158 THE ALABAMA OrPORTUXITV. 



IMPRESS OF PIONEERS. 



Morc;-an County, along the river and the rich valleys receding' 

 from the hills, presents some of the most productive and beau- 

 tiful fields in Alabama. Right here population, the character 

 of the tillers of the soil is a proper matter of inquiry. The 

 pioneers of this country left their impress upon succeeding 

 generations and did much to mould the class and character of 

 the people. For illustration, there were but few original large 

 land owners in Jackson County in the early days, hence but 

 few negroes, as negroes were the creatures of the wealthy. 

 Perhaps more than three-fifths of that population is white, and 

 an equal percentage in Marshal. The percentage of races as 

 originally established seem to hold its own. If anything, the 

 decrease is upon the negro side. The white people of Jackson 

 and Marshal are a hardy, virtuous, self-reliant, law-abiding, 

 hospitable, excellent citizenship, the best neighbors and friends 

 on earth. These counties offer some wonderful attractions to 

 the home seeker. The County of Madison, the first and leading 

 home of wealth and culture in* the valley, was populated by 

 the finer haired aristocratic element of the South, a refined, 

 elegant people, and they owned and established large plantations 

 and populated them with negroes. Thus', in Madison you find 

 much culture, an advanced condition, and now, that negro labor 

 is becoming scarce from numerous causes, much fine productive 

 soil is oflfered to the Northern prospector at reasonable prices. 



The Counties of Limestone, Lauderdale, Colbert and Law- 

 rence present both of the original first settler class. One por- 

 tion of each of these counties are settled almost exclusively by 

 whites, and the other portion the old plantation system remains. 

 The whites' represent the labor on the smaller farms, the negro 

 the larger old-time ante bellum plantations. The counties of 

 Limestone and Lauderdale, north of the river. Colbert and 

 Lawrence, south of the river, present to the home-seeker at- 

 tractions eaual to those of their eastern sister counties. Indeed, 

 No'-th Colbert and Lawrence cannot be excelled in fields of 

 matchless fertility. 



THE EN'IDEXCES OF FERTILITY. 



The home seeker, being a man of reason, will naturally look 

 to the substantial evidences of fertilitv. health, social and edu- 

 cational surroundings. Any man of intelligence knows that 



