The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1910-12-21

wants to find the best people on
earth" me should go to South Carolina.
True, this statement might seem bit
hackneyed at first. but there's rea-
SON."
Six years ago The News AMI Court
er's Washington correspondent left
South Carolina for the National Capi-
tai and only once during that six years,
until the last week, was the oppor :
tunity afforded of returning home to
see the marvellous strides that hav @
been made and the almost phenomenal
growth of many small towns all over
tthe Palmetto State.
Beginning at Charlotte. where South
Carolina ought really to start, the
erection of cotton mills all along the
line has completely changed that sec
tion during the last six years. Where,
formerly, a few scattered country
stores dotted the way, there are now
big factories with thick smoke issuing
from their tall chimneys singing with
the music of industry. Brick and
concrete building have taken the place
of the small wooden ones formerly
there. and. above all, the magnificent
residences that one sees all along the
line of railroad speak for the industry
and prosperity of the Carolina people,
Piedmont People.
Dealing first with the upper Caro-
linians-Gr the Piedmont people--it
was a most agreeable thing to find
that within the last few years they
had made such substantial progress.
Automobiles now dash along the high
ways I'm the place of the lowly mule
that formerly was king, this, too, tell
ing in unmistakable. terms of the pro-
gress in transportation lines.
little talk with the people along
the railroad from Charlotte to Lau-
renS, through Spartanburg. soon show
ed that thew were vitally interested in
the question of good roads and that
they are expecting the members Of the
South Carolina delegation in Congress
to accomplish something along this
line for Them at an early date With
not only to haul bigger loads of farm
:tuf to the towns and mnre of them
everV day. hut more automobiles will
find th.v way hero and ti.s. in turn,
means the erection of more suburban
homes all over the country. Along
with the better river and harbor de-
velopment must come better highways
the Carolinans said.
In the prer-counties-an dthe same
thing is no doubt true of those in the
lower sectiCn-the people have more
cash money than they can use. Even
the negro tenants are in an excellent
financial condition. Here and there
a few "moss- backs" arc to be found
doomsday just ahead and who oppose
anything that looks to progress-but
they are the exception now in South
Carolina. The people are making in
vestments, having faith in their State
and their respective sections and be-
lieving that they could do no better
than get i'm line with the advancing
army of prosperous people.
The Future.
Gaffney. Blacksburg. Woodruff, Spar
tanburg and Laurens show at glance
that they are in the march of progress
and that if they maintain their pres
ent prosperous growth they. will be-
tween this time and the taking of the
next census ten years hence. show
what the Piedmont section can do.
Talks, with people from the country
between Laurens and Charleston indi-
cate that they are not only generally
but that, above all. they are glad they
are living and living too i'm old South
Carolina. Columbians are proud of
their skyscrapers and though Just bit
out with Director Durand OF the CEN
sus bureau because lie did not show
they had a few more people when he
made his official count there recent
ly, are preparing 10 convince him. if
he holds the same Place ten years
from now that he was badly mistaken
when he counted only about 2G.OO0
noses in Columbia. when he should
have given them $1,000 or 10000. But
that's getting off the main line to the
siding. The Columbians, from what
could be learned, are not through
building skyscrapers. They are going
to surprise the people during the next
few years in more ways than one. and