Sword and shield. (Clinton, Miss.) 1885-1888, 1886-08-28
ssippt's Progress and Resources.


sissippi during the last decade and
the rapid advance of its material inter
ests recall the wonderful growth in
popl ation and wealth of what were
our sreat Northwestern States, Illinois,
Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota, during
the ten years intervening betwaen 1920
and 1860,
Eleven years ago Mississippi was
under the dominion of a carpet bag
government, with the alien Adelbert
Ames at the head of affairs All that
kept the government from inaugu-
rating as wild and reckless an era of
extravaganza in the State government
as that which characterized their con-
troll of power in other States was that
it was unable to so largely work upon
the confidence of home or foreign capi-
talisfs, and could not procure the
money from abroad to keep up an eight
years political orgy, as they did in
South Carolina and Louisiana But
the Radical politicians of Mississippi,
though failing to raise funds on extra
neous credit, partially made up for
this failure by fleeing the people at
home; and the tax payers groaned un-
der the exactions Of the corrupt county
governments and the confiscating i'm
positions levied upon their towns and
cities.
In the year 1873 the long era of mis-
rule came to an abrupt and final ending
1t suffered an overthrow as sudden and
complete as if the bright sword of reso-
luton had served the Gordian knot that
bound down the interests and the liber-
ties e the people. The representative
sous ef Mississippi took control of the
relns Of their State government 1t is
more than ten years now since the con-
summation q that auspicious event
-. year had not passed before the
State showed how its fetters had been
shattered and now, with newly circula-
ting currents of activity aud reinvigor-
ated in muscles aud sinews. it was
enabled. under the benefcient influence
of honest government, to resume its
march along the highroads of peace and
prosperity side by side with its liberated
sister States of the South
There have been since then ten years
to obliterate the traces of Republican
corruption, ten years of reduced taxa
ton, ten years of wisely expended pub
lie appropriation, ten years OF vastly
improved public school system for both
races, ten years of building of polytech-
nical schools and scientific institutions
for the professional training Of young
men and women, ten years of railroad
building across the length and breadth
Of the State, ten years of the conversion
ofvillages and towns into manufacturing
cities, and ten years for sending states
men to represent the great Common
wealth in the halls and the forum ofthe
National Legislature in effect, ten years
of progress and civilization to succeed
four of war, three of martial law and
military despotism and eight of carpet
bag gmisrule.
Daring those ten years manufactures
have been planted and widely extended
at Natchez, Port Gibson, Vicksburg,
Greenville, Wesson, jackson, Meridian,
Columbus, Aberdeen, Holly Springs,
and many other cities and towns three
fine colleges and scientific schools have
been founded and put into successful
operation two splendid trunk lines
of railroad have been run through the
richest agricultural regions and tim
bered sections of the State, from one
extremity to the other the splendid
Yazoo valley and Mississippi river coun-
ties. the centre of the American cotton
belt, have been reclaimed from over
flow or protected by the building ofan
intact levee system the fertile bluffland
counties of Western Mississippi have
been dotted with new villages and towns;
the pine forests along the Illinois Cen
trail Railroad have been converted into
blooming gardens and productive orch
ards; the seacoast villages along the line
of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad
have grown into thriving and populous
towns; the ports of export have largely
increased their commerce; and the agri-
cultural and stock raising industries of
the whole State have been vastly ex-
tended, while population and capital
have been steadily drifting into the State
in stream which will be so augmented
at an early date as to bring Mississippi
forward by the next census above the
position of several more States on the
long list of our Union.
We predict that in the next census re-