Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1898-01-13
ARPs COSBY LETTER.
FI.<s us.y s~~rsts~s q. Hss
Travels o. oss~r sssf~s-S~.~y
s.x Fr~p~rry - Hsrs~~-
ssrg- Nte~-

-lrsH 1rxe r-rs-Ge tru= 4EEzn~r z1r
tgrren-ize u . -ks Ezrs-s for rs11F
-souszE1 hzles a cottoz. bet b-sizess
arss nD- seen 10 e oepr-sss1 % -
eozrs q TIE prev Tz<-e are ARE
s-0css q <ools xz6 tie stores are
rkrozz ed wlrh Customers ard the he
--ls tAroax-5 WITH rrzreil-x szIesz~s
for IS 5ere the areas = fh@ cages wili
- gathered together Ikr,w sA~-s Is
zorey ;Hsre- for i Is. pare si<a &
prosperity uhen oTe- 80 good p~op.-
-1-a oct q = aects-e zni pay - certs
apiece f1r q I usx cziird there By The
Ls=aE Literary soclefy. wksch . az
1-5er - cot ooiy of prosperity. b;
- rllfur. and rs5nener;- cesd o.
tscii1irg fowu rsrzot keep Up such
zocisfF- Th> pubic .ehool 3 b,essed
ts ozs q the most earneS; and ca
ra0e -~r have net with ard he Is a.
Ee-ssrDe a. ks . zzzsozs u IS work
I'-1f Psilifrs zrase N inpressioa uPor
NJ Tie population Of this growing
sry j. remarkable for is hlzh moral
s.ardard- TEers = ret a saloon there
ar g p TIE jag ousiress SEEN 20 b ear
r.ei CT Tie community Is against e
z-d re yozng EFT are deeply Interest
Il ia zprovin- their maids ard pre-
ssrslaz their morals Another railroad
8. rspi1iy working rs way their from
Mob e. and every body 3 Looking up
Instead q down I; j. model town
Eiissil.e is farther uorth snd : ar
other thriving town I; = ar Cd town
y -
trade. loa would hardly believe e.
but there are more goods in ere store
there thar in al the stores Of Carriers
vile and there are several stores %
that kind. They are double stores and
the zeOcs are piled high upstairs and
down. large s1wmills are 81 work il
the neighborhood and hundreds % men
employed. and a. every station hun-
crss. q barrels Of turpeatine are await
ing shipment The railroad and the
people along the line seem 70 work in
harmony zud have no conHict or litigz-
son. II i a fine road and keeps time
Ike a clock found there some Old
friends from Barlow county who are
engaged IN the lumber business II
fact. never fail 70 find Georgisns in NY
travels and il p.eases ne 20 meet them
and i pisases them 10 meet ne and We
get clsnnish and We talk about the good
Old state
met an old negro here a; Crockett
old Uncle Jake-who came in severa.
miles 20 see me. He used TO work for
Bil Raiuey. Of Rome. away back ia the
fifties, and came out here with his folks
just after the war Raiuey kept the
livery stable there for fifty years and
every body respected him He had a
/ good gentle Old horse that a timid lady
could drive and he was known By them
as old Jake and did service for thirty
years That horse was named for this
old negro-for he had the care Of him
for many years. Old Jake is democrat,
| the only true, unfinching democra'
| in this county. He called on me at the
hotel and il was pathetic 10 hear him
ask me about his old friends in Rome
As he asked about one and another all
| could say was: WHY, Uncle Jake, he
IS dead long ago. They are all dead. Al.
most every body IS dead but you and l.
lie asked about Hardin and Waters and
| Tom Price and Wallis Warren and Col
Shorter and Cohen and the Berrys, and
seemed surprised that they were al
dead After he had left me went acros.
town TO see a friend and had not been
there long when Jake called in. He
wanted to AK me about Sam Stewart
who had been dead for forty years
Afterwhile went to see another friend
and the old man followed me there ant
staid until he was called for and had Il
70 home He is nothing but an Ole
negro, but he is as true and faithful n,
. good old dog. DIR. Beaxley, OF L;
Grange, Ca. is leading physician o
Crockett, and il did him good to NEE
me and talk about Ben Hill and tn.
Ferrells and Ridleys and Morgans ans
Walkers and Bacons and others. Til,
doctor 10 a scientist in his way an,
showed me an Indians skull tina
was taken from a mound near BY, ans
be called my attention to the fact tina
the skull had no seams or sutures il
H. These seams are marked in whit
mans skull. but there are none in tn
ladian's. They are very smooth al
over and very thin. ! had never hear,
Of this difference before. Crockett is
very thriving and pleasant town o
1000 people and has. they say. the fines
negro college in the state II cos
about $4,000 and was built with mis-
sionary money OF the northern Presby
terrain church. That Is all right, / reek
on. The eolored part of the south !
good missionary ground. and IL thei
charity does any good il is all right. bu
have my doubts So far as good cit
zenship IS concerned / wouldent Civ
one good old-fashioned negro for
hundred of the new set. There is a pen
tertiary not far from here where Sc,
eral hundred convicts. white and bIacl
are confined. and they have anon
them some very fine musicians. wa
. Invited by Judge Gibson to come dow
10 Rusk and witness the rehearsal an
: | was going. but the train was thre
hours behind time and missed the OF
E portunity. i am told that there is moth
= ing finer in the state or in the sout
( than the minstrel shows that these cor
t victs get up and people flock Their
. from all the surrounding countr,
e Now this is an object lesson "a
: our people who are wrestling over tn
1 convict problem There are $500 COT
victs in Texas. They are about half n
: BALI whites and blacks. and are divide
, into three different prisons. They al
not based. but pursue their trade
within prison walls Nobody hei
raises foolish rumpus about their con
8 petingwith free labor. The penitentiar
is self-supporting and besides that ii
eonvicts have chance TO reform. The
{ have preaching and Sunday schools an
minstrel shows and other recreations
make their lonely lives endurabl
> These people think that confluence
and hard labor is sufficient punishmel
for the worst criminals and that JUST,