The sea coast echo. [volume] (Bay Saint Louis, Miss.) 1892-current, 1921-10-22
DELTA SECTION COMING BACK
TO ITS OWN.
Planters Who Were Down and Out,
Back to Normally Again-Spent
Money on Gulf Coast In Former
Days With Prodigality as if Hoi-
ders in Zee Simple of the Sands
of Pactolus."
(By Rev. Nelius Downing.)


The far famed Mississippi Delta
region, second only to the delta of the
Nile in the wonderful fertility of its
soil, is coming back strong. The fl
naneial collapse of a couple of years
ago, following a golden spell of un-
heard of prosperity, left this section.
in a financial and social condition
that at times was reminiscent of the
Redistribution (as / call it) period
of the latter sixties. One of the
most trustworthy signs is the alacrity
with which the people are paying
bills ''long over due" The Delta
folks never fail to pay up when they
have the money-if not one must
wait and the full payment is sure
eventually. Quite number of the
last couple of years accounts, not
few of which were charged off" are
being iquidated with splendid readi-
ness. The Bankers have been telling
you correspondent these encourag
ing things:
(1) Banking deposits are bound
ing skyward from 25 to 100 per
cent. (2) Frozen loans are being
liquidated. 90 Charged off &C
counts are almost all being paid up.
(4) Notes have been taken up even
ahead of time. The planters and
farmers have yeen singing songs like
this to me: (1) eve have feed
enough stored up to carry on thru
the winter time and even enough
generally for about two years. (2)
"Our livestock will get through the
winter all right" 90 ''Next time
we can produce our crops at pretty
low cost" "4) If cotton prices go
up there will be a greater acreage,
but not so great as to wreck prices"
(5) Systematic poisoning of the boil
weevi1 is steadily reducing damage
generally"
The most optomistic Delta enthus-
last could never have dreamed of
so speedy a return from the ''lean
years" to the period of plenty. No
section of our country got the smash
the Delta had to endure. 1t made a
mad plunge It was smashed utterly.
Cotton of the highest production,
cost cheated with an abnormally low
price market. Right now collateral
cotton at cent rate values about
15c. The Delta is progressive reg
ion, alive with men of brains, energy
vision and progressive thought. 1t
can never get a knock out blow, but
it ever stays in the financial and
agricultural ring. Why should the
Mississippi Coast be interested in
the Mississippi Delta? The reason is
not far to seek. The Coast is the re-
creation center of the Delta folks to
a very great extent; the Coast is the
summer and winter resort of great
number of planters all through this
region. Quite number of the Delta
people have summer homes on the
Coast. Your readers will recall the
swarm of Delta people that lavished
their wealth a couple of years az
from Waveland to Pascagoula; Bi-
loxi and Gulfport being the chief
beneficiaries. They used their own
homes, rented residences, filled the
hotels; purchasing everywhere, filled
the Drug stores, grocery stores, and
even filled the chuches, spending
money as freely as if each one held
the fee-simple of the sands of Pac-
tolus!
So your patient readers, see why
they should be interested in the Del
ia and in the Deltians; and what
your writer has to offer about both.
Clarksdale, Miss, Oct. Is, 1921.