The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1908-08-07

tHt uaJlDDdl. anu bJdbs dutnOFlti
These laws are collectively called tb
quarantine laws. II they are strict,
= enforced the result must be the exter
minstion Of the ticks. sooner or later
Bat will they be, or can they be disre
garded with %impunity? Well. m IA
bell Of Kansas did think 30. He doe
not now.
TnR AsBELL CASE.
The facts in this now noted case are
very few, but very plain. AsbelI wa
Indicted, tried, and found guilty for
taking cattle, without having them 10,
spectcd, from tick infected Oklahoma
into Labette County, Kansas, and he
was fined $500. and sentenced to jail ior
thirty days, He appealed TO the Su-
preme Court Of Kansas. and that simply
sustained the trial court. lie then took
an appeal 10 the Supreme Court Of the
United States at Washington to test the
esastitutjonaltty Of the quarantine
laws, and 0yer throw them il possible.
But that great court has recently G n
dercd a decision which blow AsbelTs
contention 10 the winds. II held the
quarantine laws T. be strictly constitu-
tional, and that they must aud will be
enforced and obeyed. 1t Lcld that
Asoell ~as properly corrected, and
must pay bis fine and go to Jail. The
greatest court in America has spoken.
The quarantine laws have come 10 stay
while the ticks stay. And the L. K.
laws at least will be enforced, even il
Mississippi, or any other state, shall
neglect TO enforce the states laws,
But they will not. The ticks have got
10 20, And the laws will help make
them go,
LOCAL APPLICATION.
But how does all this interest or con-
Germ the State of Mississippi. and es-
pectally the section around Greenwood
Well, Mississippi has now by the L..
$, census about 1000 600 head Of horned
cattle, 1t Ia 80 situated in the very
heart Of the great corn belt, and can 80
cbeaply furnish every kind of cattle
food and forage that it might and could
sustain 100000 head. Its winters are
80 short and its climate 80 genial, It's
shipping facilities so ample, it's need OF
a varied agriculture 80 great, the price
OF meat In all the markets Of America
so great, with every prospect that II
will be higher still in the near future,
and 1t IL in every way so adapted to
cattle raising, ~ to make certain that
mississippi will soon be az it ought 10
DO, one Of the greatest cattle raising
states In all America, or, indeed, In the
world! But the state is badly tick iu-
tected. 1t is entirely below the L. s.
quarantine line, and also that OF Ten
nessee. 4 host of ANNOUNCEMENTS face
its cattle raisers. Pile them up and
add them together, and see. A great
many cattla-a very great many in the
aggregate, do each year lie down and
die OF the cOntagion, and many times
the M are ignorant OF the cause.
A great many more which do not actu-
ally die are 30 poisoned and stunted by
the contagion as to be OF little or no
value, for they will not fatten, and their
beef is OF little or no value. Now these
are very dead losses. Another dire re-
Is that the ticks are fast reducing
the herds OF the state into q race OF
and scrubs. Then there Ia the
continued loss of milk and butter, and
all the fees, and expenses, and costly,
and veSatious delays which the quar-
antine must cause all shippers and buy
ers.
And In addition to all these, and more
unnamed, there is one loss which the
fullest mind can at once see and COM
orehend, and hat is the very great
'hrinkage in the sale price Of all cotton
marketed. The price OF any commodity
n the great markets Axes the price Of
hat commodity in all the lesser mar
tets. Now, Mississippi cattle are I'm.
Ter suspicion and under the ban by the
treat prevalence Of the ticks. Shipped
o market they must run the gauntlet
Il the quarantine laws, as all cattle
nen know, which have a firm grip on
IL railways and steamboats,. And once
often to market, outside the state,
re met by the local quarantine, and az
certain result they can only be sold /;
t all for immediate slaughter This ;
.oes what2 Cuts down the price at ]
onerhalf as every cattle buyer
nows. And II W assume that all these |
>sse9 only aggregate an average loss Of !
My - on each head OF the 1000, 900 in
iIssissippi, why here Is a loss, worse
han useless, OF $4,000, 900 for each and |
very year! And Is this no matter OF )
oncern to the people of MississippiP !
My the most gross and stupid igno- I
'nce could say or think so! And this !
to continue? Yes, sssuredly, until \
ticks are stamped out in Mississippi. 4
ut can 1t be done2 Most certainly. B
y the rigid war OF grease and quaran. 4
ne by the U. s. and local authorities \
st season, $4,000 square miles Of \
territory were cleared Of the !!
cks, and II all these sections were \