The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1910-09-21

14Oh ooSob LILO U2h40 CNlhCUuluk udU-
pened that went against my grain.
They sold the old Pendleton Messenger
to Colonel Orr and Jake Reed. 1t made
the tears come to my eyes when that
You see the Messenger had
stood for high" politics, while
Colonel Orr and his crowd represented
the 'low politics of the State. The
after the purchase, was NOV
ed from Pendleton to Anderson. Iwent|
to Anderson and continued to wo|k on
the old paper awhile.
FROM ANDERSON TO DUE WEST.
From Anderson I went to Due West
to work for DR.. Bonner on this Associ-I
ate Reformed Presbyterian paper. Due
VESTS the best town in the entire South
or the best anywhere when it comes to
that. 1t "a winter time when I reach
ed there and DR.. Bonner went to the
Office with me. The printing Office was
in an unceiled building and there were
cracks and holes in the framework be-
sides. He complained about the print of
paper. I told him that could be easily
remedied by ceiling the building and
stopping up the cracks. This was doneI
and the print on the paper was fRe. I'll
was then and there that I first laid my |
eyes on Hugh Wilson. I asked DR.. Bon
ner what assistance there was to get
out the paper He said there was q 'col-
ored" man to help about with the press
and the forms, and then pointed to al
Of the building where q small
boy stood. This boy had the reddest hair
and the most of it I ever saw on any
boys head, and this hair was standing|
straight up. That boy, said DR.. Bonner,
helps about too, andhe's mighty handy. 3
And that little boy was Hugh Wilson,
who grew to be one Of the best andI
most successful newspaper men South
Carolina has produced. I always liked
Wilson, we have been friends ever since, !
and that's saying no little, for Hugh
Wilson is one of the Kicking" kind Of!
folks, if he don't like you. This DR..
Bonner was an abolitionist, and hisI
paper was started as a secular one. HeI
always called the negro "colored" man.
I had q great liking for him. I have al
high admiration for the Associate Re-
formed Presbyterians, too; they GER
tainly are good people.
FROM DUE WEST TO ABBEv1LLE.
'Erom Due West I went to Abbeville,
8. c., and worked on q paper published
by Charles q. Allen. while there I
boarded at a place run by 8 Mrs. Allen
This house was the place where the not
ed lawyers of that town stayed, and a.
mong these I recall General, afterwards
Justice, Samuel MCGOWAN of the sui
preme court, Judge Cothran and. Mr.
Parker. y,
Mr.. Allen was getting along nicely
with his paper, when q man named
Ben Lane Posey came to Abbeville and
started a rival weekly, the Independent
Press. This Posey was q REGULAR
agitator, a mix between q socialist and
anarchist. and his paper was of the sem
sational kind; he was always printing
something startling and frequently
questionable. This kept him in hot wa
ter, and he mad one duel to fight. as well
many street fights with citizens. The
people all liked to read his paper, thou
oh, whether they liked him or not. About
time F. W. Selleck came to Able
vile and bought Charles Aliens paper,
the Abbville Banner.
This Selleck was just back from the}
Mexican war, having served in it as
member of the famous Palmetto, reg
iment, and to him belonged the distinc-
ton Of being the first man to plant the{
American flag over the palace Of the
Montezumas.
FROM ABBEv1LLE TO PICKENS AND
THENCE TO WALHALLA.
After Selleck bought the Abbeville Ban
ner l worked for him for some time, but
grew tired and wrote to MI. Rose, who,
was then publishing the Keowee Courier
at Pickens. In 1858 I bought the Courier
from him and for him as editor and pub
Usher while it was issued atPickens and
subsequently when moved to- Walhal-
La. The Keowee Courier was founded by
a Spartanburg man William TRIMMER
YEARS AS COMMISSIONER.
For twenty years Colonel Thompson
served as commissioner. His ~journeyings
to Columbia at intervals and his official
duties kept him in direct touch and con-
tact with the representative men Of the
ante bellum times, as well as of the
DAYS of the civil wal and the blighting
era following in its wake.
COLONEL THoMPsoN's MARRIAGE
In 1858 Colonel Thompson mar
ried Miss V. Rose Sarritt, of C1arks-
will, Ga who was his devoted compan1
ion for more than half a century. She
died last October. Six children survive
this union, as follows: Robert s. Thomp1
son, Mrs. Lizzie R. Keys, Miss Mahala
Thompson. In 1870 he was admitted to
the bar. His first law partner vas Gen
eral Samuel MCGOWAN, afterward asso7
ciate justice of the supreme court. Later
on Colonel r. T. James, a distinguished
lawyer of Walhalla, was ~associoted
with him.
COLONEL THOMPSON AT HOME.
Colonel Thompson lives on his com
Portable farm one mile and a half from
the town of Walhalla. Here he is sur
rounded by loved faces of his children
his maiden daughter occupying the
place as the head of household affairs
He stated that he walked into town,
one and a half mile stretch, frequently