The Russellville Democrat., 1875-12-16
VOL. l..
CONTENIPTIIsI.I..

handed Us a copy of the ~ommcr vile. fGa.D Gazette, containing the following.
 Mir. W. (. Robers0n, writes us from Pope county, Arkansas, um der date of September Sth, says "Whilc some of the ArkansaS pa pcrs would hold out the impres- sion that this State k the hcaithi est in the world, yet after q resi- dcncc of five years in the State, | am satisfied from experience and observation that il k decidedly sicklv country. l have not yct seen that part SO highly recon mcnded. have not hat a drink of eooCl-watcr since left old Chat tooga. 1 have seen no land that vould bring q bale of cotton to the acre, but on the contrary will take two or more acres. And as 10 the land that produces from forty to sixty bushels or corn to the acre. haze never yet seen it, neither have seen the land that will produce forty bushels ofwheat lo the acre. We have had drouth every year for the last five. The bottom lands sell from $20 10 Sl0 per acre, and the uplands are not worth the taxes. l would advise every man that k doing well ill Chattooga to stay there.
 Mir. Roberson is now a citizen or our county, living on the Ar kansas river some ten miles below here, surrounded by as fine farms as there is in the Arkansas river valley, and why he should write such a letter as the above, is more than we can conceive. Were he a new conner to our State, who had never had an opportunity of visit ing our springs of living, cold, pure water, or of testing the won ,lerful productive capacity of our soii. we woald not have thought lnuch of such letter-for tO tell the truth, the idea of our State winch q man would gain by mere lv passing through it on the pres ent lines of railroad, would not be very prepossessing, for the lines of railroad over which he would travel show only the sha5bicst part of the country through which they pass. But for q man who has resided i'll our State five years to write such letter is simply contemptable, and shows that he is either prcjudiced against us, or does not know what constitutes a good country. There is land within five milcs-yes, within one  mile-and all around him, which will produce three bales to every two acres, and which did produce from 60 to 75 bushels of corn and from 50 to 10 bushels of wheat to the acre, and that too, with the dryest season we have had in years. We can give the names ot scores of responsible men who will confirm every word of this.
 We do not pretend te say that every acre of land in Pope county will do this, but there are thous- ands and thousands of acres that will do it. Our county is like all other countries, there is some poor as well as good land.
 As to health, our climate has always been considered and rec omlnended as healthy by every body who has ever written of our country. The general health we assert is good. That there are some localities, and vicinities in other localities which are consid- cred sickly, we do not deny, we do not desire to misreprcscnt q sin gle characteristic of our country, and do not do so, when we assert that it is a decidedly healthy eli mate, and that wells of fine, pure water are easily obtaincd at deptIl of from 15 to 40 feet.
 We can only account for Mr. Roberson's letter on the supposi ton that he is one of those men who are never contcnted any where. who can never see any rlr- tue in any country, no matter how fine it may be, and who conse- uucntly cannot, and never will do well in any country. The advice of such man is hardly worth listening to.