The Wilmingtonian., 1886-10-02
A More Worthy Appeal.

tion of the people of northwestern Texas.
In the presence of the Charleston catastro-
| phe it was difficult to get the attention of
humane people drawn towards the affecting
stories from that State. But now we must
give our attention to more worthy appeal,
and seriously speaking a more deserving one
than that of Charleston.
1t is alleged on authentic testimony that
| over half million of our fellow citizens in
the Northwestern part of Texas covering an
agricultural are of two hundred square miles
are on The verge Of starvation. The cause Of
vt is long continued drouth extending over
| period Of fourteen months.
But, what best can be done is to quote the
New York Herald, of Monday, last upon the
subject:
The Rev. DR.. John Brown, tall Scotch
man. sturdy and stern IN his demeanor, but
with tender voice having the Scotch burr
in 1t, was introduced by DR.. Crosby yester-
day morning to the congregation at the
Brown is a pastor of church in Texas, and
is connected with the Presbyterian Home
Mission Board.
DR.. Brown said that he had been sent
North by his own congregation, situated in
Northwestern Texas, who betrayed every
dollar of his expenses in connection with his
visit, to get before the people of the North
ern States the condition of the people of that
part of the country. "There is" said the
Doctor, ''about two hundred miles of North
| western Texas on which there are nearly
| half a million Of settlers, including their
wives and children, who are litteraly on the
| verge Of starvation. This result has been
brought about by long droughts, and unless
| some slight relief had been afforded them
they would have pershed from the face of
the earth. Everything that had been put
into the ground had failed to grow, and last
spring not green thing could be raised for
man or beast. Many poor people from the
Northern States, who had lost nearly all
that they possessed in this world, have come
to Texas and settled IN this region | am
speaking of. Hitherto, if they had raised
crops that did not pay for growing, they have
Il lrai nth nd ~ q.
that way. But now everything has failed
them. There are thousands of children who
have not tasted milk this year, and thou
sands of adults who have not tasted meat.
All the medical men in Texas say that should
disease break out among these people they
will not have enough rallying power to re-
sst its encroachments. They are living on
what is almost impossible for any human
being to live upon.
| WHAT THE REMEDY rs.
"That is the condition OF things, and the
remedy for it now-that is, the immediate
remedy-is that we supply to these famished
people about hundred Thousand bushels O.
seed wheat. Unless they get that hundreds
Of them must die from starvation. My OBJ
ject, therefore, in this appeal is to arouse
the sentiment of the North so effectually
that this seed wheat shall be given tlem. If
they can get that they will be able to pull
through.
"a very proper question may be asked of
me as to why the people OF Texas do not fur
nish this relief, or. at any rate, good por-
lion OF it. There are many reasons. will
mention two;
"Frst-Tbe stock raising interest, which
is 4 very powerful interest in Texas, is op
posed to these people settling where they do.
Such settlements take from the stock rais-
ers their free grazing lands and make the
raising of cattle more expensive, and so
hundreds of men who have grown very rich
by stock rails ng are selfish enough to
prefer that the people should be killed of,
and thus discourage others from settling on
these lands.
"Second-The State owns its lands, gets a
great profit out of selling them, and each
county is interested in setting forth to the
people generally that it is not their county
where the drought is but another county. They
don't want to discourage settlers from buy
ing their lands, so they are opposed to max
ing public this disaster, and also to organiz-
ing for obtaining any effectual means of re-
lief"
DR.. Crosby announced that a collection
would be taken up next Sun ay at his CHI urch
on behalf of the object referred to, ani tSen
preached a sermon from the words of the
Saviour, "If God were your father, ye would
love me-"
DR.. Kendall and DR.. Roberts, of the Pres.
byterian Home Mission Board, No. 2sC
! Broadway, will receive contributions for the
Texas sufferers"
Now, a great deal has been done fol
Charleston, and the people of that unfortun
nate city are relieved from immediate suffer
ing. But by reputable testimony our fellow
D citizens of Texas are on the verge of starva
a tion
We do not wish to draw invidious com