The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1898-02-26
BILL ARP IN MISSISSIPPI
THE GEORGIA tLoSoPHeR STRIKES A
MODEL TOWN.

MODEL TOWN.
He is Lavish I'm His Praises---Draws Con. |
trast In the Disposition and Number Of
Convicts In Georgia and those in the
Great Lone Star State.
Hattiesburg n Q growing little city
away down in Mississippi on the road
that leads from Meridian to New Or
leans. It is in the piny woods and
derives large revenue from lumber and
! turpentine. It is the market for many
thousand bales of cotton, but business
does not seem to be depressed on ac-
account of the price. There are large
stocks of goods and the stores are
thronged with customers, and the
hotels thronged with travelling sales
men, for where the carcass is the
eagles will be gathered together. I
know there is money there, for it is
sure sign of prosperity when over 400
| good people turn out to lecture and
pay SO cents apiece for it. I was
called there by the Lamar Literary
Society, which is another sign not
only of prosperity, but of culture and
refinement. A dead or declining town
cannot keep up such society. The
| public school is blessed with one of
the most earnest and capable men I
have met with, and he is as handsome
as he is jealous in his work.
Professor Phillips made an i'm
preston upon me. The population
of this growing city is remarkable
for its high moral standard. There is
not a saloon there nor did the jug
business seem to be carried on. The
community is against it, and the
young men are deeply interested in
improving their minds and preserving
their morals. Another railroad is
rapidly working its way there from
Mobile, and everybody is looking up
instead of down. It is model town.
EIIisvilIe is farther north and is
another thriving town. It is an old
town with new clothes on and has q
large trade. You would hardly be-
lieve it, but there are more goods in
one store there than in all the stores
of Gainesville, and there are several
stores of that kind. They are double
stores and the goods are piled high
up stairs and down. Large sawmills
are at work in the neighborhood, and
hundreds of men employed, and at
every station hundreds of barrels Of
turpentine are awaiting shipment.
The railroad and the people along the
line seem to work in harmony and
have no conflict or litigation. It is q
fine road and keeps time like q clock.
IL found there some old friends
| from Barlow county who are en-
gagged in the lumber business. In
fact, never fail to find Georgians in
my travels and it pleases me to meet
them and it pleases them to meet
me, and we get clannish as we talk
about the good old state. I met an
old negro here at Crockett-old Uncle
Jake-who came in several miles to
see me. He used to work for Bill
Rainey of Rome, away back in the
fifties, and came out here with his
folks Just after the war. Rainey kept
the livery stable there for fifty years
and everybody respected him. He had
a good, gentle old horse that q timid
lady could drive and he was known by
them as Old Jake, and did service for
thirty ears. That horse was named
for this old negro-for he had the care
Of him for many years. Old Jake is a
Democrat, the only true, unhinchine
colored Democrat in this county. r,
called on me at the hotel and it was
pathetic to 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 ID
dead long ago. They are all dead
Almost everybody is dead but you and
|, T." He asked about Hardin ani
i Waters and Tom Price and Wallis
Warren and Colonel Shorter and Coher
! and the Berrys, and seemed surprised
that they were all dead. After be LEFT
,, me went across town to see FRIEND
and had not been there long whel
| Jake called in. He wanted to q,
J about Sam Stewart, who has beer
, dead for forty years. Afterwhile
went to see another friend and the OLE
man followed me there and stayed un
til he was called for and had to g
;; home. He is nothing but an old ne
. gro, but he is as true, and faithful as I
, good old dog. DR.. Beasley, of La
Grange, Ga, is leading physician o
Crockett, and it did him good to NEE
! me and talk about Ben Hill and thu
, Ferrells and Ridleys and Morgans and
Walkers and Bacons and others. Th'
doctor is scientist in his way AMI
: showed me an Indians skull tina
4 was taken from mound nearby
and he called my attention y
the fact that the skull had nj
seams or sutures in it. These seam
, are very marked in a white man
skull, but there are none in the In
, dams. They are very smooth all owe
! and very thin. I had never heard Q
> this difference before. Crockett is