The Hattiesburg news., 1910-08-29
M. s. HAlSFIEL

the opening up of new lands and new
countries and in part to the desire of
many Southern people to get away
from slavery. In 1860, 100000 South
ern-born whites were then living in
other parts of the country, mainly in
the West. They had been largely in
strumental in the settlement of Ohio,
Indiana, Illinois and Michigan, the
movement having followed the old
trail of Daniel Boone across the noun
tains through Kentucky and thus on
into the far West. These people and
their descendants became great fac
tors in the development of the whole
Central West and the Pacific Coast.
' After 1865, due to the utter destruc-
tion of the war and the far worse con-
ditions which developed in reconstruc-
tion days, there was practically no
employment or but very limited en-
ployment for active, hustling men and
boys in the South. The situation was
so dark and apparently so hopeless
that a great emigration to the north
and westward took place. Between
1855 and 1900 about 2,5OO,OOO South
ern-born whites moved from that Sec
ton to other sections. In this l do
not include those who went from the
To
sas-numbering about 100000 more.
The central South from Virginia to
Mississippi was thus drained of over
three million of its best people, all
things considered, the~greatest drain
which any country in modern times
has had to stand. This mighty loss
in population drained the South of
many of its strongest and best mel,,
old, middle-aged and young. Out of
its weakness and poverty it gave its
best lifeblood to the enrichment and
upbuilding of other sections. This
loss was far greater than the actual
loss by the war. 1t weakened the
virility of the South; weakened it's
ability to develop its business inter-
ests; weakened its ability to maintain
conservatism in politics, and thus
threw upon those who remained at
home a greater burden than any peo-
pie in modern times was ever called
upon to face. Those left behind had
to reconstruct governments, reestab-
lish business, reorganize their labor
system, while burdened with over
whelming debts and with poverty be-
yond anything that could be realized
by those who did not pass through the
war and the days following.
| Under these conditions what the
South has accomplished is really
marvel. 1t is one of the most dramat-
ic things in human history. Hence
forth it is not to suffer from the emf
grafton of its own people, and it is to
be enriched in every phase of it's life
by the incoming of many thousands
from the North and West and eventu-
ally from Europe. If it had been DOS
sible in 1900 to make a schedule of
its assets and liabilities and to show
the net results since 1865, the profit
J side would have shown a very great
| increase in railroads, in manufactur-
ing industries and some advance in
agriculture. But there would have
been on the other side a depreciation
in the loss of men which if rightly
figured would doubtless have entire
ly Offset the advance shown in the
statistics of its material growth. The
loss of 100000 of it's best white peo-
pie was in the aggregate greater than
the profit shown in the increase in the
investments of railroads and manu-.
featuring enterprises. It is only with
in the last ten years, or since 1900
when the emigration practically ceas-
ed, that the real development of the
South has commenced In that period
its national banking resources have
grown from $516,O00,OOO to s1,2s4 ,0O0,-
600. The individual deposits in its
national banks have in the same time
advanced from s264,9OO,oOo to $780,
100000. This is greater per centage
Of gain in resources and in new de-
posits than was made by the rest of |
the country during the same period. |
The resources and the deposits in |
State banks and trust companies in |
the decade 1900-1s1O was equally as |
remarkable. 1t was during that per-
iod that the South made its greatest
advance in Industrial development as