The Greenville times., 1910-10-07

An Interesting Paper Written By
An Old Greenvillian At The
Historical Associa-
tion Meeting.

Mr.. James RObertShaw s reminis-
cences of Greenville, continued, read
by his daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth Meade
at the eighth meeting of the Washing
ton County Historical association, on
October 3, 1910.
My last contribution to your archives
was supposed TO embrace all the lead
ing events up 70 the epidemic of 1873,
but many things were omitted for the
sake of brevity, and as events come
thick and fast involving rapid changes
and making what was new on yester-
day old today, a thing of the past has
little interest for those ever impatient
for something new and the dead past
is allowed to bury its past in the wide
region of forgetfulness. This craving
for the newness of things, or things
new, has always dominated mankind
and causes many of us to live constant
ly in anticipation of the something that
is to be, and to this Indictment / per-
sonally plead guilty, for it took no lit
tie restraint to keep me from being
in advance of events treated upon.
Thus hampered 7 omitted the advent of
one or more agencies tending to the
development of the City of Greenville
and of Washington County, generally
Foremost of all was that of the mar
faI
and terminating at Stoneville in 1873
under the cognomen of the Greenville,
Columbus & Birmingham Railroad.
This experiment, the first in the Delta:
proved so gratifying to the projectors,
and resident planters of the rich coun-
try Eastward, that with a community
of assistance the projectors later on
extended it to Johnsonville in Sun
flower County, between which point
and its initial home, Greenville, 1T was
operated by its founders until the ear
" eighties of the last century when it
became the property of that great sys-
| tenn now known as the Southern Rail
| road and made standard guage road.
| How much the success of this road in
fuenced the projectors of the Yazoo-
Mississippi Valley Railroad Company
| to build a trunk line from Memphis
through the Delta to New Orleans can
only be surmised, sufficient for this
treatise it was built and the two roads
| revealed to the world a wealth OF TIM
Der heretofore valueless on account OF
| its inaccessibilitv. Like magic, saw
milling plants sprung into existence
and cotton seed oil mills made their
epiphany, to describe all of which
would be tedious and probably unin-
addition to the increased value of the
woodlands. cotton-seed, previously not
of hi oh value, became factor IN plant
ing economy and enabled planters to
raise cotton at prices prevailing which
otherwise must have proved doubt
full pursuit, if not a beggaring one
/ Contemporary with these Innovations
the great money lending corporations
were attracted to this section and lands
hitherto regarded as of doubtful value
outside of Memphis and New Orleans
became a basis of credit which enabled
our merchants and planters to dis
charge their obligations to the two cen
tres alluded to- As a consequence Il
cotton compress was built and the
banking resources of the Delta metro
polls to meet the new demands were
aupmented and Greenville became
cotton market Anterior to this the
cotton of the Delta, while better than
it is now owing 30 the virginity OF the
soil and frequent inundations, never at
tanned its value compared with uplands.
One half of one per cent per pound
had been the maximum premium on
Benders; what it commands today is
known the world over and eagerly
scrambled for at the increased PREM
ium. Later on new banking institu-
CONTINUED on Insert.)