The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1906-04-10

IfauO. IL JllOSe N1luS nave dcleu ulS..
honestly the old board cannot be
clean; but leaving Messrs. Lyon and
Christensen to hunt for proofs, to
which I do not object, again I ask:
why the delay?'
"Whether fraud is proven or not,
no decent lawyer will contend that
these large purchases Of whiskey are
legal: First, because there was not
competitive bidding, as the law re-
quires; second because the law ex-
pressly limits the amount that may be
on hand to 100000 and instead Of
dickering with lawyers employed to
collect the money, it is the investiga-
ting committees plain duty to repu-
diate the whole transaction, forbid
the new board to pay for any liquor
and thus have an end to it. Messrs.
Lyon and Christensen will be respon-
sible to the taxpayers Of the state
if they O. X. single purchase that
was illegally bought
'What About the Piano?''
"What about the piano. -, Senator
TiIlman was asked.
"Well.' he replied, II have heard
it said if you throw rock in the dark
and dog howls you may swear he is
hit.
II have not sought to discredit the
investigating committee" the senator
continued. "but to warn it, and when
Mr.. Lyon, without provocatlon
makes PUBLIC its dirty and cowardly
insinuations that a whiskey house
gave me a piano, it is pretty clear to
nv mind that he howls because he is
hit. It was easy enough for him to
have found out all about the piano.
Mr.. Malone, the music dealer in Co.
lumbia, knows to whom he sold 1t and
who paid for it and he knows when
it was bought.
II note also Mr.. Lyons pretext for
delay is that he may look into the rec
ords Of the Mill Creek Distilling COM
panv to see whether there are any
credits. -
Senator Tillman's reference to
"credits'' applied to that part OF
Mr.. Lyons letter which reads as fol-
lows:
"We wish to find the credits on
the books Of the ditillery showing the
amount of rebates which Senator
Tillman said he returned as a gift Tor
the gratitude he felt to the liquor
concern crediting the state of South
Carolina. Besides this there had
come to my ears rumor-the source
of which I do not now recall, but a
rumor which I think should be look
ed into-that Senator Tillman when
governor was presented with piano
by liquor concern.
''It may be that receipts may be
shown for the rebates which may have
been returned and also for payment
Of this piano which may have been re-
ceived as was rumored to be the sat
isfactory explanation in the case OF
the Towill horse matter.'
"Mr. Lyon heard my testimony IN
Columbia and he knows said moth
inc about returning any money, for
I never received any, said Senator
Tillman. "If the books do not show
that any money was ever paid they
certainly will not show that any was
ever returned.
II want to reiterate and empha'
size. in the most positive way my be-
lief that the investigating committee,
charged with such a great responsible
ity; should do its duty by deciding at
once what is lawful to be done
about these whiskey claims; the more
lawyers they write letters to or see
about this matter, the greater is the
danger that there will be a mean
scandal.
Advice to the New Board.
"While I am on the dlspensary,
said the senator, II want to give the
new board a friendly warning, too
1t cannot purchase liquor under the
law unless the bidding is clearly com
petitive, and the lowest priced. With
out defining the article to be bought
by something other than X, IS moi
oo,,oDo+itiya hi1dlOU