The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1909-03-17
The Annexation Again.

articles in The Dispatch on the an
nexation question, and with your per-
mission I will add something to what
has been said.
II believe in discomfort. believe
in that discomfort which makes
man, if he is a farmer, strive to be
the best farmer in the country; be-
lieve in that discomfort which makes
a man, if he is a doctor, strive to be
the leading doctor in his profession;
I believe in that discomfort which
makes man, if he is merchant,
strive to be the leading merchant Of
his town."
The above is an extract of a speech
of Hon. A. F. Lever which was deliv-
cred at the closing of a school in the
Dutch Fork. If he stood at that place
today I think he would say: 81 be-
lieve in discomfort when you live in
the poorest county in the State, but
why this discomfort when, financially,
YOU are in the best-old Lexington?"
As the little word tax seems to Gre
ate more discomfort among men than
any word of it's size in our language, /
shall say something on taxation first.
"Taxes will be lower when the Fork
people 20 to Richland." Everybody
has heard that, I think, from some Of
those who favor annexation. Turn
over one page and look on the other
side of Broad river. A Columbia
man (his name if you want it) said to
strong advocate of annexation:
"Don't you know your taxes will be
hipher If Won annex to RichlandW
II WOULD RATHER PAY MORE
TAX and be near the court house,"
was his reply. A former Lexingto-
nian who now lives in Richland and
represented that county in the legis-
lature last year, can give you some
facts in regard to taxes in Lexington
and Richland. Property across Broad
river is assessed at about double the
valuation of property in the Fork.
Is there q man who believes that
Richland board of assessors will leave
the valuation Of property lower In the
annexed territory: than property is
assessed across the river? The higher
the valuation Of property the lower
the mills and vice versa.
The people of the Fork have been
tax-burdened, but q railload tax is
the cause and not Lexington county.
The sheriff of Newherry county says
we derive much benefit from "our
road" but his people are paying tax
on an imaginary railroad through the
air, which may never be built. New.
berry is the county some Of the Fork
people think of joining, hoping to find
low taxes.
How were we led to believe that the
time had come for US to vote rail-
road tax? BY leaders who knew (O
that the tax on each would be SO
SMALL that we would not feel it,
and the railroad would pay more tax
into the county than we paid out.
Here they caught US with the 'tax
bait" Doyou remember one Of those
railroad orators from the Lower Fork
who said we could not have good
schools because we had no railroads?
Prof. D. B. Busby had gone to Lees
vile where there was good school
on railroad; Prof. G. W. Welch had
gone to Texas; Prof. -- had
gone to Virginia, all because we had
no railroad and, therefore, no good
schools in the Fork. Here a leader
caught some with the ''school bait"
We voted that railroad tax and have
not seen those fine schools spring up,
and now annexation leaders tell the
people of the Fork that they must 60
to Richland to have good schools. Is
that the way to get good schools?
Wait till Richland gets ahead of us
and then get on the banks of Broad
river and look across at her schools
and decide to go over?
WHAT'S meant by the term, "better
schools" If reference is made to
the buildings, they can be had by u.s.
ing more money. If better teachers
is meant, they can be secured by Of
fering larger salaries, and if longer
terms make better schools, then that
calls for more money; 80 more money
makes better schools in Lexington as
well as in Richland. How many
farmers can spare their children more
than six months in the year in the
school room? Suppose the Fork peo-
pie 60 to Richland and have nine
months schools who would get the
benefit of a nine months term? The
men who are able to send their chill
dren the whole term. Most of the
schools in this county have more
money than they are using because
the children's help is needed on the
farm, this being true, how will the
Fork people be benefited by going to
Richland? Did an annexation leader
tell the people of White Rock that
they would get a lot of money for
schools from the poll tax of all those
factory people if they would annex to
Richland? If a school trustee does
not know that the poll tax of a dis
trict goes to the school of that dis
trict, hope some one will inform
him before he makes another mis-
leading speech to the good people Of
White Rock. I am slow to believe
that he does not know it.
Another argument the leaders Of
annexation use is: We will have good
roads when we 60 to Richland. Have
they told the people that those roads
and bridges in Richland cost over
thirty-one thousand dollars last year
and thirty-five thousand has been ap-
roro,,r;o fo6 for fhio voor0 pouo orv