The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1897-05-11
LARRY CAN'T SPRINGS A SENSATION.
ALLEGED CROOKEDNEss AT THE
STATE DISPENSARY.

n Letter without Signature Whicl
Was Privately Circulated-Gant
Acknowledges He Wrote 1t an,
Threatens to Expose Corruption-
Clerk Scruggs Tells Why II
Wanted the Matter Kept Quiet.
The Columbia Register contained
few days ago the following letter
which purported to have beon writer
\. 10 Clark Howell, Of the Atlanta Con
%titution, and has been exhibited fo
toe past month in private wa,
aNong officials in Colum bia, with thu
understanding that it was written b,
the edStor OF the Piedmont Headlight
The story was told that tho letter hac
been brought to Columbia by Mr.
Bickart, OF Atlanta, whose name il
mentioned in it, and who belongs to {
liquor firm in that city. MIR. Howell
Is said to have transferred it to Bick
art, and he used it to promote his busi
ness before the State board of control ir
the sale of liquor. CAN'T was working
in the interests OF Seth w. Scruggs
the clerk Of tho board, who was a can
didate for reelection, and his princi
shipping clerk, who is charged In the
letter tn accepting bribe from
Blckart. With this explanation the
reader will be able to understand the
correspondence which follows:
SPARTANBURa, S. c., Feb. IA, 1897.
Dear Cla"k-This will be handed
you by my friend, Mr.. [. O. j. Wood,
and who will explain to you just what
L want. | am anxious to control the
State Board of Dispensary Commits
sloners, so that | can help out my
friends, and also your friends, Blumen-
thai and Bickart, Of Atlanta, Ga.
Now, Clark, to be plain with you, in
order to accomplish this we must down
man name QUITS, and keep our mu-
tual friend, Seth Scruggs. in control
We can down QUITS if ! can get Mr..
Bickart to give me statement of the
transactions between himself and
QUITS, and can show, as believe is the
case, that QUITS agreed to push his
liquors if he (BickarU would pay him
70 cents per case.
want you to see Mr.. Bickart and
get a statement from him of his propo.
sition to QUITS, and how it was irst re-
ceived. [ do not wish it for publica-
tion, but simply to bulldoze him out Of
the race against Scruggs. Hon. d. III. /.
Miles, elected member of 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 matters. | want
to get QUITS condemnation by that
time. Jones is strong Scruggs man.
J. want you to say to Bickart to em-
body 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 instjgation
of QUITS.
If | can keep Scruggs in it means
that our friends will be taken care of,
but If Onzts succeeds he will not order
pint from B l. B., and he is opposed
to Mr.. Bickart, because Of that inter-
view with the board.
| also want you and your father, il
Mr.. b. gives this statement, to certify
to his high character.
| have othcr things behind, but want
this certificate as an opening shot. As
stated, it is not for publication, but
simply to use to kill any support that
QUITS 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
a copy Of the Constitution since Christ
mas. Also send me sample copy of
your evening daily. or course this let
ter is strictly confidential.
The publication of the foregoing let
ter had the effect of bringing out other
correspondence on this subject which
reveals the fact that the Dear Clark"
letter was written by L. Larry CAN'T,
editor of the Piedmont Headlight.
The rumors to which allusion was
made had been the subject of brief
note a few days before to Mr.. Seth w.
Scruggs, an intimate friend of Gahtt's,
and which Is as follows:
SPARTANBURG, S. c.. Feb. 10, 1897.
Dear Scruggs-I hear that an Allan
to a 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 a mistake and
could only give him 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 q certain liquor man had q
member of the board as his guest at
the hotel; that they slept together in
the same room, and that this liquor
man always got the best Of the orders
from the board. There are other
rumors of serious nature. tell you,
Scruggs, as your true friend, that this
condition OF affairs will disrupt the
Reform movement. The people are
already reslfess and suspicious, and,
groaning as they are, under increased
taxation, they are prepared to believe
any scandal they may hear.
/ am making further Investigations
into these rumors and shall expose the
whole matter. Truly, your friend,
II. l.. CAN'T.
Mr.. Scruggs heard of the letter to
Clark Howell being circulated in Co.
lumb bia privately, and believing that
his name was con iected with the al.
legged crookedness, he wrote and asked
Mr.. CAN'T about it, receiving the fol
lowing reply:
SPARTANBURG, 8. c., April 0, 1897.
Dear Scruggs-YOur letter Of the 7th
In which you state that you hear thai
there is q letter In circulation in Co
lumbia, purporting to have beer writ
ten by myself, and in which your name
You ask me to let you know the sub
stance OF this letter. You remember
that some time In February I wrot,
you that had heard a report in circu
lation that certain official In tn,
State dispensary lad been offered
bribe of 25 cents q box for every bo,
OF certain brand OF whiskey h,
shipped out; that this bribe had beei