VOL. II.
McCRORY, ARKANSAS, THURSDAY, MAY 1, 1902
NO. 4.
NEWS OF THE WORM).
The act repealing the war tax
goes into effect July 1.
Hot, dry winds have injured Kan
sas wheat, and only a half crop is
predicted.
Political leaders admit there is no
chance for trade reciprocity legisla
tion at this session of congress.
Santos Dumont says the Marconi
system of wireless telegraphy can
be used in connection with his air
ship.
Ex-Gov. Bob Taylor, of Tennessee,
has accepted an offer of $25,000
from a lecture bureau for 100 dates,
to be filled in six months.
At Kansas City John Calhoun
, wras shot five times by his son Row
land and fatally wounded. The
father had attacked the boy’s grown
sister when he interfered.
Fifty dwelling houses in the south
western portion of Kansas City were
destroyed by fire, rendering home
less sixty families, many of whom
lost all their household goods.
It is claimed that unless the pow
ers use their influence with King
Charles as to the treatment of Jews
in Roumania, thousands of those
people will perish from starvation.
Besides being denied the right of
citizenship, the authorities are now
making it impossible for a Jew to
earn a living.
There is pending in congress a
bill opening to settlement 400,000
acres of the Kiowa, Comanche and
Apache lands in Oklahoma. The
opening is to occur within three
months after the law goes into ef-.
feet and the lands are to be taken
under the general provisions of the
homestead law.
J. P. Morgan evidently intends
to Americanize Europe by securing
a monopoly on all the paying enter
prises of the latter country. His
latest is to build a new underground
railroad system in London, which
will rival C. T. Yerkes’ scheme of
obtaining possession of all the inter
rural transportation.
At the Dallas reunion Sons of
Confederate veterans, the following
officers w-cre elected: Commander
in-chief, Thos. P. Stone, of Waco;
Army of Northern Virginia, Jesse
N. Gathright, of Louisville, Ky.;
Army of Tennessee, N. B. Forrest,
of Memphis, Tenn.; Army of the
Trans-Mississippi, Dr. W. D. Buck
ner, of Arkansas. The constitution
was amended to exclude the use of
by officers of the organization of mil
itary titles used by Confederate vet
erans.
There will be a world’s fair con
gress of editors at the Louisiana pur
chase exposition in St. Louis. Five
hundred members of the National
Editorial Association, in session at
Hot Springs, unanimously passed a
resolution, introduced by Mr. R. M.
White, corresponding secretary of
the Missouri Press Association, pro
viding for the appointment of a
special committee of seven members
from the National Press Association
to arrange with the exposition offi
cers the details of the International
Congress of Editors.
Dallas, Texas, entertained the
largest number of people who ever
visited that city on one occasion at
the Confederate reunion, which
opened on the 22d. Gov. Sayers on
the part of the state, Gen. Ben Cab
ell (old Tige) on the part of the
city, and Hon. G. B. Gerald, on
behalf of the Texas veterans, de
livered addresses of welcome, which
were responded to by Gen. Gordon,
commander in chief, “Private” John
Allen, of Mississippi, was the orator
of the occasion. For the twelfth
time Gen. Gordon was elected com
mander-in-chief, Gen. Lee com
mander of the army of the Tennes
see, Gen. Cabell commander of the
army of the trans-Mississippi de
partment, and Gen. C. D. Walker
commander of the army of Northern
Virginia, to succeed the late Gen.
Wade Hampton.
' A democratic representative of
Alabama has invited a number of
leading republican congressmen to
visit the south as his guests for the
purpose of studying the race ques
tion and franchise laws.
The chief of police of Memphis
has given orders that all saloons
close on Sunday and at 12 o’clock at
night.
A bill has been introduced in the
lower house of congress abolishing
all duties on meats imported into
this country.
Several regiments of cavalry will
shortly be sent to the Philippines to
relieve the infantry now doing
mounted duty.
Several parties are under indict
ment in Chicago, charged with jury
bribing in connection with suits
against the Union Traction. Com
pany.
Influential republican members
are said to be interesting themselves
in the Miles case, urging upon the
president that he should not be re
moved.
All the leading trans-Atlantic
steamship companies have been con
solidated. The deal was made
through the Morgan banking house
and the capital stock is $150,000,
000.
Striking dye workers at Patterson.
N. ,T., started a fight with policemen
and non-unionists in which pistols
and clubs were used. Many per
sons on either side were seriously
injured.
In a recent public address Gen.
Funston is credited with criticising
the attitude taken by Senator H<}ar
as to the Philippine Islands. This
led President Iioosevelt to request
the Kansas general to cease speak
ing in public while holding a com
mission in the army.
Several fires occurred at Dallas,
Tex., on the 20th, thought to have
been the work of incendiaries and
as a result Fireman Will Span and
Will Me Agee are dead. The prop
erty loss is placed at $400,000. The
first fire was the Dorsey printing
plant, and while the entire depart
ment was battling with the flames at
that point a second alarm was turn
ed in from a wholesale district,
where twenty buildings, business
houses and residences, were consum
ed.
Wesley Atkins, who when 12
years of age murdered his father
and stepmother at their home in
Clayton county, Iowa, has been
granted a conditional pardon, after
serving ten years of a life sentence.
The boy had been corrected for
some trivial offense and at- night
secured his father’s revolver and
committed the double crime. He
then went back to bed, slept till
morning, when he went to a neigh
bor and told that his parents had
been murdered by robbers. He was
suspected and when arrested broke
down and confessed.
An awful river disaster occurred
a few miles from Cairo, 111., on the
20th, when the steamer City of
Vicksburg was burned. At least
75 of the 150 people on board the
vessel perished. The vessel was dis
covered to be on fire about 4 o’clock
in the morning, and a panic follow
ed among both crew and passengers.
One of the surviving members of
the crew gives this account: “The
fire was discovered at 4:05 o’clock
in the forward hold. By 4:15 the
entire boat was in flames and at
4:30 the whole boat was a wreck.
The front stairways burned, cutting
off any avenue of escape. We
alarmed the sleeping passengers,
bursting open their doors to awak
en them. They ran out without put
ting on life preservers, and crowded
aft. The officers held them back
while the one yawl was loaded with
women and children. The scene was
awful. About twenty or thirty
were taken off in the boat and then
those in the water were rescued.
The water was very cold and the
passengers were in their night
clothing. Those who were not burn
ed up in the boat drowned in the
cold water, and all perished except
those who were able to swim. I was
one of these. When we reached
shore we were unable to stand and
had to be helped out of the water.
It seemed as though we were crazed
by fright, for we were screaming
with fright even after we were safe
ashore.”
Over 300 people were killed by
earthquakes throughout Guatamala
April 21.
The naval appropriation bill re
ported by the house committee
carries an appropriation of $76,000,
000 for new warships.
The senatorial race in Illinois be
tween Mason, Hopkins and Dawes
is becoming very much complicated,
and it is possible a dark horse may
capture the honor.
The bill increasing the number oi
supreme court judges of Oklahoma
from five to seven, and increasing
their salaries from $3,000 to $4,000
has passed both houses of congress.
England is approaching another
crisis in Ireland. In a recent
L*y>oech Mr. Redmond advocated civ
il war as a means of forcing con
cessions from landlords and relief
from the crimes act, whereby magis
trates are said to be virtually die
tors, from whose rulings there is
no appeal.
A. E. Batson, the young man
charged with the murder of seven
members of the Earl family near
Lake Charles, La., several weeks
ago, has been convicted and sen
tenced to be hanged. Batson was
employed by the elder Earl and the
night before the crime was commit
ted he was discharged.
In a fight between cattlemen west
of Collinsville, in the Cherokee Na
tion, William I’hillips was killed in
stantly, and William Mayfield, Jess
Skidmore and Lige Johnson were
mortally wounded. The fight was
the result of an old feud between
Skidmore and Mayfield, which had
its origin in a court contest over
some grazing land.
Violent winds and hail storms
that ruined growing corn, badly
damaged oats and wheat and rid
dled foliage and blooms from fruit
trees are reported to have covered a
wide path from Granite, Okla., to
Woodville and Sterrett, I. T., a dis
tance of 100 miles. Hail in several
places is reported to have drifted tc
a depth of 2 feet. A windstorm at
Lawton did much damage and in
jured a number of persons seriously.
After investigating the beef trust,
Attorney General Knox says: “1
am satisfied that sufficient evidence
is in hand upon which bills in equity
for an injunction can be framed tu
restrain the combination mentioned
from further proceeding under their
agreements, which clearly appear to
be in restraint of interstate trade.
1 have, therefore, in compliance with
the law, which provides: Tt shall
be the duty of the several district
attorneys of the United States in
their respective districts under the
direction of the attorney general to
institute proceedings in equity to
prevent and restrain violations of
this act,’ directed the district attor
ney at Chicago to prepare a bill for
an injunction against the corpora
tions and persons who are parties
to the combination mentioned, to bo
filed in the United States circuit
court for the northern district of Il
linois.”
President Ingalls, of the Big
Four, says concerning the Louisville
& Nashville deal: “To keep a rail
road safe nowadays, it must be lock
ed up over night. This is demon
strated by the recent purchase of the
Louisville and Nashville. Who
would have thought any one would
have gone out of his way to grab
that piece of property? We have al
ways looked upon it as being sort of
sacred, but nothing is sacred today
to the railroad manipulator. The
‘community-of-interest’ scheme has
reached its highest point for good.
It may go still higher or stop where
it is; it all depends, as the Romans
used to say, on the limit of Caesar’s
ambition. Railroad groupings ate
necessary,” he continued, “if the
evils of rate cutting are to be miti
gated. But they must stop where
they are. If mergers continue to
grow in size the logical end must be
a one-man control, which will result
in government ownership. This
would bring iu its train greater evils
than we have yet had to surmount,
and would be lamentable in the ex
treme.”
NEWS OF ARKANSAS.
His Only Chance a Pardon.
The supreme court recently passed
upon a very interesting and peculiar
case. One Brady was convicted on
twenty indictments for illegal sales
of liquor at Jonesboro, and fined in
various amounts, making a total for
fines and costs of about $3,300. Be
ing unable to pay these lines, Brady
was sent to the county farm to work
them out at 75 cents per day. At
this rate his term of imprisonment
for twenty days of illegal liquor sell
ing amounts to something over
twelve years. The law governing il
legal sales of liquor makes each day
a separate offense, and the twenty
indictments were merely for twenty
days’ sales. A writ of habeas cor
pus was sought from the Craighead
circuit court. Various grounds
were alleged by counsel, but the pe
tition was denied and the case came
to the supreme court on certiorari.
The main contention relied upon in
the supreme court was that the
judgments assessing the fines and
providing for imprisonment unless
paid, since it was not specified in
any of them when the imprison
ment thereunder should begin, took
effect concurrently, and that when
the longest of them was served out,
the prisoner was entitled to his re
lease. The supreme court, however,
took the view that the imprisonment
in such a case was not a part of the
punishment, but a mere means of
collecting the fine, therefore, unless
Brady is granted a pardon he will
have to serve about twelve years.
Well Planned Escape.
Chas. Etu, white, sent up from
Garland county for twenty-one years,
escaped from the penitentiary brick
yard at Little Itock through a cun
ningly devised scheme. Etu, with
some others, was loading a car of
lumber. The lumber was in three
lengths, twelve, fourteen and six
teen feet. Etu managed to have
this car loaded so that the twelve
foot lengths were on the bottom and
the fourteen-foot and sixteen-foot
lengths on top. This left a consid
erable space between the floor of the
car and the roof. It is supposed
that Etu, when the car was about
half full, crawled down into the nest
he had prepared. The car when
loaded was switched otf on a siding,
where he changed his suit of stripes
for that of citizen’s clothes and
walked off unmolested. Etu, with J.
A. James, was convicted of robbing
a visitor at Hot Springs, then tying
his hands and feet and attempting
to throw his body under a moving
train.
Sad Death of a Child.
Mildred, the little daughter of
Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Spurgeon, of
Little Rock, was. fatally burned
while playing alone in the yard. It
is supposed the child was striking
matches when her dress became ig
nited. The little one rushed into the
room where her mother lay ill in
bed, enveloped in flames. Mrs.
Spurgeon leaped from the bed and
succeeded in smothering the flames,
then fell to the floor in a faint.
When neighbors arrived the moth
er and child were laying side by side
unconscious. The little one died af
ter lingering in great misery for
several hours, and it is feared the
terrible shock will prove fatal to
the mother.
Pardoned By President.
Vance Bennett, who pleaded
guilty in the western district of this
state to illicit distilling and on June
27, 1899, was sentenced to six years
and to pay a fine of $300, has been
granted a pardon by the president
upon the grounds that the punish
ment was excessive, and because his ^
conviction was the result of his vol
untary surrender of himself and his
distillery to the officers.
County Safe Robbed.
About 2 o’clock on the morning of
the 22d the county safe in the court
house at Clinton was blown open by
dynamite and about $0,000 in cash
taken. Only one report was made
and the safe was blown to atoms.
Some Census Statistics.
The United States census for Ar
kansas says.
The value of animal products in
ISO!) was $20,377,278, or 30.8 per
cent of the gross farm income. Of
the above amount, 42.0 per cent
represents the value of animals sold
and animals slaughtered on farms;
33.1) per cent, that of dairy produce;
22.1 per cent, that of poultry and
eggs, and 1.4 per cent, that of wool,
mohair, honey and wax.
The production of milk in 1809
was 55,535,720 gallons greater than
in 1880, an increase of over one hun
dred per cent. The quantity of but
ter made on farms, however, in
creased but 37.3 per cent, and that
of cheese decreased 13.8 per cent, in
dicating that the making of butter
and cheese is being gradually trans
ferred from the farm to the cream
ery and cheese factory.
Of the $6,912,459 given as the
value of all dairy products in 1800,
$5,886,128, or 84.9 per cent, repre
sents the value of such products con
sumed on farms, and $1,046,331, or
15.1 per cent, the amount realized
from sales. Of the latter sum,
$596,785 was derived from the sale
of 3,707,646 pounds of butter; $443,
756, from 4,238,852 gallons of milk;
$4,041, from 6,008 gallons of
cream, and $840, from 8,032 pounds
of cheese.
The total value of the poultry
products of 1800 was $4,508,143, of
which 51.7 per cent represents the
value of eggs and 48.3 per cent that
of poultry raised. Of the farmers
of the state 156,022, or 87.8 per
cent, reported poultry in 1900. The
average return per farm was $14.84
for eggs and $13.80 for poultry.
The number of eggs produced has
practically doubled during each de
cade since 1870. in that year the
production was 6,610,050 dozens;
in 1880, 13,371,909, and in 1899,
25,694,860.
Although 30.8 per cent fewer
sheep were reported in 1900 than
in 1890, an increase of 24.2 per cent
is shown in the quantity of wool
produced. This is the result of a
marked improvement in the grade of
sheep kept, and a consequent in
crease in the average weight of
fleeces. In 1880- the average weight
was 2.3 pounds; in 1800, 2.4 pounds,
and in 1900, 3.3 pounds.
Life Prisoner Pardoned.
Byrd Walker, serving a life term
for murder, was last week pardoned
by Gov. Davis. Walker was con
victed of killing Andrew Burns in
Logan county in 1S99, the trial tak
ing place in Franklin county on
change of venue. He was sentenced
to be hanged. An appeal was tak
en to the supreme court, and the
verdict of the trial court affirmed.
An appeal was then made to Gov.
Jones, who commuted his sentence
to life Imprisonment. There were
no eye-witnesses to the killing, but
the dead man was unarmed and
the circumstances were sufficient to
convince the jury that it was a case
demanding the extreme penalty.
Walker and his friends always con
tended that Burns had threatened
his life, and that he was of opinion
when he killed him that his own
life was in danger.
Killed Son-in-Law.
Alexander Dunavant, a young
man, was shot and fatally wounded
at Monette by his father-in-law,
named McAdams. Dunavant,
whose wife had left him, went to
the home of her father and had
some words with her. He left, how
ever, but when the father came
home he was told of Dunavant’a
visit. He immediately left after
his son-in-law armed with a shotgun,
and upon coming up with him emp
tied the contents of the weapon into
his body.
-
Negro Barber Killed. v'—1
Robert Sherrod, a negro bar
ber, was shot and fatally wounded
while witnessing a crap game at
Pine Blutf. W. C. York, who was
playing the game, dropped a 44 re
volver on the floor. When he pick
ed it up the weapon was discharged,
the ball striking Sherrod just above
the heart.
Scottish Rite Reunion.
The regular spring reunion of the
Ancient und Accepted Scottish Rite,
Valley of Little Rock, southern ju
April 22 and closed on the night
of the 24th. At the first day’s ses
sion the degrees of the Lodge of
Perfection, fourth to fourteenth in
clusive, were conferred, when the
class was taken in charge by Excel
sior Chapter No. 1, Rose Croix, con
ferring the fifteenth, sixteenth, sev
enteenth and eighteenth degrees, or
that of Knight Rose Croix. On
Wednesday evening Godfrey He St.
Oiner Council, Knights Kadosli, con
ferred the twenty-first degree, and
on the following morning labor was
resumed, closing with the thirtieth
degree, or that oi' Knight of Kadosh.
On the afternoon of the 24th Ar
kansas Consistory No. 1 conferred
the thirty-lirst degree and after
supper conferred the thirty-second
degree? or that of Master of the Roy
al Secret. The class, numbering
forty-live, in charge of Mr. George
F. Burchurd, was the largest in
the history of the consistory, and
was composed of the following: J.
W. Patterson, Texarkana; G. H.
Martin, Draughon; R. M. Pearson,
Little Rock; James A. Fischer, Lit
tle Rock; W. A. Lombard, Little
Rock; 11. W. Cox, llot Springs; M.
J. Brimberry, Schwartz, La.; D. F.
Singleton, Fort Smith; Ed M. Rut
ledge, Fort Smith; E. L. Spear, Ar
genta; Robt. J. Grant, Little Rock;
0. W. Whelless, Warren; W. B. Ar
cher, Malvern; J. W. Hall, Elmore;
H. H. Foster, Malvern; J. W. Mob
ley, Allentown, La.; Samuel W.
Hilt, Independence county; H. T.
Tucker, Little Rock; Wm. McCar
ron, Montrose; T. C. Treadway, Lit
tle Rock; J. Ed Wilson, Wynne;
Alexander Barron, Augusta; 0. J.
Lindsey, Monticello; Dauvin Ah
rens, Montieello; Geo. T. McLaugh
lin, Hot Springs; W. D. Cainmaek,
Little Rock; John J. Potts, Monroe,
La.; Dr. R. E. L. Lindsey, Ham
burg; Lee C. George, Monroe, La.;
J. 11. Conlan, Pine Bluff ; W. L.
Turner, Warren; Joseph M. Gold
berg, Alexandria, La.; Wm. A. Car
roll. Mena; E. S. Thompson, Little
Rock; Milton Vaughan, Little Rock;
W. P. Illing, Little Rock; Henry
Id. Schmuek, Little Rock; J. H. *
McPherson, Paragould; E. F.
Thompson, Little Rock ; S. C. Scull.
Little Rock; R. E. Price, Hot
Springs; H. T. Howard, Biloxi,
Miss.; R. M. Black, Batesville; Mi
nor Gregory, Gregory; W. I. Whit
well, Little Rock.
History of Hot Springs.
An elaborate history of the Ar
kansas Hot Springs is now in pro
cess of being printed, and will soon
be issued as an official document.
The book will contain about 300
pages, and will be profusely illus
trated. It will contain the geolog
ical history, with the origin and
source of the waters, their medicinal
efficiency and the results of analyses
recently made by the bureau of
chemistry of the department of ag
riculture. The report was recently
sent out that the analyses made by
the department of agriculture failed
to disclose any medicinal properties
in the waters of the springs. This
report is unfounded. The forth
coming volume will be illustrated
with photographs of the springs,
taken at different periods in the
last fifty years.
Committee Recognized.
President Roosevelt has made the
following appointments, in accord
ance with recommendations of the
state republican central committee.
Registers of land offices, James H.
Battenfield at Dardanelle; John I.
Worthington, Harrison; receivers of
public moneys, Edward Shicker at
Camden; John G. Chitwood at Dar
danelle; Chas. M. Green, Harrison;
John E. Bush, Little Rock.
The twentieth child was recently
born to Mr. and Mrs. Hight, of Pike
county.
Ben Mitchell was killed in Hemp
stead county by John T. Stone.
Trouble over land caused the trage
dy.
Favorable weather in all sections
the past two weeks have enabled
farmers to make much progress in
olanting.