704 



SOUTH CAROLINA. 



for the year was : Receipts, $62,125.17 ; cash value 

 of crop on hand, $52,925.46 : due for convict hire, 

 etc., $5,108.46 ; disbursements, $63,570.83 ; account 

 overdrawn, $1,445.66 ; leaving, $56,578.26. 



The county chain gangs are employed in road- 

 making, but the law allows only those to be so em- 

 ployed whose terms do not exceed two years. In 

 Richland County alone over 50 miles of road have 

 been made. 



Militia. There are in the State the following 

 commands : Cavalry, 31 companies ; light infantry, 

 2 ; infantry, 61 ; naval reserve, 3 ; reserve militia, 6 

 companies; making a total of 103. The reserves are 

 not counted in the aggregates. The number of 

 men in the 3 arms of the service is : Privates in the 

 cavalry, 748; battery, 47; infantry, 1,479. Com- 

 missioned officers in the cavalry, 154; in the light 

 infantry, 12 ; in the infantry, 316. Noncommissioned 

 officers in the cavalry, 310: in the light infantry, 18; 

 in the infantry, 603. Making the totals for the State : 

 General and staff officers, 47; cavalry, 1,212 ; light 

 infantry, 77; infantry, 2,398; total 3,734. 



The Adjutant General reports that there are 20,- 

 000 men unorganized, who may be counted upon for 

 the militia service. 



The troops were ordered out once during the year 

 to suppress a threatened uprising of negroes near 

 St. Matthews, in Orangeburg County; quiet was re- 

 stored in a few hours. 



Railroads. The railroads pay annually more 

 than $300,000 in taxes. The total income of the 

 roads for the year ending June 30 was $8,303,487.57; 

 total expenses, $5.952,770.58 ; income, less expenses, 

 $2,307,758.52. Only 2 roads show deficits the 

 Florida Central and Peninsular and theCherawand 

 Chester. The deficit of the latter was only $1,316.- 

 89, and that of the former road $27,724.64. What 

 is reported by the Florida Central and Peninsular 

 road to be a deficit, as far as their line in South 

 Carolina is concerned, is to be considered in the 

 light of heavy improvements that have been made 

 along the line. Over $200,000 expended on im- 

 provements is charged against the earnings. This 

 road has 103 miles of track in the State. All the 

 roads are now in the hands of their owners and man- 

 agers, with one exception. The passenger earnings 

 in 1896 were $2,756,321.70, against $2,393,674.24 in 

 1895, an increase of $362,647.46. The tonnage for 

 1896 was 4,729,537; for 1895 it was 4,155,957, an in- 

 crease of 573,580 tons. 



The Railroad Commission was divided on the sub- 

 ject of reducing the rates on fertilizers, and a lively 

 war was carried on between Commissioner Thomas 

 and the other two. Mr. Thomas charged that the 

 proposed rates were grossly unfair to Charleston. 

 The majority were in favor of reducing the rates, 

 and this was done. Passenger rates also were low- 

 ered. 



Lawlessness. Several cases of lynching occurred 

 during the year. Four men were tried for a horri- 

 ble crime committed in November, 1895, and on the 

 second trial, in October, 1896, were acquitted. The 

 crime and trial are described briefly : " Three ne- 

 groes, against whom there was a suspicion of hav- 

 ing entered a country church in Barnwell County 

 and stolen a Bible, were taken from their homes at 

 midnight by a body of armed white men. They 

 were stripped naked and beaten with buggy traces. 

 Two of the unfortunates died a man and an old 

 woman. The third victim escaped. She was the 

 seventeen-year-old wife of the man and the mother 

 of a child a few months old. The bodies of the 

 negroes who were beaten to death were found after 

 the tragedy, and the young colored woman who sur- 

 vived told the fearful story. The press and people 

 cried out against this crime, and the Governor 

 promptly took steps to ferret out its authors. Sev- 



eral men well connected and most respected before 

 this were accused, and at the February term in 

 Colleton County four were charged with causing 

 the death of Hannah Walker. The trial lasted six 

 days. The surviving victim of the brutal affair 

 swore to the identity of one or more of the defend- 

 ants. A dozen witnesses testified as to the taking 

 of the negroes from their homes and seeing them 

 dragged toward Broxton Bridge. The defense did 

 not attempt to prove an alibi, gave no account of 

 the doings of the accused on the night of the kill- 

 ing, and tried to bring doubt upon the State's wit- 

 nesses. Their arguments were merely appeals for 

 sympathy and attempts to arouse hatred for the 

 State officers who had done their duty. The jury 

 brought in a verdict of ' Not guilty.' " 



Banks. The aggregate banking capital of the 

 State is $5,368,201, with a surplus of $4,845,730, 

 making a total of $10,213,931. This is distributed 

 among 91 banks. 



Industries. The annual statement of the Secre- 

 tary of State shows that the following charters were 

 issued: Twelve cotton mills, capital stock $1,050,- 

 000; 6 cotton-oil mills, $97,000; general charters, 

 $4,746,710 ; total, $5,893,710. 



The cotton crop, according to the statements 

 furnished to the Department of Agriculture by the 

 transportation companies, mills, etc., for the five 

 months ending Feb. 1, 1896, shows the number of 

 bales moved to have been 494,562 ; the purchases 

 by the State mills, 214,270 bales ; and the number 

 left on the plantations, 80,133 bales ; total crop, 

 788,965 bales. 



The corn crop of 1895 amounted to 19,860,908 

 bushels, showing a considerable increase over that 

 of 1894, which was 18,723,819, and a large advance 

 from that of 1893, which was 12,501,036. 



The phosphate-mining industry, which has been 

 a great source of wealth and has paid large amounts 

 to the State, has still further declined. The royalty 

 for the year ending Aug. 31, 1896, was $60,853.76, 

 while that for 1895 was $87,200.13. Of the rock 

 shipped or sent to market, there has been shipped 

 to foreign ports 93,527 tons; coastwise (outside of 

 the State), 11,257 tons; taken at Charleston, 5,017i 

 tons; taken at Beaufort or Port Royal, 11,801 tons; 

 total shipment, 121,602| tons. The cause of the 

 decline is the competition of Algerian, Florida, and 

 Tennessee rock which has entered the market. The 

 royalty has been reduced from time to time, until 

 it is about 50 cents a ton. 



The Dispensary. The Governor gives the fol- 

 lowing statement of the operations of the dispen- 

 sary : " The net profit that has accrued to the State 

 for the past year is, in round numbers, $200,000. 

 The net amount accrued to the towns and counties 

 for the same period is $122,000, making the total ac- 

 crued profit to the State, towns, and counties $322,- 

 000 ; adding $57,652.65, unearned profits on goods 

 in the hands of local dispensers due Jan. 1, 1897, 

 swells the total of earned and unearned profits to 

 the State and towns and counties for the preceding 

 year to $379,652.65. The net profit accruing to the 

 past administration for eighteen months was $110,- 

 348.80. Net profits for 1895, $133,467.79. Net 

 profits for 1896, $200.000, making a total net ac- 

 crued profit to the State to date, $443,816.57. Add 

 to this net accrued profit the outstanding unearned 

 profit, $57,652.65, makes a total earned and un- 

 earned profit to date of $501,469.22. If to this sum 

 we add the amount of the net accrued profits to the 

 towns and counties for 1895 and 1896 of $223,- 

 131.28, we have a grand total of earned and un- 

 earned profits to State, towns, and counties to date 

 of $729,600.50." 



Seven constables are in jail for being implicated 

 in killing men while seizing contraband liquors. 



