Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1902-12-23
The AWAKENING
OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI.
A Story of Development and Pro
Gress Almost Without a Par
alIel in the History of the
Country.

They used to tell a good many
tales on Southeast Missouri, the
country that has been known as
the Lost Lands" and the swamp
Country"
Stories have been told of hunters
who lost their wap in the Businesses
of the swamp and wandered for
days IN an effort to escape the tan
gle of vegetation and perils of the
lost country; or persons who fed to
this dismal region to evade officers
of the law and there set up habita-
ton on an 'island" or section of
raised ground, with naught for
neighbors but the wild beasts and
water fowl.
But different story may now be
related of that country, story Of
concrete fact, telling of the wonder
tul development and reclaim alton of
the low lands.
Within the past FIVE years, I'M
heralded and unaccompanied by
demonstrations, work of the great
est magnitude has been accom-
! plished. Great drainage bitches
have been dug, sluggish streams
dredged and Strengthened, drain
ing out the swamp, and leaving in
stead a country whose richness of
soil and general productiveness is
constant marvel Great forest
tracts have been cleared by saw
mill companies, and land that was
formerly under inches to 4 feet of
water is now producing 25 to IS
bushels of wheat and 40 to 90 BUSH
els of corn to the the acre.
Land that could have been
bought few years ago at SIPS to
$500 per acre is now in the i'm
proved state selling at $50 to S35 an
acre. And the development is but
begun. Thousands of acres remain
untouched, except that the water
has been drained. New farms
are being opened, the timber re-
moved paying for such good work.
The center of this great area is
pierced by two lines Of the Cotton
Belt railroad, one line running tl
Cairo, and the other to Thebes
The principal revenue for the Com.
pany in this section was derived
from hauling out sawlogs and, later
on, lumber and planning mill pro
ducts. Now the prosperous towns
of New Madrid, East Prairie, Lotta,
Maiden, Dexter, Piggott, Rector,
Paragould, and many other line
the Cotton Belt, and ship great
quantities of corn, wheat, oats,
cotton, cattle, hogs, and other pro-
ducts of the farm, as well as of the
saw mill.
AS the waters of the swamp dis
appeared, so have chills and fever,
until now this section enjoys as
good health as any average com
munity. Every year sees addition
al farms cleared, every new place
opened adds to the value of sur
rounding land. Unimproved land
bought to-day at So to 81 an acre
may in the space of a couple Of
years be made to sell at SIS to SIS
an acre. Here then is is an oppor,
tunity for the man of small means
to better his condition, to carve out
a home of his own, to secure a farm
at few dollars cost that will com.
pare favorably in point of fertility
productiveness with the hundred
dollars an acre land Of Illinois, In
diana, Ohio, Kentucky or Tennessee
Those desiring 10 visit this coun
try to see for themselves may, or
the first and third Tuesdays of each
month, purchase tickets over the
Cotton Belt at rate of one fare plus
$500 for the round trip, or one-way
tickets at one-half the one way fare
plus 81.
The Cotton Belt issues a hand
somely illustrated booklet entitled
"Glimpses of Southeast Missouri,
which is sent tree on application tc
the Passenger Department at St.
Louis, Mo.