Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1916-06-16

business f0r more IMAM I'VE "cchS oHe
I speak from personal knowledge wher
/ say nothing was left undone, ant
not dollar was left unspent that couit
possibly have done any good. With
what | had at stake l would have beer
a fool to have done otherwise.
Il beg you to indulge me just min
ute more that may mention matter
! somewhat personal but which has
bearing upon this controversy as snow
ing the consistency of my attitude to
ward what | regard as transparent
I fraud. In 1895, the levee broke al
WHY'S; levees were small in those
days and floods were not SO disastrous
as at the present; but in those days
\ il was the habit of our people to cry
starvation, and call upon the world
and the Government for free rations
on such occasion. That year a relief
committee was organized among Ger.
| tain planters, some of whom were mol
I even overfiOwed. Their relief work
/ consisted mainly in sending out ap-
peals for help; | never knew of one
of them contributing anything himself
The files OF the Vicksburg Herald for
that year will show that appeals EN-
mating from this relief committee re-
cited the ludicrOus story that people
were living on parched corn and many
hundreds were on the verge Of star
walton. Being on the >grOund. seeing
and knowing the actual condition, ana
not being in sympathy with this par
ticular kind of relief work, and know
ing it worked an injury to the country
instead of benefit, | wrote the Vicks-
burg Herald denial of this ''parched
corn" story; and perhaps intimated
that members of the relief committee
wanted free ratiOns for their negro
tenants so they would not have to fur
Their strain their overdrawn accounts
with commission merchants: and what
was the result of my ''veiled charges?"
A meeting of the relief committee was
called: the 'parched corn" story was
proved to be true, and | was shown
up as a liar and marplOt. A little
Investigation on my own part showed
that one old half-witted negro claimed
to have lived on parched corn for sew
eral days, but this same old negro had
been the body servant of George Wash
ingtOn and crossed the Delaware river
On foot log In 1905 Providence was
visited by the yellow fever; the plague
was the worst ever known in our
town; there were more than 500 cases
out of population of less than one
thousand people left in the town. and
We were strictly quarantined against
the world. | was there with my wife
and children until it became a ques-
tion of free rations" sure enough. Our
supplies were exhausted and everybody
was dead broke. A condition of real
suffering was staring us in the face.
got out before the quarantine was lift
ed on the advice of doctors and went
to st. Louis. An appeal was issued
for help. When on Washington Ave-
nue. in the City of st. Louis soliciting
aid for stricken Providence, was con-
fronted with the statement of a gen.
tleman you people often cry wolf.
when there is no wolf" recalled his
for the relief of flood
sufferers twelve years previously in
response to the "parched corn" appeal.
and asked me if the present was any
more an honest cry for help than that.
The chickens had certainly gone home
to roost
To-day by reason of our careless
ness. or worse, and our short-sighted-
ness in permitting thousands of acres
Of valued timber land to get out Of our
possession and to be exploited by tim
Der sharks, land syndicates, lawyers
and real estate agents, We are con-
fronted by the opposition of the Len
roots and the Frear's of the House.
and by the Shoots and Kenyon's of
he Senate. when we appeal to the
Government for help for our levees
With the statement that they are not
7oting Government money 10 reclaim
swamp lands for rich land holders.
These swamp lands which now form
he basis Of the argument against the
Government levee building once be-
onged to this Levee Board and in my
humble opinion should have remained |
he property of this Board. The de- |
'lsion recently handed down by the |
supreme Court of Louisiana, in the |
'ase OF this Board against the Con-
'ordia Land and Timber Co.. notwith- |
tanding the assertion of able lawyers
nat this case had no merits. convinces
ne that many thousands of acres OF
and rightfully belonged to this Board |
nay now be in possession of private
'arties
Gentlemen, | have not charged the
members of this Board with incendiar-
SIN, but 1t does seem to me we have
een too careless with fire. I have
ot charged the Board or any member
II II with conniving at robbery. but I
o mink We have permitted our at
entlon 10 be too easily diverted from
ne Valuables in our possession when
olng with promiscuous crowds"
by Mr.. Hamley: / would like TO
make statement to this gentleman in
nswer to this, but would ask that Mrs
'inKston first leave the room.
by MT. Young: Mr.. Hill your letter
$ recently published, did not restrict
ne charges which you made TO anv
or'ion OF the District, and would ap-
" aiike to members throughout the
istrict; to members from Tensas as
materials bought and all other
lohey spent. l would like to know
you have any knowledge of expend-
ures in Tensas for building a DO
teal machine?
by Mr. Hill: No knowledge of any
expenditures. No knowledge of any
nproper expenditures in any but nv
Tn Parish.
ny MI Young: Then your letter of
,slgnation did not apply to any Par.
n other than your own. | say the