The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1909-11-11
President Taft'S
Speech at Jackson
on November ]

Judges stand, ten rect ABOVE the tnOuS'
ands of unturned faces, and said:
Ladies and gentlemen, citizens of Missis
sippi:
! am glad to be here and am very
proud of the cordial reception which
you gave me. / thank your distin
guished governor for his sympathy, ant
for his company in the last four or fiv,
days, during which have absorbed mucF
information in respect TO Mississippi.
thank your senator McLaurln for coming
to and attending this reception. / thanl
the mayor of the city, of which / know
lie must be proud, though | have not had
the opportunity to speak TO him on ths
subject for taking part in this reception.
And now, my friends, am glad to b.
here for another reason. ] am glad
to be in the state in which agriculture i.
your chief trade and occupation (applause)
We must admit that the occupation of the
farmer is among the one or two most i'm
portant occupations that go to make this
country great. (Applause.) And that
state which is great because of it is en-
titled to recognition as IMPLYING Ameri-
canism in the highest degree. (Applause)
Your cotton, your corn, both of which,
though not an expert, have had the op-
portunity of seing in your agricultural ex-
hibit, and your lumber, and / believe the
governor said until the late supreme court
decision, the oyster, constituted pillars of
strength for the people of Mississippi in
creating that wealth that the sun of God
and the rains help you to make. We have
arrived at time in the Development of
this country and the world when old meth
DDS must be discarded if we would keep
up with the procession. Land is be-
coming too valuable to treat it in the old
wasteful way. The profession of the far
mer is becoming real scientific profes-
sion, and am glad to know that Missis-
sippi is at the head of the column in hav-
ing one of the best agricultural institu-
tions in the country.
The Rush to Cities.
Here you have been able to restrain that
tendency of young men to come into great
cities, the tendency of the men, Iaborers and
otherwise, to come into urban neighbour
hoods and live in tenements in order that
they may be where they think the wheels
go round. You have an agricultural popu-
fsiesl, an and I 9hey fensfiRf and
congratulate you on that fact. The truth
is, if l were to advise a young man in
this country as to the future profession,
| should say to him that there was pro-
badly greater opportunity for real re-
ward in activity, industry, attention to
business and scientific investigation in
the profession of agriculture than in any
other profession that this country affords,
lApplause.)
Your state has the tradition by which
most of young great men were both
lawyers and farmers, but / am quite
certain that that combination makes good
for agriculture am afraid that some of the
distinguished members of your bar find,
or did find before you gave them every
thing of that sort, that a glass of milk
was about as expensive as glass of
champaign. But the tendency toward the
country and country life is the tendency
that we ought to encourage in this country.
1t tends towards safe and philosophical
and quiet considerations of the problems
of life; it takes out that nervous ex-
haustion of energy; it takes out the gamb-
ling spirit; it takes out of the life of the
citizen that hurry and rapidity that carries
men quickly to the graves, and it makes
for the happiness of the individuals and
families far greater than the persuit OF
any trade or profession that brings you
into the maelstorm of great city life
Hence, it is that I believe you are to be
regarded as situated in the most fortunate
place in this entire country. You have not
developed your state as doubtless you
will develop it under the new methods OF
agriculture. There is much to be done in
the way of the education of your laborers
am glad to think that your large negro
population are more adapted to the cul-
tivation of the soil, and that through that
cultivation, and the cultivation of prov
ident methods, they may grow to be good
citizens and useful to the community
(Applause.) BY acquiring land as they
have acquired it in the past, and by becom-
ing strong farmers and useful to the entire
state.
The Future Of the RiOer.
And now my friends, this is the first
time that | have had the pleasure of
standing on Mississippi soil except in the
course Of a rapid railroad trip through
the state, and am glad to be here. I
skirted your state on the Mississippi river.
Many of the delegation, think most of