The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-09-05
Applications Take Up Much Of the
Governors Time.
Rival Influences al Work-A Visit to
Nifmot" - Fayetteville Showing
Steady Growth-Prospccts of tire
Inland Waterway ROute-A Man
With Five Wives-Moycnesgt for In
dustrial Development of RaIrfgIi
Messenger Bureau.

office today was A. FL. Slocomb, of
Fayetteville, who said about that thriv-
ing and growing town that it is not on
a boom, but there is a healthy and
steady growth which win continue.
He says the ten cent cotton is a great
promoter of prosperity Two other
callers were A~Iphonso Avery, of Nor
Canton, and Iredell Meares, of Will
mington.
PARDONS ON THANKSGIVING
DAY.
The governor Will inaugurate a new
custom in North Carolina on the next
Thanksgiving day. He will on that
day pardon two Old corNicts in the PEN
itentiary, who have made a perfect re-
cord during their long term of sentence.
This has for many years been the rule
in several other states and has been
found to work very well. The govern
or will no doubt recommend to the next
Legislature some steps looking towards
the creation Of Il board of pardOns,
though it seems Il change in the con-
stitutiOn will be necessary to bring this
about, all the power being lodged in
the governor. 1t is really too much of
a strain for him or for any other one
man.
Your correspondent went out yester-
day afternoon to "Wilmot'' the very
attractive home and farm of eX-Iudge
Walter a. Montgomery, two miles
west of Raleigh. The cotton there is
the finest We seen on the farm, and
Judge Montgomery says he is sure it
will yield at least q bale and a quar-
ter to the acre. The land is clay up
land. He says he never saw the Au-
gust crops so good. The rows are four
feet apart and the stalks are higher
than his head. He believes the cotton
OH the red and in the state is I'M
usually good. His crop is wonderfully
well fruited and the stalks bend with
the heavy bOlls.
NEGRO SECRET SOCIETIES.
Your correspondent had an inter-
view with Attorney b. c. Beckwith
which developed q very curious state
of affairs. Not long g a negro
school teacher who last year taught at
one of the normal schools, SwOre out
warrants against two negroes on the
charge of disturbing the closing of a
school, with which the negro profess
sOr had no connection whatever. A
dog, it seems, got after the two negroes
and they threw q stone at it and then
Il quarrel resulted, followed by war
rants, Il pistol figuring in the case.
Then it was that Il strange thing nap
pened. The negro professor made a
proposition that if the persons indicted
pay him $50 in the case, also $40 Tor
his attorney, and $50 costs, he would
so arrange matters that the case would
go off and the witnesses for the prose-
cution would not appear. Mr.. Beck
with says that the professor n these
witnesses are members of Il secret So
ciety of which the defendants are not
members and that there Is great rear
of this secret society and that the VIII
nesses would swear what they saw Ut,
The negroes indicted paid the profes-
SOr $500, proof of which he says is
conclusive. After the trial at WHICH
Rogers acted as his own attorney, ne
was forced to take the witness stanu
and had to admit that he had received
the money and that he had PAID 20
cents for one witness, and procured
his absence from the trial. The de-
PENDANTS were acquitted and Rogers
tnen SWOTe OUT dllotllCL
was also taken out against him, charg-
ing him with conspiracy, but this was
dismissed upon the ground that there
was no proof that witnesses were SUD
poenaed, though the magistrate VINO
isued the warrant and the sheriff who
served it were present. Another war
rant has been sworn out against Rog-
.ers. and this case comes up for Iflal
Sentember 4th. Mr.. Beckwlth says
these secret societies are having a
powerful effect upon b negros ana
are intimidating those who do not
have membership in them. He says ne
exnncts that at the trial on the 1ourtn
q veil will be lifted and will feveal IL
very strange state of affairs, ana ulat
If will make evident the TACT Ihat
there are clans among the negroes III
this county and show some OF tue Ju-
dicial methods here.
HARD WORK FOR THE GOV
ERNOR.
Governor eileen gave another speciaI
hearing in the notable case OF WIN
Adams, the negro murderer who killed.
a woman and two of her children a Few
miles east of Raleigh. The husDahu
of the woman and several witnesses
were present. The husband told Tue
governor his story. Adams also hao
some witnesses present and his attof-
ney made another plea for
ton of his death sentence. 1t was
stated that one more witness was de-
sired to appear for Adams, n so the
governor left the case open until this
witness could come in and make his
statement. The governor finds that
application for pardon and for commit
tation take up a great deal of his time,
and as soon as he had finished this
hearing he resumed a consideration of
applications for Communication in capt.
tai cases from Sampson and Forsyth
counties. Your correspondent who