The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1903-12-30
FOR EXAMPLE.

SISdOy anu progressive contraction n
the field of opportunity open to young
men. The young man himself is prone
to lamentations because he is unable
to see before him such opportunities
as were open years ago to his father
and his grandfather for making careers
and building fortunes. The circum-
stance that the father and grand
father in question pretty generally fail
ed to take advantage of the opportuni-
ties which were open to them, and that
theyalue of such opportunities then-as
they have been ever since-were left
to the discerning few for demonstra-
tion, ought to have certain educa-
tional value to the young man who is
just starting IN life. He should give
himself little self examination.
There is no dearth of opportunities
in this country for young men. They
are more plentiful and more easily
availed of than at any time in the.
history of this country. The place for
their development has simply shifted
to new fields. While it is no longer
possible to trade pair of boots for the
site of the city of Chicago, nor buy up
square miles of mineral and timber
lands in the North for a song, a few
generations hence stories of fabulous
wealth, based upon modest investments
in the great undeyeloped South, will
sound as apocryphal as many OF those
relating to the amazing development
of other sections in years past, which
are nevertheless true.
A technical journal few years ago
published q statement relating to a
valuable mineral section in Southern
State, portraying very glowiugly, and
at the same time very truthfully, a
wonderful resource with all the essen
tial accessories convenient and avail
able for manufacturing a great staple
product cheaper than it could be made
in any oher part of the world. The art
icle. was reproduced in other journals
and excited passive interest in the
minds of perhaps million readers. A
leading fnancier, much given to cpl
gram, once remarked: Some men may
be coaxed into good thing; the 9TH
ers have to be driven It was several
years later, and not until after the,
great find had been trumpeted around
the world several times, that man
susceptible Of being coaxed into be-
coming the pioneer of tremendously
good thing, came forward and deye-
loped it. Of course thousands follow
ed, and great industrial center vas
ushered into existence.
Several years ago geologist stepped
off train at way station down in
Alabama and Clipped off a piece of the
outcropping rock in railroad cut.
After he had examined it and an
nounced to the world the discovery of
a geological formation constituently
Identical with that, at Dover, which
had for hundreds of years been yield
ing the worlds supply of Portland
cement, did investors fall over each
other in the race to develop it? No;
it literally went begging for years;
for, while it had been made the sub
ject of one or more learned essays,
which had been duly embalmed in off,
cial publications by the State, who
wanted to invest in wild land that
wouldn't yield decent support for
Harlem goat? Moreover, what assur-
ance was there that the real COM
mercial value of the discovery had not
been ohscured by the enthusiasm of
the discoverer? In the course of time
the Southern Railway came into exis-
tence and with it was inaugurated the
policy of rational promotion. The ce-
ment rock Of Alabama took its turn
with other dormant nterests requiring
attention English capitalists were
interested in the long neglected dis
covery; and, finally, there was erect
ed, near the spot where the geologist
Clipped off the rock years before, a
Portland cement plant costing mil
lion dollars. What are the potential
ties of this great resource of the State
of Alabama? The other day in the
Senate Chamber at Washington. its
geographical situation and commercial
outlook were discussed wit. reference
to the construction of the IsthmiaI
canal, and Senator Allison, of Iowa,
declared that in this respect it is of
she utmost Importance to all the peo-
pie of the United States.
A sportsman was going through
strip of woodland down IN North Caro-
lima, when he encountered party Of
men engaged in saving pine logs:
While conversing with them he
casually fell to counting the growth
rings in the logs; this led to inquiries
which established the fact, indubi
tably, that the forest was just 80 years
of age; and the men pointed out to
him the marks of the furrows where
cotton had grown before the field was
turned out'' to grow up in pine. 1t
was an easy matter to learn what the
land was WORTH or what it could
have been bought for when it was
turned OUT and of course the value
of the growth commercially, the cost
of conversion into lumber and the
marketing were all factors of simple
problem in arithmetic which was not
bard to solve. After computing every
possible element of expense in carry
ing an investment in old abandoned
farm land from the bare ground up to
the forest trees of commercial size,
this investigating huntsman was
amazed to find that the investment
figured out several hundred per cent,
and on its face appeared to be the
safest and most profitable form Of
investment that had ever come under