The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-12-03

Police, Lawyers Newspapers-
Seven Thousand People Under
Sway of PrOht-SharIng Cotton
Company - China the Principal
Market for Output of the Place.
Pelzer S. c., is town which is run by
John Smith. 1t is a manufacturing town
of 1000 inhabitants and moves along in
harmony without n mayor, municipal
government, police, newspapers, or law
yers.
Every man does as he pleases, on one
condition only, he must derive his auth r
ity from John Smith, whose edict rules
the city as absolutely as the famous by
order of the car" rules the Russians,
and the moral persuasion he exercises
CN CT his population can be compared only
to the Difference shown to Dom Paul in
the troubled Transvaal.
This kingdom city Is within from one
to three hours railway journey Of At
lanta, Greenville, Charleston, and a num-
Der of ether prominent Southern cities in
volved in large business relations with 1t;
1t has an export trade in special cotton
stuffs to China; it is constantly purchas-
ing raw material, everywhere. Yet ii you
ask man who hicks he understands the
South pretty well, who lives here; and
| VINO imagines he knows all that is going
on here, WhSre Pefzer Is, he VIII not lie
able to tell you. Pelzer is managed by a
| corporation of which John Smith IS the
head. 1t is d sort. Of Bellamyized town
and has been in existence twelve years.
Profits are shared and there is an eff
10 n lya rs.
and Inhabitants ideal The Town has four
large cotton mills that employ about 3eN
| operatives and consume 1,00JC ba es of
| cotton each year. In one of these great
mills there are $4,000 spindles at work IN
! one room, all run by electricity. In the
| working equipment all that is old is ri =
carGed; ali that is new and progressive
eagerly welcomed, no matter what the
| zpense.
DISCOVERED BY CHANCE.
Hundreds of children who work in these
| mills earn from twenty-five to sixty cents
day, and certain portions of the ma
| chineiy is shut Gown at stated intervals
each working day TO allow them to attic d
| school.
| Tradition has it that Pe;zer remained
ed up like Topsy, and then a Iyceum
| lecturer happened upon it when making
tour of the South. His advance agent
sent him the names Of several towns
where he was to speak. and Pelzer was
on the list.
Where is Peizer, anyhow" said the
| lecturer to hotel clerk in Atlanta.
Never heard of it, said the man who
generally knows it all.
The lecturer consulted a map. Baffied
again. Finally he took train for Green
| Vile, S. G., where the station agent told
him. Pelzer was about twenty miles dis
tant
Never been there myself" he remark
| ed, but I've been told it's quite place
Queer folks, but they're all right"
The lecturer settled back in his seat
! and could find nothing about Pelzer
among other suburban news In his news
paper. He had received pretty good mo
! tees wherever he had spoken, and the
I omission in this particular paper annoyed
/ him. He believed he was in for a dismal
| talk to forty or fifty persons; a dingy
hall with a smoky lamp and rickety
chairs; badly paved streets and no cab
at the depot to take him to a Wretched
| hotel. He made up his mind that he
would have something unpleasant to say
to that advance agent when he saw him
! again. When he reached Pelzer he
thought he had made a mistake. There
was roomy, well lighted railroad sta
! tion, and a gentleman who introduced
himself as the Democratic postmaster of
the city was there to meet him.
How does it look for an audience ~
inquired the lecturer. with an anxious
eye to business
-"Oh, very good. I think you will have
at least 600 persons out to hear you
''Wh-wh-a-t? How large Is your
town.
MN. About 1000 More. perhaps"
What the lecturer did say TO his ad
vance agent when he caught up with him
was that it was one of the most charm
Ing stopping places on his route, and that
he wanted to so there again.
NO REPORTERS.
There were reporters at the lecture
to take the synopses that the speaker had
prepared for them, and there was no
newspaper account of 1t next morning
because Ruler Smith will not have a
newspaper published in the town Editors
and reporters are forbidden to live there.
There was once a reporter who stopped
here day or two in the guise of life
insurance agent, who wrote something
about Ruler Smith.
more than two or three hours without
meeting Capt Smith. You would know
him by the Difference that is shown TO
him on the street, even If he did not
speak to you and introduce himself He
is liability personifled, and when he sees
stranger in town likes to find out what
he is there for. He is a big man. a
! Southerner, ard wears a broad-brimmed
hat, long coat, buttoned up tight. and
carries cane, His face is a little stern
but his heart is big and his voice jovial.
He Will not tolerate d sobedience His
father was a Presbyterian minister. and
Capt Smith believes in REORGANIZATION
and election. He believes in his right to
run the town of PelZer, and he runs it,
He has firm hold on the affections Of
his people. They believe in him thor
ouShly, and that he works ALWAYS for
the common good. When he prornu!gates
an order they do not question it. They
abide by it.
We have no mayor" said a close as
sociate of Capt. Smith, in response to a
question. NO necessity for one We have
no aldermen, no courts, no mrnfcipal
councils, no police. The res dents keen
the peace and get along comfortably with
out any buncombe of that sort Cant
Smith is all that is necessary We have
no drunkenness because We don't permit
liquor within the city limits and drunk
| enness furnishes more than half the bust
ness of police force
No man can become q citizen Of P.lzar
until his record has been investieats d
| His antecedents must be good or he can
not come to W here. II corduc- mus,