The Washington herald., 1909-01-03

lands around the lake. Baf1ed in the at
tempt to drain the lake, it was now de-
termineu 10 redeem the lands in some
other way The levee system offered an
opportunity. Judge Harris saw that II the
Mississippi could be prevented from flow
ing down into Reelfoot Lake every spring.
he would be able 10 clear from l0VV0 10
300 acres Of the swamp timber brake
land which he owned in sthe ReelfOot
basin. He became head Of the local levee
commission. He made applications to the
United States Mississippi River Commits
sion. and to-day l35 miles Of the twenty
miles OF levee necessary 10 save the low
shores of ReeifOOt from inundation have
been built But the local board, which
began work with much enthusiasm, did
no work last year. and the Mississippi
commission placed 1850 cubic yards Of
dirt without local assistance. The landp
owners Of Lake County did not take kind
~ 10 the high Ievee tax, whose avOwed
purpose was TO redeem many thousand
acres Of land for the Harris estate,
though it would add. it was claimed. l0o.-
0o0 acres Of cotton land to the Reelfoot
cultivable area
Heretofore the troubles have been mat
tiers Of courts and politics. Independent
observers could not become enthusiastic
in favor Of the fishermen and hunters
who were fighting every attempt 10 pre-
serve the FISH and game nor for the peO-
pie who desired IN get ali the profit pos
siDle from The lake. So far as one
could see It was simply a matter Of
greed opposed 10 avarice. But Judge
Harris has been very plainly a more pro
gresSive man than his opponents, and
when he talked with me about trying TO
carry out his fathers plans ne showed
himself more than willing TO put his
shoulder 10 the wheel FOR the progress
Of Lake County
The trouble Is right here" he told me-
Almost all the land in Lake County Is
owned By five OF six persons. and II We
are not progressive il keeps everybody
down The land ought 10 be cut up into
small farms. Wearfed by the fight,
Harris sold out to the West Tennessee
Land Company. whose head was Rankin
The LynchinE Habit.
LyHching Is no new thing to Lake
County. The citizens OF Lake County
were St one time greatly addicted 10
the habit of lynching negroes. and
cypress Tree at a fence corner just aoTta
e the town was pointed out 10 me IS
the niger tree.
Seven niggers have been hanged on
that tree. il was explained on one
occasion. negro was hanged BY an i'm
patient mob OF the main street or the
town. bat this made some feeling TIE
tree was cut down, and the incident for
gotten IS far as possible. The people
o. lake County ten about the trial Of "a
negro in the Tiptonville, Lake County.
Court The court was crowded. and the
men were particularly wrought up by
the woman's story. The jury received
the case and then there WIS q delay
They could Tot agree
Its "a hung jury" somebody an
nOunced.
Well We'll have hung negro. too
Somebody shouted. and the mob surged
forward. The negro was hanged. forth
with. Later Il was learned that one Of
the white men on the jury. and The son
Of another OF the jurors. had been ac-
cuseG Of the crime Tney escaped but
were driven frcm the country.
I was told that many more negroes
would have been iynched in Lake COun-
y II IL had not been for one difficulty
which the residents met al last The
negroes began 10 move away. and the
wandering cotton pickers ceased 20 visit
Lake County. so, that increasing diff
Guilty was experience in getting the cot
ton picked Nowhere in the Delta is a
higher price paid for cotton picking than
in Lake County. Still. with Lake Couu-
tvs reputation FOR lynching negroes. the
negroes did not come In numbers Thus
the habit or lynching negroes was seTi-
oUsIy interfered with for commercial
reasons.
Certainly, with its dead, submerged
wilderness. its lynchings and its feuds
tthe bloOGiest Of which Mark Twain has
recorded the Reelf00t country is one Of
the strangest regions along the Missis-
sippi River