Fort Mill Times

THE NEXT LEGISLATURE.

Lawyers and Farmers Predominate in Both House and Senate.

When Thomas G. McLeod, who next Tuesday will be elected governor of South Carolina for the two year term beginning about the middle of next January takes the oath of office he will find to help or hinder him in his recommendations for legislation a General Assembly composed of men of various professions and occupations. While there will be many lawyers in both the house and senate, a majority of the membership of neither body will be men of the legal profession. So far as the house is concerned, a smaller percentage of the members for the next two years will be lawyers than in any Legislature in recent years.

Of the 124 house members 40 are classed as lawyers, three of whom, however, do not devote their whole time to their legal work, one being a lawyer and farmer, another a lawyer and editor and the third a lawyer and realtor. Of the remaining house membership, 46 are classed as farmers. But as in the case of the lawyers, not all these claim to be simonpure tillers of the soil, more than half a dozen stating in Gibbes' list of the membership of the General Assembly that they are engaged in other work in conjunction with their farming interests.

In the next house there will be two locomotive engineers, one railroad conductor, one street car conductor, two druggists, one lumberman, two physicians, one manufacturer, one farmer and minister, two dentists, two editors, one banker, three or four law students, with the remainder of the membership made up of men of various occupations. Among the house members will be a former governor of the State, John Gary Evans of Spartanburg, who served one term in the office, succeeding the late Senator Tillman nearly 30 years ago; a former circuit solicitor, George Bell Timmerman of Lexington, and at least three former State senators. J. E. Beamguard of York, G. L. Toole of Aiken and Eugene S. Blease of Newberry.

Twenty-nine house members who will take their seats in January were reelected in the primary last August, while a number of other members also to be sworn in at that time have had previous legislative experience. Among the older house members in point of continuous service who will serve the people again during 1923-24 are Ira A. Gresham of Greenville, Thos. S. McMillan of Charleston, John K. Hamblin of Union and W. R. Bradford of York, the latter being the ranking member of the body.

Eighteen of the 46 members of the senate who will serve during 1923-24 are lawyers, but in the senate as in the house a large percentage of the membership is composed of men who class themselves as farmers. Senator Christensen of Beaufort, Senator Johnstone of Newberry and Senator Black of Bamberg are veteran members of the body who are expected to be on hand when the presiding officer, the lieutenant governor, for the first time calls the senate to order in 1923. A new member of the senate who will take his seat when the body next convenes is Senator S. A. Graham of Williamsburg county, an old house member who has had much experience as a legislator. Still another new senate member will be R. L. Freeman of Bennettsville, Marlboro county, editor of the Pee Dee Advocate.