Okolona messenger. (Okolona, Miss.) 1900-current, 1904-01-20

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devoted to some other use thaa thai
Of a State-provided home for the gov.
ernor. II would Be q matter Of econ.
omy both for the State and for the
governor, for the State 70 increase the
salary Of the governor. and permit
him to live. as do other public serv.
ants. at the capitol. I do not like the
idea OF the executive mansion. Il Is
a relic Of royalty, and has the odor
Of that enete aristocracy which IS a
curse to every country where It -four
ishes, and IL also cOntemplates and
imposes social obligations which sin
against the strength Of manhood and
consume time which should be devot-
ed to more serious things.
A liberal system Of pensions for
INDECENT and helpless confederate sol
diers, is a matter which should COM
mand the most ardent support Of every
patriotic Mississippian. Aside from
considerations Of humanity, a sense Of
profound gratitude should move the
people Of this State to provide for
these old heroes, to drive from the
door of poverty and old age the raw
enous wolf Of want, whose discordant
grOWls make hideOus the twilight OF
their honorable lives. II is not a mere
matter of charity that | ask, my coun-
trymen. but. on the contrary, l wish
to remind you Of a moral obligation
resting upon every citizen Of this
State, and one which he should thank
God for the privilege Of absolving.
Man is the creature Of heredity and
environment; the most useful lessons,
are the lessons learned from other lives.
The value Of the example Of incom-
parable s~elf-sacrihce, devotion to prin-
ciple and loyalty to those cherished
ideals which have glorifed and en-
riched Southern civilization, Of which
they are the embodiment, cannot be
measured by dollars and cents, or ade-
quately rewarded by all the genera
tons yet to come. Some Of the newspa-
pers complain that the number Of pen
sioners is increasing and that the bur
den upon the tax payers Is growing
heavier every year. That the num-
Der of pensioners is increasing, is but
in accord with the eternal order Of
things. The veterans are growing old
er every year, and, consequently, more
feeble and less able to support them
selves. But a few years more, and
the number will begin to decrease, and,
then, it will not be long until the last
name will be dropped from the roll
the last p~enoioner upon the States
love and gratitude will have crossed
over the river and taken his place
with the heroes in eternity. As long
there is one left, however, l want
It. understood that / care not how
heavy the burdens Of taxation may be,
just so long as the money is needed
and properly expended for the sup
port of the helpless Confederate sol
der. Indeed, I count myself fortunate
that ! am permitted to bear a part Of
the burden and contribute to so noble
and worthy a cause. | think the pen
sions should be increased, and | am
also Ia favor of providing a soldiers
home. Remember. my friends, that in
manhood's prime, he gave the spring
time of life to the service of his cOun
try; he spent his strength In doing
battle for a constitutional right; he
lost, 1t is true; we all lost, but that
should not lessen our love or absoiye
our obligation to him. It is a duty,
and should be pleasure, out of the
bOunteOus gifts with which a kind
Providence has rewarded our efforts,
to provide for him a house and a
hearth in which he may spend the
Of his years and warm his
and shriveled hands at the fire
Of a home maintained by the State.
These are some of the matters, prin-
ciples and policies to which l have
thought it prudent to call to your at
tention. That they are vital and per
pregnant with good for the
commonwealth, If treated by the wise,
patriotic and courageous statesmen,
there can be no question.
The experience of all the generations
dead, the footprints along the high
way of Time, leave no doubt about the
road for Mississippians to follow. The
distilled wisdom ~bequeathed to us by
cur sages and u heroes of the past
should inspire us with confidence
and courage, and provide the pillar Of
fire to light the pathway of duty.
And now, my fellow citizens, / 60 to
the work to which you have called me.
My experience in public matters
terms as a member Of the legis-
lative department of the State govern
ment, and many years Of patient study
Of our system of laws and economic
problems-gives me some knowledge
Of the difficulties and grave RESPONSE
bilities Of the office Of chief execu-
tive.
l am deeply conscious Of the fact
that it is rarely the good fortune Of
man to retire from this exaltei
with the reputation and favor
which bring him to it. The hsa. Of
the contest, the ferveney Of friend
and the devotion of the partisan,
inaame the imagination and the eandi-
date Is sometimes invested with ideal
qualities, which he may not in fact
possess; roseate predictions regarding
his administration are extravagantlg
indslged, and when, in the discharge
of the duties of the Office, he falls be-
low that ideal-toO high for imperfect
men to neutrality-suspicious. fol-
lows, and the eye that once could see
only order and good in him. distorted
by disappointment, now sees only err
ror and irregularity. Such, / fear, is
too often the history Of man. Mine
may not be an exception. Without pre-
tension to ANYTHING above that which