Year: 1874

MAJ. WALL i will give nv reas


ons for wanting a stock law enacted.


compelling every man to keep his own


stock on his own premises. ANY law


that compels me to pasture other


peoples stock on my land, that | paw


my money for, is, to say the least o,f


IT, unjust, and taking authority over


my private property. AS long as the


lands belong to the State or General


Government, they have perfect


right to make them public pasture.


but when they sell the lands they have


no further control over them, and any


law that compels me to allow other


peoples stock to run over nv land IS


an assumption of power. ask no


fence law, because | don't think any


law should compel me to make fences


unless have stock, and not then if / /
keep my stock off other peoples lands.
Every man ought to be allowed to do


as ne pleases with his own land. But


ne should not be allowed to trespass


on his neighbor, by or with his stock.


Let there be general law passed,


compelling every man to keep his.
stock on his own land; it makes no


difference how he does it, whether by


fence or otherwise. There are many


persons who could more easily fence


their wood lands than thew could
their farms, having much less wood (
land than they have land in cultiva- {
ton. Besides, if we fence our wood (
lands we would save vast amount Of {
hauling rails. The same authority q
hat compels me to fence my farm t
'ould as easily compel me to fence nv 9
wood lands. Why not? Ii


The stock law is objected to by those Il
Who own no lands. The cry is, eve 0
lave stock, but have no land That 81
no excuse. Can the law-making h
over pass laws compelling those who al
wn the lands to pasture the stock Of y
hose who own no land? IF they can, el
len the same power can take anv Of ty
\ Of our lands, and give them to the th
ndless. This is certainly an as ca
lmption Of power. In few more if
ears that class will own more cattle &c
ian the land owners, especially in or
e farming portion of the State. kr
ley rarely ever kill one of their sh
En. On my farm the freedmen


IN more cattle than do. As soon GU


the crops are gathered they will off
We every one Of them in my farm, ric
lmping the land and eating off on
that should go to manure the
'ery farmer in the State would. be ser
re than willing to give every ten spr
he might need on his premises a wei
ce of land to keep his stock on !. eat
Try farmer would be compelled to to i
this, or he would get no hands to thr
rk on his farm. 1t is right that he SOW
uld do so. kno
Another important reason why this SOW


should be passed is, that rail tim don


is getting very scarce in all the any
sr portions of the State. We have eros
xed and culled over our timber do
il we have used up all of the best. The
rd timber is now almost out of the wert
stion. We are now using the re- spril
d timber, that we can scarcely get crop
into rails by paying two prices. of Il
" portions of the State are desti- oats


of timber. There are now thou. the
Z Of acres of old sedge fields living not
for want of timber to fence them. thou
would be cultivated if it was not the I
he stock running at large; and it is
g are thousands Of acres in the trees
Is, in small lots, that would be I'll
eu up ana cultivated, If it was eoun
OF tne Iencing. fhere are thou the 5
Oh collars worth OF corn, cotton work