The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1908-11-11
THE BOIL WEEVIL IS HERE.
Farmer" Submits Some Pertinent Quer'
ieSReTatiVe to the Pest.

Correspondence jackson Daily News
That the boil weevil is now in
Kinds county none will scarcely
doubt. What will be the result
next year and for the years to
come? l have taken the trouble to
write to a district where they have
been for seven years, and they are
now there, still butting in their
destruction of cotton. The parties
there write that the first year it
does not destroy all the cotton, but
does great damage. The second
year it destroys practically all the
cotton. Is this the first year for
all of Kinds county? Certainly the
first year for the western half of
Kinds county, and there may be a
few all over the county, for our
people are not we'll acquainted with
it. Certainly we can calculate on
its doing great damage the next
year, and perhaps destroy all of the
cotton. Has the public, and es-
pecially the financial part of it,
walked up to what this means? 1t
is said by reliable man who has
been in it for seven years that after
the first year it INJURIES the cotton
never less than 25 per cent. and
from that to complete destruction.
Already we are told that the Match
ez banks have refused to loan
money in those districts where the
Weevil exists. Can a county mer-
chant or a farmer afford to advance
supplies on cotton to be made with
the risk that the boil weevil car
ries?
Practically all the money used
anywhere in this State comes
through the cotton plant. A de-
struction Of it means revolution in
farming. But an entire change Of
system of crops adds to the already
existing risk. The writer has
never had any confidence in the
early cotton system, because if we
could get an early crop we could
not get anything like a full crop
and unless we can get something
like full crop there is no profit
in planting cotton Even cutting
off of ,25 per cent would practically
destroy all profit in cotton farm
ing. | have always had more faith
in those things which God has made
to destroy the boil weevil than in
anything man has suggested. And
/ have absolutely no faith in the
subterfuge of early cotton and
intensive farming.
You can use intensive farming
on a little patch, but not on a
whole cotton field. And an intelli-
gent white man might do it, but
can't you get the negro to do it?
For some years have felt conf
dent we would sooner or later have
the boil weevil and have tried to
forestall it by the preservation of
the birds. They were made,
among other things by God, to de-
stroy the weevil, and | have felt
that if anything could prevent the
ravages it would be the birds. |
have therefore forbidden the kill
ing of birds and destroying Of their
nests on my plantation, but unless
my neighbors did this also | could
not have the desired results.
>Around the edges Of my farm has
been a paradise for hunters. / ap-
pealed to the board of supervisors
to prohibit the hunting Of birds for
years, but the hunters had the long
end Of the lever and that effort
was futile. appealed to the leg
islature, and asked that hunting be
prohibited for few years and that
the owners of dogs should Be re
quired to keep them confined dur
ing the nesting season, for They are