The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-07-28

| that it could have been bought for six or
seven thousand dollars. | am further IN
| formed, and believe, that it was not at
| that time paying Il net interest or income
| ut 6 per cent on $1,000. These figures
| may not be probably accurate, but since
YOU are after information, suppose you
search the tax list for the year lS9J ana
! 1896 and suppose you get some state
| ments or estimates. as to the net rents
| that it was paying in those years.
| could get them, if | had the time. | sup
| pose that you have both the time an
! the campaign fund. 1t is the opinion Of
| most farmers of Arson that this was an
| other case of a Democratic job put upon
| the State for the sake of good govern
ment."
Then again there was the Castle fayne
property. Your party had this property
rented. or leased. Your party rented out
| the convictS to the North Carolina Phos-
phate Company, which had them digging
| for phosphate rock. Instead of collecting
| the money for the rent of the convicts.
| your crowd took the notes of the phoS-
phate company.
The individual stockholders OF this
phosphate company were rcputed rich,
| they are SO regarded now. You took the
paper of the phosphate company without
ever having obtained the endorsement
or security of these rich stockholders,
who were really getting the labor of the
convicts for themselves. When the people
dispensed with your good government"
you dumped upon us some sixteen thou
sands of dollars of the worthless paper
of this insolvent corporation.
There are three other plantations on
\ IA, ,ana Inor fhnt haya bpt,n rputpI nv
the present management for the cultva-
ton of rice. Two of these places were
rented from Mr.. Buffers. one of them
for $500 and the other for $500 4 year.
One of them was rented from Mr.. Borden
Of the Nayassa Guano Company for some
$500 or $500. | am told that some SLAM
derers have already circulated the report
that Governor Russell owns these places.
or had some interest in them. In this
there is no truth. The Governor had no
interest whatever in the properties. |
am reliably Informed that there are re-
SponSibe parties who would he glad
enough to take these three plantations
from the State at an advance on the rent
which the State is paying. Suppose you
send out some of your heelcrs, and find
somebody who will give us one-half or
onc-third of the rent which we are pay
ing for the Halifax farm and the Arson
farm.
You want to know about the sales of
cotton of the crop of 1897. 1t would give
me pleasure to answer this or any other
Of your questions to any man who asked
them in good faith and for an honest
purpose. so far as | have the knowledge
or means of acquiring it. | shall not
trouble myself. however. or my book
keeper, to answer you. but if you want
To find out how much cotton was solo
from the crop of 1897 and what price
it brought and whether or not it brought
its value you can ask the men who
bought it and the men who handled it.
About 800 bales were sold by my pre-
decessor to Mr.. Arnold Borden of Colds
boro. This was from the Roanoke farms.
About go bales were sold from the An
son farm before / came in. The pur
chasers were WadeSboro cotton buyers.
| sold about | 400 bales to Barbec x Co.
of Raleigh and 600 bales to Barbec q
Co. and Johnson & Thompson, Of Raj
eigh The books of these gentlemen will
show what they paid, and they know
about the quality and the value. They
can tell you if they choose. The peni-
tertiary books also show all these trans
actions. all Of which you will find em-
bodied in my printed report at the end
of the present fiscal year. / am not
aware that these data have ever been
made public in advance of the printing
Of the report of the operations of the
penitentlary.
Now since you have so much love ann
affection for the Interrogation mark, sup
pose you take look at Il few of them.
As you are asking questions of me,
propose to ask of you:
What do you know about the six thou
sand dollars of Stanly county bonds. and
the eight thousand dollars of Wilkes
county bonds that were unloaded on the
University of North Carolina. resulting
in Il loss of fourteen thousand dollars to
the University and the taxpayers of the
State? All men know that these bonds
were worthless. Who sold them to Chap
el Hill? The Richmond and Danville
Railroad Company, THAT is the Southern
Railway Company, are supposed to have
gotten the bonds. They were sold to the
University at about So or 30 cents Did
the money go to the original holders, the
Richmond and Danvile Railroad Com
pany? If not, who got it? Did anybody
purchase them from the original holder?
price paid? This whole thing was done
by the Democratic management in the
days of good government" Our poor
old University must struggle on and stag
ger under the loss. Who put the loss
upon her? Were they fusionsts? Now
stand up and answer like. Il man. Were
they fusionists?
You were chairman of the Democratic
committee in 1892. How many votes did
your party steal in the election Of 1892?
As to the negro vote you need not men
ton them in your schedule tell us how
many white men your party robbed of
their sulfrages that year!
How many Of your secret circulars did
you circulate among the election rogues
who held the ballot boxes i'll 1S!)2! How
many of your secret circulars have You
got left over? The Populist and Rcpubll-
ran committees are running short of
them. How many of them will you fur
nish for use as souvenirs in the present
campaign?
What do you know about the oyster
| fraud cases? Were you one of the lawyers
who tried to get these claims paid out of
| the State Treasury? If So how much