The Port Gibson reveille. [volume] (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1890-current, 1910-09-15
Opinions
Letter From DR.. Hart.

does every one, the lamentaDle ag-
ricultural conditions prevailing in
this section of the state. The raw
ages of the boil weevil, which you
and all Others SO greatly deplore,
was the prompting and principal
factor that impelled many good
citizens of the county to solicit the
cooperation of the state live stock
board and the Federal government
in the work of tick eradication.
That same factor was also the main
one that influenced the board OF
supervisors, who are in perfect
sympathy with your and all other
worthy interests in the county, to
lend the force of their office to the
project. They very wisely accept
ed the opportunity to derive an
early benefit from the appropria-
ton made by the state Legislature
for tick eradication, and thus af-
ford the farmers of the county an
opportunity to help themselves by
getting from under the ban of the
southern quarantine restrictions,
and thus in a measure supplement
the pillaged cotton crop. When
such an unfavorable condition ex-
lists, then is the time for men to
put their shoulders to the wheel
and counteract that condition in
every possible way. That tick
eradication in Claiborne county,
where conditions are so favorable
for live stock husbandry, is a very
important factor in that counter
action no one will dispute. In
so far as the 'sfew scrub COWS and
backed hogs are concerned,
they neverhave ,counteracted any
thing but the prosperity Of the
owner, and should also Be eradi-
Gated as rapidly as possible.
If tex eradication henehtssthe
.su,onied man" more than It does
the small herd owner, it is. only in
proportion as his herd is greater,
since there can be no monopoly of
cattle raising, and at the same time
it costs him more in that same pro-
portion to effect the eradication,
Ii will avail nothing to lament the
boil weevil conditions. If we can
not overcome the weevil we must
devote our energies to overcome
the conditions he has brought.
about.
Diversified farming in conjune
ton awith a we'll developed live
stock industry always has been the
most permanently successful sys-
tenn of agriculture in this country.
Many farmers in this county are
adopting this system as rapidly as
possible, and in that connection
are improving their herds, but es-
pecialfy are they sowing wheat,
oats, rye, grass seeds, etc.9 to off
set an expectedly Improbable cot
ton crop next year. In this respect
is where the stock law must also be
considered, as well as in tick erad-
ication.
There are two horns to the di-
Iemma, i. e., the unprotected
grain, hay and forage crops, and
tick eradication, in both of which
cases the stock law is absolutely
essential. The application of this
law is but the application Of a law
that has been in force for several
years, and is an important feature
of permanently profitable agricul-
ture.
The fever tick propagates prin-
cipally on cattle as its host, and IN
order to eradicate the tick, the cat
tie must necessarily be first con-
trolled. There have been up to
this time nearly 200 herds and
premises freed from ticks in this
county and there will be a great
many more freed before Nov. Ist.
If cattle are allowed to run atlarge
this winter these free herds and
pastures will become re-infected,
and the status of tick eradication
in the spring of 1911 will be almost
where it was in the spring of 1910.
This has been proven time and
again by actual and costly expert
ence. If cattle we're turned at
large in this county ] believe i
would be next to impossible to re-
cover them every two weeks for