The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1904-02-24
her of the committee that there was
none.
Lewis q. Wood, Jr..
The State.

lkS SokulS.
sworn to before me this 10th day of
February, 1904.
e.. Q. DePass, IL. 81
Notary Public for South Carolina.
Exhibit e.
State of South Carolina,
Richland county.
Personally appeared before me D.. III.
Means. who being duly sworn says
that he was to produce GER
tain records of the commission for the
completion of the State house and to
testify before the Joint committee to
consider the several reports of the
commission on the completion of the
state house II facts relating there
to- which committee was meeting in
the agricultural committee room of
n house. That he entered the room
and was about to be examined when
another witness was as
present w"hereupon deponent was in
formed that he was excused until the
said committee had finished with said
other witness. That deponent then
withdrew and waited in another office
in the State house until after the de-
parture of said other Witness when
deponent was again summoned to ap-
pear n testify. That during his eX-
animation by said committee while de-
ponent was e~ndeavoriug to put In what
he considered necessary or roper quail
itications of yes and mo- answers
%deponent was interrupted by the chair
man with the statements answer the
question and you need not go in to
that at ALL"
That just after the examination was
completed the chairman of the COM
mittee requested deponent to say moth
ing of hat had transpired during his
examination by aid committee.
That during %deponent's examination
by said committee Senator j. Q. Mar
Shall was present.
That some time subsequent TO depo-
nent's examination by said joint COM
mittee e~X-Attorney General G.. Duncan
BellinSer, handed to deponent a let
ter written by said c.. Duncan Bellin-
ger to eX-Gov. NJ. b. insolvency, dated
Dec. %. 1903, of which the following
is a copy:
Columbia. S. c., Dec. %, 1908.
Hon. NJ. b. McSweeney. Hampton c.
Dear Sir: In reply to our commune
cation L write to say that i recollect
thar on May 81, 1902, when you were
governor and attorney general of
letter OF date May 81, 1902, q carbon
copy of which is to be found at pages
140 and 14l of volume of Public Land
Letter Book, New Series, No. / to 200,''
OF which letter the following is Il copy,
to wit:
Columbia, S. c., May 81, 1902.
"Hon. q. Duncan Bellinger, Attorney
General, Columbia, 3. e.
Dear Sir: You are familiar With the
action of the commission for the com
pletion of the State house at meeting
May %, 1902, to-wit: Resolved that it
appears to the commission for the com
pletion OF the State house, that the
work is satisfactory and that the con-
tract has been substantially perform
ed The above resolution was upon
the question as to whether McIlvain-
Unkefer company has performed their
contracts for the completion of the
State house, and subsequently the com
mission ordered the balance due Nell
vain-Unkefer on their said
contracts to be paid. McIlvain-Unke-
fer company nov desire that the surety
bond for $4,000 given by them to
the commission for the faithful per-
Torrance Of their said contract be by
me surrendered to them the said con
tractors. Nc action was by saih com
mission taken authorizing or directing
the surrender of said surety bond. Is
such action necessary or am l author
ICED, upon the action already taken by
the commission to endorse upon said
surety bond the resolution of commits
sion as to contractors compliance
with, or performance of contract, and
surrender said surety o to the said
contractors?
Kindly give me your Official opin-
ion upon his matter n oblige,
Respectfully,
M. b. McSweencv,
SoNcIIloI anu 1Iui IittlI.
up. S.-Mr. Unkefer informs me
that until surrendered his surety bond
is costing him $25.00 per month"
Upon receipt of this letter from you
| recollect that 1 gave o orally my
official opinion, as attorney general.
that as said action of said commission
was n and conclusive as to said O
tractors having performed their con-
tract to secure the performance OF
which said surety bond had been given
q n rnt 90 Ia f.NtNn - nf Ar - u
sion). said contractors were entitled to
the return of the bond; and further
action by the commission being I'M
necessary. j advised you to surrender
said bond to the contractors with an
endorsement thereon signed by you
which i dictated.
Very respectfully.
G.. Duncan Bellinger.
That at the request of said ex-Gover-
nor M. b.. insolvency deponent pasted
written by ex-Attorney General @
Duncan Bellinger to Ex-Governor M.
b. insolvency, i'm the back of the min
ute book of the commission for the
completion of the state house, so as to
preserve in writing the evidence of the
reasons and circumstances under
which said NJ. b. McSweeney while
governor surrendered said bond to said
contractors, McIlvain, Unkefer Co.
That subsequent to Opponents said
- WIG vi Gil
grapher of said committee requested de-
ponent to give him access to the G
ords Of the commission, for the COM
pletion of the State house, for he uur-
pose of said secretary's comparing and
verifying with said original records
said secretary's copies of portions
thereof, to be used In said joint conn
mittee report That at this time de-
ponent called the attention of said clerk
or s~tenographer to said original letter
from ex-Attorney-General Bellinger to
Ex-Governor NJ. b. McSweeney, pasted
as before stated, In the back of said
minute book. and requested said clerk
of said committee to take n copy of said
letter and show 1t to the chairman
of said Joint committee, thinking that
said chairman might desire to use said
letter. as II contained q statement by
ex-Attorney General Bellinger of i'm
portant facts In reference to the sur
render of the said bonds to the said
contractors to NJ. B. M~cSweeney, up
on which matter deponent had been ex-
N minal ..