The Cairo bulletin., 1911-02-05

1t probably will be found that in
stead OF paying as much as 80 per cent
of the taxes in this county, the farm
ers pay less than 25 per cent,
ers pay less than 25 per cant--to say
nothing about the difference in the
valuation Of personal property, which
also is considerable.
But the Issue presents another
table in which it's INSCRIPTIONS a.
termination to defame this county is
painfully apparent This table is Of
tered as a comparison between Alex
ander county and Edwards county,
the former being designated as al
ways one of the wettest counties in the
state" and the latter as having beed
without saloons for years" In this
table the Issue undertakes to show
what the saloon does to produce in
mates in the jails. in the asylms. in
the penitentiaries. to prevent scho
Attendance, TO produce divorces, to
raise the tax rate, etc. Its figures are
based on 100000 population ana 1t
credits this county 200 saloons, 9S2
persons in Jail, 361 in the peniten-
tiary, &C inmates in the reformatolies,
300 patients at the insane asylum, 81
per cent school attendance and 1870
divorces. If the Issue had taken the
basis Of 100000 population It might
have had still more startling figures,
for it could have doubled them all.
As matter of fact, Alexander county
has only 22,741 people by the census
of 1910, and if the Issues figures
were true, in proportion to popula-
ton, they would be more than -four
times the actual figures. 1t Is adj
mitted that this county has a large
criminal reco1d--a large number OF
inmates in the Jail, In the peniten-
tiary and in the reformatory. Ent this
Is due 10 the important fact, which
the Issue chooses to ignore, that we
have large negro population. That
more than ninety per cent Of the Of
Tenders in the city and county siail,
in the penitentary ami in the reform
atory, charged to this county, are me-
groes is a fact which the records will
verify and large per centage Of
Them are from southern states who
were citizens of Alexander county on
ly In that they committed their often
SEES here and were arrested and con-
victed here. AS to the inmates of
the insane asylum, it Is simply pre-
poSterous to charge them to the in
| fuence of the saloons or the liquor
traffic, for the records viii show that
few, If any of them, owe their pres
ence there to that cause.
The Issues attempt to show that
the school attendance in this county
Is low because of the saloons is also
a rank fallacy-at least so far as Cairo
Is concerned land there are very few
saloons in the county outside Of
Cairo. This city has a school poDu.
| latlon OF 1896 by the latest census
counting all between the ages of {
and o. Many of these have gone
through school, being graduated al
the ages of 16 to IS, and while still
OF school age within the meaning oil
the law, may not properly be counted
4 among those who ought to attend tn,
public or private schools here. OF III,
latter there are about $500 in Cairo
and of these, according to the latest
:, records, 2,GA6 attend the publ,
schools and 26S are attending paro
chial schools, a total of 2.9ll Her,
: also Cairo's large negro population
must be taken into account, for it il
among these that the largest namle
OF truants are found
Everything considered, Cairo's
school attendance resord Ia rs goo,
4