The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1903-06-17

of the principal without touch
ing any funds arising from other
sources, and give the people
chance to gradually pay,
whereas under the aoopteo
plan the county commission
ers. may not only use the
of one mill provided for in the
Act, but they are also authorized
to use $1,000 arising from the
dispensary profits besides, which
is equivalent to making availa-
bic for jail purposes nearly
double the amount necessary to
build the jail.
With regard to what Mr..
Davis says about sthe opinion
of the delegation that this county
has had sufficient experience
with bonds in past years, when
she was top-heavy with debt to
steer clear from this bond bust
ness" it is evident, and very
evident indeed that he, and if he
speaks for the delegation, they
too, are misinformed on this
bond business, the cause of the
issue and the necessity. Ihe
history of the transaction IS as
we recall. about as follows: Clar-
endon county was bleeding at
every pore from the yoke of debt
upon her, many thousands. Of
dollars we're outstanding, some
lust and many unjust, it
was at time when money
lenders were getting all kinds
of interest for their money.
Col. Harry L. Benbow was the
Senator, Ion. Jas. E. Tindal
and Hon. Joseph F. Rhame were
members of the House, these
patriotic gentlemen realized our
bankrupt condition, and by a
special Act Of the General as
sembly, a commission composed
Of Col. S. Warren Nelson, Col.
Brown Manning and Hon. Jas.
E. Tindal was appointed to can.
vass these claims, they had with
them as their attorney and coun-
sellor Hon. Jos. F. Rname; the
commission held its sessions in
a little Office belonging to the
late DR.. Fl. H. Higgins, opposite
the present residence of Solicitor
John S. Wilson, and after long,
tedious and very laborious toll,
they sisted out the unjust claims,
some $4,000 or more, and ad-
Judged as valid claims a balance
of about s11, 200. Those holding
the gocd claims, demanded their
money or nterest-beaHng paper,
which brought the delegation to
confront a proposition, whether
to permit these claims to go to
Judgment, or pacify these credl-
tors with paper bearing a low
rate of interest. The delegation
whose hearts we're wrapt up in
the welfare of the county con-
cluded it wise Judgment to pro-
vide for the issuance Of S11, 900
in bonds. and in that way the
people had a chance to gradually
Shake off this debt incubus with
out having their property con-
fscated by an unbearable tax.
Had a tax levy to pay off the
debts adjudged to be valid, been
made at that time: the people
could uot have stood it. The
only bonds ever issued by Clar
endon county were issued by an
Act approved December, 1881, in
troduced by Hon. Jos. F. Rhame,
and no man will say, that he
would give his aid towards doing
an injury to his people, and we
know of no man in the county
who is held in higher esteem.
Therefore when Senator Davis
speaks of having sufficient ex-
perience with bonds in past
years." he should first ascertain
the facts, the conditions, and the
necessity, before heimpugns the
motives of our representatives
who had the guardianship of the
peoples interests entrusted to
them We regard the issuance
of the bonds Of 1881, as the
wisest legislation, under the
circumstances, ever enacted for
this county; had it not been for
the good business judgmentof our
then representatives, we believe
Clarendon would now be paying
interest on that same old debt;
as it is, those old debts are dead
and buried as effectually, as is
the $4,000 debt left by the dele
cation of Which Mr.. Davis was a
member in 1898.
We concede, that our conten-
ton with regard to the means of
raising the money to build jail,
is altogether a matter of opinion,
we believe, by the plan suggest
ed by US the people would not
have to pay an additional ! of
one mill tax, and as the income
of the county is rapidly increas
ing, at least ] or more of the
dispensary profits could be ap-
piled to the schools. Our friend
Davis thinks we have not post
ed'' ourself "with the dispensary
law" yes, we have, and we know
the law is not doing what was
promised by its advocates,
with regard to the schools.