Woodville Republican. (Woodville, Miss.) 185?-current, 1901-10-12
MISSISSIPPI MATTERS
NOTES OF PAST AND CURRENT EVENTS
By KATE MARKHAM POWER.

e'A@0@Y@'2@Ss @SsN& ~ R'2N9s 9
The leading young men of Meridian
are deeply interested in matters ath-
etic, and for this reason they have
4 ganized and commenced systematic
Practice on the diamond" the grid
i'on," and in various other fields de-
ted to the manly art. 1t is their
hope and intention to establish an
athletic association, with first-class
gymnasium, baths, reading rooms and
lCunging rooms for members who are
away from their homes. This inten-
tiol, If properly carried out, will be
of great benefit to Meridian and her
young men. 1t is an excellent thing
for men to devote certain amount
of time to physical exercise, for it is
lrpa of the human body as well as of
all other mechanism that the great
est good Is accomplished when all the
Par are equally strong and kept in
PER- ,et order. A strong brain is
stro ger when the body that it domi-
nate is kept clean and active and Wig
orpus by careful exercise. We would
rei,5i to see an athletic association
coilducted on upright principles in
every town. There the boys could
earn all that is best in manly sports
without ever permitting their organ
sation to degenerate into anything
Ike the "clubs" Of the larger cities,
where professional (?) athletics Tor,
t1 be accurate, pugilism) monopolizes
THE members interest and does so
Irueh Il injure the young men, men
lilly anl physically, as well as NOR
ally. We wish the Meridian boys sue
cess and hope their association will
d eyelop some first-class athletes.
The biennial report of the Peniten-
tisry Board of Control will show an
increase ia the number of conyicts.
This showing has created sufficient in
terest among those who have learned
of 3f t. cause considerable speculation
and not little figuring. The in
CT vase II the list Of prisoners comes
not from increased committals, but
frora tho preservation of life under the
farm system. The open air work and
thefr ,e. pleasant life of the farm, as
1p3a ] with that in the city walls,
.ee TO be the reason for tnis.
i The D. it FL b la't a.
80 system be-
came ii, the "a Of conyi It's
ayerag about 800. Under this avs
TEN umber was increased to $50
for tie two fiscal years of 1898 and
1899, and to something over 1000 for
1900 and 1901. During the fiscal years
of 1898 and 1899 the percentage OF
deaths was 4.62 per cent. During the
past two fiscal years it has been only
4 per cent. OF the eighty prisoners
who died during these two fiscal years
lust passed, twenty-eight died in the
hospital in the walls at Jackson OF
consumption. If this number were
subtracted from the total the percent
age of deaths on the farms would be
remarkably small Mississippi has few
superiors, anyhow, in her way of man
aging the penitentiary and its thou
sand inmates.
So far as we have been able to
note-and we have read the papers
carefully-there has not been one pen
taken up to write protest against the
proposed appropriation by Mississippi
to make fitting display at st. Louis
during the Louisiana Purchase" EX-
position. The Meridian Star. which
Is a most watchful guardian of the
States interest and wise exponent OF
her peoples wishes, says in recent
issue. THUS far only few mem
bers Of the Legislature have spoken,
but they are united on the question.
we may not expect the bill to go
through without some opposition be-
ing manifested, for Mississippi is not
entirely rid of the political mounte-
bank. There are a few of them in
the Legislature as we'll as on the
Boards of Supervisors and in the va
rious other offices in the State, but
they are not strong enough to be OF
damage to the future prosperity Of
Mississippi
Meridian-and, with her, the State
OF his doption-mourns the passing
away of one of the great and good
men whose lives, inwoven with the
history of past generations, have
filled such clean and brilliant pages
in the book in which Mississippi S
record is written. DR.. R. H. Whit
field, who died there September 20,
was a man of upright character,
strong nature and wide land always
good) influence. While he has been
prominently identified for many years
with the business interests of Merid-
ian and has served faithfully his State
and his city in many positions of inn
portance and trust, his greatest work
for his fellow-man was in that wide
field, Education, where his influence
was always uplifting, helpful and in
spring.
The present season is a glorious one
for the Mississippi canneries and
shrimp fishermen, as the delicious lit
tie crustacean is running better just
now than for three or four years past
and are much finer and larger than
usual. The "shrimpers" have all they
can possibly do, and they catch all the
shrimp their boats will carry, while
the factories are running overtime tc
can them. These factories are pay
ing SO barrel for shrimp, which is
excellent remuneration, and the fish.
ermen are putting money il theil
nockets.