St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1908-12-26


awakening it to a new era of indus
trial and commercial progress, has
been sounded through the recent
Southern Commercial Congress is the
opinion expressed by G. GrosVenor
Dave, Director General of the
Changes. Mr.. Dave, in an interview
with representative Of the Asso-
ciated Press to-day, said:
"The record of the week in relation
to the idea of 81, 900, 900 endowment
fund for the Southern Commercial
Congress is that hundreds of men
who have returned to their homes in
the South have discussed it in private
and in print; that the New Orleans
Progressive Union has emphatically
indorsed the idea; that the CONNER
cial Club of Montgomery has not only
indorsed the idea, but is ready with
its 81, 900 contribution, and that three
of us had an entire days consultation
in New Orleans with John M. Parker,
President of the Congress. Our meet
ing was for the purpose of preparing
a statement to be shortly made
through the Executive Committee.
'"The Southern Commercial Con-
gress was a stupendous project with
a complex purpose. 1t was designed
to make the South know itself; to
make the South know and to utilize
the most fitting moment for such a
congress that has ever occurred in
American history.
"The spirit of the Congress was
not to stir up animoisty, but simply
to declare that the South; with its
possessions, needed development in
order to bring the nation to its
proper development. The clarion
call of the Congress to the men of the
South was for them to live for the
South, because the nation needs a
greater South.
''The Congress was a sane, sound
idea, worked out on broad lines at
the right time and the right place,
and it is doubtful whether in the
commercial history of the United
States there has been any meeting
that fired so strongly the magma
ton of those who came under its in
fluence. Why was this? Because we
who are interested in the commercial
development of the South have hith-
erto met with much disappointment
in our work. We hold our meetings
in our various communities; we read
great articles as true as they are
great; we prophecy great things, and
then the greater number Of the great
things do not come. But when we
saw it was possible for few men on
fire with a right idea to occupy the
center Of the American stage for tive
days and to hold the interest fol
several, we all realized that the thing
lacking hitherto had been co-opera.
tion and courage.
t'Hence the stupendous plan Of the
Congress naturally led eager anc
able minds to evolve still more
stupendous plan, and one that is JUS
as sound and as sane, but which
could not have been possible excep
as an outgrowth of the Congress
which suggested it. The project il
a great Office building and auditorium
in Washington, city in which NJ
satisfactory public auditorium car
be found and in which office room il
at a premium. This great building
will be the home of a persistan
Southern propaganda at home ant
abroad, and it's rentals will be de
voted to the furtherance of all com
mercial projects in the South tina
will aid in bringing that section int
a party of development with th'
rest of the United States. It will alst
be the. home of the Southern Club.
'"There will be maintained there al
exposition of resources arranged il
such a way as to bring immediate
results. Instead of a museum ar
rangement, the effort will be towards
special studios. each great resource
Of the South being assigned to ;
room. Thus man wishing to under
stand iron conditions could by map
learn the location of every know
ore bed, the location of every fur
mace, the relation of transportation
to the bed, and, by glancing at the
records, learn what properties were
| undeveloped or that needed addition
al capital. Any and everything tina
would give light on the subject O
iron and steel would be there
analysis, distance from fuxing ma
terial, etc.
''In a room devoted to health con
ditions would be the great facts o:
the South's advancing sanitation
thus demonstrating the pettiness 0:
present fears as to the South. Will
similar perfection of detail the whole
project would be carried out, ant
those of us who have our hearts II
this matter feel confident that sucE
cooperative move will accelerate
enormously the great development
that has already come to the Soutk
''We are fully aware that many
/ -.-. e.. .,.n,z- .-on.-r Lnr-a ,.o-.ao..a.