PART 2 OF 3 PARTS
   "We at one time were a major exporter of cheap pistols," said
South Carolina Lt. Gov. Nick Theodore, who was in the state House of
Representatives when gunrunning emerged as an issue. "We found we
had a serious problem. Our objective has been accomplished. It's
difficult to legislate people's actions. But this is something we
could control."
   Given South Carolina's law, it's not surprising that there are
far fewer multiple gun sales here than in Virginia. Last year in
South Carolina, there were 388 cases of multiple purchases within 30
days, all of which were deemed illegal once they were discovered. In
Virginia last year, there were more than 3,000 cases in which one
person bought two or more handguns within a much shorter period,
five days.
   But the South Carolina law's apparent success in curbing gun
trafficking does not convince those who believe there was no problem
in the first place.
   Herb Lanford, of Columbia, former president of the NRA-affiliated
South Carolina Shooter's Association, doubts the federal figures
that showed his state was a major source of guns for New York
criminals. "There are three kinds of lies," Lanford said. "Lies,
damn lies and statistics."
   Critics of the figures say the number of weapons traced
represents only a small fraction of the weapons used in crimes, so
the results may not reflect the true picture of where all the guns
come from.
   "This is an absurd limit," Lanford said. "Why place a burden on
law-abiding citizens for perception? The crime rate in New York has
not been helped one bit. This is nothing but an emotionally charged
placebo."
   If Virginians think a one-a-month limit on handguns will reduce
crime in the state, they're wrong, according to opponents of the
South Carolina law. State Sen. Joe Wilson, of Lexington County,
S.C., said the law has had no such effect in his state.
   "Unfortunately, our violent-crime rate has gone up," Wilson said.
"There are a lot of well-meaning people in Virginia (supporting this
measure), but they have the wrong emphasis." Wilson calls for
tougher penalties for criminals.
   South Carolina's violent-crime rate is more than twice the rate
in Virginia and has grown far more rapidly. Critics suggest that the
law may even have driven criminals to steal more weapons. The
state's population is about half of Virginia's, but in 1991,
firearms valued at $3.6 million were stolen in South Carolina,
compared with $3 million worth in Virginia.
   South Carolina and Virginia law enforcement officials say that
critics who point to such statistics are trying to confuse the
issue. There is no way to prove that the gun thefts are related to
the South Carolina handgun limit, officials here said.