The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1901-01-30
NO. 12

meeC InuTSuay AT IL o clOch.
The house Thursday by an over.
whelming majority refused to extern
to cotton factory operatives rights Of
"fellow servants" guaranteed rail
road employees, the purport o.
which was that if an operative
is injured through the careless
ness of a fellow employe, or by
defective machinery, the mill should
be responsible for pecuniary dam
ages, which also include street rail
way companies and telegraph com
psnies as well, and the provisions as
to these companies were adopted.
Speaking about this bill the Co
lumbia State says:
Mr.. Lever, the new member from
Lexington, who is quite youthful in
appearance, agreeably surprised the
house by thoughtful and we'll de,
livered argument. He would like tc
have discussed the question in Lex,
ington county with Mr.. Ashley in
the campaign. The latter gentle
man would have been left at home
to run his farm, for the operatives of
Lexington demand this enaction.
Mr.. Ashley-How many factories
have you in Lexington?
Mr.. LeVer-Four. And if you
will pardon me, I will state that on
the stump I advocated this measure
and received the largest vote ever
given candidate for the legislature.
At Brookland I received 225 out of
$50 votes.
Mr.. Ashley, laughing-Well, at
Belton the night before the primary
I spoke As minutes as I have spoken
here, and I received 292 out of 294
votes at that box.
Mr.. Lever, continuing, said that
there seemed to be an idea prevalent
in this body that any bill having the
word "cotton factory" in it was op-
posed to the progress Of the cotton
mill industry.
This was all mistake. Fifteen
years ago such enaction would not
have been necessary, but the time
has come when the labor issue is
paramount in the State. Money is
not higher than men, corporaterights
are not higher than the interests of
humanity.
The bill to repeal the law requir-
ing a plank to be put on top of wire
fences along the highway was in
definitely postponed.
The houee killed Mr.. Wells bill to
provide the death penalty for at
tempt to ravish. The judiciary COM
mittee report was unfavorable, be-
cause an attempt to murder receives
a lighter sentence than does actual
murder, and the committee thought
the case in point is Identical.
The house sat down on three
efforts to affect the lien law. Each
year a bill comes before the house
providing for the repeal of the lien
law, and each year the bill is killed.
The great question of convict
labor came up Thursday. There
are a number of bills on this subject
before the house. Two of them
were taken up Thursday. Ore was
passed and the other was still under
discussion when the house adjourn
ed. Both of these bills were intro
duced by Mr.. Weston.
The one which passed provides
that the municipal authorities may
hire convicts to the counties. This
bill does not make it obligatory,
but merely authorizes that conyicts
who have broken local ordinances
may be hired to counties at 20 cents
a day and keep.
There was a fffht on the second
bill. 1t provides that the peniten-
tiary may hire out conVicts for work
on public highways, but not for farm
ing purposes.
Before action could be taken on
the bill, the hour of 2 o'clock arrived.
The house having had busy session
Of four hours and having disposed
of lot Of business, felt quite ready
to adjourn, and did adjourn.
In the senate Thursday the CON-
nittee on commerce. and manufac-
lures stated that it was not yet ready
to make it's report on the child labor
bill.
There was a long debate on MIR.
Henderson's bill to provide uniform
ity and equality in the assessment Of
property by persons, firms or cor
porations engaged in the textile