As nearly as could be estimated by those familiar with the local conditions, there were fully 200 families in the lower end of Marion County, renters and “lienors,” whose situation is about as hopeless as that of the family just referred to. Many, who like Mr. Richardson, owned more or less land, are in a position to obtain advances on their holdings, and though seriously crippled, can probably weather the storm. But for these other families, who are without such resources, some adequate relief measures will have to be undertaken. The attitude towards customers and tenants assumed by the merchants and plantation owners bears high testimony to their generosity and public spirit. It is taken for granted that no claim for rent will be made and, as far as possible, credit will still be extended to the flood sufferers. But it is too much to expect that these men can assume the whole of the burden, for they have themselves suffered severely. Mr. Davis estimated that in an area of several miles there was only one of the flood victims who was not indebted to him for a larger or smaller amount. Some of these debts would eventually be paid; many of them would never be recovered. He said he had begun to figure out his losses, but they mounted up so appallingly that he had stopped short before he was half way through. I was told that he had advanced over $18,000.00 worth of fertilizer to the farmers trading at one of his four stores. If this was true, it gives some idea of the magnitude of his losses, and shows the impossibility of expecting men, under such circumstances, to do all they would normally be able to do for their poorer neighbors. RELIEF MEASURES, COLUMBIA, S. C. At the time of my visit to Columbia _The State_, in a paragraph announcing that the agent of the Red Cross was in the city, stated that Columbia would consider herself disgraced if she could not do all that was needed for local flood sufferers, without further aid from the Red Cross Association. At the last census Columbia had over 21,000 inhabitants; its population now numbers some 25,000 people. It is the State capital, and has some thriving cotton mills. Taking Captain Gonzales’ estimate of 100 destitute families as being approximately correct, it would seem that with employment easily obtainable in the fall and spring, it ought to be possible for the people of Columbia and Richland County to undertake such local relief measures as would make further outside aid unnecessary. The dangers of creating a large relief fund, and extensively advertising its existence, are very obvious, especially as most of the people affected are negroes who would very readily accept a position of dependence.