The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1908-02-12
GRAF1EKS IN COLUMBIA.
iIIAr CHARGE MADE IN SENa.
TOR CHKISTENSEN'S NEWS.
PAPER.

'ieInic Efforts Reing Made TO Thwart
Legislation Looking to ihc Punish.
ment OF Those Who Have Robbc6
IL" State through Dealings Will,
the Dispcnsary. Says Legislator
VIII" is Most Familiar With J.iq,ler
Situat ton.
The following special from Colum
bia appears in this weeks issue of the
Eeauf"rt Gazette. Of which Senator
Niels Christensen. Jr., who, with At
torney General Lyon, has been most
active in investigating the affairs Of
the late State disprnsary, is editor.
A contest Is being waged in Colur.-
"ia This winter. the like OF which IL
eldom Sem In this State. II is coins
III beneath the surface for the most
part. though occasional outcroppif 80
are noted in tho papers. The State
md the graftcrs have locked horns
md are struggling nightly: the one
to get off undetectcd and unpublished
with as much Of the Doodle IS rossi.
bic, and the other to uncover the
most secret nests Of corruption, to put
the guilty In prison and 10 save for
Tho State all that is due out Of the
100000 that is part Of the bone of
contention.
The attorney general and the
winding up commission" are work.
ng In harmony. assisted by Messrs.
tbney Of Columbia. Stevens of Che
aw, and the firm Of Anderson, Fielder
Roundtree OF Atlanta. Ranged
nth them is majority Of the legIs-
'ture and the State press. This force
'nes onto the field to engage IN one
the last battles OF a three-vear
anpaign All that has happened ir
MS affair since the appointment of
!" legislative Investigating committee
l9o5 serves as a foundation for
'" present contest. Those in charge
We, month by month. during these
ars, shaped measures to the present
Il. 1t is only because the people
We patiently ard with determine
", and with ballot, and no uncer.
N voice, backed this effort to cut
, II this cancer from the State. that
'ccess row seems certain.
strong AS this combination seems It
'uld be powerless were it not for
nc func of ss5O,c60. Of which $780,
70 is claimed by liquor concerns.
he act under which the winding III,
'mmiSsi"n" is operating compcls a
all investigation Of each claim before
Is paid. Some OF the liquor people
involved cannot afford to lose th..
oney. That is what brought Good
IN to Columbia and gave an opening
I" the eremy's lines-an opening
at wjdens each day as the State
- esses forward.
Against the State arc ARRIVED the
hspectcd and unsuspectcd grafters
mong It's citizens. together with sa,Y0e
II 'h't mot powerful Nio,ior c3mbina-
IONS in the world. They have mil
IONS at their hack, with all that
Az ans. They are fighting for their
reputation, their liberty, and some,
against bankruptcy.
One of the outcrorpings spoken of
The -(f"rt t. take the whole matter
)ut Of the hands Of tn. winding up
commission" ard In put it In th.se of
Judge Pritchari, who presidcs over q
United states court in North Carroll
4. Fi,ischman, of Cincir natl, is
t'ading this mov> I(e is one Of ..he
nest influential men in Ohio and very
'trong in those Republican circles
mat control Judge Pritchard's ap-
pointment Fleischman's attack has
been many-sided. He has tried, for
instance, to discredit the attorney
general and the winding up commits
SION by publishing in the papers
charges That they have ente red into
IN arrangement with the banks that
are holding these funds whereby they
Will all profit. This was denounced
ana its absurdity exposed before Judge
Pritchard last week.
Those involved have threatened to
lssassinate the attorney general they
have attempted tG open up nesotia-
tions to brihe him. and their last des-
perate attempt has been To- slanIer
him. Fortunately for the State mis-
is such as to make this at
tempt as futile as the others.
On the streets. in the hcteis IF CO.
lunibia' and at the portals Of the leg
islative halls Of the capitol. in the
meetings Of legislative committees