186 The Dawn of a New Constructive Era 



dent that their credit was good. They had the disposition and 

 the desire to work with us, but they didn't have the money, and 

 if there had been some organization in this State that could have 

 furnished them the money at a reasonable rate of interest they 

 would have been working systematically at this time and un- 

 doubtedly be in a position to be added to the free area this fall. 



One gentleman this morning struck the keynote, I believe, 

 on this cut-over timber land proposition, when he said that these 

 lands ought to be fenced. Such lands are raising cattle for 

 people who do not own an acre of land. They own the cattle 

 and, apparently, depend upon charity for the privilege of grazing 

 them, and when you talk to such individuals about dipping their 

 cattle they are inclined to develop opposition. Those are just 

 the menacing conditions that exist over the cut-over timber land 

 territory, and, you know, a menace located here and there may 

 seriously interfere with a great organized effort. These people 

 have no business to raise cattle, graze them on somebody else's 

 property, and then keep up an opposition against a great piece 

 The Evil of of constructive work like tick eradication. If these lands in such 

 the Open sections in the South were fenced we would expect no opposi- 



''"^^ tion from the individuals who were using such lands, and it 



would also prevent, from a certain extent, the destruction of a 

 number of dipping vats which has been going on within the last 

 few. months. A number of them have been dynamited in this 

 State — I think about twelve or fifteen-^and an equal number in 

 Mississippi. Dynamiting, of course, is very destructive, and 

 undesirable in such, instances. But, after all, it is a large adver- 

 tising factor, because it starts the people talking about something 

 they never gave serious attention to before ; that is, it separates 

 the good fair-minded class from the criminal element to such an 

 extent that the better class condemns such lowdown principles 

 as the destruction of public property. 



The cut-over timber lands are indeed great. Only day be- 

 fore yesterday I was riding through Washington Parish, which, 

 of course, gave me the opportunity to observe carefully the cut- 

 over timber land section, and as one rides through siach country 

 he cannot help from being impressed with the better appearance 

 of the country. The land is of a rolling nature, well watered and 

 dotted here and there with little dense forests which can be con- 

 trolled or allowed to spread. The character of the soil appears 

 to be equal to the average and as Doctor Dodson told you this 



