The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1875-07-02

mOcracy ana craftsmanship,
THE Brownsville Democrat dubs
! Mai w. J. Sykes the great railroad
evangelist The Democrat docs this,
doubtless, with a full knowledge of the
meaning Of the word evangelist, that
is to say, one who is not allowed to ad-
minister the eucharist. Jackson. Sun.
We would suggest to our esteemed
confrere of the Sun that the ap plication
of great railroad evangelist" as applied
by the Brownsville Democrat to Maj
W. J. Sykes, was not intended to con,
vey a half or doubtful mpliment, as
the Sun would have US deduce. Does
the San intend to announce that the
full meaning Of the word evangelist is
one who is not allowed TO administer the
eucharist" The administration of the
eucharist is a privilege denied accord
ing to Lexicographers) to evangelists.
But aside from this, we understand that
the great duty of tne~evangelist was to
carry glad things to the peOple-a mes
senger, strictly speaking, of the doc
trinss, precepts and teachings of the
blessed Savior of men, as fonnd in the
gospels. In the sense used by the
Democrat, as a messenger of good It'd
ings in temporal affairs, Maj Wm
Sykes has proclaimed largely the truths
which lie at the very base of the mate
rial interests and prosperity of the Peo>
pie of the State. More than any other,
he has demonstrated the wisdom of add
ing increased comfort, happiness and
wealth to the people of the State by
judicious system of internal improves
ments. Passing by the convenience
now called and acknowledged a neces-
sity, arising from the internal improves
ments already made by the people Of the
State, he shows that $50 or 500, 200, 900
of increase value (as money item alone)
has been conferred upon our landed es-
tate, even under the old and costly
mode Of building railroads, and that un>
told wealth is yet to be added TO our
property by affording access to, and
means of development for, the untold
wealth now sleeping in our agricultural
and mineral districts, unutilized, be-
ca use inaccessible to market, He has
the sagacity to see, and the honesty to
advocate the only true means of deVel~
opment for country so sparsely popu-
lated as the South-that is, by cheap
roads, and consequently, cheap trans
porta ton. The grand panacea for the
oppressed agricultural and other inter-
ests Of our. productive State, land its
hitherto undeveloped and dormant res
sources, is embodied in the two words,
chea . tranSporta ton The memorable
logic of facts has, and is continuing to
demonstrate, the ario M that, the line di-
viding cheap from costly transportation
is the one which separates prosperity
from ruin to an agricultural people.
That the cost of transportation to and
from market is tax to that amount upon
the labor of the country. That by cheap
transportation this burden is not only
Jesse ned upon the individual but that
his real wealth is increased to that ex-
tent. That as the aggregate of wea. tn
in the State is increased the per cent
paid by property to raise a certain
amount becomes less, and the indivi dual
benefited to the extent to, which his fas
cilities have been increased. The bur~
den of supporting the State Cow
eminent becomes individually less
as population and wealth is in'
creased. That immigration, education,
and even progress in civilization, depend
mainly upon the material prosperity
of people, and that this never can be
reached whilst the product of labor
feels the excessive exactiOns 1t now
suffer from the want of cheap transports
tation to remuneratiVe markets. 1t has
been we'll said that he would cause two
blades Of grass to grow where but one
grew before, is a publiC's benefactor.
Have we no commentator for him, who
would give time and talents to promote
the good of his fellow man by laboring
to increase his comfort aud material a.
tainments, and moved by the noble am
bition of adding untold wealth to his
State by pointing cut the true road
which may lead from the slough Of
despond to the height of prosperity? If
such an one would be considered an
evangelist as to the temporal affairs of
men, then let US not withhold the title
as intending to honor the unselfsh efforts
of Maj VIM. J. Sykes to promote the
uunIEnrn Of the nnnnIa of Tennassea