The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-01-17

49,
ling with an additional race problem"
The one they hay satisfies them"
OF course this envious critic COM
plains of the South's course In the
Roosevelt-Booke Washington esca-
pade. The south was disguised 1T must
be admitted. This fellow Is so unfair
and unjust that he even dares to as
sault the south for what was inevitable
by reason of the Ubiquitous war and the
equally Ubiquitous results following, all
caused by the Bayles crowd. We copy
the following from what the Tradesman
says as to this point Of objection and
censura
1.-The attack on the south's alleged
low credit, brought about by the de-
struction, misfortunes and robbery in
cident to the war and reconstruction
periods, is very unjust. High interest
rates are usually charged transient
small borrowers; but cases OF IL per
cent. are the few and far between ex-
ceptions. The cities n counties and
states are IN good credit. Tennessee re-
funded her debt OF / 1000 600 at 3 per
cent. n she has borrowed large
blocks of o in past years to pay
floating debt and interest at from 3 to 6
! per ttHl. Inc SldIc COVER ilIiltAl HO"
yearly buys in the states bonds in con-
siderable amounts. The south is
in much better standing in the money
] market now than the northwest was in
the early COS. When such states a.
Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado could
not borrow q dollar on any terms, the
states of the south borrowed to meet
temporary needs. at or below 6 per
cent"
Dnfarn <ha I-on1n1r nn1n Inyrn yInn1
the south like wolves on the fold" the
credit of North Carolina on Wall street
was as high as that OF any state in the
union. The barbarians, aided by the
/ liberated negroes who were enfran-
chised, robbed the state Of over 30,000,-
900, n kept 5ack a return of prosper
ity for twenty years. A northern fell
low is engaged in a fine piece of work
when he censures the robbed and OPP
pressed because they became Door and
greatly suffered as a consequence.
The New York growler has but little
to say of progress in the iron develop
ment or furniture manufacturing. The
words CT the Tradesman meet his in
Indifference we'll. 1t says:
Mr. Bayles rather CURLY dismisses
our iron trade, though the south makes
now abou 1900, 900 net tons of iron a
year, as against less han ITO. 900 tons
twenty years ago. The south produces
more iron and more soft steel han the
whole country made in 1867. although
the central northern and middle states
had been making iron for a century.
the trade not having been interrupted
by civil cOmmotlon or other cause"
But why bother over the ratings of
such an enemy. Let him go. He n
his kidney are not worth the ammuni-
ton to hunt them. He thinks the south
chiefly agricultural, and we are indeed
mighty. glad" of it. That is the main
stay of the world, the great backbone Of
true civilization and prosperity. But |
there has been progress even in the
matter of farming. We quote again the
figures of the Tradesman:
The average cotton crop in the five
years ended 1880 was less than 5000, 900
bales of 4S0 pounds to the bale. The
average for the five Years ended 1900
was over 10, 900, 900 bales of 500 pounds
to the bale. The south in 1899 and
again in 1900 raised its own corn and
exported some millions of bushels. it
going out via New Orleans. (This port
has developed from virtually nothing in
1880 to be the second exporting city of
the country in 1909 The south has In
creased its corn, wheat, root, fruit and
other crops as consp1cuouSly as 1t mas
in the line Of cotton"
The chief dislike of certain fellows
of the baser sort" in the north is, that
the south is pressing rapidly ahead as
a manufacturing section Its cotton
mills are disturbing and have given
many a pang TO the envfous mortals
who have been made so rich by the
high prices and the benign favors OF
the federal congress with it's awful high
tariff tax. The Chattanooga organ |
says tina the south has done more to |
develop diversified cotton manufactures
in twenty years than the north and east |
did in the 100 years ended 1850; and we
have done more in other trades-iron |
and steel, for instance-in the two de-
cades ended with the year 1900 than the
north did from the date of Washing
tons inauguration to 1860" |
This impertinent assailant of course
must touch on the negro. But nothing
he could say is worth a pinch of snuff. |
He is hostile, unfair, jealous, ignorant,
saucy, and is a typical example of a !
host of writers in the great north who
write without understanding and wis
dom and in malice and uncharitable-
ness. The Tradesman replies in parlia- |
mentary language to a very free spoken
enemy up north. 1t says in its conclu-
sion:
This is not a defense of the south, |
it's men and affairs. in any other sense
than the showing that they have been
unfairly treated. MIR. Bayles' article
is typical OF whole acres of literature
that has the south for its topic and is
produced by writer's who's knowledge
of the section is superficial. gained dur
ing the few weeks necessary to make
a tour of these states. One may write
fair descriptions of a country's topog-
raphy, ETC., after seeing it from the