The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1912-11-20
IMPROVEMENTS ON A.C.L. YARD
MANY CHANGES NOW IN PROG
RESS .iT VARIOUS PARTS OF
FREIGHT AND PAS
SENGER YARDS.
Italians al Work in City for COntrac-
tor strike Saturday and Return
Home: Pile Being Driven for Turn
nbic-iirst Time in History Of
Cfty-Nr. Schabclitz. Contractor.
and His Dog.

The Atlantic Coas, Line Railroad
Company, since it commenced a Sc
ries Of extended improvements last
spring, seems unable to stop with the
improvements on its freight and pas
changes are being made at various
places on the yard, which, when
completed, will give Sumter as good
freight and passenger yard as any
in the State.
The work now under way has been
let out by the railroad to Mr.. f.. j.
Schabelit2, who boasts of being the
Youngest contractor doing railroad
work in this part of the country. Mr..
Schabelitz is now installing a cinder
pit, and new turn table. at a point
between the present coal chute and
the Rowland Buggy company building.
stand pipes for watering engines AZ
the passenger station yard, and a wa
ter tank just in the rear of where the
water tank now stands near Harvin
street crossing. Besides these inn
a new coal chute near the turn table
and cinder pit and will make other
improvements Of the same nature in
the yard which are part Of his con-
tract secured from the railroad COM
pany.
Monday morning an engine was be-
Ing set up at the place where the
work on the turn table was in prog
ress. This engine will be used in
driving piles into the ground here as
foundation for the structure which
Mr.. Shabelitz expects to make very
secure. This is probably the first
time in the history of Sumter that
piles have been driven in the ground
for the foundation of any structure
in the city, something very unique in
the history Of building operations in
Sumter. The foundations Of all of
the structures will be Of concrete and
the work on number Of them is we'll
under way now, and with no back
sets will be completed in the next
forty days. The work was COM
menced last week and has been
pushed forward with a full force of
hands since II waa bepun
Mr.. Schabelitz brought with him to
Sumter force Of some twenty Ital-
ian laborers who have been doing
most Of the work up to last Saturday,
when they decided that they were not
getting enough pay and struck for
higher wages. Monday morning Mr..
Schabelitz stated that there was moth
ing to say on the subject Of the strike.
as he had pretty near as full a force
of hands then as he had had pre-
viously with the Italians He told
them il they did not want to work
for what hs was paying them they
could leave and this they did Satur-
day afternoon they left for Whining
ton, where many Of them have homes
and run small truck farms. Twelve
Of them left in the strike and five were
left here who decided to go on with
the work. Negroes were employed
In the place Of the deserting Italians,
although Mr.. Schabelitz stated that
they did not work so we'll as did the
Italians, out of whom he had gotten
good service while they were at
work. There are nearly fifty men in
the force employed in the various
operations at different places on the
yard, most OF this force being com
posed Of local men, although all of
the foremeE and engineers are men
who have worked elsewhere with Mr..
SchabelitZ. The Italians while here
had hired a residence in the western
part of the city and all seventeen of
them lived together, keeping a kind of
bachelors hall. as 1t were.
Mr.. Scheblitz has attracted much at
tention to himself on the street, as he
is always followed by a huge Dane
dog as large in frame as any which
has ever been seen in Sumter. This
is Mr.. Schabelitz's pet, though to the
ordinary spectator it appears a fearful
kind Of pet. Mr.. SchabelitZ is of
Swiss nationality and has been in this
country only six years, but he knows
the country and the language as we'll
native Americans.