The leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1895-1905, 1904-04-16
FOR GREATER MISSISSIPPI
Items Of Industrial Interest GleaneJ From All Over the State
Notes and Comments.
BY a. E. BLAKEsLEE.

intended for this department to the
writer at jackson. Would be pleased
to hear freely and often from any who
are interested in the development Of
our State with suggestions or items OF
WORTH
The scarcity of labor in this section
is becoming a subject worthy OF
Thoughtful consideration by the peo-
pie. Something must be done to re:
lieve the situation. With the greatest
of difficulty have the farmers OF the
delta secured good hands for the
filling of their lands this year.
Some movement is necessary to in
duce the right kind of people to come
and locate with us. There are thou
sands of unemployed in the North and
East that might be utilized here to
an advantage. A great many OF the
States have bureau for this purpose
alone, and the results have been
highly satisfactory. An effort was
made by the legislative body just ad-
journed to create such commission,
but a lack of interest and realization
of the advantages to accrue let it die
in a committee room.
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Work of surveying an interurban
electric line to run from Jackson to
Ticksburg is under way, and the pro-
rioters announce that work will begin
as soon as the survey can be COM
pleted, right of way secured AMI the
contracts let. The distance Is about
forty miles and the intervening terri
tory thickly settled by thrifty and
prosperous people. 1t seems reasona-
bly, sure that this line will be built,
the pioneer of interurban roads in
Mississippi. The writer predicts that
in a very few years, there will be
in operation many miles of such lines
connecting neighborfhg towns and
communities. These lines will not
only carry passengers, but freight as
well, and the people will have a
cheaper and more expeditions way OF
communicating with each other and
the handling of crops, etc. The III
crease in population demands such a
system and will justify the erection
and operation of roads of this char
acter.
Here is a suggestion for the various
counties to distribute matter descrip-
tive of their soil, water, timber, ETC.,
that might he worth investigating, to
say the least of it. To stimulate
better class of immigration it is neces-
sary to place in the hands of the peo-
pie desired something that will tell
them of the proposed country For their
homes. Would it not be a good idea
for the various counties of the State
to get little booklets, leaflets or fold
ers. with all the matter contained
therein that would likely interest the
intended settler and furnish to the
commissioners in charge of the Mis-
sissippi exhibits at the fair this year
for distribution? In this way large
number of people could, be reached,
and that at very small cost. Our
exhibit will, no doubt, attract a great
deal of attention, and when a party
became interested hand him a booklet
containing the information that he
desired. We believe this to be good
scheme and hope to see the news
papers take the matter up and place
it before the people of their respective
counties.
AClC lS SOFCloI " w UuC q NV
miles north of Jackson that have gone
largely into the fruit and produce
business and are having the greatest
of success. Madison and Ridgeland
are the principal shipping points, and
the crop for this year is said to be
exceptionally good, with the excep-
ton of strawberries, which were dam
aged some by the cold weather of
some days since Hon. ]. B. Yellowly
of Ridgeland, was in Jackson last
week and stated that his peach crop
would be splendid if no untoward
accident came to destroy it later. He
confidently expects to ship ten or
twelve car loads of peaches from his
individual orchard Others have al
most as large a crop and the entire
section is in most prosperous condi-
ton. The fruit and trucking business
of the State is fast increasing in i'm
portance. There are thousands of
acres that would grow good fruit that
can't be worked in cotton and corn
profitably. The people only need d
start to make this industry go.
And now Greenville has fallen into
line with a regularly organized bust
ness league with paid secretary,
and will make concerted effort for
the location of factories, as well as
the general development of that splen-
did section of the country. 1t Is graf
energy with which our Mississippi
towns are taking on new life and
working to make themselves bigger
and better. AS the towns are de-
veloped, so will the country adjacent
thereto develop in proportion. If the
county town is large enough to con-
sumo all the produce raised by the
county does it not insure better prices
than if the cost Of transporting to
foreign towns had to be paid and will
the price not be better? Assuredly
So,
Should Mississippi win ner suit with
Louisiana for the oyster beds in con-
tention, several million dollars will be
added to the wealth of the State.
| West Point has taken the prelimi-
nary steps towards reorganizing her
board of trade, employing a hustling
secretary and going after business &C
cording to the latest and most ap-
proved methods. That will be the
best move that could possibly be made
by the town. Ssytematized effort will
win every time.
Yazoo City is just completing a
magnificent water and sewerage. plant,
to be owned and controlled by the
city. 1t will be the best that can be
had, and will no doubt prove profit
able investment for that hustiing
place.
Sunfiower county is wrestling with
the good roads question and is finding
difficulty in, settling it, as has num-
bers of other counties The good to
originate from these agitations comes
from the fact that. when the matter
is once taken up, 1t will not likely be
dropped until some solution has been
made. The State needs better roads
and must have them by some plan and
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