The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1897-05-12
pISPENSARY SCANDALS

UlO(ENOAnl CUANDhLO
SOME MIGHTY INTERESTING LET
TIERS GIVEN TO THE PUBLIC.
larry CAN'T Threatens to Expose Corrup-
tiop, But was Held OF by a Personal Re-
ouest-.Mr. scrugss Ts lis Why He Wanted
1t Shut Up.
There seems TO be no end to the
scan ndals in connection with the ols
pensary. On Tuesday Of last week
the following letter was published by
the Columbia Register:
SpARrANBuRG, S. c., Feb. IA, 1897.
Dear Clark. This will be handed you by
nv friend, Mr.. I. o. }. Wood, and who will
explain to to you just what l want. l am
anxious TO control the State board of dispen-
sary commissioners, SO that can help out
my friends, and also your friends, Bluthen-
thai and Bickart of Atlanta, Ga.
Now, Clark, to be plain with you, IN or
der to accomplish this, we must down man
named Outzs, and keep our mutual friends,
Seth Scruggs, in control. We can down
Outzs if can get Mr.. Biokart to give LIE
statement of the transactions between him
self and Outzs and can show, as l believe is
the case, that Outzs agreed to push his IL
quors if he (Bickart) would pay him 25 cents
per case.
want you to see Mr.. Bickart and get a
statement from him of this proposition to
QUITS, and how it was first received. do
not wish it for publication, but simply to
bulldoze him out of the race against Scruggs.
Hon. D. NJ. Miles, elected member of the
board for five years, is my personal friend
and from Spartanburg county. Col. Willie
Jones, chairman of the board, is one of my
warmest friends, and will visit him next
Friday and talk over natters. want to get
Outzs' condemnation by that time. Jones is
strong scruges man. l want you to say to
Bickart to embody in his statement that after
his first conference with the board he tried to
get second audience, so as to tell the whole
truth, but was gagged and not allowed to do
so at the instigation of Outzs.
If can keep Scruggs in, it means that
eur friends will be taken care OF, but II
Outzs succeeds he will not order pint from
B. & b, and he is opposed to Mr.. Bickart,
because of that interview with the board
l also want you and your father, if Mr..
Bickart gives this statement, to certify to his
high character.
have other things behind, but want this
certificate as an opening shot. AS stated, 1t
is not for publication, but simply to use to
kill any support that Outzs might get.
Mr.. Wood will give you the full story OF
that matter.
Truly, your friend,
P.S-Why have you cut me off from
your exchange list? have not seen copy
of The Constitution since Christmas. Also
send me a sample copy of your evening
daily. OF course this letter is strictly cont-
Dental. T-.
The Register says this letter has
been known to be in existence for
over q month, but its publication was
delayed until some other things should
transpire, but as it has been published
other letters on the same subject has
been given the public. The Dear
Clark" letter was written by Col. T.
Larry CAN'T, editor of the Piedmont
Headlight. The rumors referred to
in that letter are the subject of com.
munication from him to Mr.. Scruggs
last February. Following is a copy
of that letter:
SpARTANBLRG, S. c., Feb. 10 1897.
Dear Scruggs: / hear that an Atlanta
liquor man has offered bribe to certain
Dispensary official, and to pay him Is cents
on each box of this mans liquor that said
official shipped out. But afterwards the
LIQUOR man stated that he had made mis-
take and could only give 10 cents, and be-
cause he fell in his price this official then
stated that the firm had tried to bribe him.
1t has, also come to my ears that certain
LIQUOR man had member of the board as his
guest at the hotel; that they slept together in
the same room, and that this liquor man al
ways got the best of the orders from the
board. There are other rumors of a serious
friend, that this condi ion of affairs will dis
rupt the Reform movement. The people are
already restless and suspicious, and, groan-
ing as they are, under increased taxation,
they are prepared to believe any scandal
they may hear.
l am making further investigations into
these rumors and shall expose the whole
matter. Truly, your friend,
T. L. CAN'T.
Mr.. Scruggs heard of this letter,
end, believing that his name was con.
nected with the alleged crookedness,
he wrote and asked Mr.. CAN'T about
it, receiving the following reply:
SpARTANBURG, S. c., April 9, 1897.
Dear Scruggs; Your letter of the 7th, in
which you state that you hear that there is
letter in circulation in Columbia, purport-
ing to have been written by myself, and in
which your name is connected, &c., has
been received. You ask me to let you know
the substance of this letter. You remember
that some time in February wrote you that
had heard report in circulation that a
certain official in the State Dispensary had
been offered bribe of 25 cents q box for
every box ola certain brand of whiskey he
shipped out; that this bribe had been offered
by an Atlanta firm, but afterwards that the
firm stated to said official that they could
only pay 10 cents box, and after he fell in
his price then the official reported the rep
resentative of this firm as trying to bribt
him.
also stated in said letter other reports
connected with the Dispensary management
and the purchase of liquors that smacked
strongly of corruption | stated to you thai
INTENDED to publish these reports, that the
people might know them and demand al
investigation of the whole business. A few
days after the receipt of this letter you came
to Spartanburg and asked me to suppress