The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1915-02-03


nation. It is true that the Commits
sioner is required to give a bond ;
but who shall say that he did not ex-
ercise a deliberate judgment when he
said that laud was worth twelve. dol
lars per acre, when itwould not bring
five at public auction in; normal
times: who shall say he defrauded
the state if he reports that certain
lands may be cultivated, when a
great many other people believe that
it may be cultivated, but not to adj
vantage.
| There will always be opportunity
for good stealing as long as the state
is in the purchasing business. The
lfrequentindictments against city and
state officials for fraud in connection
with purchases even for corporate
purposes warns US that this thing Of
buying for. somebody else with the
states money is dangerous busi-
ness and should be avoided.
Another objection to this,-we do
not believe that the money to pay
the states indebtedness should be
invested in property of.this charac-
ter, or in; lands at all. Aside from
the danger of loss in over payment,
there is always the danger of loss by
depreciation, and the loss of income
from "the war;" or other calamity.
If cotton goes to five cents, or If the
purchasers of these lands shave not
sold our cotton" when interest is due,
who will pay the interest?
Besides this, it is a mistaken no.
ton that any white man in this state,
who wants to own his own home,
may not do so. If Mr.. Graydon will
but inquire around him, he will find
that there are in Abbeville County
many young men owning their farms,
buying and paying for others, and
getting on the world, because they
have the will and the necessary in
dustry to; 60 ahead. HE will find
farmers living on adjoining lands,
| the one who, starting without any
thing, is buying and paying for his,
and educating at the same time a
large family, while his neighbor'
who inherited his, who started with
a home, with stock and all else needful
make farmer, is headed toward
poverty. The man who has deter
mined to have home and own it
will have,it; he does not look to the
state to buy it; he trusts to his own
|strong right arm, and asks aims OF
| no man.
The development of the country is
slow, it is true. There are many
waste places. The harvest is great,
and the laborers few. But several
general generations are yet to follow
us, and we should leave something
| for them to do. Letthem enter upon
the unexplored places in quest of a
home, even as the fathers sought out
this goodly land, and let them build
some, improve some, and pass the
work on to others. Some trees must
| be left, or there will bo none left on
which the coming George Washing
tons may test their axes.
At the same time, we believe that
men might be encouraged to buy
Hand by loans On long time, at more
reasonable rates of interest. The
money in the hands of the Sinking
Fund which is now loaned to coun-
ties. which might borrow to advan.
tage elsewhere, might well he loaned
to young men desiring to purchase
homes, where there is good moral
risk, and unquestioned security. The
State should not in any case loan
more than fifty per cent of the real
value of the land. The seller will
carry the. other half in order to make
the sale. The State then has as Sc
curity the land, the borrower, and
the seller, the latter OF whom must
pay the States debt in order to save
his own. Lands are sold this way
every day; and more would be sold
if man could be found who would
loan the one-half so that the pur-
chaser would not be called upon to
carry the whole debt. The State Is
not in the loan business anymore
than it is in the buying business, and
it should not seek loans except Incl
dentally to invest its sinking fund.
This money has been collected from
the people of the State to pay a debt,
and it must not be invested except in
safe securities. 1t is not charitable
fund, and, is not collected for this
purpose.
We,suggest, therefore, that it would
be we'll for the bill of Mr.. Graydon's
to be amended by providing that the