Georgia Historic Newspapers

    e ittonicle &
WKBIKSIiT MOKNISh, FEBKIAKY 16.
A .tew and Valuable tariciy or Corn.
Much attention has been given of late
to the improvement and production of new
varieties of cotton seed. Indeed this has
become a mania with the Southern people,
almost as intense and absorbing as the old
“Multieaulis” and “Florida Coffee”
manias which raged so extensively in the
State a few years since. We do not object
to this spirit of inquiry, experiment and
improvement, but rather think it should
be encouraged, although, like most other
important matters of investigation and ex
periment, it is liable to be carried too far.
But it is somewhat strange that all, or
nearly all efforts,.of the Southern planter
for the last few years to improve his field
seeds, have beeu confined to cotton alone.
The importance of raising corn and the
necessity, for improved early varieties have
been entirely overlooked in the great
cramble for big cotton crops. If the
people of the State -the great agricultural
interests—would prosper, they must learn
to raise their own provisions. We shall
never be prosperous until we learn this
first great lesson, which underlies all real
prosperity—that the profits of our surplus
crops must not be consumed in the pur
chase of provisions, which can be made in
abundance ht home. It makes no differ
ence how large our cotton crop may be,
so long as we consume a large proportion
of it in the purchase of corn, provisions
and fertilizers, we shall not become
wealthy. Wc may, and doubtless will,
handle a good deal of money, but we shall
not %etain it and add it to our capital.
New and improved varieties of corn is
now the great want of Southern agricultu
rists. We waDt a variety hardy, early and
prolific—sufficiently hardy to withstand
the extremes of our seasons; early
enough to mature before the setting in of
the excessive hot weather of our midsum
mer, and capable of yielding good crops on
moderately fertile lands.
Our friend, J. C. Itoper, of Kingston,
thinks he' has developed such a variety.
In another column we lay before oar read
ers Mr. Roper’s account of this prolific
corn, and the certificates of those leading
planters and corn growers, Lewis Tomlin,
Mark A. Hardin and George N. Lester.
Those of our planting friends who would
like to try this corn can procufo it by
writing to Mr- Roper, at Kingston. The
price is six dollars a peck. Itatbor steep,
but worth the money if what is said in its
favor be true.
Important from Washington.
We learn from Washington that on
Wednesday the delegation of Conservative
Republicans from this Stato were heforo
the Senate Judiciary Committee. A ma
jority ol the -Committee, it is stated, are
in favor of admitting Messrs. Hill and
Miller, unless good evidence is given to
warrant a different conclusion, and will so
report. The proceedings before the Com
mittee are encouraging to the friends of
Georgia. Three Radical members of the
Committee were very heavy on Bullock,
charging him with willful deception, and
treating his pretensions with oontempt. It
is further 'stated that the President and
General Sherman are known to he in ac
cord with a majority of the Judiciary Com
mittee on the question Os the admission of
Mcssr*. Hill and Miller.
In an interview with the President
Wednesday, Gen. Grant expressly denied
the false telegrams sent off by Bullock,
through the Associated Press, and the
statement he had published in the Wash
ington papers to the effect that tho Presi
dent favored anew election ot Senators by
a “purified” Legislature.
Bullock lias been manipulating and using
the telegraph extensively, and it is pos
sible that ho may overreach himself, and
convince tho President, as weil as he has
convinced the people af Georgia, that he
is without character, being thoroughly
corrupt and dovoid of all truth and honesty.
Commercial Fertilizers-Large Interest.
While wc would not disoourage the' free
and ‘liberal use by Southern planters of’
commercial fertilizers, we fear there is
great danger of a reckless and inconsiderate
investment in theso manures, which will
Jo groat injury to our planting interests,
and in the end lead to a vory general
abandonment of these valuable, and, in
some rospoets, indispensable aids to South
ern agrioulturc.
• Iu tho first place, great care should be
taken iu the selection of the article to be
used. It should not be assumed as true
that every article offered to the public, and
advertised iu obscure or distant papers, or
by the circulation of flaming circulars,
filled with real or pretended certificates
from real or pretended planters, is a really
valuablo fertilizer. The evidence which
•wo recently laid beforo our readers of
Professor Willet, who found in some of the
fertilizers analyzod by him forty-two per
cent, of sand, and the analysis of Professor
Johnson, of Yale College, who found as
high as fifty three per cent, of sand and
insoluble matter in some of the articles
submitted to him, shows that much fraud
is practiced upon planters by some of the
manufacturers of commercial fertilizers.
We have also the testimony of a leading
chemist in this State —an Inspector of
fertilizers under our law—that an artiole
much used in this State last year, and
heralded with strong certificates ot excel
lence, contained over sixty-four per cent,
of sand, aud was utterly worthless.
These frauds injure the honest, respect
able dealers, because whon worthless fer
tilizers are used and prove valueless,
planters confound tho good with the spu
rious, and condemn at once all commercial
fertilizers. The truth is, that most of the
fertilizers offered in the market are What
they purport to be, r 1 plant food, com
bined in such a way as to furnish all
the elements required for the vigorous
growth of*plants,' and so concentrated as
to bear the expetjse of water and land
carriage, and then repay a fair profit for
their use.
The great demand which has sprung up
in the South during the last three years
for highly concentrated commercial fer
tilizers, has induced a sei of persons to
embark in their manufacture whose sole
object seems to be to take advantage of
the reputation established by older dealers,
and throw into the market a large quan
tity of worthless stuff, under high-sound
ing names, and secure a large traffic and
tremendous profits from their sales to
credulous planters.
The law now in force in relation to the
inspection of Commercial Fertilizers, we
have shown in a previous article to be
entirely inadequate to meet the wants and
requirements of the planter. In the ab
sence of proper legislation on this subject,
we can only repeat the advice given on a
former occasion. There arc dealers and
manufacturers in our midst whose charac
ter as hones., reliable business men are
known to planters. These gentlemen, to a
certain extent, pledge their word as busi
ness men, that the article they offer is what
it purports to be. Our planting friends
would, we think, be safe in making their
purchases trom them. Nearly, it not
qyitc all, of the responsible Augusta
dealers, and some ot the best and leading
dealers in Savannah and Charleston adver
tise in this paper. A reference to our
advertising columns will show who they
are and what they offer. Wo shall not
admit an advertisement in our columns of
any article which we have reasons to be
lieve spurious and valueless. We intend,
in this particular, to confine our advertis
ing to this class good of Fertilizers alone,
and hence wo believe we can safely refer
our readers to these for a goo 4 selection.
But there is another point to which we
desire to direct Planters' attention in con
nection with the Commercial Fertilizers.
It is the great difference between the cash
and credit prices, established by all dealers
in these Jrticles. We do not hesitate to
say that we do not believe the profits o*
cotton planting, as now conducted, wi ]
authorize or justify planters in paying from
twenty to thirty per ccni for money to pur
pose fertilizer*. And yet hundreds—
perhaps thousands—of them paid this rate i
the last and will pay it again this year.
We venture to assert that not one in a
hundred who has paid it or is about to
pay it, really knows that they are giving
this amount of interest in the purchase of
their fertilizers. We know that those who
continue the practice cannot make money
by planting, unless cotton goes up to 35 or
40 cents a pound. This is hardly probable,
and hence planters will do well to exam
ine this matter a little.
The great bulk of the fertilizers now in
the market, raQge in price from fifty to
eighty dollars. Dealers make a difference
of ten dollar* a ton between the cash and
credit prices. Time sales are made payable
Ist of November with factor acceptance.
The following table shows the rate of inter
est paid by the planters on these time safes.
We have included the 2j per cent charged
for acceptances, though we learn that
some factors do not make this charge.
It is nevertheless a legitimate charge, and
Factors are entitled to remuneration for the
risks they assume in thus accommodating
the planters. We calculate the interest for
nine months, that is to say from Ist Feb
uary to Ist November, although thou.-ands
of tons are not purchased until Ist of March
and the payments fixed at Ist of October.
On Fertilizers sold at SSO
cash and S6O on credit,the
inferest paid by the plan
ter is 27 per cent.
On those sold at S6O cash
and S7O on credit, the in
terest is 23.72 “
On those sold at $65 cash
and $75 on credit, the in
terest is 21.25 “
On those sold at S7O cash
and SBO on credit, the in
terest is 20.00 “
Land Plaster, which is used very exten
sively, and should be even more liberal ap
plied to our land, sells in this market at
S2O a (on, cash, and $25 on time. The
interest paid by time purchasers is 33.72
per cent., including commissions for ac
ceptances.
The remedy for this evil is simple and
within the reach of every planter. No
laws are required on the subject—no offi
cers to enforce it. Let no planter pur
chase more fertilizers than he has the cash
to pay for. Adopt this course at once and
stick to it. In a very few weeks, or at
most months, manufacturers and dealers
will be willing to extend liberal credits to
consumers, at f»ir and living rates. We
urge our planting friends to examine this
matter. Let them answer whether it is
likely that they can afford to pay such rates
of interest and take the chance of unpro
pitions seasons, short crops, or low priced
cotton. They will have no one to blame
but themselves if they blindly rush for
ward their orders, knowing the rate of in
teresUthey will be compelled to pay.
Uullork Exposed.
The Washington special to the Chroni
cle & Sentinel, gives a more encouraging
view of the Georgia situation at Washing
ton. ISullock has been detected in his in
famous plot to rob and ruin the State,
and Lis uulawiul acts and scandalous' pec
ulations are in a fair way of being exposed.
Senator Edmunds, of Vermont, the author
of one of the bills to promote reconstruc
tion in' Georgia, denounces Bullock as a
liar, and charges him with having misled
Congress as to the condition of affairs in
Georgia. in at or Cockling, of New York,
and Senator Carpenter, of Wisconsin, con
curred in the views of Senator Edmunds.
When leading Republicans denounce Bul
lock for his usurpations and hypocrisy,
there is still a reasonable prospeot of the
State being rescued from the gang of
thieves led on by Bullock and Blodgett.
The Supreme Court—Legal Tenders.
The decision delivered a few days since
by the Supreme Bench, in the case of
Hepburn, vs. Griswold, establishes the fact
that “a contract for the payiu nt of money
“made before thfc legal tender act of the
“25th of February, 1862, had reference to
“coined money, and could not be dis
“ohaiired. unless by eonspm. otherwise
“than by the tonder of the sum due in
“coin, and that such contract, therefore,
“was in legal import a contract for the pay
“ment of ooin.”
Chief Justice Chase, who delivered the
opinion, in discussing the manifest inten
tion of the act, said :
We do not think ourselves at liberty to
say that Congress did not intend to make
the notes authorized by it a legal tender in
payment of debts contracted before the
passage of the act. We are thus brought
to the question whether Congress has the
power to make notes, issued under its au
thority, a legal tender in payment of debts
which, when contracted, were made pay
able by law in gold and silver coin. The
delicacy and importance of this question
has not been overstated in the argument.
This Court always approached the consid
eration of a questiou of this nature reluc
tantly, and its constant rule of decision has
been, and is, that the acts of Congress must
be regarded as constitutional unless clear
ly shown to be otherwise. But the Con
stitution is the fundamental law of the
United States; by it the people have creat
ed a Government, defined its powers, pre
scribed their limbs,distributed them among
the different departments, and directed
in general the manner of their exer
cise. No department of the Government
has any other powers than those delegated
to it by the people. All the legislative
power granted by the Constitution belongs
to Congress, but it has not legislative
power which is not thus granted, and the
same observation is equally true in its ap
plication to the executive and judicial
powers granted respectively to the Presi
dent and the Courts. All these powers
differ in kind but not in source or in limi
tation. They all arise from the Constitu
tion, and are limited by its terms. It is
the function of the judiciary to interpret
and apply the law to oases between parties
as they arise for judgment. We can only
deolarc what the law is, aud enforce by
proper process the law thus declared. But
in ascertaining tho respective rights of par
ties frequently becomes necessary to con
sult the Constitution, for there can be no
law inconsistent with the fundamental law.
No enactment not in pursuance of the au
thority conferred by it can create obligations
or confer rights, for such is the express de
claration ot the Constitution itself, in these
words: “This Constitution, and the
laws of the United States which
shall be made in pursuance thereof,
and all treaties made, or which -hall be
made, under tho authority of the United
States, shall be the supreme law of the
land, and thejudges of every State shall
be bound thereby, anything in the consti
tution or laws of any State 10 the con
trary notwithstanding.’ Not every act of
Congress then is to be regarded as the su
preme law of the land ; nor is it by every
act <if Congress that thejudges are boued;
this character and this force belongs to
such acts as are made in pursuance of the
Constitution. When, therefore, a case
arises for judicial determination, and the
decision depends on the alleged inconsist
ency of a legislative provision with the
fundamental laws, it is the plain duty of
the Court to compare the act with the
Constitution, and if the former cannot,
upon a fair construction, he reconciled with
the latter, to give effect to the Constitution
rather than the statute. This seems so
plain that is impossible to make it plainer
bv arguti: ,it. if it be otherwise, the Con
stitution is uot the supreme law.
“It will be seen from this,’ ’says the Balti- j
moreGTucfte, “that the Supreme Court has
taken the opportunity, in this decision, to
discuss the powers of Cong: ess, the usurp- 1
ations of whieh, although it does not call
thftm b> that name, it evidently looks upon
with some uneasiness. In the course of
the opinion, Mr. Chase laid particular
stress on the fact that the powers of the
Government established by the Constitu
tion were limited, and that the object of
the Constitution was ‘to restrain the lim
ited Government from the exercise of
‘powers not clearly delegated or divined by
‘just inference from powers delegated,' and
that, where Congress adopted measures
prohibited by the Constitution, or ‘under
pretext of exercising its powers,’ passed,
laws for the accomplishment of objects not
entrusted to the Government, it was clearly
the painful duty of the Supreme Court to
declare that such law was not the law of
the land.
“The decision itself, important as it is,
is rendered vastly more so by the able,
sound and independent manner in which
it is delivered. It is a decision which
makes one feel for a moment that the Con
stitution is not a myth, and liberty not a
sham. The many points discussed by
Chief Justice Chase as to the rights of Con
gress to issue paper money, to declare it
legal tender for any debts whatever, to
resort to it as a war measure, are of second
ary importance. There is, however, an
other question, incidentally referred to,
which is a most import ini one. That is,
the rights of States to regulate their owd
currency, which Mr. Chase says they have
the power to do, “subject as has been
‘lately • determined, to the control
‘of Congress, for the purpose of establish
ing and securing a national currency.’ Mr-
Chase does not say whether or not sue#
control is constitutional, and as he now
boldly declares that the issue of green
backs, which he himself advocated and
fathered, was in some respects, if not in
all, dishonest and unconstitutional, there
j is do reason that he should not declare his
; own favorite pet National Bank system an
outrage upon the Constitution and a fraud
| upon the people.”
The South Carolina Railroad.
We direct the special attention of our
readers to the report of the President of j
the South Carolina Railroad, printed else- ;
where in this morning’s paper. .
It will be seen that through the prudent 1
and energetic management of the present
officials, the road has been rebuilt since j
the war; a large indebtedness of the South- j
western Bauk paid off; heavy additions to |
the rolling stock made, and the road bed j
and fixtures pushed up to a first-class con- i
dition.
This road was almost entirely destroyed !
by Sherman, and the Company have* been |
necessarily involved in heavy expenses in i
their efforts to restore it to its former good j
condition. This work has been fully and
very creditably accomplished, and now the |
shareholders will begin to realize the bene- j
fits of good dividends so long necessarily
withheld to complete the repairs of the
road.
The President congratulates the stock
holders upon the settlement of all the liti
gation between their own and the Colum
bia & Augusta Road, and the satisfactory
adjustment of restrictions upon their
freight tariffs, heretofore existing, growing
out of previous contracts with the city of
Augusta.
We are glad to find the President and
Directors fully alive to the importance of
water connections at Charleston. As soon
as arrangements are made there to take
freight down to the wharf, without the
expense and loss incident to a long dray
age, we are confident that the income of
the road will be materially increased. All
obstructions to and restrictions upon the
quick, cheap and safe transit of goods must
now be abandoned. The wants of trade
and commerce require that these old relics
of local prejudices shall be removed and
the currents of business allowed to flow in
the most direct and easy channels.
We congratulate the stockholders upon
the fine exhibit made by their officers of
the condition of their property, and trust
that in the future they will be rewarded
with handsome semi-annual dividends.
Something New Under the Sun.
The latest sensation in Yankoedom is
tho estab'ishment io New York of a
Bankers and Brokers, business by a few
strong minded females. The members of
the firm, or at least the female portion of
it, are Mrs. Woodhuli and Mrs. Claflin.
The firm's naum being Woodliull, Claflin
& Cos. It is suspected that Cornelius
Vanderbilt is the other partner. The new
house was opened on Saturday last, and
there was a great rush and jam during
the entire day, produced by the crowds
who thronged the location to get a glimpse
at the new candidates for brokerage fees.
The women arc said to be quite hand
some, of middle age, and good mauners.
Both dress in fine dark blue cloth walking
suits, elaborately and heavily trimmed
with black silk, and wear Deal jockey hats
of the same material. They state that
they can, if necessary, control $700,000
for business purposes.
These strongminded specimens would do
much better to attend the darning of their
husband’s socks, and the making of their
baby’s bibs than flaunting themselves
before the gaze of a curious crowd in a
business not altogether of the most re
putable character in New York.
Bullock Disgruntled.
Our special dispatch from Washington
gives us rather cheering news in relation
to the Georgia question. The Bullock has
left the Federal Capitol in supreme dis
gust with his Radical friends, who it seems
have at last discovered his true character.
It was a hard blow to his self-conceit
and blustering pomposity to be charged by
leading Radicals with practising deceit
and double dealing, but when Senator
Edmonds penned the ugly but expressive
little epithet of wilful liar upon him,
even his audaeiiy was checked, and his
impertinence thoroughly crushed.
Tho Georgia Bullock is sick —he is
afflicted with “hollow horns”—let the
honest men in the Legislature give them
a boring 1
The Comparative Value of Cotton and
Wheat as Elements of Wealth.
The following table, made.up from the
returns of imports and exports for the
month of November last, received by the
Bureau of Statistics, makestsome start
ling developments, and teaches a whole
some and valuable lesson, which the
people of this city and of the whole coun
try will do well to consider :
Imports. Exports.
New York $19,233,190 $17,695,415
Boston&Charst’n. 3,952,675 998,715
Baltimore 1,528,268 1,459,110
Charleston -... 22,906 2,236,443
Mobile 61,092 2,803,209
Savannah.., 82,932 5,190,028
New Orleans 1,355,648 10,452,177
It will be seen that Savannah, with a
population of less than forty thousand,
has an export trade more than five times
greater than that of Boston and Charles
town combined ; more than twice that of
Baltimoie and Boston combined; greater
than that of Charleston, Baltimore and
Boston ; equal to the entire exports of
Mobile, Charleston and Baltimore ; one
third as great as New York, and over one
half of that of New Orleans.
Savannah owes -this remarkable and
astonishing growth of her export trade to
her admirably conducted and extensive
railroad communications, with the rich
cotton fields of Middle, Western and
Southwestern Georgia and Eastern Ala
bama. It is the South’s great staple
which gives life, activity, value and im
poitanoo to the great cotton centres —
Savannah and New Orleans. It is the
fact that a pound of cotton is worth more
than ten pounds of wheat, which puts 8a
vannah and New Orleans so far in advance
of Baltimore in the amount and value of
their export trade.
The long lines of railroads leaving the
shores of the great lakes, as far East as
Dunkirk and Buffalo, on Lake Erie, and
reaching as far West as Fond du Lac, the
western extremity of Lake Superior, drain
ing the great Slates of Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Michigan, lowa and Wisconsin,
and pouring into Baltimore the abundant
crops of that fertile and extensive region
fails to make her export trade more than
one-third in value of that of Savannah,
whose railway connections reach scarcely
beyond the limits of our own State* The
immense tonnage of these cheap 1 ut heavy
products of the great West contribute
largely to the support of railways, and
make their stocks valuable as an invest
ment, lut the money value of these pro
ducts is trifling as compared to that of
cotton. A ton of cotton transported to
Savannah over the Central Railroad is
worth, in that market, five hundred dol
lars. A ton of wheat transported by the
Baltimore and Ohio Road and its Western
feeders, is worth in the latter city, S4O 66
cents. Baltimore has, for years, been di
recting her energies toward the completion
of her railway connections with the valley
of the Ohio and the waters of the gfeat
lakes. In the consummation of this great
work she has, until recently, lost sight of
the more valuable and rich trade which
lies within easy distance of her doors, and
to secure which no cutting down or tunel
ling of high mountains or erecting of cost
ly bridges oyer deep and expansive streams
is required. A short line of railway from
Salem oa the Virginia & Tennessee road
to Statesville and thence to Charlotte, or a
short line from Lynchburg to Danville
weuld open up to her a cotton trade from
Southern A irgitda, North and S.uth Caro
lina, worth more than twice the whole
amount of her great grain trade from the
West.
But we desire to direct more particularly
the attention of Augusta merchants, busi
ness men and capitalists to the importance
of the lesson taught by these statist ; cal
returns. We would like to impress upon
them the necessity Qf extending our rail
way lines in the direction of the rich cotton
fields of Southwest Gatrgia and South
eastern Alabama, rather than looking to
the waving wheat lands of the West to
build up our trade and increase our wealth.
One ear load of cotton is worth more —
goes farther to enlarge our commerce and
enrich our city- than ten cir loads of
wheat or corn.
The construction of an air-lino railway
to Albany and thence ' to the Chattahoo
chee, which would net much exceed two
hundred miles, would bring to this market
annually, one hundred and twenty thou
sand bales ot cotton, which now find their
way by circuitous and expensive routes to
other markets. The value of this cotton
at present prices would be over fourteen
millions of dollars. To transport one
hundred and twenty thousand bales of
cotton would require the capacity of four
thousand cars. One train carrying twenty
cars would deliver this freight a distance
of one hundred and seventy milo3 in two
days. .
It would require at present prices ten
million bushels of Wheat to bring in our
market fourteen million of dollars. To
move this amount of wheat ■'Would require
5,000 cars, or oue'forjrth more than u 'ould
be required for the same amount in value
of cotton.
Augusta needs direct, cheap and short
communication with the cotton producing
regions of the Southwest. This is our
pressing necessity However much we may
spend in making connections with the
West, we shall, in the end, find ourselves
in the same condition with that of Balti
more to-day, unless wc strike also for the
cotton-fields.
Let us be warned in time by the expe
rience of Baltimore, and not expend all
our energies and capital in struggling for
Western trade.
Let us look at the magnificent pros
pects of Savannah—her crowded wharves
—her plethoric warehouses—her well
filled stores —her large and increasing
trade--her rapidly extending limits, and
the endle.s evidences of thrift and 'ortune
which meet us on every hand, and learn
that these are all the fruits of her trade
in cotton, and the results of a wisely con
ceived plau of railway communication,
energetically aud intelligently carried into
execution by the stout hearts and brave
wills of her Gordons, her Cuylers, her
Screvcna, her Lawtons, and her Wad
leys.
Cotton is the valuable argosy in which
all our hopes of prosperity are freighted.
If we would inorease our wealth, and en
large our prosperity, we must strike boldly
out for the tempting prize which now lies
so invitingly before our eyes, in South
western Georgia.
Death of an Old Citizen.
Hon. William Stroud, an old and highly
respectable citizen, died at his residence in
Clark county on the 10th instant- Mr.
Stroud was for many years a member of
the Legislature, and in his day was an in
fluential and distinguished member of his
party. He was an old line Wh ; g—an ar
dent admirer of Henry. Clay, and devoted
to the principles of the Whig party. His
brother, Orion Stroud, was a warm Demo
crat, and represented an adjoining county.
Those were the good old days of the past,
when honest men differed upon questions
of expediency, but when all were patriots,
faithfully and earnestly seeking to promote
the best welfare of the State.
A daughter of the subject of this sketch
is, we believe, the wife of Judge Peter
E. Love, cf Thomasville, and, if we are not
mistaken, the Rev. Atticus G. Haygood,
married a'so one of his daughters. A
good man has fallen —peace to his ashes 1
The Southern Publishing Company.
We are gratified to learn that Mr. J. C.
Derby, the eminent New York publisher,
is the general manager of the above Com
pany, aud that in this city will be located
the principal office of the concern.
Mr. Derby’s success as a leading pub
lisher in New York for many years, is well
known to the Southern people. Just after
the close of the war he purchased a farm
near Aiken, where he has been spending
his winters for two or three years, and has
become so much pleased with the South
that he has determined to locate perma
nently here and transfer his great pub-,
listing interests to this city.
The Southern Publishing Compauy will
confine their business to the publication
and sale of books by subscription alone.
None of these books can be found in the
book stores- They will be distributed by
canvassing agents throughout the States
of Georgia, South Carolina and Florida,
and when no agents are employed orders
for books will be received and filled from
the principal office here.
Mr. Derby will issue nothing but stand
ard works —those of real Value to the public
—and wc doubt not will receive liberal en
couragement from our people i.n his new
enterprise- The establishment of such an
extensive and wealthy publishing house in
our city will contribute very much to our
trade and prosperity, „nd we warmly wel
come Mr..Derby and his associates, and
trust that their highost anticipations may
be fully realized.
Disgraceful.
The following letter to the Savannah
Republican shows a bad condition of
affairs on the bench of the Brunswick
Circuit. Judge Sessions is known to be
an exceedingly weak and ignorant man,
Lut we hoped that he had escaped the
views of extreme Radicalism :
Brunswick, February 11, 1870.
On Tuesday last the Grand Jury ot
GlyDn county in their general present
ments, read in Court, censured Judge Ses
sions for his action in bailing a criminal
convicted ot assault with intent to murder,
and against whom an indictment was then
standing for murder in tbe first degree.
The Judge was highly indignant at the
time, but dismissed the jury for the balance
of the term. Subsequently, in chambers,
be ordered a fine of twemy-five dollars
against each juror, or twenty-five days in
jail, for contempt. The jury have refused
to pay the fine, and say they.feel they
have done but their duty, and have
resolved to go to jail in a body.
There being no jail in Brunswick, the
Sheriff will bring them to Savannah.
They will leave here on Friday, 11th inst.,
on. the Nick King, ft is rheir intention
to sue out a writ of habeas corpus before
Schley upon their arrival in Savan
nah.
A bitter feeling against Judge Sessions
prevails extensively among the citizens
here. Their trip to the Nick King’s wharf
to-day will be a grand ovation. The citi
zens will turn out en masse to escort them.
The people regard them almost as
martyrs. They hoocr them a- bold and
fearless in the discharge of their duty, and
as men who do their duty if they have to
reproach the ermine of the judiciary.
They may conclude to pay the fine to
day when the,? assemble. I have no idea
they wil’, however. Amicus.
A Sew and Glided Southern Writer.
Chiquita is the nom de plume, of the
gifted and accomplished Mrs. Casden, of
Maeon, Georgia, who belongs to one of
the best families of that city, and who is
a lady of great personal charms and of
superior social graces. She is quite a
young authoress, and for several years her
poetic gems have adorned the pages of our
popular literature, and have won golden
opinions from the lovers of the true, the
beautiful and the good■ That she has
been endowed with shining talents, and
fine poetic sensibilities, none •• can
doubt; and it_ is equally evident
that time and application must place
her among the brightest stars in the Amer
ican constellation of female poets. W e
believe, if her life is spared, that she is
destined to he crowned with the splendid
honors of the poet laureate of the Empire
State, and perhaps of the whole South.
The Mowing poem from her vigorous and
polished pen abounds in the beautiful in
spirations of poetic genius and pious sen
timent, apd is the sure presage of still
more brilliantjaurels to be plucked from
the peerless hlights of Parnassus :
“Glorious JThings are Spoken of
Thee, o Cin| of God.”—B7tA Rs iltn, 3 d
verse.
Respectfully iiscribed to Rev Dr If illis,
whose last Ssibath Sermon was from the
above Beautful Words.
BY CHIQUITA.
O blessed Hoiie ! mueh loveth God thy
gates—
Thy holy moujtaiu paths, where Right
eousness
And Peace eac» other ever kiss. Mercy
And Truth together meet, aud Glory
dwells
In all thy spotess Land for ever more.
In thee the (hurch triumphant lirmly
stands
A rock immoßtble !—nor ’gainst.it shall
The gates of bell prevail, for He hath said
His Christ ant He this Kingdom loveth
well,
And in it The; shall reign for’er aud e'er.
Mountains of power and beauty girdle
thee!
Aye, even as .erusa’em of old.
And on thy dtepjouudaiiona planted He
The everlasting covenant —and God
The Son redeemeth it with His precious
blood.
And on the palm of His own hand en
graved
He it. He, tty Defence is, Zion: by His
love.
Omnipotence and truth. “Fair as the
• moon,
Clear as the Sun,” to-day thou’rt marching
forth, •
While glores of the Earth as morning
cloud
And early dtw swift pass away. Shinest
Thou “as Extern gold,” O Zion, city
Os our God, vbo, in thy mid’st is mighty,
And wiiose promise shall not fail for e’er,
O Zion ! tearstlmu oft has had as well
As raptures —mffering as well as joy,
When sadly by those fountains sat and
went
To music of the murmuring stream thine
own
Forsaken on«. Neglected hung their harps
Upon the weeping willow trees, and sad
And lonely tilt they in a land so strange,
Arid in their voe cried, sit we down, vea
weep
We by these r vers bilter tears when we
Remember Zicn, city of our love. .
Deep notes of lamentation li.led the air
When thy sadciptivechildren shook from
off
Their slowly dragging feet thy precious
dust.
Ne’er resting in their toilsome flight and
march
’Till in a desert land they laid them down.
From hopeless bondage, deepest ruin,
He
Soon called thee, and in robes of beiuty
made
Thee, Zion, glorious again—“The Lord
Hath chosen thee.” Behold thy house is
left
No longer, Zion, lone and desolate !
No longer, Zion, lone and desolate
Shall thine own glorious House be left ;
for thou
Hast called upon Him who unsinkiug
walked
The waves of Galilee—who did’st so rule
The raging of the sea that when the waves
Thereof did’st rise inanger, He did’st still
By His own wondroijs voice their violence.
He thou hast called tpon—and He so full
Os love, compassion, mercy; grace and
truth,
Did’st teach his way to thee and glorifled
Thy name, till lik« a Bride adorned for
him
The chosen one, thou stam’est uudefiled,
Exalted, free from wrath that once did’st
lie
And compass thee like deep and weltering
waves.
How great has been His mercy who hast
raised
Thee from the deal and given new life to
thee.
More than the House of Jacob loveth He
Thy gates, O Zion—thee and all thy works.
Through Him thou hast been faithful,
and ’tis He
Who guards thee “’gaiust assemblies,”
and who loves
Thv faithfulness, thy wondrous beauty,
strange
And fearful, glorious in its strength and
light.
No need hast thou, O Zion, of the sun ;
Nor of the moon to shiue upon thy face;
For God’s own glory lightens it—the
Lamb,
Oholy City, is the light thereof.
A day in thy fair Courts, aye one short
day
Far better is thau thousands here—far best
A lowly keeper, Zion, in thy House,
Than dwell a King in wickeduess below.
High is His right hand over thee, and
strong
And mighty is His loving arm. His face
Is shining over all thy Hills, that once
Worn dark witli shadows. Never more
shall boughs
And branches of thy sacred cedars bend
Unto the seas and rivers:—ne’er again
Shall all thy hedge be broken, nor thy
flowers
Bo pluck’d by stranger hands. He who
so lov’d
And pitied thee hast clave the hardened
Rock,
Aud thou shalt drink forevermore of sweet
Anil sparkling waters. Ne’er again upon
Thy mountain’s sacred top shall oonuuer
ing troops
Sweep iri their pewer. Upon its summit
now
Glad hearts will over throb to music
sweet—
And when upon thy valleys’ bosom falls
Soft shades of eve—aud on thy gates of
pearl
litrht dim shadows fondly
By thine own rivers come with song*. _„d
harps
•tvgain thy Virgins fair, whose heating
.hearts,
Like that deep troubled sea, have felt the
storm,
And raoio are “stilled,” and feel the storm
no more.
Macon, January 217th, 1870.
Corn—Prolific Corn.
I have a species of Corn which I obtain
ed from a man in Virginia some two years
ago. This man and his Corn have been
denounced as humbugs. lam not able to
say whether tho seed I obtained is the
“Egyptain Corn” or not, but Ido know
from having grown it twice, that it is by
far the most valuable species of Corn ever
planted in this country. lam well satis
fied that two crops of this Corn can be
produced in the same year in this climate,
and I know that on the same land, with
the same seasous and culture, it will yield
three times as much as any other kind of
corn of which I have any knowledge. I
have planted it for two years, and have
realized large crops, literally without rain.
In this exceedingly dry year, if all the far
mers of Bartow county had planted this
corn, we would have been worth a million
of dollars more than we are, and the peo
ple would havo rejoiced in abundance of
bread. I have some of this Corn for sale,
and will dispose of it to those who wish to
purchase, at $6 a peck, delivered to the
Railroad Acent at Kingston, Ga.
This Corn can be grown and gathered in
this climate by. the 15th of August, which
gives far more ample time to prepare for
and sow wheat, or other small grain, on
the same land. All orders, to receive at
tention, must be accompanied with tho
money, prepaid. Ido not wish to sell less
than one peck to any one order. Address
me at Kingston, Ga. J. C. Roper,
Sept 28, 1869. Kingston, Ga.
We, the undersigned, cfr'zensof Bartow
county, do certify that we visited the plan
tation of J. C. Roper about the Ist of
August, 1869, and examined bis field
planted in the Kind of Corn mentioned and
described in his foregoing statement, and
said field looked fresh and luxuriant,whilst
the fields around and adjacent seemed lit
erally burned up with the drought. We
are satisfied that Capt. Roper’s statement
about the Corn is tiue, and the under
signed, Lewis Tumlin, has already secured
from him seed to plant a large part of his
crop the coming year. We counted tven
ty-three ears of corn produced from three
grains this dry year. In our tudgment, it
is by far the most valuable Corn ever in
troduced ioto this county.
L. Tumlin,
Oartersville, Ga.
Mark A. Hardin,
Sept. 28, 1869. Kingston, Ga.
Capt. J: C. Roper, of Kingston, Ga.,
gave me a few ears of Corn, which I plant
ed on a piece of gray upland. The land
was very well prepared, and pretty well
manured, and the Corn planted the 7th
day of April, 1869. I know that from the
time the Corn was waist nigh, until it was
well glazed in the grain, there never was a
“season” cf rain upon ir, and yet was green
and fresh until maturity, and did not seem
to suffer from dronrht. The yield was ex
traordinary and the Corn attracted the at
tention of almost every passer by. I am
no farmer, and had of course but a small
plat of ground platted in this Corn, but if
my judgment is worth anythiog, I can say,
that if I had planted this Corn altogether,
I would have made, in this dry year, three
or four fimes as mich Corn as I did.
Geo. N. Lester.
STATI ITEMS,
The Little Perjurer and a certain or un
certain John Rice are on the slate for
Georgia Senators.
Gen. Grant giv« out that Bullock or
soma one else lied about the interview at
the White House Tuesday.
The Columbus Sun accuses Justice
McKay of writing the foul letter read in
the United States Senate by Howard, of
Michigan, in reference to Georgia.
Columbus is to tove another factory and
three new churches
A German Radical paper —Deutsche
Zeitung —has beenstarted in Atlanta. The
proprietor will lost money.
The little villaje of Rome contains
twenty lawyers ant nine whiskey shops.
There are, it is said, one hundred and
fifty car loads of tirougb and East Ten
nessee freights at Dalton.
Hon. Peter Chanbers, a member of the
House of Represeitatives of the Georgia
Legislature, died st his residence in Meri
wether county a fez days since.
Enoch G. GramViing, Sheriff of Chero
kee county, has b*en removed by Terry.
John B. Garrison has been appointed in
his stead.
In a case tried It Columbus, where the
consideration was $l7O in Confederate
money, the jury give the plaintiff $3 in
greenbacks.
I F IN A BALLOON.
THE ASCENSION OF MR. KING ON
YESTERDAY.
AN IMMENSE CROWD IN ATTEND
ANCE. .
THE EXPERIENCE OF AN AERO
NAUT DESCRIBED BY HIMSELF.
The first balloon ascension in ten years
took place in Augusta on Wednesday. For
some time past Mr. S. A. King, thewide
ly known and successful mronaut, has been
endeavoring to raise the wind enough lor
an ascension in his mammith balloon, the
Hyperion, and, having agitated the finan
cial breeze sufficiently, ’ ■’ M 'iday was
the time appointed for the exhibition. On
that day, however, the weather was so bad
that the ascent was postponed until yester
day, when it came off, or rather up, ac
cording to announcement. The gas pipes
were extended from the main on Greene
street to the vacant lot in rear of Girar
dey’s Opera House, where the ba'loon was
to ascend, and the inflation of the vast ma
chine commenced yesterday morning. By
three o’clock the ballooQ was almost ready
for the journey, and a large crowd had as
sembled to wituess the spectacle. On the
streets outside of the lot th£re was
a large number of persons, principally
colored, who wore dodging the twenty-five
cent man at the gate, while in the enclos
ure there were from five hundred to one
thousand people of all ages, sexes and
colors. The centre of attraction, of course,
was that portion of the lot where the
Hyperion stood attached to the gas pipe
from which it was being filled, and around
the silken bag men, women and bays,
especially boys, packed closely together,
fought, pulled each other about, tread
upon toes, and dug with their elbows into
neighboring ribs, in their eager desire to
see and hear alt that was transpiring.
From some cause or other the gas filled the
balloon very slowly, and it was a few
minutes past four o’clook before the
aeronaut announced ready. He had pre
viouslysent up a number of comically con
structed toy balloons to ascertain the
direction in which the wind was blowing,
and every one of them took an Easterly
ccurse. The small wicker basket . was
then attached to the cords, a basket of pro
visions, a bottle of Congress water and a
of sand bags were placed in the
frail car ; the aeronaut took his place ;
any quantity of hand shakings were ex
changed; the ropes were cast loose and the
balloon slowly commenced its ascent amid
the yells of the spectators. After it had
risen a few feet it was caught by the brisk
wind which prevailed yesterday, and its
velocity was rapidly accelerated. The
balloeu took an Easterly direction, crossed
the Savannah river, passed io the neigh
borhood of Graniteville, South Carolina,
distant twelve miles from this city, and
when last seen was still moving towards
sun-rise.
THE EXPERIENCE OF AN A2RONAUT.
For the benefit of our-readers who were
afraid to go “up in a balloon” vdth Mr.
King on yesterday afternoon, wc
an interesting paper from that ceronaut on
the subject of ascensions and the phono
niena :
As your readers may feel some interest
in the subject of balloon ascensions, I have
taken occasion to jot down a few facts
which may, with propriety, come under
the heading of this article. Among the
first of tLese is to be noticed the total lack
of dizziness. One that has never been up
can scarcely believe it possible that there
should be no unpleasant sen-anon of this
kind ; yet such is the case. Os the many
who have accompanied me iu my rerial
voyages, there is not one but will corrobo
rate this statement. Air -ailing,. being
free from all suck disagreeable influences,
is a positive luxury, a most sublime enjoy
ment. When persons expose themselves
upon great elevations, vertigo is very apt
to affect them more or 'ess, but in the bal
loon vat is ( l'-'.ic dltteiont; for,
although we may be very high, we are not
on top of the ’balloon, but suspended be
neath it. Iu addition to this, all objects
are seen at a distance, and a single glanc
shows uo movement, while to ascertain the
direction of our course requires intent
watching for some length of time. Thus
it will be seen that wc have no objects
swimming as it were before us, as expe
rienced in rapid travelling on the ground.
There is almost always a rotary motion to
the balloon, but this is not rapid enough to.
be unpleasant, and is caused by any little
irregularity in the suspension of the car or
adjustment of Ihe net over the balloon,
leaving the neck slightly on one side ; the
neck of the balloon would thus become a
rudder, turning it in one direction while
ascending, and the reverse in descending.
In tailing over bays, lakes, and rivers, if
the water is clear, we can see their bottoms
distinctly, even atconsiderable depths; and
the deep and shallow places, with the dif
ferent colors of sand, clay, mud ar.d grav
.el are plainly visible. This is easily ex
plained, for when immediately over the
water there is a ly-ge.area beneath which
GIVES US NO REFLECTION FROM ITS SUR
FACE, and the vision is therefore allowed
to penetrate the transparent medium.
Echo is an accompauimcnt of balloon
asceusions, when not sailing too high. The
reverberations come from the earth and
clouds. They are very distinet, and are
sometimes repeated over and over again.
The effect produced by a bugle is very tine,
the echo being heard first, some seconds af
ter the notes have been sounded, and then
at regular intervals, dying away in the dis
tance. The best effects are produced under
a heavy cloud stratum.
The temperature gradually falls as the
balloon rises, the rule being one degree off
Fahrenheit for every three hundred feet.
This rule varies at times, however, par
ticularly in cloudy weather, when it is
usually found to l e much warmer above
the clouds than below them, for the reason
that clouds reflect the heat of the sun
above, at;d, at the same time, prevent its
rays from pa’ssing below. The effect pro
duced on the body by the sudden change,
from heat to cold, is not so grea't as might
at first be supposed, from the fact that you
are apparently in a dead calm, drifting
with the wind. The sun’s rays seem to
act more powerfully too, and on reaching
a height where the temperature is below
the freezing point, a tingling sensation is
apt to be felt all over the body, which js
produced at once by the heat of the sun’s
rays, and the absorption of heat from the
body by the surrounding atmosphere.
The rate of speed at which a balloon
travels depends, of course, on the velocity
of the wind, and in my own experience
varies from five to seventy miles an hour,
the latter rate being accomplished in a
heavy gale.
Balloons cannot be guided in a different
direction from that of the wind, though
the course may sometimes be changed aod
an approach made to aerial navigation, by
availing ourselves of the cuircnt- of air
which may be moving in contrary direc
tions
Tbe balloon cannot be poised at any
point in the atmosphere for any consider
able length of time, there being a tendency
always to either rise or fall; for when w
ascend the gas expands till it overflows at
the open neck; the balloon losing in this
way a portion of its buoyancy we descend,
when ballast is discharged and we rise
again, so that our voyage becomes a series
of ups and Uowqs, manage as we may.
’ The rarefaction ot the atmosphere is a
noticeable feature of these ascensions. At
the surface of the earth the pressure is
equal to about fifieeen pounds to the
square inch ; at three miles and a half,
only one third; at seven miles, one
fourth; and at ten and a half, only one
eighth. The gas retains its proportional
lightness, and hence, if the balloon is
filled at starting, one half would be lost in
attaining the height of three and a half
miles, three fourths in reaching the height
of seven miles, and if it were possible to as
cend so high, seven eighths of the gas
would be gone on attaining a height of
ten and a half miles. The balloon re
mains distended, overflowing from the
opeo neck, during the whole of the ascent.
On descending again, the gas shrinks to its
original density.
Thi3 expansive condition of the atmos
phere, makes it impossible of course, for
us to reach any very great height, and in
fact, the weight ol the balloon and passen
gers, is* such a large proportion of what
the whole amount of gas Will lift, that
when one half is lost by expansion, the
balloon must of necessity descend again.
For this reason, we must content our
selves with sailing under the altitude of
three and a half miles, though there have
been a f? w instances where assensions hive
been made, for scientific purposes, to a
greater height. Gars Lussac, on one such
occasion, attained an elevation of 23,040
feet, or upwards of four and •: De-tbird
miles. From the fact that expansion takes
place so rapidly when rising, the neck of
the balloon must always be left open, and if
the ascent should be very rap'd, the valve at
the top must be opened also, or the balloon
will burst. This was the case in an asccn.
sion recently made from Atlanta by an
amateur. He started prematurely, before
sufficient ballast had been placed in the
car, and rose with an ascensional power of j
between two and three hundred pounds,-
shooting upward like a rocket. An im-!
mediate escape of five or six thousand j
cubic feet of gas was absolutely necessary, I
hut as he neglected to open the valve, and ■
as the open neik was not of itself suffi- j
dent for so large an escape in so short a
time, the balloon, as.a. natural cocse j
quence, was burst in less than three
minutes after leaving the ground. The bal
loon collapsed when nearly a mile high, and
instantly formed itself into a parachute.
The descent was rapid, but though the
occupant of the ear must undoubtedly
have struck hard on reaching terra firma,
he received no injury to speak of. The
balloon is covered with a net-work, and to
this the car is attached, so that the incum
bent weight is distributed over the top of
the balloon. Under this arrangement when
the gas suddenly escapes the balloon can-
not string out, but the air acting uuder
neath keeps the cloth spread up against
the net, thus forming a sort of parachute,
large enough to offer a sufficient amount of
resistance to the atmosphere whilst de
scending. So {jar as my own experience ex
tends, I am aware of no ill effects pro
duced on the system by the rarity of the
air at great altitudes; the puise beatsquick
er and the breathing is more rapid, but
Dature regulates those things. The trav
eller may suffer in climbing mountains of
no greater elevation than we attain,
but there is a marked distinction
between the two situations—the one re
quires physical exertion, the other does
not, and this makes ail the difference.
Thore is apt to be, however, at the great
est heights a slightly disagreeable feeling
in the head, which leanu.it describe other
wise than as a sort of numbness, ascorn
panied by a kind of hissiDg noise in the
ears ; this is undoubtedly produced by the
expansion of some aeriform fluid, contain
ed in the head ; and which seeks to find
vent through the tympanum of the ear.
Altogether, considering the few draw
backs experienced in serial voyages, it is a
matter of ast.mishment that so lew, com
paratively, avail themselves of the oppor
tunity afforded by balloons-for witnessing
scenes of grandeur the like of which can
not be found elsewhere. Men of wealth
will roam the wide world over, spending
fortunes in the prosecution of sight-see
ing, and yet pass by one of the greatest
wooders man has ever loked upon.
The vast scenes presented to the view;
the lessons taught, the pleasure found,
and the everlasting remembrance of one
such experience, outweighs all the risks or
dangers incurred.
S. A. King.
Southern News.
Richmond, Va., has a woman’s rights
society.
Virginia is to he divided into sixteeu ju
dicial circuits.
Jackson, Miss., was partially lighted
with gas on Monday last.
A gray eagle, measuring nine foet from
tip to tip, was killed in Arkansas the other
day.
A negro died in Memphis on Wednes
day from the effects of a dose of chloroform
administered by a physician.
Mr. Warner Wallace, an old citizen of
Texas, died a few days ago, near Austin,
in the seventy-second year of his age.
The receipts of loose tobacco at Shock
hoc warehouse, Richmond, have averaged
about 70,000 pounds per day i'or some time
past.
John Glassoock and Byron Glasscock,
tried by a military commission in Austin,
Texas, in August last, on the charge oi
murder, were found guilty of a “felonious
assault with the intent to kill and murder,”
and sentenced to three years’ confinement
in the State penitentiary.
The Huntsville (Ala.) Advocate threat
ens the railroad thieves at Montgomery
with “anew party, with bold am' able
leaders to repudiate the bond swindling
upon the State.” It says : “Beware, he
warned, ere it is too late. The storm is ris
ing and the whirl-wind will be restless 1”
In Calvert, Texas, a few days ago, four
gentlemen, of Bryan, put in bids for some
16,000 acres of land, situated in various
portions of Texas, and sold under the ham
mer to satisfy claims in a bankrupt suit.
The land was knocked down to them for
about eight cents currency per acre.
The editor of the Rockport (Texas)
Transcript was presented a few days ago
with a ripe strawberry, measuring nearly
four inches in circumference. He says:
“There were many more on the vines, but
this was the first one ripening. The others
are as large, *nri will ripen in a
few days. What locality can boat this in
size of berry and time yf ripening?”
Mr. St. Lanier, a gentleman well known
in the Sooth, died at his old home, the
Exchange Hotel, Montgomery, Alabama,
on Monday. Mr. Lanier was for many
years a resident of Macon, Georgia, and
kept there the well-known “Lanier
House.” In 1850 he moved to New
.York, and took charge of the “La Fargt
House,” which became well known and
popular. It burned down just as he was
beginning to make for it a national rep
utation.
Kcport of' the President of the South
Carolina Railroad.
The following is the Report of the Presi
dent and Directors of tho Road, submittal
to the meeting of the Stockholders, on
Tuesday last:
Office of the So. Ga. Railroad }
Company, Charleston, S-. C., \
January 19-. 1870. J
To the. Stoclchohlers of the South Carolina
Railroad Company :
Gentlemen- -The Board of Directors
ask leave to submit a report of the opera
tions of the year just closed, and of the
condition of the Company on . the 3lst
ultimo.
The usual reports and statements from
the Superintendent and Auditor are also
submitted.
The results whibh are exhibited, the
Board are confident, will excite amoDgst
the Stockholders a degree of satisfaction
quite equal to their owu. They could
hardly have anticipated, in view of the
competitions and difficulties which op
posed us, and we confess occasion us pride,
gratification and even surprise.
Important transactions have marked the
progress of the year just passed. The
contest with the Columbia and Augusta
Railroad Company culminated and were
finally disposed of, with, it is hoped, the
embittered feelings and acrimonious and
expensive litigation which attended them.
The obligations of the Company to tho
bill holders of the Southwestern Railroad
Bank, after yoars Os objection and dispute,
have been finally admitted, and, except to
a small extent, discharged, and the efforts
of the Company’s negotiator abroad for
the settlement of their sterling debt sue
cessfully concluded. These measures have
all exercised no inconsiderable influence
upon those interests of the Company which
arc the subjects of this report, and have
had their full share in increasing and ag
gravating the difficulties of administering
r.he affairs of an institution so peculiarly
circumstanced as this.
They will, in their proper places, be
more particularly referred to hereafter.
The earnings of the year are stated to
have been from all sources $1,382,107, and
are in excess of 1868, $87,205.11. They
also considerably exceed the earnings of
any year since the war—a fact full ot en
couragement to the owners of the proper
ty. New lines of communication have
been opened between points heretofore
connected by our road, sharp competition
excited, and, as a necessary consequence,
lowe, rates of freights and passage estab
lished. Again, it is easy to concede that
every new line of communication has, in
some respect, advantages not possessed by
pre-existing ones—in the direction of less
distance or otherwise—which do not iaii
in the end to assert thcT due influence.
Thus it has happened, for instance, that
the completion of the Columbia and Aa
giista Railroad, last summer, while it de
veloped competition with us to almost all
important points, naturally and almost
without effort, appropriated that portion
ot our bu-iness which grew out of • the
relations with their business communica
tions at’Columbia and Augusta, and re
spective adjacent territories. Whilst,
therefore, the income of the year has had
to contend against a reduction of rates,
made necessary by competition, as well as
a diversion of some of its business, not to
be retained by any effort of the Board, a
handsome increase is still shown over pre
vious years.
A further cause of satisfaction is found
in the nature of that increase. It is de
rived principally from freights moving to
the West, beginning in great part at the
centres North, and indicating by their
rapidly increasing volume, the maintenance
of this line’s hold upon the confidence of
the general public.
The operating expenses of the year are
$734,425.53, and aie 53 13-100 per cent,
of earnings.
Whilst it might, perhaps, be sufficient
to state here that the management shows
rather a less ratio of expense to earnings
than is usual npon roads operated under
similar circumstances, and even more fa-
vorably situated, it is proper to add that,
in the judgment of the Board, there is
room, even here, for a more favorable ex
hibit. For though it is quite true that in
' many items of expenditure, payments by
this Company are very much below those
of neighboring roads, it is not less true
that the Company is, in other respects,
affording service and accommodation not
justified by compensating, equivalents.
How much clamor, and the unceasing
efforts of the selfish have to do with this,
it is not sufficient importance to enquire.
The consideration of the Board will be
given at a very day on the subject.
The net earnings, from what has been
shown, stand as $647,741.47, and are
46 87-100 per cent, of gross. In compar
ison with the year 1868, there is a differ
ence of $50,226,98 in favor of this year.
The character of this account has been
matter of reference and explanation so fre
quently that there hardly appears occasion
to add a word mo-e here. But before pro
ceeding further, the Board pause to ask
the stockholders to contemplate the fact,
which is here exhibited,, to wit: a balance,
after deducting managing, expenses, of over
#600,000, or ten per cent, upon their capi
tal, and to consider in connection with the
policy of the present administration, which
has constantly and earnestly been directed
to the reduction of indebtedness, as con
stituting the truest and surest foundation
of the stockholders’ prosperity,
The disposition of this balance is ac
| counted for in the'Auditor’s statement, as
I follows:
Net earnings as stated $647,741.47
Deduct interest, damages and
stock- killed 315,910.13
Leaving net incorn; of. 331,831.34
Add thereto reduction of pre
vious balances of stocks of
materials 19,947.86
Payment under the contract
with the City of Augusta and
the Charlotte, Columbia and
Augusta Railroad Company. 75,000.00
Making -$426,778 70
Which has provided for the following :
Restoration of proper
ty, including cost of new
rail iron, after deducting sales
of old, (89,607.74) 133,815.37
Cars built at the Company’s
shops ; 2 first-class and 6 sec
ond-class passengers, 43 box,
2 platform and 2 stock cars... 50,633.64
Settlement oi' Confederate
claims, &c., deducting sun
dry credits 55,603.00
$240,112.01
Leaving a balance of $186,666.69, which
has gone to the reduction of general in
debtedness.
In the exposition-above given, the item
“damages,” on account of its unusual
amount, may require some explanation.
It is due to the fact that it includes the
losses occasioned by the disaster in the
Congaree Swamp, September 18th, 1869,
burning of cotton in Columbia, December
25th, 1868, and subsidy to Liverpool semi
monthly line of steamships.
Apart from interest, aud payments on
account of debt, it will be seen that there
have been, again, heavy expenditures for
additions to, and improvements of prop
erty, all rendered necessary by the demands
of business, or the necessities of the case.
The report of the General Superinten
dent contains the usual interesting matter
in connection with the details of the ope
rative department of the Road. The
mileage and tonnage tables which accom
pany it, will be found interesting from their
intimate connection with the expenses of
management. The excess ot tonnage is
stated over last year at 25,436 tons and
greatly preponderates in the direction of
the West.
The condition, then, is that we are
moving heavier masses of lreight at lower
prices in one direction, aud returning a
disproportioned number of empty or par
tially loaded cars, thus rendering the
economic management of transportation a
very difficult and perplexing task. The
wants of this department for the year just
entered are as follows :
Three passenger coaches*
Fifty box cars.
Fifty platform cars.
Two thousaud tons, rails
New bridge across the Edisto River.
Trestle and stone culvert near Grauito
ville.
In so far as the absolute necessities of
the lload may seem to require outlay, a
just regard to the interest of the Company,
and proper sense of their owu responsibili
ties, will impel the Board to act, but only
under such convictions and in suoh direc
tions. It seems to them eminently fit to
consider now the more immediate interests
of the Stockholders. Certainly to the es
tablishment of a sound and substantial
value for their shares, but with equal cer
tainty in the immediate interest of the
public, the revenues of th 4 property have
been disposed of. It is meet, now, tho t
those should be restored to their channel at
the earliest practicable moment.
The extra work done in this depar.ment,
the changes in the car and locomotive ac
counts, are briefly summarized from the
Superintendent’s report, viz:
Improvements at agencies, and at
cations o» tli° line of Road--, *0,973 45
Half cost ol bridge at Waterec,
and Hampton Creek Culvert at
True Blue 20,766-14
Rail iron laid down to the extent
of 1631 tons .89,607.74
Cars ol all classes built at the
Company shops (58) fifty-eight 50,693.64
The additions to the stock of cars were
simply indispensable, and it is yet short;
but it is not contemplated, at present, to
construct more than the number necessary
to keep up the present supply.
Five new locomotives were purchase 1 to
relieve the trains to some extent from the
pressure of way Heights. Os these, four
have been recently received, and one i in
North Carolina. Os the four received,
three are now running, and one is in the
simps.
Lc was found that in exacting “way
freight” service from “through trams,” a
speed was required entirely too high for
safety aud economy, and it is proposed to
separate the two classes of freight, and run
trains especially for way freight.
The papers and statements from the
Auditor convey a full, am,, it is believed,
faithful account of the transactions ia that
department for the year. Tho Board se
lect for your present information the con
densed balance sheet:
statement showing the condition of
The south Carolina railroad com
pany, DECEMBER 31, 1869.
Dr.
To roadway track
deposits, struc
tures, <fcc $7,738,996 40
X.ands 435,378 26
Cars 312,973 66
Locomotives 438,253 00
Supply of ma
terials 58,921 08
Commissary
stores.! 1,808 20
Cash 25,736 54
Agents 97,936 39
Postoflice ]J e
.partment 14,657 21
Bonds receivable
—Columbia and
Augusta Rail
road Company
Sundries 19,961
Bills receivable... 5.448 44
—— $238,739 57
Stocks 443,212 60
Investments
In first mortgage bonds and
certificates of indebted
ness of Greenville and
Oolumbia Railroad Com
pany 57,398 03
Southv, estern Raii ro ad
Bank 501,447 00
* $10,222,127 79
Or.
By stock 5,819,275 00
Bonds payable—
Sterling 2,342,832 44
Bomestic 1,704,519 00
Bills payable 295,661 39
Transient creditors.. 145,263 38
Less transient debt
ors 85,426 42
$10,222,127 79
This paper briefly, yet explicitly, ex-
I presses the financial condition of the com
-1 pany at the close of the year, and when
the heavy losses, and still heavier obliga
tions they have had to meet, ar.e remem
bered, it will excite the liveliest gratifica
tion amongst the stockholders.
! The movement of the principal ac
counts, “bonds payable” and “bills paya
ble,” are thus indicated :
Domestic bond debt, Decem
ber 31st, 1869, stands at $1,704,519 00
Domestic bom) debt, Decem
ber 31st, 1869, stood at 1,585,296 08
Increase in 1869 . $119,222 94
This increase is tbe result of:
First, issues of new bonds
on account of the South. .
west’n R R 8ank..445,000 00
To retire past due
bonds andcoupons
and for invest
ment* in Green:
vd le andColum bia
Railroad Bonds... 4,000 00
Add interest on past
due bonds to De -
cember 31st, 1869 13,651 25
Making together $462,651 25
Second , a reductir n
of past due and
unmatur dbonds 316,025 00
Reduction of inter
est on past due
bonds 27,403 31
5343,428 31
Producing the result as above
stated $110,222 94
Bills payable on 31st Decem
ber, 1869, stand at $295,664 39
Bills payable on 31st Decem
ber, stood at 88,060 60
Showing an increase of, $207,603 79
This has been occasioned by tbe issne of
notes during the past year lor the Mow- ,
jug purposes, viz;
To retire bonds aud into e !. .. $68,739 18
her loans .... ... i 19j£00
Interest due Bank of Uharles-
& aUlr “ D ; 20,270 77
General supplies, &e 35,825 55
V *266,164 39
Urom which deduct payment
on seeount balance 31st De
cember, 1568..*. 158.5C0 60
And the above result is shown.. $207,603 79
lhe balance of the account on
December 31st, 1869, is com
posed of what remains un
paid of ba!ance'3lst Decem
her 1868 2 9,500 00
And the new issues as stated
abovc 266,164 39
$295,664 39
From this it will appear that, notwith-
the heavy issues 0 f t h e objects
stated, the bond debt of the Company has
SSons ii nCre / scd ,'. n the 9 um of SH9,-
22- 94. Nor does this exhibit at present,
in the most tavorable pc.nt of view, the
condition of that account.
It would be perfectly legitimate, in the
opinion of the Board, to credit the iuuGunt
charged to bonds w th such portions of it
as represent, subscriptions to railroads,
steamships and other property, not an in
tegral part of the railroad proper. We
should thus have:
to Macon and Au-
Rusta Railroad $160,000
bubseription to steamships 155,000
Making $315,000
And this amount taken from... $1,707,519
Would reduce the bond account
t 0.... $1,389,519
Equally favorable explanations can be
offered oi the hills payable account. As
shown, that account iocreased for debt and
purchases, as compared with 1868,
$295,664 39; but upon the opposite side ot
your sheet you will find assets considerably
in excess. Now, if thpse were applied to
your bills payable, you would have little or
no floating debt. It is true it is no! desira
ble to dispose of these assets; some of
them are held for special purposes; a I are
yearly improving. That, however, does
not affect their relation to the debt of the
Company.
It is doubtless expected that something
should be said about future dividends. It
was the earnest desire and confident expec
tation of the Board to commence the pay
ment of dividends on the Ist, of January,
1870. • The necessity of assuming the pay
ment of the issues of the Bank, and the
arrangement of other debts, has prevented
i hem from carrying this resolution into
effect.
But it is their present purpose, ■ if
nothing unforeseen should ooour, to com
mence the payment of moderate quarterly
dividends on the Ist of July next. They
prefer to begin slowly and proceed cau
tiously. A portion of t-e past due bond
debt remains out, and in April they have
to provide for a portion then to become
due. Tlies:, and other cash obligations,
in a market with so small a money base,
lorce upon them a policy narrower than
their inclinati ns would adopt if any other
were practicable-
The Board it proper to refer par
ticularly to matters of imporiance to their
interests, elsewhere in their report only
alluded to. •
NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE COLUMBIA &
AUGUSTA RAILROAD.
In the progress of litigation with that
U mpany, with reasonable assurances of
success, it became necessary to call upon
the city of Augusta to perform her obliga
tions under a contract provided, that no
Railroad from the city of Charleston or
Columbia should be allowed to enter
Augusta, except upon payment to the
South Carolina Railroad of the subscrip
tion to the Macon & Augusta Railroad.
This subscription was based upon agree
ments of such a nature, and these agree
ments were mainly relied on by the Board
in the acrangement of the litigatior. But.
somewhat to our surprise, we were not
only met with refusals, but 'with counter
demands, if we declincu the proposals
jointly submitted by the Charlotte, Colum
bia & Augu ta Railroad, and the city of
Augusta, to conform to all conditions of
agreements made with preceding adminis
trations, conditions which.had never been
enforced.
Under the peculiar circumstances, how
ever, tho Board could not hesitate. They
accepted the proposals offered them, and
united in anew contract, whereby litiga
tion was to cease, the rights of this Com
pany in future to unrestricted freight ar
rangements recognized, and a cession until
January 1, 1870, to the Columbia A
Augusta Railroad of the use, by their
trains, of this Company's bridge, across
the Savannah River. In part considera
tion of which the Columbia & Augusta
Railroad was to pay iu its bonds the sum
Os $75,000.
THE SOUTHWESTERN RAIL ROAD BANK.
The Stockholders of the Road have,
from time to time, been kept advised of
the demands made by the holders of the
bills of the Southwestern Rail Road Bank
for payment. These demands have been
persistently resisted, and every reasonable
effort made to a responsibility oppressive
in its character, and attended.with doubts
which utterly excluded a ready acknowl
edgment of our obligations- Nevertheless,
if has always been the opinion of tho Board
that a just and judicious compromise of
those claims should be sought in the true
interests of the Company, and to that end
the directors have Dot failed always to di
rect their earnest attention Litigation,
however, iu this connection assumed an
aspect during the .summer which, in con
junction with legislative enactments refer
ing to Banks iu suspeusiou, admonished
the B ard of the danger or delays. They
therefore hesitated no longer to accept the
offers ot compromise submitted to them,
and proceeded at onco with arrangements
for the settlement of the outstanding cir
culation of the Bank. In that direction
they have proceeded, until now but a small
sum remains unarraDged. '1 he settle
ments were made chiefly in the six and
seven per cent bonds of the Company. The
Bank, as shown in the Auditor’s state
ments, is indebted to the Road in the sum
0f5501,447.
THE FOREION DEBT.
Little is left to the Board to say, beyond
the announcement of the fact of the return
of the Hon. C. M. Furman from London,
where he has been in charge of the nego
tiation for the past cl ’ll teen months ot the
Company’s firs direct mortgage bonds ior
the exchange of past due live pur cent,
sterlings. That measure- may be regarded
as accomplished Mr. Furman reports
the acceptance of the necessary number of
assents, qualified only by the very proper
condition that the necessary legislation he
had to relieve the Company from the Statu
lien originally imoofied to protect the old
guarantees. This legislation hai been ap
plied for as comprehended iu toe Act here
tofore aj pended, lias the sanction el the.
Governor, and L- expected to be in the
possession of the Board at an early day,
when it will he trausmittei, and the ex
change of bonds he consummated.
LOCATION UPON THE WATER.
The Board have at length been enabled
to move in a direction long since indicated
by the wants of the Company ami the in
terests and demands if the public, and all
lines of transportation in connection to a
“location upon the water.” A favorable
site has been purchase! upon iair terms,
and with suoh ad van; ages as will afford
scope for the most com pre-hen bo ,lms of
arrangement—plans which wnl 1.. k not
only to the indirect profit of the Company
through additional facilities furnish-d to
the public, hut to a solid and sub.-tanliai
addition to its wealth. It is promised t.>
proceed without unnecessary delay with
preparations for the work.
We have succeeded, also, duriog the
year in adding largely to our facilities of
communication on the sea.
Two new and very superior iron steam
ships have been placed on the line to New
York. Their capacity, each, is*nearly
double that of any of the vessels previous
ly ib service on that route, and the In
creased strength which is thus acquire! is
regarded as of great importance to the in
terests of the Company.
These vessels are owned in common
with the Georgia Railroad, and individuals
in this oity and elsewhere.
The Board beg to conclude their report,
by recommending to the Stockholders the
adoption of the resolution, which they
submit herewith, providing for the consoli
dation of the'half shares of the stock into
whole. The measure has had their earn
est consideration, and they regard it of
decided interest to.the Company.
Resolved , That the Bjard of Directors
be authorized, at the earliest day practica
ble, to consolidate the half shares of the
stock by issuing one whole share for every
two halfshares, as now represented on the
Stock Book.
Before closing their Report the Board
have devolved upon them the painfnl duty
of announcing that since the St' ckholders
last met together another of that old and
honored Baud, whose associations with this
Company dates from its birth, and whoso
character and counsels have contributed so
largely to its reputation and prosperity,
has been removed from us by death.
The Board’s loved and honored associate,
the Stockholders’ faithful servant, the
Flon. Jame 9 Rose, died on October 10,
iB6O. ’ . * , . L
The Board have sought m the preamble
and resolutions which are appended, to
give a feeble expression of their feelings.
Respectfully,
W. J. Magrath, President.
The Supreme Court sustains the injunc
tion granted by Jadge Cole, in the case of
StepheD Collins and others against the
Central Railroad, restraining the sale of
the Atlantio and Gulf Railroad stock hold
by the city of Savannah to the Central
Railroad Company.