The Chronicle-star combined with the Moss Point advertiser., 1948-03-12

Cecil Z. Anderson OF George
county realized a gross revenue
of $3,508.86 in 1947 from the
sale of slightly more than I21
barrels of gum produced from
1926 virgin and yearling faces.
In producing the high yield Mr..
Anderson used a process per-
fected by the U. S. Forestry
Service which requires only
the peeling of a strip of bark
from the tree combined with a
chemical milking of the ex-
posed wood. He started work
ing his timber early in March
and finished up late in Novem-
Der. He treated his trees every
two weeks and produced more
gum from 10 streaks than
would have been produced by
80 streaks under the old system
of wood chipping.
Mr.. Anderson's total cash
yield from the production of
naval stores was far higher
than the annual cash income
of the average Mississippi farm
err, and shows what can be done
when modern techhiques are
applied to tree farming. II also
shows that the use and devel-
opment of our own natural re-
sources offers the best bet for
sound economic development
of our state. Too often we lose
sight of this fact in III eager
ness to import industry, while
neglecting the opportunities for
development which are in our
own front yards, which in many
instances offers a sounder in
vestment for our economic flu
ture. The pine tree is as nat
ural to the soil of u section
as the shrimp and oyster are
to our Gulf waters and "tree
farming" is a natural industry
to which we could well and
profitabiy lend our intelligence
and energies.
To our way of thinking, our
states rural areas are our great
est potential industry" If we
would only realize it. Too fire.
quently we try to pile an indus
trial economy on top of an out
moded agrarian economy based
on the willingness, or helpless
ness, of individuals to work for
incomes that bring only a
shamefully low standard of
living and mistakenly call 1T
balancing industry with agri-
culture. In our own county
we are fortunately blessed with
a number of high wage level in
dustries, but at the same time
we shamefully neglect the de-
velopment of u rural areas.
To secure these industries we
floated bond issues, built build
ings and granted tax exemp-
tions. There is no denying
that we have profited from the
investment. Our school sys-
tenn, our hard surfaced rural
road system, which is one OF
the best in the state, the sound
financial condition of our coun-
ty, and many other factors are
sufficient proof of that. But
if we can float a bond issue to
build a building for an outside
industry that will repay us in
the form of payrolls, why can't
we also float a bond issue to
build a modern creamery and
milk processing plant which
will also repay us in stimulat-
ing the dairying industry in our
county and giving a boost to
the economy of our rural areas?
There are many other ven
lures of this nature which
would aid our rural areas, and
which can only be done with
county help. A canning plant
would stimulate truck farming
in our area and give seasonal
employment to rural families.
A dehydrating plant would aid
the dairy program. A practical
and long range approach to the
conservation and use of our
woodlands, based on educa-
ton and economics, could be
formulated and put into prae-
tiee.
This latter could be achieved,
we believe, if the major wood
land owners would get togeth-
er and allot to every CONSOLE
dated high school in the county
a certain acreage of land. This
could be divided into four parts.
One part would be given to
each freshman class, which
would supervise its portion dur
ing the four school years. AS a
senior class graduated, its por-
ton would be given to the
freshman class entering the
school, and in that way each