The leader., 1902-09-24
A PARTIAL STOCK LAW.

A PARTIAL STOCK LAW.
EDITOR LEADER:-As your columns
are still open to a discussion of a
partial stock law, we think it neces-
} sary, in self defense, and for the right,
that someone calls the attention of our
people of Lincoln county to the fact
that all things written are not prac-
ticed by the one writing them. Now
| saw an article in your paper of Sept.
) 3, written by my much esteemed friend
and brother, j. S. Burns. l always
love to agree with and say everything
complimentary about Joe that | can,
and speak the truth, SO will say that
Joe was a most excellent Confederate
soldier; and agree with him when he
says "Let the people of Lincoln
county consider well; do we need a
partial stock law?" l say, yes! AS to
the full stock law, say no; nor have
l ever advocated such law, yet I be-
lleve it would be an advantage to every
citizen in Lincoln county, in this way:
1t would force you and me to get rid of
a lot of surplus stock that is doing us
no good and costing us more than the
profit amounts to. One writer in the
Lincoln County Times of Aug. 28th,
says that some people are not satisfied
to let good enough alone on that loose
line. That writer has it fairly demon
strated as to the results of letting
good enough alone on that loose line
see his COWS for the proof. No! I say,
keep your bull in your pasture and
improve your stock. See Capt. More
tons and other COWS for illustration
on that side.
My friend, Joe, says he doesn't know
a farmer who does not need more land
for grazing and less for cultivation.
Now as for the grazing, that is just
what we are after. Fence off part of
your own land for your own hogs, SOW
it to some kind of grass for the hogs to
Craze on, then instead of planting, cul-
tivate the balance. Let every man
look after his own hog. Now comes
the tug of war. You say yes, and what
is the poor fellow going to do who has
no land? You "anti's", as you have
styled yourselves, have endeavored to
delude the non-land owners with the
false impression, that we who are in
favor of a partial stock law are doing
it to keep the poor man from owning
land. Now let's see who is a friend
of the poor man, and who is trying to
keep him from owning land. Poor
man, think for yourself. Here are
hundreds of acres of very good farm
land all over the southern and eastern
| part of this county that can be had at |
S1.00 per acre; $40 will buy 40 acres. |
There are plenty of poor men who can
| raise $4,000 cash to purch ase the land, |
but 10 and behold, when he looks at it,
he finds it is stump land-no timber to |
fence it. He knows at the present |
price of wire and lumber he cannot |
fence it, so he is compelled to rent |
land from some one. Now who is it |
that is saying you must let that land |
alone: l want it for my stock to Craze
upon? Is it l and my colleagues? No.
[ say, force you and me to fence in our
hogs on our own land, and give the
poor man chance to own land. He
can, with some help, get three wires
or three planks to fence out cattle and
horses, and four wires will fence out
sheep. AS for the goat it takes cur
to control him any way. Sheep really
need to be pastured on account of the
dogs-or exterminate the dogs. My
experience with sheep for the last two
years, is as follows: Two years ago I
had some 35 or 40 head of sheep run
ming at large on the other fellows land
SO as to get my part of the grazing, and
J. d. Bailey. The dogs soon began to
kill them, and I put the 16 head pur-
chased from Mr.. Bailey in my pasture
and left the balance out on the free
pasture. The result is, lost nearly
every one of those left to hustle on the
free pasture, while of the others | have
"a head of good, gentle sheep that are
at home and lie in the lot nearly every
night.
Joe says the South can many times
excel the North in stock raising of all
kinds, and food supplies also, except
wheat. If that is true, why not wheat?
We are not trying to raise wheat.
Then he says, we do not need stock
law to accomplish this. Why is it
that all Northern men who come here,
pasture all their stock and beat us
two to-one raising stock right here in
our own Southland? No! The South
can not excel the North in but few
things, and those things will not grow
in the North. The South is not a
grain country, but cotton country.
We can raise almost everything here
for home consumption, but not for
profit, except cotton; but to do this
we have got to change the line some
where, as we are not doing it under the
present system. It is not worth while
for me to tell you that the hog is the
greatest hindrance, or the cur, if you
please, that we have. This has been |
plainly told you time after time-I
mean to say, under the present system
of letting them run at large.
Now as to the county having to
favor the farmer that needs the most |
help" That is news to me. I knew |
the county cared for their paupers; and |
as rule, that class of people are op-
posed to anything that means progress. |
Joe, If you mean to say you want to |
get on the county's wagon, that is all |
right, but don't ask the county to
favor you fellows at the expense of !
individuals, for it is an expense-an |
unnecessary expense-to the farmer,
to let their hogs depredate on their |
farms as they are now doing You say
| fix your fence and they will not break |
in. Not word of it. They will go
through the best fence you and have,
or ever did have. Let the squirrel
heart his corn on the fence, some of
the grains will fall outside and others
inside. The hog will go through, over
or under. And how do you expect a
greater interest in the welfare of your
neighbor when your hog is trespass-
ing thus, and you saying you must
suffer the torments of your neighbor's
''piney woods-rooter"? No, treat him
as you would have him treat you Care
for your own hog, and ask him to do
likewise. This is fair, this is right. I
am in favor of hog and bull law,
have been for years, and expect to be
until the happy day comes, which will
not be long.
No, we haven't failed. We agreed
on plan Sept. 1st, and expect to work
to it, and when we want you ants to
meet US and discuss matters we will
let you know. We mean business.
We are not wanting to be known as
promoters, agitators or leaders of new