The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1900-04-21
DELAYED By WRECK.
Bill Arp's Unexpected Stay in Clin-
ton, South Carolina.
Mr.. Bailey and His Cotton MIII-The
ThOrnwem OrphaRaEe-What
That Institution Does
for the Waits.

AdfAi 4aEu mueeu, IS the contest
for freedom, and the struggle for lib
erty. Here 1 am at Clinton barri-
caded, ambrscaded, enfladed, and any
other distressing thing, for there is
a wreck miles away, and they
say it will take all day to remove it.
And SO I can't go home tonight. Oh!
the pity of it, for I am tired and
homesick. l am not calm and serene.
| was at Laurens last night, and
found good friends, who made the
lingering hours pleasant, but ali the
time l was comforted with the
thought that it was my last day away
from my numerous wife and chill
dren and grandchildren. / left the
hotel at fYe o'clock this morning, and
walked at a lively gait down to the
depot to take the early train for
Clinton where I wal to intercept the
Seaboard for Atlanta, and then for
home. But the train for Clinton did
not come snd nobody knew when
it would COME. 1 waited until half
past seven o'clock-and time was feet
ing; went back to town, hired a livery
stable man to drive me over to Gin
ton by 9:3O o'clock to catch the Sea-
board. The road was awful, but the
horse was a good one, and 1 knew he
could make the ten miles in two
hours, and felt happy on the way.
We did make it, and as l stepped on
the platform 1 felt proud that 1 had
not waited on that belated train. But,
oh! what a fall was there, my coun-
trymen, when the agent told me the
SeabOard was in a wreck, and could
not get here until late'in the day, and
perhaps later.
Well, here 1 ammo garden to dig
in; no children to frolic with, and
nothing to do put ruminate. Yes,
ruminate upon the trials and crosses
and disappointments of this sublun-
airy world, and I find myself humming
that plaintive old song: "Pity the
Sorrows of a Poor Old Man" But
this preface is the, shadow-the dark
side of the picture, and now l will
brighten up and look at the other
side and feel ashamed of myself, for,
after ALL my disappointment is only
for a day, and it is not as bad as war
nor sickness nor death in the family.
And, besides, I am at Clinton, the
lOveliest village of the plain. Yes, Gin
ton, where 1 have a host of kind
friends who are glad to see me, and
wouldn't be sorry that l am belated
here if 1 were not so. sorry for myself.
I was here two days ago, and had a
real ovation, a large audience and a
love feast after the lecture. In this
little town of $500 people 1 had 400
out, to hear and to greet me, and
many of them were from the country,
and some came several miles, for the
night was lOvely and the full moon
smiled upon everybody and every
thing. The women turned out in
force, for they do love to see and hear
a Ma who has been sUbdued by
matrimony, and does not claim to be
one of the lords of creation-a man
who helps his wife to nurse the chill
dren and plant the flowers; a man
who, away in the dead of night, will
let his wife rest and sleep while he
walks the DON in his nightgown with
a reething child in his arms and sings
A44A 44GG4C sung AAJ41 Ills CNC1llS uIOOp
and his legs get weary and his
thoughts say you are a little darling
and l wouldn't take a million dollars
for you-but 1 wouldn't give a nickel
for another. A fond father has none
to sell, but doesn't want to buy, but
a true mother gives glad welcome to
all who come and is even happy in the
prospect.
While in Clinton l was the guest of
Mr.. Baileyy the banker. and mill man, a
model gentleman of the old school
whose nlaxims are truth and honesty,
whose sons and daughters ere like olive
plants around his table and have never
given him a moments grief OF anxiety.
And now that they are all grown up
and established in their own business,
he has adopted several hundred fac
tory children, and is delighted every
DAY to visit them in the cotton mill and
place his hand kindly and gently upon
their heads as he passes them at the
spindle or the loom. He has built for
them a church and employed a teacher
and established a Sunday school, and
it has a~wakenedin his bosom a new love
for his fellowcreatures and he is grow
ing young again. This cotton mill runs
10000 spindles and $50 looms, and has
prospered ever since 1897, when it was
completed. The stock is at a premium
of 30 per cent. and its surplus earn
ings are all invested in charging its
capacity and increasing it's products.
Now, think of it. Here is a mill that
manufactures only a fine grade of
cloth, and consequently only consumes
about 5000 bales of cotton. He has now
on hand enough cotton to u until
next December, and it was all bought
for seven cents a pound. He has orders
ahead at fixed prices for all the goods
he can make this year. His goods are
already sold at 5Hcents a yard, and it
takes 4A yards to weigh a pound.
Now, counting for a loss in weight of
ten per cent, he is getting 20 cents a
pound for the cotton that cost him
seven cents. Labor and machinery does
the work, and the cost Of that depends
upon the man and the management
The mill owners can grind that labor
down to a starvation price if they
choose to, but Mr.. Bailey assures me
"a -.LlsIV- 49,