Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1911-03-16
A NEW ERA
FOR The SOUTH
Important Meeting of the Southern CON-
mercial Congress at Atlanta, Ca,
Last Week.

LdSi Weth
The third annual meeting of the
Southern Commercial Congress thst
closed its session at Atlanta last Friday
heralds new era for the Southland.
The sentiment and keynote of the
meeting was for the South to prepare
for the opening of the Panama Canal
and to be ready to take care of the in
creased population and prosperity that
the canal means for the South. pre-
pare for the Panama Canal' might in
deed, be taken as the slogan of the
meeting, and if the forecasts made bv
the speakers in Atlanta come true the
next great movement of settlers will be
towards the great South instead of the
West or Northwest which has hereto
fore been the mecca of homeseekers.
John M. Parker, of New Orleans.
president of the congress in a general
statement explained the aim of the or
ganlzation, congratulated the delegates
upon the organization made through
organization by those commercial sec
retaries throughout the South "of
young men looking forward with hone.
He deprecated what he termed q decline
OF the nation into idleness, luxury. ex-
travagance and will excess:
President Parker said in part:
Forty years ago a meeting of this
character would have been bevond the
conception of the widest dreamer and
the greatness of the United States is
typitied hen the great men of the ma
ton assist in making the world appre-
oiate the vastness of Southern possibili-
ties.
The patriotism Of the men who
came from the North and East and
West at their own expense to preach TO
the whole world on Southern ADVANTAGES
shows the perfect unity Of the greatest
nation on the globe.
President Parker said the time was
ripe when the great thinkers Of the
United States should work out some
equitable basis of taxation by which
vast fortunes may not be transmitted
future generations, when the fool or
the knave, may use it to the misery of
humanity" and large part at least
should he used for public purposes for
the benefit of the people from whom il
was taken.
The natural law of supply and de-
msnd, he continued, should govern
our agricultural products, and producer
and consumer alike, should be protect
ed from the speculator.
The principal addresses on the openinc
day of the meeting was by Colonel
Roosevelt who spoke on the subject
The South's Obligation in Statesman
ship and Business Endeavor.''
President Taft in a speech he
lore the closing session of the congress-
reviewed briefly the accomplishments
OF the Sixty-irst Congress. declaring
tnat IN Its three sessions just closed. il
mad enacted more helpful legislation
tnan any Congress since the Civil War
Mr.. Taft asserted that the greatest ac-
complishment of the short session. end
ed March 4th, was the ratification Of
the Japanese treaty. The greatest dis
AO Sdlu, WIS the failure
Oh Congress to ratify the reciprocity
agreement with Canada. In this con-
nection he referred to his action in CALI
ing an extra session of Congress to CON-
vene on April 4th.
The President made a plea to the
young men of the new South to take nm
the political issues of the day from a
broad and liberal standpoint and to elm
mate from their consideration all mar
row partisanship and sectionalism.
Come fully into our national com
munion," said the President, with the
patriotic purpose of stimulating the
progress of our civilization in every
right direction, maintaining our conn
try's prosperity and accommodating its
wealth, but always in subordination to
higher ethical standards and to the
promotion of righteousness and ius-
tice."
The address of most interest to this
section was one by Mr.. T. c.
White, State Geologist of West Vir-
ginis, but on account of lack of space
this will have to go over until next
week.