E ROBESONIAN
f . - 1 "
Established 1870. Country, God and Truth. Single Copies Five Cent-
VOL XLII NO. 66. LUMBERTON, NORTH CAROLINA, MONDAY, OCTOBER 9. 1911. WHOLE NO. 2707
"" 1 " 1 1 """'"" "' ""' ""' ' .......... , ,
TWO INTERESTING TALKS.
By Revs. C. H. Durham and R.
E. Steele Mr. Durham's Talk
on the Mammoth Cave and the
Cavern Region of Kentucky
An Interesting Historical Fact
Not Mentioned in the Histor
iesMr. Steele, a Former
Chaplain in the United States
Navy, Tells of a Visit to "Rob
inson Crusoe's Island" and
Barbados.
In Thursday's Robeaonian, in
a, report of a social evening at
the Industrial and Commercial
Club rooms, it was stated that
on account of the crowded con
dition of the paper it was neces
ary to hold over for today's pa
per a report that had been writ
ten for Thursday's paper of the
interesting talks made by Rev.
C. H. Durham, pastor of the First
Baptist church, and Rev. R. E.
Steele, pastor of the Presbyte
rian church. Both talks were
greatly enjoyed by all who heard
them. They were instructive as
well as entertaining.
Mr. Durham was the first
speaker. He first explained the
formation of the cavern section
of Kentucky, originally a plain
.-.some 8,000 square miles in areaiJ
iiitea Dy geological iormauons
and then the gradual process of
the wearing away of sandstone
by the action of acids and water.
One may travel horseback all
day through-this section and not
find a surface stream. There
are some 500 caverns in this sec
tion. His account of his visit to
the Mammoth Cave was extreme
ly interesting. Leaving the en
trance you go down 100 steps
through a narrow passage to an
iron gate, which is kept locked
to guard the cave against vandal
ism. This gate marks the point
to which the discoverer of the
cave, a hunter named Hutehins,
followed a wounded bear. This
was in 1809. It is said that one
can travel a distance of 28 miles
through this cave. Mr. Durham
described the stalactites and
stalagmites, which meet and
form columns, some of them very
striking in form. One group of
three look so much like a bride
and groom and ceremony-per-forming
minister that they are
called the marriage altar. Here,
at the time of Mr. Durham's
visit, 13 couples had been married.
Oae young lady who had yielded
to her mother's objections to her
marriage so far as to solemnly
promise that she would not marry
Any man on the face of the earth
was married here. When re
minded afterwards by her mother
of her promise she said truly
that she did not marry on the
iace of the earth. Just 100 yards
beyond the marriage altar is
what is called the hornets' nest
and the proximity of the two was
noted. The temperature inside
the cave is even 54 degrees
(Fahrenheit) winter and summer,
and this even temperature and
the fact that wooden pipes had
remained in the cave for long
years without decay led a certain
physician many years ago to
think that this would be a good
place for consumptives, and
several were taken there; but
the experiment proved a dismal
failure, all the consumptives
dying. The speaker mentioned
the "starry dome," where the
guide throws light in a certain
way upon the gyp?um deposits
on the dome 60 to 75 feet above
and it seems like one is looking
at the stars; of Echo river, 350
feet below the surface, where
the echoes are marvelous; of
'Scotchman's trap." where a
Scotchman refused to enter a
particularly dangerous looking
place when Uld by the guide
that he must do so or he could
not see the wonders beyond; and
of Stephen Bishop, a mulatto, to
whom more credit belongs for
exploring the cave than to any
"other manr - This intrepid- ex
plorer, when he came to what he
named the bottomless pit, an
abyss to which he could discover
no bottom, went back to the
mouth of the cave and dragged
a small tree about the size of an
Take Your Conarooa Celds
Sertonsly
Common colds severe and frequent,
lay the foundation of chronic diseased
conditions of the nose and throat, and
may develop in bronchitis, pneumonia,
and consumption. For all coughs and
colds in children and in grown persons,
take Foley's Honey and Tar Compound
promptly. J. D. McMillan & Sun.
ordinary stove-pipe to this place,
crossed upon it, and continued
his explorations. With one swift
touch a lesson was drawn by the
speaker from the determination
and indomiatable courage of
Stephen Bishop.
Mr. Durham mentioned a most
interesting historical fact in con
nection with the Mammoth Cave,
a fact that is not mentioned in
the histories. During the war
of 1812 the principal source of
saltpeter supply for the manu
facture of gunpowder in this
country was the cavern region of
Kentucky, and it is claimed in a
historical sketch of the Mammoth
Cave by Horace C. Hovey and
Richard E. Call that that war
"would have ended in failure on
our side had it not been for the
resources so abundantly furnish
ed by American caverns for the
home manufacture of saltpeter
at a time when by a general em
bargo we were wholly cut off
from foreign sources of supply."
Immense quantities of saltpeter
were obtained from the "peter
dirt," as it was familiarly called
by the negro miners, thi3 dirt
averaging about four pounds of
calcium nitrate to the bushel.
The man who was in charge of
the cave at that time reported to
his employers that from the
iXftCayef afonp-tbepvepuld
"supply the whole population of
the globe with saltpeter."
So much space has been given
to Mr. Durham's interesting talk
that the equally interesting and
instructive talk of Mr. Steele
cannot be done justice; but, for
that matter, Mr. Durham's talk
has not been done justice and
neither talk can be done justice
in the space available. Mr. Steele
was formerly a chaplain in the
United States Navy, has had many
exceedingly interesting experi
ences, and was embarrassed by
the abundant riches of the
material from which he had to
choose. He is a most agreeable
speaker, he talked in uleasant
vein, and there were so many
human-interest touches in his
talk that it is difficult for this re
porter to know how to report his
talk. For instance, it would be
easy to fill half a column with
what he said this just a thread
running through his story about
"Bum," a tramp dog that took
up with his ship at San Francisco
and went with them on a 7,000
mile cruise during which they
were out of sight of land for 56
days. On this cruise the first
place they stopped was Juan
Fernandez, "Robinson Crusoe's
island," where Alexander Selkirk
lived alone for four years, in the
South Pacific ocean, 400 miles
west of Chile. Among the in
teresting facts mentioned in con-
i nection with this island was that
1 here are found two distinct kinds
of birds one species of humming
bird -and two or three plants not
f jund anywhere else. He alas
spoke interestingly of a visit to
Barbados, one of the islands of
the Lesser Antilles. Here the
population is denser than any
where else in the world, with the
exception of congested districts
of London and New York, and
they are mostly negroes the
meanest and most impudent ne
groes on earth. Among other
things he gave an interesting ac
count of how these negroes, who
are put to it to make a living,
catch flying fish, which they are
more successful in doing than
any other people in the world.
,Mr. Steele had some pictures of
scenes on this island and a box
of shells artistically arranged by
natives of the island, and these
were examined with interest by
his hearers at the conclusion of
his remarks.
Mr. Steele has some stereopti
con views of places he visited
while with the navy and Mr.
Caldwell stated that he hoped to
prevail on Mr. Steele, to contrib
ute to the pleasure of some
similar occasion in thefuture.
Mr. and Mr s. Adol ph Topper-weiru-whoare
saicL to be fancy
shots with rifle and pistol, will
give an exhibition in Lumberton
on the 19th inst They come at
the invitation of the local gun
club.
You are not experimenting on your
self when you take Chamberlain's
cough Remedy for a cold as that prep
aration has won its great reputation
and extensive sale by ita remarkable
fires of colds, and can always be de
pended upon. It is equally valuable for
Jults and children and may be given
to young children with implicit confi
ience as it contains no harmful drug,
iukl by all dealers.
BOYS' CORN CLUB.
Prizes Offered For This Dis
trictMembers of the Club.
A great many boys who are
members of the Boys' Corn Club
are writing me for information
in regard to the regulations of
measuring their corn. In answer
to them, I will say that the
county superintendent is au
thorized by the State Department
of Agriculture to appoint a com
mittee of three responsible men,
one of whom should be a justice
of the peace or notary public, to
witness the corn measured or
weighed, not estimated, as some
seem to think.
When your corn is ready, let
me know and I will appoinf this
committee.
We want every member of the
club to report this year, even if
the yield is not as great as you
would like to have it. You should
make a report to me and also to
Prof. I. O. Schaub, West Raleigh,
and T. B. Parker, Raleigh.
If you have not sent your name
to Mr. Parker as a member of
the club, you should do so at
once, if you expect to win a State
prize.
Prizes offered by the State for
this district are:
First prize .. . . & $15:00.
1 Second prize T."-v 12j50
Third prize . . . . 10 00
Fourth prize ' . . .7.50
Fifth prize .... 5.00
Prizes offered by citizens and
firms in the county are:
First prize, $35, offered by the
Farmers' Educational and Co
operative Union.
Second prize, $25, offered by
The Robesonian. (To be eligible
for this prize contestant must be
a subscriber to The Robesonian
before results of measurements
are announced.
Third prize, $15 offered by the
Fai'mers' Educational and Co
operative Union.
Fourth prize, $10, offered by
the Rowland Sun.
Fifth prize, One Blount middle-buster
(8 inch), price $10,
offered by A. L. Bullock.
Sixth prize, one two-horse
Canton cultivator, offered by C.
T. Pate & Co.
Members of the Boys' Corn
Club:
Alex. Andrews, O. L. Ward,
Fairmont, R. 2; Chas. Atkinson,
Chas. Bullock, Jno. Leggett,
Wm. Leggett, P. A. Meares,
Albert Small, Geo. Small, Spur
geon Williams, Edward Willough
by, Lumberton R. 3; Riley Bax
ley, Kinnie Lowe, Alex. Odum,
Buie; G. S. Beard, Leland Cash
well, C. C. Cochran, H. F. Lan.
caster, J. D. McCormick, Marvin
Odum, H. B. Parham, Ed. Phil
lips. O. H. Stanley, I. W. Wil
liamson, Jno. Brisson, Parkton;
Walter Beasley, Keneth Chis
holm, Junius McDonald, Roscoe
McDonald, Maxton, R. 3; E. M.
Belch, Donald Todd, Elli3 Branch,
Bellamy; Willie Boahn, Jas. Gra
ham, J. A. Love, Jr., David
Mayers, Frank McLeod, Rufus
McQueen, Angus Bryne, Red
Springs; Edgar Bracey, Talmage
Mclver, A. McLtap, Lonnie
Smith. Merritt Wilkes, Rowland,
R. 3; Willie Bracay, Earl Bryant,
Sam Paul, Hal Thompson, Row
land, R. 1; Collier Bridges, Elrod,
R. 1; Archie Britt, Tillman Britt,
Caison Parker, Harvey Taylor,
Leighton Williamson, Ambrose
Williams, Lumberton; Jno. Wm.
Caddell, Ernest Smitn, Maxton,
R 1; J. R. Cnason, W. L.
Edwards, Jas. McLean, W. W.
Parneii, Parkton, R. 1; Elbert
Curri-, Parkton, R. 2; Wade
Curne, L. T. Walters, Stacy B.
Walters, Red Springs, R. 1; H.
D. Culbreth. Colton McNeill,
Wm. Odum, Roy Lewis, Pem
broke, K. 1; Frank Everlie, Lee
Lassiter, Laurinburg; Burton
Graham, J. Paul Robertson,
Rowland; Ray Griffin, Herman
Johnson, Fairmont, R. 1; Jack
Humphrey, Maleom A. Humph
rey, Pope Humphrey, Stephen
Humphrey, Martin Powell.Cartie
N. Prevatt, Clyde Pre vatt Joseph
L.. Prevatt," Manly Prevatt, Grad
tVrd Prevatt, Lyman Stone,
Lumberton, R. 2; Herbert J.
Humphrey, Shannon, R. 1;
Samuel J. Johnson, N. Allen
Gives Aid to Strikers.
Sometimes liver, kidneys and bowels
seem to go on a strike and refuse to
woVk nnt. Then you need those
pleasant little strike-breakers Dr.
Kind's Sew Life Pills to give them
natural aid and gently compel proper
action. Excellent health soon foliu.
Trnex. 2m at all druggists.
THE SHERIFF'S REPORT.
Collected Within One-Half of
One Por Cent of Amount
Charged Against Him.
It was stated in Thursday's
Robesonian that Sheriff McNeill
had settled his taxes for the year
1910 and that the books for this
year had been turned over to
him. He was ready to settle
some time before the commis
sioners could settle with him and
he showed a particularly clean
bill of health. He collected with
in one-half of 1 per cent of the
total amount charged against
him, and this uncollected amount
is made up of insolvents and
errors land entered twice, for
instance accounts that no man
could collect. So it may be said
that he collected every dollar
that was collectable. The fol
lowing table shows the amounts
charged against the sheriff for
the various funds and the
amounts collected:
Charged Collected.
State $32,058.19 $31,602.56
County 34,432.98 32,9:3.30
School 39,997 28 37,640.98
Pension 3,591.62 3.419.61
Court H Bnds 3.591.62 3,419.69
Rdf 'ng. Bnda. 1,795 82 1,709.79
Gen. Road 31,335.13 30.097.99
Spe-'I. Sch'l 17,446.89 16,748.06
InloWents. . errors, e t c,
amounted to $2,421.30, which
was all that was not collected.
The sheriff's commissions
amounted to $4,256.35.
After Another Tolar Murder
Suspect.
News was received here this
morning that John Wessell, one
of the negroes supposed to be
implicated in the murder of Mr.
Gray Tolar at McDonald on the
night of September 2, was seen
vesterday afternoon near Nichols,
S. C. Deputy Sheriff T. C.
Barnes, Chief of Police H. H.
Redfern and Messrs. T. R. Tolar
and Alf H. MeLeod left this
morning in the latter's auto for
Nichols and it is expected that
an arrest will be made. It is
said that the man seen yesterday
afternoon is pretty certain to be
the negro wanted.
New Wholesale Grocery Com
pany. Lumberton is to have a new
wholesale grocery, the Lumber
ton Grocery Co., which will or
ganize in a few days and will
occupy the cotton storage ware
house, near the V. & C. S. Ry.
station, which has been occupied
by F. C. Branch. The company
has been chartered with au
thorized capital of $30,000, with
$4,000 paid in. W. B. Cooper of
Wilmington and W. H. Humph
rey of Lumberton are among the
stockholders and Mr. Humphrey
will have charge of the business.
A Large Crowd in Town to See
the Haag Show.
A large crowd-perhaps the
largest number that ever as
sembled here on any occasion ex
cept at the educational rally a
' little more than two years ago
Icame to Lumberton Friday to
jsee the Haag circus. And it was
an exceptionally orderly crowd.
The tent was packed for the af
ternoon performance, which was
very fair, the trapeze work being
particularly ?good. The night
crowd wa3 not large and the per
formance was cut short.
Messrs. H. B. Jenning3, J.
Dixon McLean, El wood Whaley,
I F. P. Gray and R. R. Carlyle
spent yesterday in Bennettsville,
S. C, making the trip in Mr.
Jennings auto.
Johnson, St Paul, R. 1; Emory
Matthews, Colton McGirt, David
Stephens, Mervall Watson, Max
ton; Daniel McArthur, Hoyle
Smith, Wakulla; Gwaultney Mc
Dowell, Tom Surles, Orrum, R.
1; Hugh McGoogan, Rennert,
Abraham B. McRae, Elrod; Har-
re J. ThompsonLum berton, R;
5; Luther Walters, Barnes ville,
! R. 1; Geo. West. Alientori; Donnie
C. White, Lumberton, R. 1;
Edwin M. White, Sandy McNeill,
i Lumberton. R. 6.
I J. R. Poole,
Co. SupL Public Instruction.
Biliousness is due to a disordered con
dition of the stomach. Chamberlain's
Tablets are essentially a stomach medi
l cine, intended especially to act on that
organ; to cleanse it, strengthen it, tone
' and invigorate it, to regulate the liver
. and to banish biliousness positively and
effectually. For sale by all cealen. !
COUNTY ROAD MATTERS.
Business Transacted at Regular
Monthly Meeting of Road
Commissioners.
At the regular monthly meet
ing of the county road commis
sioners last Monday the follow
ing business was transacted:
It was ordered that W. F. Buie
and wife be paid damages
(amount to be fixed by attorneys),
in condemnation proceedings,
and amount charged to district
5. This road now lies in Hoke
county and the secretary was
instructed to present this bill to
treasurer and request that it be
paid from any funds in his hands
to the credit of the old road
funds of Blue Springs and Red
Springs townships, and transfer
amount to credit of district 5.
Pharoah Jones, a member of
the chain gang who is old and so
afflicted by disease as to be un
able to do any work, was hired
to R. C. Lawrence for $1 rather
than confine him in county jail,
where he would be a further ex
pense to the county. Ed. Bethea,
colored, was ordered hired out to
J. A. McCormick of Pembroke
for the remaining 100 days of his
chain-gang sentence for $75,
which was paid and credited to
general fund.
. Mr. H. C- Mcftlau' r?n$rted
that the cart-way had been laid
out which he was requested at
the last meeting of the board to
have laid out through the lands
of the Patterson estate in Maxton
township, and it was accepted.
The petition of B. F. McLean
and others for a new road in
Maxton township from the bridge
across Lumber river at Alma to
the Red Banks road was reported
favorably, but owing to present
financial condition of the board
it did not think it expedient to
grant the petition just at this
time.
The petition of J. R. Kinlaw
and others for a new road in
Lumberton and Howellsville
townships was ordered granted
at expense of petitioners, the
road to be an air line from Giles
Rozier's residence on the Meadow
road to a point where the Center
and Tar Heel roads intersect,
I this order to be of no effect unless
the road is put in first-class con
dition and received by this board.
It was ordered that amount
paid for lumber for bridges on
Bullock's ford across Ashpole
swamp, which was at the time
paid out of funds of districts 2
and 3, be credited to these dis
tricts and charged to bridge
fund. The bill of Walter Mc
Millan for $3 G6 was charged to
district 5 and credited to district
4.
As mentioned in last Thurs
day's Robesonian, Mr. N. B. Mc
Arthur tendered his resignation
as commissioner of district 5,
effective first Monday in Novem-
. ber, on account of lack of time to
devote to the work,
i An order was passed allowing
the following districts to borrow
amounts named in order to carry
on road work: district 6, $2,500;
3, $1,000; 2, $500; 1. $1,000.
At the September meeting the
salary of the secretary, W. P.
McAllister, was increased from
$15 to $25 per month.
The following bills were order
ed paid:
District 1 Geo. Edwards $230.
69, J. S. Alion & Co. $1.30. J.
G. Prevatt $57.50, J. H. Powers
107.67, Rowland Mercer $8, W.
L. Scott $9, N. C. Hi-.ghes
i $57.82, M. G. Prevatt $13.90, J.
L. Thompson $18.16, Giles Kozier
$12 25, H. F. Fauik 41, F. F.
Townsend $71.34, N. C. Stubbs
$31.02, W. D. Prevatt $24 20.
District 2-D. A Jones $239.40.
District 3 -J. B. McLeod
$390 69.
District 4-Wm. Tiddy $164.72,
W. A. Savage $65, S. A. L. Ry.
Co.$4 48, Walter McMillan 55.25.
D. L. Stewart $21.50, Ban of
Red Springs $16 96
District -5 Bank of Red
Springs $486 83.
District 0 J. H. Powers
$97.67, W. F. Pisher 2.Zo. J. A.
Johnson $290.69, W. D. Prevatt
(chain gang) $1,007.60, Lindsay
Butler Co. $218.30, N. C. Hughes
$1.18.
General fund A. T. Parmele
$4.05, J. I. Newberry $132.69,
N. C. Hughes IE60.
Fanners, mechanics, railroaders,
laborers rely on Dr. Thomas' Eclectric
Oil. Takes the sting oat of cuts, burns
it bruises at once. Pain cannot stay
where it is used.
LOCAL BRIEFS
Cotton today 9 cents.
Spite of low price cotton,
numbers of horses and mules are
being sold. Messrs. C. M. Fuller
and W. I. Linkhaw are receiving
a car load each today, and these
are their second shipments for
the season.
Several out-of-town people
came in to see "The Man on the
Box" at the opera house Thurs
day night, among them being Dr.
and Mrs. J. P. Brown and son.
Master Hal, and Misses Mildred
McCubbin, Maggie Floyd and
Maggie Pittman, who came over
from Fairmont in Dr. Brown's
auto.
Dr. W. A. McPhaul has
leased the new building that has
replaced the old building on Elm
street between the Pope drug
tore and the postoffice, formerly
occupied by Mr. C. B. Redmond's
parlor grocery. Dr. McPhaul
has rented the building, which
will be ready to be occupied in a
short while, to Mr. W. S. Wis
hart, who will use it for a moving
picture show.
Messrs. David Fairfax and
Geo.. Collins, formerly with the
I n m kortrm harhor shnn hava
purchased the new barber shop,
ori Fourth 'street;, recently,
fitted up by Mr. J. R. Steele of
Bennettsville, S. C, in rear of
the Bank of Lumberton building.
They took charge this morning.
There are four chairs, the other
barbers being Messrs. S. F.
Small and S. J. Hedgpeth.
This shop sports a brave pule in
f rrtnt and is one of the best fitted
up shops in town.
Mayor A. E. White and Mr.
J. P. Townsend, chief of the fire
department, unite with Commis
sioner Young in asking that
Lumberton people observe fire
protection day, to which atten
tion was called in Thursday's
Robesonian. This is an import
ant matter that cannot be
stressed too much, but for lack
of space it has not been' possible
to publish in full Commissioner
Young's call for the observance
of this day. Careful work in
remedying conditions that are
dangerous will result in saving
much fire loss.
Mr. F. J. Thomas, who has
been a patient at the Thompson
hospital for a week, is improving.
Will Johnson underwent an op
eration for appendicitis a few
days ago and is doing nicely.
Master Ben Inman of East Lum
berton, who has been suffering
with peritonitis as a result of in
juries received about 5 weiff
ago from a fall from a wagon,
has about recovered and will
leave the hospital this week.
Little Miss Julia Thompson,
daughter of Dr. and Mrs. N. A.
Thompson, mis about recovered
from an operation performed on
her throat last Tuesday by Dr.
throat specialist.
Superior Court
A special one-week's civil term
of Rooeson superior court con
vened this morning, Judge H.W.
Whejibee of Greenville presiding-.
Up to noon two jury cases were
tried N urn Lewis vs. Luna
Lewis and N. J. Pate vs. Hettie
Pate both divorce cases and
grunted, it. Stewart, assignee,
vs. Colon McLaughlin et al and
First National Bank vs. J. P.
Brown were continued. Non
suit has been entered in the
case 01 cnruiian Aaams vs.
Eliza Jane Adams, a land suit,
and judgments have been signed
in the loilowing: C. L. Pate,
Admr., vs. A. C. L. Ry. Co;
Furney Ann Strickland vs. Jno.
Strickland; Jno. vV. M'-Wnite vs.
W. W. Cariyle; NT J. Thompson
vs. Troy S-ngletary et al; A. J.
E ans vj. Root Graham; Harris
McAuleyCo., Inc., vs. J. H.
Turner: G. W. Turner vs. W. A. .
Messrs. G. B. Patterson arl
6. ti. and B. F. McLean of Max-
ton are tne out-of-town attorney
attending court today.
Discussing Plans to Warehouse
Cotton.
A large number of Robeson
county Farmers' Union members
are attending a special meeting
in trn today to determine upoi
olans to warehouse and hold cot
ton. The meeting U in session
is The Robesonian goes to press.