The Kemper herald., 1908-06-11
FOR GREATER MISSISSIPPI
c.,...n A~stra Conn and Arrieultural
tie vond Of the SeatD
irs rest from Quarters
y H. DLAKEsLIE, Jackson Hiss
- u. Z BLAKEsLHE. Jaekssn.

present conditions in Mississippi and
the hope for the future, was written
J. H. Simpson, practical farmer
and member of the present house
Of representatives. Mr.. Simpson s
letter is we'll worthy of publication.
According to trustworthy statis-
ties, the average or per capita pro-
duction of farm labor in many states
is two to thre times as great as IN
Mississippi, aad as { consequence, the
the market value Of their farming
land is from three to five times as
great as our. Why is this9 Well in
there is an old adage that says: That
is more in the man than there is in
the land As there is something rad
ically wrong with one or the ethsr,
or both, it behooves us to locate the
evil and apply the remedy. 1t has
been proven thousand times and the
in thousand ways, that few spots on
earth have finer soil or climate than
dear old Mississippi. 1t is not in the
land. Then the question, what is the
matter with our man.
"In the first place, here rs a negro
and large majority of cases, very
ignorant and very indolent. 1gnor-
ance and Incidence are an eternal
handicap to every business and more
so to farming than any other. Not
only brain, but broad culture is abb
soluteiy essential to anything like the
best results in agriculture. In some
lines it is necessary to know only a
few things, know them well and hus-
tie. But in agricultural pursuits a
man must know a great many things,
know them perfectly and apply them
energetically if he attains real sue
cess. We can't go into details here,
but I would like to impress upon the
young white men of Mississippi, that
in up-to-date, scientific agriculture,
there is broader field for the devel-
opment of your intellect, your busi-
ress capacity and greater pecuniary
reward than there is for the many in
any other calling.
The regular, redneck, hayseed, ra-
zorback farmer, oftentimes more ig-
norant, more indolent and more vici-
o4ss than tine average negro, has been
justly ridiculed and condemned. This
class was never so numerous, and by
no means as bad citizen as lis pro-
totype in any other avocations. But
because of his existence, certain light
headed writer's have tried to bring
in to contempt the grandest and most
useful class and calling of this or
any other age. But the redneck with
the razorback is passing out. More
and more young men with brain and
energy are making farming their bus
iuess. They breed good stock, they
improve the soil and double and treb-
lie its productive capacity within a
very few years. They use improved
implements and double the capacity
of the laborer, they study the markets
and produce that class and kind Of
crops that will net them most money.
And every young man so engaged is
making more money than half dozen
dry goods clerks. Besides, they are
mentally, morally and physically the
best developed specimens of manhood
in the country, and are and will be,
the men of affairs.
Now young Mississippians! I ap-
peal to you. The prosperity of our
whole state depends upon agricul-
ture. We produce but third or a
fourth as much per capita as many
other states. We are twenty-five
years behind the times. Scratch farm
ing on the all cotton and all negro
plan will soon make it hundred. As
long as the only great permanent
resource of our state is controlled by
the most ignorant and indolent peo-
pie in the world, we can but go from
bad to worse. You, and you only,
can place us in the front rank where
we rightfully belong. The negro. is
"a right handy fellow under many con
ditions. A characteristic that com
menas him to many is, that you can
euss him around In scientific ag-
riculture he is not the best laborer,
and certainly we don't need him at
the head of the greatest industry of
the state. Young men, if our ag-
riculture is to develop along scientific
lines, we need your brain and your
energy on every farm. The situation
appeals to you from every point"
The management of the Mississippi
State Fair have decided to almost
double the amount offered in pre-
miums for agricultural, horticultural
and live stock exhibits this fall. 1t
will be the purpose of the manage
ment to increase the premiums from