SOUTH CAROLINA. 



719 



nephew and heir of the Sultan, who is governor 

 of tin 1 island. The first account of this trans- 

 action (which was followed in the article on 

 AFRICA) stated that General Schneider had 

 bought the island directly from the natives 

 for f 2,400. The island has long been famous 

 for aloes and the gum of the dragon's-blood 

 tree, both of which are said to be the finest in 

 the world ; but its importance for England it 

 derives chiefly from its geographical situation. 

 As it commands the eastern inlet of the gulf 

 of Aden and the coast of Eastern Africa, Eng- 

 land was greatly interested in preventing it 

 from falling into the hands of any other power. 

 About forty years ago (in 1834) an English 

 expedition had explored the island for two 

 months, and for a time the English appeared to 

 be disposed to occupy it permanently, but they 

 abandoned it after they had occupied Aden. 



The geography and history of the little isl- 

 and possess some features of special interest. 

 Christianity appears to have been planted 

 there even during the apostolic age, and the 

 entire population to have become Christian at 

 an early date. The Church of Socotra joined 

 the Nestorian movement, and shared the fate 

 of the Nestorian Church. In the ninth century 

 Socotra appears as a sulfragan see of the Arch- 

 bishop of Persia, which relation it still sus- 

 tained in 1280. At some later time it appears 

 to have been a suffragan see of Angamale in 

 India. From the beginning of the fourteenth 

 century the Church of Socotra is believed to 

 have been deprived of the pastoral care of 

 Christian bishops, and of all intercourse with 

 the remainder of the Christian world, and 

 gradually to have sunk into utter decay. 



According to an account of the English ex- 

 pedition of 1834, published by its leader, Well- 

 stedt, the inhabitants of the eastern coast were 

 Arabs. They lived mostly in the only town, 

 Tamarida, in the village Cadhoop, and the 

 little seaport Golenseah. All the others were 

 called Bedouins. They included two peculiar 

 tribes: one, the Beni Rahow, numbering about 

 150 men, believed to be the descendants of the 

 Jews ; and the other, Camhane, living on the 

 granite mountains, and regarded as the descend- 

 ants of the Portuguese, who ruled over the 

 island during a part of the sixteenth century. 

 They appeared to worship the moon, and were 

 not inclined to make communication concern- 

 ing their religion and mode of life. Once a 

 year they had a procession, headed by a cross, 

 around their temples. This is believed to be a 

 remnant of their former Christianity. 



SOUTH CAROLINA. Public affairs in this 

 State during the year have attracted general 

 attention. Some disturbances, attended with 

 fatal consequences, have occurred, although 

 not strictly of a political character. At Ham- 

 burg, on July 4th, Robert Butler, and another 

 oitizen of Edgefield County, while driving to 

 the town of Hamburg, were interrupted by a 

 colored militia company, who blocked up the 

 public highway, and prevented them from pro- 



ceeding on their way home. Complaint was 

 made by Butler to Prince Rivers (colored), a 

 trial-justice, who summoned witnesses to in- 

 vestigate the matter. " Doc " Adams, captain 

 of the company, was the first witness examined. 

 Adams became so insolent that Justice Rivers 

 arrested him for contempt, and continued the 

 case. When the trial was resumed the com- 

 pany proceeded to the court and rescued the 

 prisoner Adams. Rivers, who, in addition to 

 his being a trial -justice, commands the State 

 militia, ordered the company to disarm; and, 

 on refusing to comply with his orders, he called 

 upon the citizens for aid to enforce his orders. 

 The citizens responded, and the militia com- 

 pany took possession of a brick building and 



STATB SEAL OF SOUTH CAROLINA. 



refused to surrender. Fire was opened by 

 both sides, which continued for several hours 

 with but little effect. A small piece of artil- 

 lery was taken from Augusta to Hamburg, but 

 after firing a few rounds the ammunition gave 

 out. The citizens of Edgefield were aided by 

 citizens of Augusta, and a regular siege was 

 laid to the building in which the negro militia 

 were intrenched. Prince Rivers was in com- 

 mand of the citizens. Governor Chamberlain, 

 in a letter upon the affair, says : 



The effect of firing with tbe piece of artillery was to 

 cause the militia to endeavor to make their escape 

 from the rear of the building. The town marshal of 

 Hamburg, a colored man, who was leaving the luiild- 

 ing, was instantly shot by the attacking parly. Wliilo 

 thu* endeavoring to escape from the building, twenty 

 or twenty-five of the militia were captured by the 

 attacking party and kept under guard for several 

 hours. Finally, about two o'clock, on the morning of 

 the 9th of July Sunday after consultation among 

 their captors, and with complete apparent delibera- 

 tion, five of the captured militiamen were marched 

 out, one by one, and shot to death in the presence of 

 a large body of their captors. The rest of the capt- 

 ured party were either turned looi-e or broke loos*, 

 and ran. They were fired upon as they ran, and 

 three of thorn severely wounded, one of them prob- 

 ably mortally. 



General M. C. Butler, the counsel for tbe 

 original complainants, in a letter on the dis- 

 turbance, says: 



I left the crowd arresting the negroes. How 



