The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1916-05-19
YE EDITOR WRITES
A LETTER FROM MO.
Tells of What He Has Seen on His
Trip The Country. the People.
Customs, Etc.
Baltimore Hotel, Kansas City. Mo-,

baltlmore motel, hd1SdS Slty, Mo-,
May 18th, 1916.
Dear Sentinel:-As | have a short
while here between trains, | thought |
would send a few words of greeting to
Sentinel readers and incidentally tell
them something of what | have seen
on this trip and my impressions of the
people with whom have come in con
tact.
Our party consists of Gov. Bilbo,
State Supt. Education Smith, Chan
cellor Powers of the State University,
Prof. Joe Cook. President of the State
Normal College at Hattiesburg, and
four members of the General Board
of Trustees of the State Colleges,
Judge E. l.. Brien, ]. S. Howerton,
W. c. Trotter and myself. After
reaching Memrhis we took a Rock
Island train for Oklahoma City Mon.
day night and WI discovered ourselves
at daylight Tuesday morning neal
Danville, Ark. The scenery from Dan.
vile westward was beautiful indeed.
The road runs almost two-thirds of the
way thru the Petit Jean valley and or
either side the majesty of creation
speaks in mountain ranges that car
hardly fail to thrill as well as interest
every traveller. The forest growth
along the railroad, ever after Okla,
homa is entered until the South Cana
dian river is crossed, is largely black
jack and post oak which does not indi-
cate, as Mississippians well know, much
fertility of soil. After the South Cana
dian river is crossed a marked differ
nee in the soil is evident and soon the
eye begins to behold beautiful. level
farms and great stretches of alfalfa
fields that make a picture ever beyond
the most fascinating description of the
cleverest artists.
A matter worthy of special note in
western Arkansas and all thru Okla
homa is their splendidly built and
handsome public school buildings. In
Oklahoma, practically as soon as a town
is started. the first thing planned is a
brick school building, n lesson Missis-
sippi and some of the other older states
might study with profit. We passed at
Wliburton, Okla, a mining school which
IS said to be thoroly equipped and to
have a large patronage. We reached
Oklahoma City late Wednesday after
noon. We stopped at the Lee Huchins
hotel. Oklahoma City has a population
OF 5000. When one stops to think
that this section was net thrown open
TO settlers until 1889, and that this
place has had its birth since that date,
1t Will at once be seen that it is a city
OF marvellous growth and is a great
tribute to the business judgment, thrift
and enterprise of its people. Its streets
are paved, and its handsome residences
and great towering buildings are enough
almost to stagger the imagination of
those OF Us who are used to develop
ment by slower processes. The cit
zenshlp OF Oklahoma City pay taxes,
state, city and county, at the rate of
81 mills, and while this is just about
what ours is, yet their assessment is so
much higher. The law requires prop
erty in both Oklahoma and Kansas to
be assessed at 2-3 of its actual cash
value, and this value is not fixed by the
property owner either. While not a
word of complaint was heard, yet it can
be seen that the people have felt the
heavy hand of the tax-gatherer. The
people wherever We stopped are great
boosters and think that they live in the
garden spot of the universe. Wednes-
day morning we took a trolley car for
Norman, Is miles south, where the
SAtae ObHHNiSlIl VI Tile state is To-
Gated, and we had the good fortune to
return III automobiles driven by Presi-
dent Brooks and a member of his law
faculty. This institution has an en-.
rollment of nearly 1000, an annual
working income of about $3.50, 900. 90.
We were shown every courtesy and
served a delightful luncheon. Upon
our return TO Oklahoma City, a number
of gentlemen, mostly former Missis-
sipplans, among whom was a brother
of Mr.. |. c. Enochs of Jackson, who
took our party for a sightseeing around
the city. Messrs. Greed Watkins and
his brother and Mr.. A. W. Written
called on the writer and it pleases him
to note the success of these gentle
men. They enjoy the confidence of the
best citizenship of that city. Mr.. Creed
Watkins is n of the head managers
for one of the leading wholesale firms
of Oklahoma City.
Oklahoma City has two large packing
Morrison Bros. and one other.
We visited the former and saw the
neatness and the perfection with which
hogs and cattle as well as sheen and
goats are slaughtered and made ready
for market. Oklahoma City raised
5000, 10000 in a few hours as a bonus to
induce these two large enterprises to
within the limits.
From Oklahoma City we went north
on the Santa Fe railroad to Perkins
we took automobiles and went lO
across the country to the A. & M.
College at Saltwater. We were much
with this college. We went
from there to Topeka, Kans., and thence
vest on the Rock Island railroad to
Manhattan where the A. & M. College
s located. We were met at the depot
,y members of the faculty and were
every courtesy and every consid-
in fact were given a real
southern welcome. We were much