSllO,000. The entire assets, including
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