The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1959-02-27
John Temple Graves

IT he Tennessee Company
will grow as the South grows
All over the SouthEsaying that
the late, much loved John Lester
Perry went when he was president
Of Big Steel's Southern Subsidiary.
It was an expression of the new
industrial attitude towards he
South as not only a place Of raw
materials and unlimited la Dor
supply but as market. the great
est potential one in the Western
Hemisphere, all things considered,
no longer a colony to be exploited
but a region to be unbuilded.
To that upbuilding Art Wiebel, to-
days president, addressed himself
Friday night in a memorable talk
Of the National Society Of Profess
sional Engineers damning the doom
sayers and the critical reports"
which have obscured the much
bigger and brighter story about
Dixie He testified to economic
revolution here which has nothing
to do with courts or Congress, laws
or legislatures, and reviewing the
statistics Of startling rank in ma
tural resources and in manufactur-
ing and agricultural processes as
promises Of a constantly better day
for ourselves. not, as of old, merely
for outsiders who make things here
and take them away to sell.
Mr.. Wiebel's punch line read like
a acknowledgements s. Take
the story back with you" he told
his all-American audience. tell
your associates Of a South with
which the world has not yet become
familiar And tell them that
the conscientious, level-headed cit-
zens of the South may one day hold
the destiny Of America in their
hands,"
That destiny, after all. is still
unfinished business. Even though
some think otherwise, many a last
word about America hasn't been
written yet-on labor relations.
education, economic liberty, re-
ligion, art, music, and even the
architectural matter Of whether
churches should look like something
having to do with God or only live
humanitarian barns or an eccen-
tries holiday.
The South is gong to write some
Of those last Words-or some next
ones anyhow.
General Robert E. Wood, former
board chairman Of Sears Robuck,
is Republican. But it was as an
American, constitutlonallst and a
longtime friends OF the South that
he denounced the arrogant incom-
petence Of the Supreme Court and
its Chief Justice this week, with
especial reference TO the dcSegrc-
cation decision. That Is as should
be. The courts usurpations began
in 1886 and had multiplied long
before an unwilling Eisenhower
paid political debt and made
liberal sentimentalist politician
from moorless California chic f
Justice. A man without moorings
exposed to the constitutional ruth
lessness Of Hugo Black and his Fair
Deal associates has presided over
the making Of constitutional cri-
sis. He has been the courts unifier
but never its brain.
General Wood has long believed
that both the economic and the
policical future OF America hes with
the South if We exploit it with Wis
dom and courage. 1t was he who
first called national attention to the
fabulous economic growing Of the
Gulf Coastal area and states, named
them heart OF the American-to-b be.
And he it was, in an address at the
annual dinner Of the Southern Re
search Institute in Birmingham on
Oct. A. 1854. who called for an al
lance Of South and West to capture
America for Anericanlsm.
He included California but that
was In 1854 before California had
included itself GU" and reaffirmed
its lack Of either political or con-
stltutlonal moorlngs.
He included. too. mighty Texas
and that is different. Home base
Of the master politician Of this post
Roosevelt age, Texas is indeed both
South and West. Like Lyndon John
son, it may play ball with leftists
but will never be truly on their
side. 1t may compromise with the
integrationlsts but will always re-
main at heart with Southern ants.
This is the best the South can hope
for on both counts.
| When Lyndon johnson rode with
the President as far as Austin last
! week. the plane was carrying the
two ''ncarcst" friends the South has
among the nations leaders. Mr..
Eisenhower has been willing to an
tagonize the NAACP. And Senator
johnson even though for master
politics sake calling himself West
ern. will never rid himself enough
of Southern origins and understand
ings to develop any ardor against
this region on the race question.