The log cabin Democrat. [volume] (Conway, Ark.) 1901-1982, 1909-02-18
OPPONENTS OF STOCK LAW
Letters to the Editor from Some
Who are Against 1t.
Will Work Great Hardship on Poor Farm
ers and Renters, Accordingto
Correspondents.
FROM WEDNESDAYS DAILY.

The Log Cabin Democrat is in
receipt of'several lengthy communl-
cations from citizens of the county
who are opposed to the enactment
of stock law. Our space will not
permit the publication of all OF
these letters. We desire, however.
to accord a fair hearing to both
sides of the controversy, and as the
more important points urged by
our correspondents against the law
are contained in letter from b
F. Bass of Vilonia, we have select
ed it from among those received to
publish in full. 1t follows:
Editor Log Cabin Democrat:
l wish to express my opinion as
to the effect of the stock law on
the farmers of Faulkner county. 1t
will rob the people of their rights
and liberties. God made the green
grass and woods for the swine and
OK to roam therein, and when the
legislature passes law to force the
poor people, the honest farmer, to
buy land and fence pastures tor
their stock, it will be robblng them
of their right. 1t will cost a great
deal more than many of us are able
to do. 1t will mean dollars to the
rich railroad companies who own
the larger portion of the hills OF
Faulkner county, and the man
who owns the hills of Faulkner
county is the man who owns most
of the county, and is the man who
wants a law to that effect. We
know that there are thousands OF
acres of land in this county that
are worth nothing where they are
situated but for range for the
stock of the farmer who lives in
the valleys of these hills. When
the people have to buy this land
it will cost them from S. to 81 an
acre, which is more than it is
worth.
While most of the farmers have
fences around their farms, they
had better let them stay and not
tear them down to make pasture
fences. The stock have in most
places more grass running on the
commons than they would have II
the law is passed. Hogs are half
of the poor mans living. If he can
raise his hogs on the commons,
where they don't cost him much,
his meat is cheap, and if he has
surplus to sell he can get good
price. But where he has to buy
corn at 75c to 81 a bushel and feed
it to his swine the year round, his
meat will cost him more than he can
afford to pay.
There are hundreds of farmers
who have their farms fenced with
wire fencing which would lie a
good fence for several years, but
it could not be moved to make a
pasture fence. And when he gets
it patched up and moved around a
little hillside for pasture, he won't
get to let it stay long enough to
pay him for his trouble, until he
will have to tear it down and put
it back around his field, for, gen
tlemen, it won't take the people
long to find out that they don't
need stock law for old Faulkner.
About the next thing the farmer
will have to do after he gets his
pasture land fenced will be to pay
a tax to fence Faulkner county to
keep the stock from the adjoining
. counties from coming over and
visiting the nice corn and cote n
crops of the farmer VINO lives close
to the county line.
So, friends and voters, am
against a stock law and we must
not sit still and let the merchants
and bottom landowners run stock
law over us, for we will have to
give away our cattle and hogs at
half price, for there will be no
demand for such stock as the farm
ers have now, and they will have
to pay two prices for little better
stock of hogs and cattle and in
many Instances they won't be as
good.
l want to tell Mr.. William Pack,
the leader in this movement, that
l am not very we'll acquainted
with him personally, but | think
that if he is instrumental in caus-
ing law of this kind to be passed
on the poor, honest farmers of
Faulkner county he will set the
county back ten years more. |
believe that l am speaking for
about three-fourths Of the farmers
of the county. B. F. BASS,
Vilonia, Ark, Feb. IS, 1909.