The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1901-03-13
HELD IN SLAVERY.
Result otths Investigation Of ths
Andersen Grand Ju'Y.
A PLAIN RECITAL OF FACTS
Direct Charges Prsferrsd Rg inst
Those Guilty Of False
lnprisonme n and
Of 3arbariIy.
of 8arbaritY.

son County Grand Jury sppolnteo b.
Judge Bsnet to investigate certain
charges against large land owners il
that county made its report last Thurs
day to the court.
The committee says that in the csst
Of Magistrate J. J. Gilmer NC ind tina
for some time past be has been in th'
habit of issuing warrants snd csusin:
arrests and frequently committing az
cused prisons to Jail without ever enter
ing the case upon bis d,oket. This i!
especially true where the cases havt
been compromised after the arrest
we're made. We fnG that from Sept
Is, 1899, to Jan. y, 1901, be mad'
payment to the county treasurer Of ;
number Of fines and items Of costs col
lected By bin, but that during that tim'
he collected through the sherif's cfh y
alone $34 so, which properly belongs
TO the county and failed to pay then
over TO the ccuoty trs asurer as required
by law. He also cole tied $]S so, which
he failed to turn over.
We ind that Feb. 19, 1901, after thi!
Investigation was begun, the said J. J
Gilmer paid to the county treasurer ths
sum Of $50. 20 to cover these amounts
While We have not been permitted, fol
the lack of sine, to make full inVes
tigstion Of all the irregularities Of tbi:
Office, We are convinced he has beer
guilty Of the grossest Irregularities,
and We would suggest that complete
Investigation of his books and accounts
should be had and that he should be
presented for missppropriation Of the
funds so collected by him.
THE FATE OF WILL HULL
Regarding the arrest Of the Negro
Will Hull, which you were dire csed by
the court to investigate, We find that
a warrant was issued by Magistrate
Gilmer for the arrest Of this Negro
upon an affidavit of A. Z. Newell,
charging him for violstion Of labor
contract, and that w. S. Newell, a
brother Of the prosecutor, was depu-
tizsd By the Magistrate to serve said
warrant; that the constable so depu
tizsd requested the deputy sheriff, j.
A. Dillingham;, to 60 along with him
and assist in making the said arrest
and representing that said Hull would
probably create trouble when arrested
and that the assistance Of the deputy
sheriff would be needed.
The arrest was made on Friday night
and the Negro was brought to Anderson
on the same night. The deputy sheriff
suggested that the prisoner be taken to
jail, but the Negro said that he would
prefer to 60 on with W. S. Newell, and
that MIR. Newell informed the deputy
that the magistrate had instructed him
that he should csrry the prisoner OF
home with him.
Subsequently the magistrate was in.
formed by the prosecutor that the case
had been compromised and that the
Negro had agreed to stay with him anc
work out his contract. The rest Of the
facts we're brought out IN open court.
We exonerate the deputy sheriff from
al blame in the matter.
The principal work Of this commit
tee has been the Investigation Of the
stoeksdes Of the county and the sbuse:
Of lsborers under tyrannous contracts
that has grown out Of the farming cut
Of con7icts and the working Of free
labocers with them. We have taken
the testimony Of more than 50 persons
that Of the landlords, their overseer:
and guards, together with laIg:
number of laborers and few other
citizens. In these investigation We
have been treated with every courtesy
and generally va have found no dispo
sition to obstruct our work upon the
part Of thoEe whose farms and stock
ades we visited.
a most careful inquiry failed to re-
veal that any general sbuse Of the Ia
boring class exists in this county, 81
that our work SOON narroEed down t
those places where stockades exlstt
and free laborers were employed. w
visited the farms Of j. BsltoD Watson
A. T. Newell, P. B. Allen, J. R Miller
Elias Niece, ". Q Hammond and J
S. Fowler.
THESE EXoNERATED.
We were unable to ind any sbuse
atthe farm Of j. B. Watson. He has
stockade and sorks free laborers also
but we found no evidence that free Ia
borers were put in the rtocka3es a1'
worked in line with the convicts, o
Eubiected to any illegal restraint O.
abuse.
The same thing was true at the farm
Of ?. B. Allen. We found that he hst
taken two contracts in which the Ia
BOXERS agreed to work under guard ant
be locked up st night. but his own eV
ider ca and that Of all the lsborers S.
far as We could ascertain, was tina
these provisions had never been en-
forced.
AT. Newell works State convict
and has . stockade, but be has WORKED
no free laborers along with the con
vicss recently, when he has taken tw'
contracts Of that sort. One Of thes
was the case Of the unfortunate Negrt
Will Hull, who was killed by ". S
Newell few weeks ago and who's
case is referred to above.
FREE LABOR
J. R. Miller formerly worked con
7icts, but they were taken away by tn
State, and he now employs only ''frea'
labor, if indeed We may use the wo.'
free to describe those la5orers VII
have signed his contracts aud subj ecte'
themselves to the conditions eSistin
on his farm. He has stockade Whic
was originally built for his Stste cor
yicts and his contracts provide that tn
free" lsbovers will work under gusr
and will allow themselves locked up q
night. -. A
Our first investigations at this pIac
were met by statement from the n
eroes that they were satisfied Wit
%be;r treatment. but their manner ind