The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1922-05-11

handed The Herald a copy Of speech
made at the county Democratic con-
yention held last week. 1t was not
possible to get the address in type
along with the report of the conven-
tion last week, so The Herald. takes
pleasure in printing today the re-
marks of Mr.. Mayfeld, which are on
an intensely interesting topic
MIR. Chairman and Gentlemen OF the
Convention:
We are assembled today to organ
ize the Democratic party in Bamberg
county. and to help formulate the
nolicv of the Democratic party IN
South Carolina for the next two
years:
In this state, where nomination
nv the Democrats means an election,
all issues must be fought out within
the party, it is of the highest import
ance that these issues be brought out
and discussed in public; the people
Informed and the vote of the elector-
ate recorded as the will of the party.
A lack of political differences means
political dry rot; political decay and
eventually corruption in public
places. There is no healthier sign
in political matters than for the
strongly matched equally divided
lines of opinion to be presented in ar
gument to the people for their ap-
proval or rejection.
Relieving this, am presenting TO
this convention my views on the po-
litical situation of this state and or
this county.
When I left the senate in 1874
the state had reached nearly s1'ooo'-
900 as it's total levy for all pur-
poses. In 1910 its levy was s1,S47'-
55s 20. in 1915 it had risen to ST.
4s375s.s2, reaching a levy OF
mills In 1918 it had climbed up to
81 mills, a total of ss,s76'1ao.oo'
while in 1920. it had bounded up
ward to s6,09l, ,241.3s, and still the
cry has been for more money. =
This enormous increase has been
brought about by unwise legislation;
by multiplication of Offices, so that
now we have small army of office
holders in the city Of Columbia; the
sncrease il ,alaries has run up to
about s2s5, 900, caused by the multi
plication of judicial districts, COM
missions and additional institutions.
The salaries Of these Office holders
were fixed by the legislature when
prices had scared to mountain
heights, in fact had reached the lofti-
est pinnacles of those mountain
heights.
So now we have spectacle OF
a portion of the country of the great
state of South Carolina rendered
bankrupt by the boil weevil and de-
fation. while the whip of the tax
gatherer year by year is heightened
and a new thong added to the lash
and this whip brought down upon
the backs of the tax payers with all
the terrific force of an organized
Office holding class thus extorting tine
life blood from the people.
It is true the legislature in It's
wisdom extended the time for pay
msnt of taxes practically until Sep
tember 1st and heaped this tax upon
the tax Of 1922 to be collected onls
fall. It is true that many petitions
presented the conditions of the state
hotb of the farmer and the merchant,
the banker, The business man and
the laborer, and yet this legislative
body turned deaf ear and did not
materially decrease the approprla-
tions, but claims by diverting the
source of taxation that it was light
ening the burdens of the tax paying
people; for instance it laid tax upon
the Door mans dog and compels 1t
to wear a collar under heavy penal
ties on the part of the owner; it laid
tax upon gasoline at &c per gallon,
and thus said, t*we have reduced your
taxation But when it came to the
reduction of the appropriations the
legislative bady did not materially
reduce the taxes.
It has been claimed that the legis-
lature reduced the taxes more tnan
$500, 900, but the parties so claiming
failed to call attention to the TACT
that the legislative body failed to
appropriate $4,000 for the Citadel;
but granted permission for the Clta-
del to borrow it; failed to repay the
loan of the sinking fund commission