From the South Carolina Attorney General, to a Texas lawyer (Scott Toothaker) who solicited the opinion, 1967 WL 12299 (Mar. 30, 1967):
Dear Mr. Toothaker:
I am pleased that you are planning to visit our State, and I am enclosing under separate cover some information that should be of interest to you. I would personally suggest that you see Charleston and the Coastal Area. The gardens located at Charleston will probably reach their peak within the next two weeks, but they may still be enjoyable at a later date.
I have previously ruled that a tear gas gun of the fountain pen type is a firearm within the meaning of our law. Under our amended firearms act, these weapons may be carried in a closed glove compartment of a vehicle or in a closed trunk. They may not be carried concealed about the person. I doubt seriously if any difficulty is likely to ensue from possession of the pen type tear gas gun, but the strict application of the law places it, in my opinion, in the category of a pistol. The matter came before me on application of a department store to sell these devices, and I expressed the opinion that dealers were subject to the licensing provisions of our law if they sold such instruments.
If I can be of any assistance to make your visit to this State enjoyable, please call upon me.
Cordially,
Daniel R. McLeod
Attorney General
I’m not sure the advice was correct under then-existing South Carolina law (see, e.g., the seemingly contrary opinions of Apr. 15, 1964 and Dec. 3, 1969, and the then-in-effect version of S.C. Code § 16-147), but it certainly was pleasant.