2l)r jsmitljficlft Merali.
Price One Deller Per Veer "TRUE TO OURSELVES. OU R COUNTRY AND OUR GOO." + Single Coplee Plve Cente
VOL. 28. SMITHFIELD. N. C.. FRIDAY. MARCH 12. 1009. NO. 3
THE ASSEMBLY ADJOURNS.
With Joke and Song the Curtain
drops on the Biennial Gathering
of the State's Solons?The State
Highway Commission Bill Passed
In the House Over the Vigorous
Opposition.
Raleigh, War. 9.?Final adjourn
ment of the General Assembly took
place amid the stir and merrymaking
usually incident to such occasions
at 2 o'clock this afternoon, two days (
past the constitutional limit for which
members can receive pay, the re
cords showing that during the ses
sion there have been just 1,319 bills
of public and private character p ]
of public and private character and
57 resolutions passed. Probably few j
Legislatures, however, have enacted
bo few bills of general State-wide in
terest and application.
The Senate and House for the fi
nal day were each in session for
about four hours, most of the time
being spent in merrymaking as the
law-makers waited for the enrollment
of the final bills for ratification.
Both houses broke the record for
tabling bills, sending large numbers
to the table in rapid succession,
among the number being the House
joint resolution, passed last night,
carrying $10,000 for the statue of
Zebulon B. Vance to be placed in
statuary hall, Washington. This was
tabled by the Senate after it had
passed the House by a rising unani
mous vote. The upper branch of
the Assembly deemed this all too
important and large an appropria
tion to go through the Legislature
at so late a day.
The Senate also tabled the bill that
Speaker Graham had gotten through
the House, depriving a wife of the
right of dower in case she persistent
ly lives apart from her husband for
five years after he had made written
and witnessed tender of reconcilia
tion and support.
The House passed the Senate bill
creating the State highway commis
sion that was first defeated some
days ago in the Senate and then, un
der the astute generalship of Speak
er Pro Tem Kluttz, reconsidered and
passed with the appropriation trim
med from $1,000 to $5,000. There
was a hard fight against the bill in
the House, led by Representative
Dowd, who insisted that the meas
ure would prove inadequate and in
effective and that after all the real
advancement in road building must
be in the individual counties. On
the other hand it was insisted that
even with the limited appropriation
the operation of the act would be a
powerful factor in encouragement.
Anyway the bill passed and was du
ly ratified.
The joint resolution providing for
an investigation of the operation of
the Torren's land title system and
recommended to the next General As
sembly as to whether it should be
Instituted for North Carolina, finally
passed both branches and was rati
fied with the commission originally
named stricken out and leaving the
commission to be named by the Gov
eruor.
Speaker Graham announced the
appointment of Representatives Cot
ton, Murphy and Taylor, as mem
bers of the legislative auditing com
mittee to make the annual examina
tion of the books and vouchers of
the State Treasurer, Auditor and the
Insurance Commissioner. In the Sen
ate Senators Elliott and Clark had
already been named as the members
on the part of that body, this com
mittee succeeding the 1907 commit
tee that stirred such a sensation by
Its final report largely In the ses
sion just closed.
The final roll call just before ad
journment In the House and Senate
showed 27 Senators and 75 Repre
sentatives present.?Charlotte Ob
server.
HOLBROOK SERIOUSLY ILL.
Oldest ex-Governor Confined to His
Vermont Home.
Brattleboro, Vt., Mar. 9.?Former
Gov. Frederick Holbrook, the oldest
living ex-governor in the United
States, is critically ill at his home
in Walnut street.
He was taken ill with bronchitis
Sunday and was unable to take his
dally outing, and yesterday he was
confined to his bed. Former Gov.
Holbrook was ninety-six years old
last month.
OLIVER TO GET TOGA.
Pennsylvania Caucus Names Succes
sor to Knox. Will be Elected
Next Wednesday.
Harrisburg, Pa., Mar. 9.?George
T. Oliver, of Pittsburg, was today
named as the Republican candidate
for United States Senate to succeed |
Philander C. Knox, by the joint cau
cus of the senate and house.
Two hundred and four of the 212
Republicans in the general assembly
attended the caucus.
The vote: George T. ?iver, 200;
James Scarlet, Danville, 3; Henry C.
Nlles, York, 1. The nomination was
made unanimous. (
Both houses will ballot on the Sen
atorship next Tuesday, March 16th,
and on the following day Mr. Oliver
will be elected, when the two hous
es get together.
George T. Oliver was born in Ire
land January 26, 1848, while his pa
rents were there ou a visit. Ho stud
ied law and was admitted to the bar,
and for several years practiced his
profession, devoting most of his life,
however, to manufacturing, at which
he amassed a large enough fortune
to place him in the multi-mllliona^a
class.
While he has never held a politi
cal office, Mr. Oliver has been prom
inently identified with political af
fairs in Pittsburg and Allegheny
county all his life, and has several
times been a delegate to national con
ventions. He is an organization man
and a close friend of Secretary Knox
and Senator Penrose. He was for Mr
Tr I- U ?nmnn),rn fnn ?Ka UrooL
xYuua. in uts tauipaigu iui mv * ivoj i
dential nomination last year, but
when Taft was nominated in Chica
go he supported him loyally.
Mr. Oliver is the owner of the
Pittsburg Gazette-Times and the
Pittsburg Chronicle-Telegraph, papers J
which have influence throughout
Pennsylvania.
Most of Mr. Oliver's money wt^s
made in the manufacture of steel, in
which he is still interested. He man
ages the estates of two deceased
brothers, both of whom were million
aires, and is said to control more
capital than any man in Pittsburg.
He is married and has several grown
children.
LOSS CAUSED BY STORM'S FURY.
Western Union and Postal Compa
nies Loss at Least $2,000,000 as
Result of Blizzard.
The aftermath of the inauguration,
so far as the visitors to Washington
are concerned, is a wild and tragic
experience which will serve them as
tea-table anecdotes for years to com?.
With railroad service still partly
demoralized, with the immense Union
Station, supposed to be built far in
advance of the needs of the Capital,
taxed and strained as the rendezvous
of a huge, helpless army of outsiders,
the 1909 celebration will leave many
cruel memories.
The blizzard has been a severe In
fliction on the railroads, the telegraph
and telephone companies. There are
1,900 wires of the Western Union
prostrate between Washington and
Philadelphia, and the company esti
mates its loss throughout the coun
try at not less than $1,000,000. The
Postal Company has suffered even
more heavily.
The trials and tribulations ot the
thousands who tried to depart for
"home, sweet home," yesterday would
fill a volume. The outgoing trains
were running two hours late as an
average, and the schedules were hope
lessly deranged. Thousands of stran
gers journeyed to the station with
sublime faith in the time table, and
found that no one knew when train
No. 32, or whatever number it was,
would pull out. One authority would
say "In about two hours," another
would estimate three. It was all a
matter of chance.?Washington Her
ald, Mar. 6.
Insane Woman Hangs Herself.
Mrs. Elizabeth Canady hanged her
self at the State Hospital this
morning by tearing to pieces a sheet,
tying the end around her neck and
throwing the loop over the door and
jump ng from the bed. The nurse
had unly left her for a moment to
show the carpenter about some re
pairs to be done on the wards. This
patient had been melancholy for
some time.?Raleigh Times. Mar. 10. '
JURY SAYS NOT GUILT*
?
Trial of A. Starling Batten Ended
Saturday Evening?Ably Defended
by Ed. S.Abell and A. M. Noble.
L. H. Allred and F. H. Brooks As
sisted Solicitor Armistead Jones.
The trial of A. Starling Batten,
charged with the murder of J. C.j
Brown, began last Friday morning.
The selection of a jury did not talfr
all of the morning hour and the tak
ing of testimony had begun when
court adjourned for dinner. The ?vi
dence presented by the State was In
the main as follows:
On Sunday night, January 3, 1909,
J. Claudo Brown went to the home
of J. W. Deans, who lives on Mr.
Brown's placeabout 195 yards from
his (Brown's) house, lie left Mr.
Beans' about 7:10 P. M., saying he
was going home. About a minute af
ter he left Deans' house, Mr. and
Mrs. Deans heard a gun fire, and on
running to the door saw Brown fall,
and also saw a man run from behind
a pine tree near where he fell, off
through the woods and in the direc
tion of the Micro road. Mr. and
Mrs. Deans ran to Brown at once,
but found that he was dead, having
been shot through the left breast,
with a shot gun, the murderer being
not more than five steps distance.
Evidence was produced showing that
A. Starling Batten was heard to
make threats against the deceased
while working for Brown. It was
also brought out that on Friday or
Saturday prior to the murder, Bat
ten purchased at a store in Selma,
four gun shells No. 12, loaded with
No. 6 or 7 shot; however, he first
tried to buy only two shells loaded
with No. 4 shot.
Batten was also seen, it was
brought out, at the scene of the homi
cide about midnight on the night of
the killing, and that spirits of tur
pentine was detected on his cloth
ing, and on the next day the neck of
a bottle that had contained spirits of
turpentine was found in the woods
about 00 yards from the scene of
the murder. Upon these facts the
coroner's jury held him without bail.
In addition to all these facts the
State brought out the fact that about
6:30 o'clock on the night of the mur
der Batten was seen to eon.-3 out of
the gate of his brother's house which
is about one and a quarter miles
from Brown's house, with something
in his hand, but what it was the wit
ness could not say.
The defendant introduced witness
es to prove that the turpentine on
hi > clothes was caused by his break
ing a bottle in his pocket on the
morning of the homicide, he having
had the turpentine for the purpose
of rubbing it on a sprained wrist.
Witnesses were also introduced to
prove that on the night of the mur
der he was not out of his brother's
house over 10 or 15 minutes from 6
o'clock when he ate supper until near
ly twelve, midnight, when he heard
of the homicide and went to the scen<
The taking of testimony was con
cluded Saturday morning and the
argument began. Attorney L. H. All
red and F. H. Brooks for the prose
cution and A. M. Noble, for the de
fense delivering their speeches be
fore the noon recess. Mr. Allred
spoke first, followed by Mr. Noble,
who in turn was followed by Mr.
Brooks. The young men acquitted
themselves splendidly, and though
their speeches were short, they were
pointed and delivered with force and
earnestness.
At the afternoon session Mr. Ed.
S. Abell, spoke for the defense. In
a speech of one hour and forty min
utes he reviewed the evidence in de
tail and made a strong plea for his
client. His speech Bhowed thorough
preparation of the case and was pre
sented in a convincing manner.
The argument closed with the
speech of Solicitor Jones for the
State, who spoke about an hour and
forty-five minutes. He ably held up
the State's side of the case.
After his charge to the Jury the
Judge left the case with the twelve
men who were to decide whether the
man should be hanged or go free.
They were given the case about six
o'clock and at 8:30 reported that
they were ready with their verdict.
The verdjpt was "not guilty," and A.
Starling Batten was once more a
free roan.
The keel of the battleship Florida,
to be the biggest warship in the world
was laid at New York Wednesday.
WYATT MONUMENT TO BE BUILT
General Assembly Appropriates $2,
500 To Be Available January 1,
1911, On Condition That Daugh
ters ofConfederacy Raise a Like
Amount.
Sometime in 1907 the Henry L.
i Wyatt Chapter, Daughters of the
'Confederacy, at Selma. inaugurated
j a movement to raise funds for the
I erection of a suitable memorial to
1 Henry Lawson Wyatt, the first con
j federate soldier to fall in battle in
i the Civil war. Since then the move
! inent has extended to every section
of the State until a little more than
j two thousand dollars have been raise
through the efforts of the Daughters
| of the Confederacy.
A bill was passed by the General
| Assembly just adjourned approprlut
l ing $2,500 for the movement on con
1 ditlon that the daughters raise a like
amount. This fund is to be available
January 1, 1911. The Legislature
has created a Wyatt Memorial Com
mission and named our countyinan,
Mr. John A. Mitchener, of Selma,
as one of that commission. The three
surviving members of Wyatt's Com
pany are also named on the commis
sion. The appointment of Mr. Mitch
ener is a deserved compliment to
that gentleman and to the county.
As secretary and treasurer of the
Wyatt Memorial fund, Mr. Mitchener
has worked unceasingly for this no
ble cause, and we congratulate him
and the Selma Daughters on their
success.
It. is the illtfntinn nf tlio
tee to have the monument, which will
be erected in Capitol Square, Ral
eigh, unveiled in June 1911. Mr.
Mitchener informs us that a little
over $2,000 has already been raised
by the Daughters and that the re
mainder of the amount will be rais
ed in due time.
ROOSEVELTS GO TO CHURCH.
___
Walk Three Miles Through Snow and
Siush and Get in On Time.
Oyster Bay, N. Y., March 7.?Fur
j ther evidence that former President
1 Theodore Roosevelt is leading the
simple life in every respect was fur
| nished today when Mr. Roosevelt and
| his wife came trudging through the
slush and snow on foot to church.
They had left Sagamore Hill, three
j miles from the village, at 10:30 A.
j M., the former President dressed in
a gray sack suit and heavy russet
shoes, the soles and heels of which
| were covered with hobnails. It was
with his usual rapid stride that Colo
j nel Roosevelt swung along, and Mrs.
Roosevelt had difficulty in keeping
pace with him. Both were in their
i pew at Christ Episcopal church 10
I minutes before the hour scheduled
; for services.
On the way from their home they
met many of their neighbors and
i chatted with them. Every one was
surprised to see Mr. and Mrs. Roose
velt come to cluirch on foot. Their
children, Miss Ethel and Kermit,
j were not so brave. All occupied the
j usual family pew. Although Mr.
| Roosevelt is a member of the Dutch
i Reformed Church, he partook of the
sacrament of the Lord's Supper with
Airs. Kooseveit ana tneir children,
j There were no curious persons to
see Mr. Roosevelt at the church, but
the usual congregation, numbering no
more than three score, was present.
In a special prayer said during the
regular recital of the morning ser
vice, the rector offered thanks for
the safe return to his home of the
former Executive of the nation and
for the wisdom with which the last
official administration had been con
ducted. Reference was also made in
the sermon, which was on the sub
ject of parental intercession for
children, to the recommendation
which Mr. Roosevelt had made to
Congress in behalf of dependent chil
dren.
The Rosevelt family left the
church before the services were quite
over, and in that way the former
President escaped receiving the greet^
j ings of those present. He and Sirs,
j Roosevelt started out at a brisk gait
j for the return walk of three miles
j to Sagamore Hill.
The wireless apparatus at Cape
Henry Is to be moved to Beaufort,
N. C.
Montreal is to have an 48,000,000
I union railroad passenger station.
INAUGURATION DAY IN BRIEF, j
A Brief Review of the Day When
William Howard Taft Became
President of the United States
A snowstorm that, during the I
| morning hours, became blizzardlike
! in its proportions, marked Inaugura
tion Day, 1909, and marred the cere
monies and pageant incident thereto.
{ The streets of Washington were all
' but impassable for a time, and visi
| tors and participating organizations |
1 suffered severely from the untoward !
conditions. Trains were delayed and j
j the city practically cut off from tele- j
graphic communication with the
world.
President Roosevelt and President
elect Taft, under escort, rode to the
Capitol in closed carriages. Owing
to the weather, the inaugural cere
monies proper occurred in the Sen
ate chamber, where President Taft
took the oath and delivered his inau
gural address, instead of on the huge
stand erected for this purpose on
the east plaza?to the disappoint
ment of thousands of people.
Mr. Koosevelt was the first to
congratulate his successor. Their
leave-taking was the most impressive
feature of the scene in the Senate
chamber. Immediately the ex-Presi
dent left the Capitol and was escort
ed to the Union Station, where he
joined Mrs. Koosevelt aboard a train
for New York, occupying a state
room in a regular Pullman.
President Taft and Mrs. Taft and
Vice President Sherman and Mrs.
j suerman roae m open carnages irom
j the Capitol to the White House and
S received a continuous ovation. It
was the first time that the first lady
of the land had thus shared honors
with her husband in the Inaugural
procession.
The pageant was made up of some
37,000 men. It lacked life and color,
owing to the adverse conditions, and
did not move compactly or smoothly,
for like reason. The army and navy
was largely represented, and the sail
ors from the round-the-world fleet re
ceived marked attention. The civic
division was picturesque. Gov. Hugh
es was cheered all along the line.
While imposing, the parade, in com
parison with others, was not an alto
. gether inspiring spectacle. It con
sumed three hours in passing the
White House reviewing stand. Presi
dent Taft evinced hearty enjoyment
of it as a whole, but Mrs. Taft and
other ladles were soon forced to
seek refuge from the raw afternoon
wind.
The fireworks display from the
White Lot in the evening, a gorge
ous spectacle, was witnessed by
countless thousands of people.
As a culminating feature of the
day's festivities, the inaugural ball.
In the Pension Building, was brilli
antly successful?perhaps the most
successful function of that character
in years.?Washington Herald, Mar.5.
President Taft'a Declarations.
I should be untrue to myself, to
my promise and to the declarations
of the party platform upon which I
was elected if I did not make those
reforms (i. e., those initiated by
Roosevelt) a most Important feature
of my administration.
It is believed that with tha chang
es to be recommended American
business can be assured of that meas
ure of stability in respect to those
things that may be done and those
that are prohibited, which is essen
tial to the life and growth of all
business.
My chief purpose Is not to effect
a change in the electoral vote of the
Southern States. That Is a secon
dary consideration. What I look for
ward to is an increase in the toler
ance of political views of all kinds
and their advocacy throughout the
South and the existence of a respec
table political opposition in every
state.
My convictions are fixed. Take
away from courts, if it could be tak
en away, the power to issue Injunc
* tions in labor disputes, and it would
create a privileged class among the
laborers and save the lawless among
their number from a most needful
remedy available to all men for the
protection of their business against
lawless invasion.
,
. Thirty-five bodies havu been tak
en from the ruins at BrinMoy, Ark ,
and 200 were wounded. An appeal for
I aid is made.
HINTON HELPER A SUICIDE.
?
Weil-Known Author and Promoter,
Native of North Carolina, Takes
His Own Life by Inhaling Illumi
nating Gas.
Washington, Mar. 9.?Hlnton Row
an Helper, a native of Davie county.
North Carolina, former United States
consul general at Buenos Ayres, com
mitted suicide here last night. He
was 80 years old, a veteran of the
civil war, and the author of "The Im
pending Crisis," a book claimed to
have been one of the elements in
bringing on that conflict.
The tragic act was committed in
a room at 628 Pennsylvania avenue,
northwest, by tying a towel about
his neck and turning on the gas.
Hlnton Ho wan Helper was born In
North Carolina December 27th, 1829.
In 1863 he married Maria Rodriguez
at Buenos Ayres. He received an
academic education and was United
States consul at Buenos Ayres from
1862 to 1866. Since that time he de
voted himself to the promotion of
his projected three America rail
way to eventually run from Behring
Strait to the Straits of Magellan.
Mr. Helper was the author of "The
Impending Crisis of the South," pub
lished in 18S7; the "Three Americas
Railway," "Nojoque," "The Negroes
in Negroland,' "The Uand of Gold,"
"Oddments of Andean Diplomacy"
and other works. He was a familiar
figure in this city, and especially
about the halls of Congress during
its sessions. He was a man of great
ability and had as sincere friends
many of the leading thinkers of this
and the past century.
MRS. LEAVITT GETS DIVORCE.
Bryan's Daughter Sued Husband on
Ground of Nonsupport.
Lincoln, Nob., Mar. I.?Ruth Bry
an Leavitt, eldest daughter of W. J.
Uryan, was this afternoon granted a
divorce from W. H. Leavitt, the ar
tist.
The decree was granted on a plea
of nonsupport. There was no de
fense, and Mrs. Leavitt was granted
the custody of the two children.
A Suicide in Raleigh.
The News and Observer of Raleigh
says ot the Sat irday suicidS:
"In bed, depressed, recovering
! from the effects of drink, Mr. A. L.
Saintsing, an iron moulder ended his
i life with a pistol bullet in his brain.
"The suicide was committed while
j Mr. Saintsing was in bed at 706 West
Johnson street, the deed being com
mitted just about half past seven
o'clock. Dr. R. S. McGeachy, who
was in the neighborhood, was called
in and was with the man within tea
minutes after the shot, later Dr. A.
T. Cotton being called in." \
HE REMEMBERS WATERLOO.
Artist Charles Famln Celebrates His
Hundredth Birthday.
Paris, March 6.?The lion of the
J historic town of Chartres last -week
was the artist Charles Famln, who
celebrated his one hundredth birth
day on Friday.
1' F nrao OAVnn trnnHo ..1.1 ...I. '?? KT? _
i " ov?cu jraio uiu nucu iia*
jiolcon started for Waterloo," said
he, "and I hope to witness the anni
; versary of the great battle."
M. Famin is strong as most men
at seventy and still reads without
glasses. Seventy years ago he won
the Prix do Rome for architecture,
lie knew Pope Gregory, and all his
I life has been as easy-going as that
Pope.
"That accounts," he says, "for my
longevity. I never allow myself to
be worried. And all my life I have
I been temperate and have worked reg*
| ularly and taken long walks regular
, ly in the open air.
VERMONT'S TOTAL SNOWFALL."
u| papjooay saipul 0?l 001 uiojj
/ that State.
Lindonville, Vt.p March 6.?The
six-inch snowfall yesterday and last
night brought the total for the win
ter up to the highest point in many
J years. Tn the various towns of North
western Vermont the winter's snow
fall varum from 100 Inches to 130
inches, the latter figure being reach
ed In polnt3 along the Canadian bor
j der.