The new South-news., 1909-04-17

citizen OF the state not many days
since remarked TO the writer that he
expected to see. within III, next Few i
years as strong an inclinstol amons 4
the people to get back To the tarn
as there has been during the past few
years to get away from IL. Let II be /
hoped sincerely that his deductions
are correct and that times viii again /
be what they should on the farms OF
Mississippi The educational cam
paigns now being SO vigorously was-
ed will no doubt be productive of
good results along that line. The
farms will be more attractive than
ever. the schools win build and
church facilities be equal to those OF
any country. Then. and then only
will our great old state enjoy the
prosperity and happiness that she
should.
The good work being done in va
rious ways viii tend to correct and
eventually entirely eliminate another
custom that has deprived Mississippi
OF many thousand good men and wo-
men in the past For too long have
our young men and young women. on
arriving at the age of maturity, bid
good bye to the old state and gone
West to assist In developing the re-
sources OF the states out there whom
we needed them right here at home
10 do the same thing. IL Is estimated
that within the past twenty years
100000 good white citizens have gone
from Mississippi TO the Empire state
OF Texas alone.
In the county up next to the Ten
nessee line where the writer was born
and reared. the ambition OF the aver
age boy was. TO accumulate enough
by the time he was of age to go West.
| Dozens, hundreds and thousands of
them have gone and ii means "A great
deal more than loss of so many good
citizens Many older men with fam
lilies. some OF them past the meridian
OF life joined the procession West
ward bound. These men, old and
young. have carried with them null
tiplied milimns OF dollars to invest
in a newer country when the old was
equally a. good or better and offered
as much returns If they had only
known It,
There has been a cause for this.
There was more cause twenty and
ten years ago than now. We have
been asleep too long and are only at
the present time beginning to awake
90
try. Why did Texas make such
heavy draughts upon us for men and
I means? Because she was wide awake
5 omen. tfiww amfw an an amfwyr
! and pushing all the time. The rail
: roads were undoubtedly the most po
e tent factors. They saw the opportu
= nifty for doing business both ways
: lines going and then to produce
: something to haul back. Beautiful
!. ly printed and glowingly worded Iii.
g erature was prepared and sent broad.
;. cast, extolling the virtues OF that sec.
tion, and there Is no doubt of its be-
ing a good country. but not one whit
better than Mississippi The people
themselves were worked up to an en-
thusiasm that was infectious for ths
: newcomer They said it was the best
country on earth and repeated 1t un
I'll they believed IL. The fairs
Agricultural. horticultural. live stock
poultry and other associations
{ brought them together once a veal
and the lesson OF boosting was re
hearsed until It was perfect All o
these things were attractive to th'
j. homeseeker and who could blam'
7 him for hunting such country wher
o the old state back home was still
q sleeping. They were doing some
ia thing and getting the best out o
IS life. The great Texas State Fai
II has been worth multiplied millions o
a dollars and countless thousands o
y people to that commonwealth. Man.
bought the low priced excursion tick
ct to Texas, saw the exhibit at tn
fair and hardly staId back home lon
~ enough to pack up their duds. Coui
u you blame a man so much for seek
II ing . country where there was some
y thing doing all the time. Not much
is What is the remedy? DO these yer
things right here In Mississippi
- Bring our own people to the realiza
ton that this is just az good a stat
in the Union and In many respect
~ the best. Show them that the farr
m worker has just as much or IIttl
n more at the end Of the year her
r than elsewhere. Encourage them t
N adopt up-to-date methods and use Ia
b. bor-saving implements in handlin
ly their crops. Diversity and stop th
outflow OF money for things ths
could and should be produced her
Encourage the crop-growing contest
among the young boys and build th
!" agricultural high schools to prepar
v them for the A. & NJ College. ForI
~ associations for all lines H indui
'' try and get together at least once
year for a conference. Build an