The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1908-07-29

II elected Adjutant and Inspector Gen
eral 1T will be the first time in the State
that a man has been elected to the DO
have the honor of being Confederate
soldier-was only five years old at the
time. He said he wrote, as editor of a
Darlington paper, the first editorial in
South Carolina advocating the pension
ing of Confederate soldiers. That edi-
torial was published July 2s, 1877.
Wrote other editorials along same line.
from which he read extracts. He re-
ferred TO his record as an officer in the
Darlington riot in 1894; was commander
of the Darlington Guards at the time.
He not only responded promptly to
Gov. Tillman's commands, but he and
his company remained under arms for
nine day.. He related the trying du-
ties they had to perform. He read a
letter from Tillman commencing the
Guards and its commander for their
devotion to duty. His company-the
Guards-was the first to respond to the
Spain. He was made major and served
in Cuba. Started life as assistant pro-
lessor in the Citadel. Has always heard
that Lancaster was free and inde-
pendent people, wearing no mans col
lar. He asked that he be judged on his
merits.
COMP. GEN. A. w. JONES,
candidate for reelection, was next in
troduced. He said his office is the
business Office of the government-has
charge of all the finances of the State:
also of the pension department.. The
people are more interested in that office
than in any other. All taxation is n
burden, but it should be equally dis
tributed. The assessment of property
is the great problem to solve. Favors
equalization of assessments. Is not
after increasing revenues, but under n
proper system of assessment n levy of
4 1-2 mills would pay all expenses.
He is after the correction of the gross
inequality of assessments He related
an incident that occurred i'm Georgia,
where property is supposed be re-
turned at its true value and under oath.
farmer asked the officer of fertilizer
plant $4,000 for piece of land which
was returned for taxation at $500, and
when his attention was called TO that
fact by the officer, the farmer promptly
replied that the fertilizer plant, thoup n
worth 100000, was assessed at only
$4,000. The farmer was paying 80 per
cent more in taxes in proportion to the
value of his property than the fertilizer
company. What, the speaker said, he
was trying to do was to equaliZe the
assessment ofproperty in this State.
Later on the chairman read letter
from Mr.. Brooker, Gen. Jones's oppo-
nent, regretting his inability to be
present.
The candidates for State superintend-
ent of education next spoke, the first in.
troduced being
MIR. +. G. ELMORE, OF SPARTAN
BURG,
who started out by praising Lancaster
school building, which he characterized
as noble edifice-a credit not only TO
the city, but South Carolina as well.
lie said he WAS proud of the State S
educational progress, but regretted that
I'm some instances it has not kept pace
with material progress. He referred to
the great progress in agriculture and
would like to see educational progress
keep pace with it. He said he gloried
I'm the prestige of the old Palmetto
State. He referred to Winthrop and
Clemson and the fine work being done
by those institutions. But believes
more should be done than is being done
for the common schools. Farmers i'm
many instances have had to move To
town to educate thair children, which
should not be the case. Farmers pay
more taxes than any other class and
their schools should be improved.
Favors giving to country boys and girls
the same educational facilities as those
in the towns and cities. He said his
work as taaabar hoe haaY,