MI'S DIVERSIFIED (MS
Wonderful Advancement in Agriculture
in (he Last Twelve Years
Vashington, Special.—ln no sec
"tion of the country, probably has
-there been more wonderful advance
ment in agriculture within the past
ten or twelve years than in the South.
The belief is expressed by officials
■of the Department of Agriculture
that the Southland is bound to take
' that place in agricultural develop
ment she merits.
A spirit of re-awakening is coming
over the Southern farmer. The agri
cultural progress in the South has
I>een marked by a material prosperity
such as, perhaps, has never before
been enjoyed by the farming element
•of that part of the country. The fi
nancial condition of the Southern
planter began to take an upward
tendency about 1597, since which
time the situation has steadily im
proved. The production of cotton—
that great staple crop of the South—
increased 53 per cent., from 1896 to
1908, and the value of the crop 133
per ct. The Southern farmer, long
debt-ridden, has to a marked decree
t>een again placed on his feet as it
■were by the increased prices he has
received from his cotton crop of late
years. As a natural consequence he
is devoting more time and attention
to building himself a better home, to
the edueation of his children and, he
is in fact, deriving more of the com
forts of life than ever before.
Work of the Department.
The agricultural progress of the
Soath really datea back to a few
yearn ago when the Agricultural De
partment inaugurated an educational
campaign for a diversification in the
-crops. The application of practical
scientific methods to Southern agri
culture in the opinion of Secretary
Wilson has done more to uplift
land than any other factor.
Officiate of the Department of Agri
culture believe that the advent of the
-weevil \\>is in reality a sort of bless
ing to the South. While it was dis
astrous in its effect upon that great
staple crop, it at the same time made
the farmer realize that he must not
levote all of his land to cotton, but
must depend to a considerable extent
upon other crops. The South was
quick to absorb the scientific knowl
edge so freely given by the Federal
government and is rapidly recovering
rom past mistakes. Secretary Wil
son is a great believer in the
that the foundation of this nation's
prosperity is on enlightened agricuU
*urfl _
Secretary Wilton Pleased.
"1 j>m happy to have an opportun
ity *to empress through The Associat
ed Press," said Secretary Wilson
*'the Agricultural Department's
good will toward the South and its
•desire to foster in every way the ag
ricultural prosperity of that great
and favored region. I have always
■taken a great interest in the agri
culture of the South, not only be
cause of its extremely interesting
possibilities, bat because I have felt
* keen sympathy with a people
LUMBER SKIPPERS ARZ REFUNDED
$1G5,000 BY THE RAILROADS INVOLVED
Washington, Special.—By far the'in satisfaction of the claims on ac
largest specific allowance of repsra- . of unreasonable rate, on lum
iber shipped from Southern mills, m
ion ever ordered by the intercalate ' volving about 125 rases and 11 dif
•eommerce commission was made ' erent yailroads of the South. These
I Rre said to be about one-third of
Thursday, when that body approved c i ß irc S to the same kind pending be-
M settlement agreement of $165,009 fore the commission.
COURT OF ADMIRALTY TO FIX THE
RESPONSIBILITY FOR REPUBLIC WRECK
New York, Special.—Just' which lision was placed on the Florida.
«hip was responsible for the Nan- '^' ie owner * the Florida also filed
tucket collision in which the White * J| W a ,i . mi "
_ x ~ tation of liability to $224,000 against
«tar liner Republic and the Italian tbe fq orida . L « ter the F i ori da'«
liner Florida figured and which com- owners applied for and obtained an
pany shall pay the damages will be order from Judge Adams in the Unit
decided by the court of admirality. e * States circuit court staying all
-r, . MJ . L rru_» 8, " t8 ' or damages against the steam-
Both companies have filed suits. That „ hip F , oriJa J tbc tfcat beir
•of the owners of the Republic claim- petition for limitation of liability
«d damages of $2,000,000 and recited had been filed ahead of the $2,000,-
in legal form the story of the recent 000 libpl suit of the Oceanic Steam
sea disaster. The blame for the col- ship Navigation company.
ERECT WIRELESS TOWER AT WASHINGTON
Washington, Special.—The Navy bances or interference by neighbor-
Department opened bids for locating ing stations. At the same time tbe
* wireless tower at Washington for department asked for bids for two
oommunicating with ships at sea. The seta of apparatus to be installed on
x specifications require that the tower naval vessels to be capable of trans
«r station shall be capable of transmitting and receiving messages at all
mitting messages at all times and at times, seasons and latitudes, to and,
all-seasons lo a radius of 3,000 miles from a distance of 1,000 miles, and
in any navigable direction from Wash- to receive messages from the Wash
ington. The messages are not to be ington station at a distance of 3.000
L interrupted by atmospheric distur- miles at aU times.
■ ~r t.. • ♦ 'h ■■
struggling bravely to overcome the
results af a devastating war. I felt
that they needed sueh help as the De
partment could give them, and I have
lent a willing ear to their appeals.
It is very gratifying to me to see the
cordial spirit of appreciation mani
fested by the people of the South
for the work the Department is try
ing to do."
Under Professor W. J. Spillman,
of the Bureau of Plant Industry, who
has charge of the farm management
investigations in the South, much has
been done to encourage better sys
tems of farm management, looking
to the restoration of fertility, the
bringing back of humus into the soil,
and the suggestions of improved ro
tations.
"One of the most important meth
ods adopted in lighting the cotton
boll weevil" said Professor Spillman
"is the diversification of crops
and the introduction of new crops.
Since the farmers have begun to rea
lise that the weevil will in a few
years spread over the entire cotton
belt, they have become interested in
other crops as they never were be
fore. In many sections truck growing
has developed amazingly. This is es
peaially the cane along the seaboard,
and along the principal lines of nil
way connecting the South with the
large industrial centres of the North.
In other sections farmers have turn
ed their attention to the production
of hay. While not enough hay is
grown in the South to supply the de
mand, the quantity of the home-grown
product has increased to a remarkable
degree since the Department of Agri
culture began its propaganda for di
versified agriculture in the South as
a means of fighting the boll weevil. In
some sections, especially in Alabama
and Mississippi, alfalfa has become
an important crop. Last spring one
small town in Mississippi sold over
$3,000 worth of alfalfa seed. Five
years ago there was hardly an acre
of this crop in that vicinity.
Stock Railing.
"Many other crops formerly grown
in small acreages only have beeu
sown on an increasingly large scale
for the past few years. This is espe
cially true of corn, cow peas, and
beans. The cow pea crop especially
has become vastly more important
than formerly. This crop is used both
for hay and as a seed crop, for whieb
there has been a steady demand at
good prices.
"Southern farmers also are turning
their attention to stock raising. Cat
tle have not been much raised in thfl
South, both because forage eropi
were not extensively grown and be
cause of the presence of the tick
which spreads the dreaded Southern
cattla. fevrtvj Tfie government, both
State and national, is now making an
effort to eradicate this tick, with
every promise of. success. This will
permit of the development of an im
portant new industry in the South
which is affected by the boll wee
vil.
"Apparently it will only be a short
time bofre the South will adjust it»
agrirulutral industries to the changed
conditions broiurht about by tbe ad
vent of the boll weevil, and wil b«
even more prosperous than it wai
when cotton was king At the sam«
time, owing to improved methods of
culture, and increased acreage, the
cotton crop will probably be even
STeater than it is now."
MORE ABODTPELLAGRA
A. Grave Menace to Health Consider
ation in th* South.
Washington, Special.—Looming up
*s a grave menace to health condi
tions in the South is the recent ap
pearance of a deadly disease known
o medieal scientists as "pellagra."
For several centuries "pellagra"
known to have existed in the Old
World, but its presence in the South
tins but recently been discovered.
This peculiar disease has been di
ignosed as true pellagra and the
rcedit for its discovery in the South
belongs to Passed Assistant Surgeon
C. H. Lavinder, of tha public health
and marine hospital service. "Pel
lagra" is a malady caused by the
sating of spoiled "maiw" and pro
luces in persons afflicted with it a
iort of intoxication. The disease gen
erally occurs among the poorer
classes of the rural population 'who
subsist largely or exclusively, on
rorn most usually prepared by boiling
Jorn meal in salt water called "pol
;ntia" in Italy. Dr. Lavinder States
that in pallagrons countries the corn
is often of a poor quality, gathered
before maturity and not properly
3ured nnd stored, so that parasitet
•nore easily develop upon it.
'' The disease usually begins with
?astro-intestinal disturbances," says
Assistant Surgeon Lavinder, "follow
ad shortly by the erythema of the
'kin, aud in a brief while there is
-nore or less involvement of the ner
vous system. It is slowly advancing
toxemia, the brunt of which, in the
?nd, is borne by the nervous system,
md each annual recurrence leaves a
deeper and mora indelible mark on
the mental and nervous condition of
the sufferer." The great gravity
lies in the number of people affected,
and in its immediate and remote con
sequences not only to individuals, but
to the race—intellectual feebleness,
lessened resistance, economic loss,
physical deterioration of the raca
etc."
Concerning the etiology of the dis
pone, it is aaid to be an intoxication
due to using as food Indian corn
(maize), which under the influence
of unidentified parasitic growth*
(fungi), has undergone certain
changes with the production of one
or more toxic substances of a chem
ical natures. Within the past two ot
three years, for some reason or rea
sons anknown, this disease has rap
idly increased in numbers and ex
tent of territory affectd. "Pllagra'
bears a close resemblance to the ac
tent to territory effected. "Pellagra"
it occura in the old world, though dif
fering in some particulars, and' the
acute cases greatly preponderate an!
the mortality is high. "Since it h
of a serious nature, and epidemic in
character," declares Dr. Lavinder
"knowledge concerning it is becom
ing of much importance to the Amor
ican physicias and especially to the
practitioner in the Southern States.
Roo«eTelt and Fairbanks Quests a!
Dinner of Gridiron.
Washington, Special.—Farewell tr
President Roosevelt and
dent in their official capacity onlv.
was said to them Saturday .night bv
the famous Gridiron club of Washing
ton newspaper men.
The occasion wns Ike annual win'ci
dinner of that club. In all there were
nearly 20Q guests, and. ns is alwavf
the case, the roll included many that
figure conspicuously in the hall of
fame. Ambassadors, justice* of th
supreme court of the United States
cabinet officials, senators, represent;!
tives, editors, publishers and men of
affairs generally, were in this gather
ing of guests of the newspaper men
It was far from a sad affair
though the Occasion was of a farewell
nature, Gridiron dinners never an
sad. As the president, and vice-pres
ident were the guests of honor, si
they came in for equal prominent
in the fun of the evening.
Water Wagon a Feature.
The temperance movement that hau
swept over the country showed it.'
effect on the club. As the souveni'
of the dinner, the guests were givei
"H-2-0," illustrated Grid-Iron alma
sacs, published bv the "Grid-Iron
Water Wagon Press." Between it
covers there was no remedy giver
for the ills of 'statesmen, journalists
reel newspaper men, molly coddles
malefactors of great wealth" othei
than plain "H-2-0" In this alumnae
the "Teddy Rear" formed the cen
11 tr« of the Zodiac, while the entirf
, production was marked as forwarded
, to congress ,»« "soecial message No.
. 232323232323."
I "A Total Eclipse."
The guests oWrvcd
• that a total eclipse nf the year i
r due "early in March." and "will br>
. viewed with interest by the United
. States, Canada, Africa and Oystej
Bay."
Town Devastated by Fire.
~ Coffeyrflle, Kan., Special.—The"
, town of Nowata, across the line from
> here in Oklahoma, was almost wiped
off the map Saturday by a fire thn:
destroyed 13 business houses, two
banks and the county court house
I which held all the records of that
section of Oklahoma. The loss i*
estimated at $200,000.
; . • TH
—Week's cleverest cartoon, bjr C. It. Macnuley, in the New York World.
CAPTAIN TELLS OF THE WRLCK
•*
Ship Sank Under Him and He Was Rescued From the Sea,
Williams, the Second Officer, With Him to the End —
Fished From the Water First, He Directed the Search
For the Captain—Praise For All the Ship's Men.
New fork City.—Captain William |
T. Sealby, of the wrecked White Stur
liner Republic, told the story of the
disaster. One thing he did not tell
was why he had elected to stay with
his ship until it sank. Being an offi
cer of the Roynl Naval Reserve and
a commander for the White Star,
Captain Sealby presupposed that this
act needed no explanation.
"Before 6 o'clock on Sunday night
we knew that the Republic would
never live to reach Martha's Vine
yard," was the way Captain Sealby
began bis tale. "By 7 o'clock she
was way down In the stern, and wal
lowing with long, painful rolls, that
meant there was very little more life
left In her. Williams (R. J. Will
iams. the second officer) and I stood
on tho bridge and kept our eyes
ahead on tbe lights of the Gresham
and Seneca, which were towing. The
ship was so low In the stern that the
wnveß were breaking over her at that
point and the water was swashing
clear up to the ladder of the saloon
deck nft.
"I think It must have been Just
about S o'clock when we both saw
that she was going to drop under us
within a v«*ry few minutes. First
thing we did was to prepare a Holmes
distress light, which burns when It
totfehes water. This we left on the
bridge with us so that when we went
down tbe men on" the revenue cutters
could be directed to the spot where
the Republic went down. While wo
were worklpg over the light Will
iams, who has a bit of sporting blood
in blm. joked about our situation.
"'What do you make of It, Will
iams?' I had asked him.
"'I don't tblnk it v/I'J b? a long
raco to the lolluu),* te laughed.
'When you are ready let her go and
■we'll make n sprint of It.'
"Bcforo we had finished with the
Holme* light we began to hear a roar
ing and cracking of the deck seams
back of us. It was the air driving
out ahead of the advancing water.
That Is the la*t call of a sinking ship.
I directed Williams to burn two blue
lights,'the signal to the t-tfvenfle'ciit
ten that we were going down and for
them to cast off. Then I let loose
llv* Shots with my revolver,
"We were going down steadily
then and pretty fast. I jelled at
Williams to make for the forq rig
ging, We both dropped down the
ladder to the saloon deck, each carry
ing a blue light In one hani. By the
time our feet touched the saloon deck
It was at an angle of nearlv thirty
degrees, wet and slippery. We could
not keep our feet, so we grabbed the
rail and crawled. The wafer was
rushing up on us fro") behind and
tbe explosions and rem'ing of the tim
bers from 'mldphliß to'd us flat al
ready the stern was under "xnter.
"We had reached the forecastle
head when Williams slipped to the
"deck and grabbed a post, of the rait
wjth his elbow. That was the last I
saw of hini until after ft wis over. 1
managed to gft forward to the fore
mast and to climb the ringing as far
us tho forward running lieht, about
100 feet up. Below me abort half
of the shin wss visible and she was
tipped op like a rooking chair about
to tro over Iwkwnrd.
"My blue llirht. would not burn be
cause It bad become wet, 1 flrsd one
more shot from my revolver, the last.
Then everything dropped and T was
In the wat e r with th° foremast slip
ping down beside me like au -loTalor
plunder.
"There was n boillnr. yeastv miss
of water about nw and a great roar
ing. I went under, but came up j
again, for tho rir h"d gathered «n- j
der my axenfeost and buoved me up. i
1 gueps * went rround spinning for a
timer then | Itt a sear. From tbe
soar I mnnaitcd to a hatch cover.
Thlf's w»r« ftviiti} proetv' In the wat
er si"l I csme near being Imdl'"
banved up before 1 ma"as;ed to iioll
my body m» on the hatch cover and
t|p ther ,T alt «iii , "a' , oiTt with -nothing
but my head and sboi'ders above tb"
wwvs. '
"It was fury cold. T snw the
Ho Refuge On Earth Now Fop
Washington, D. C.—The last haven
of refuge on earth for American bank
wreckers, embezzlers, defaulters and
other criminals of that class was re
moved the Senate ratified an
extradition treaty with Honduras.
It is believed that under this treaty
Honduras may be persuaded to sur
render many old offenders who have
taken up residence there, although
that country has found rtieju desira
ble because they always lipd' rutfd -j
cash. „
I searchlights on the Qreßham and Sen
eca trying to pick me up, but they
went around and around and mlMed
me. I managed to load my revolver
again and It went off, although It had
had A ducking. Soon after that a
boat manned by four of the Repub
lic's crew and four sailors from the
Gresham commanded by Gunner's
Mate Johnson slid up near me. I
waved a towel I had picked up out of
the water. They saw me and came
and picked me up. I was weak and
cold—quite finished. Williams was
in the boat when It picked me up, 1
was glad to see. He was quite doue
up, too. We were quite back on our
feet again after the men on the Gres
ham had ministered to us. T cannot
speak too highly of the work of the
revenue cuttera that were trying to
tow us; It waa magnificent."
Captain Sealby had a word to say
about his officers and crew.
"I have nothing but praise for the
actions of the officers and crew of tho
Republic both at the time of the col
lision and subsequently durlug the
very trying task of getting the pas
sengers transferred to the Florida
The success of this maneuvre I at
tribute to the remarkable discipline
and cohesion between officers and
crew. . The passengers
aided greatly by their conduct. Thgre
was absolutely no panic among them
and the women behaved splendidly."
The Republlo's commander also
naid a generous compliment to Blnns,
the wireless operator, who hod stuck
to his key although part of the wire
less cabin on the boat deck had been
carried away by the Florida's prow.
Second Officer Williams told of his
experiences after he had become sep
arated from his superior on tbe slant
ing deck of the Republic. He said:
"When I fell down on the saloon
deck on the port side I hung onto the
rail with my elbow. In three minutes
It was all over. I felt her lift straight
up in the air and saw the prow right
over my head; then she Just slid
down. I felt the stern strike bot
tom, for there was a Jar and then I
felt something give. I believe she
broke In the middle where she had
been rammed by the Florida.
"I was pitched oft the deck before
the last Of her dropped out of sight.
I Just caught a glimpse of the keel
dropping past me as I hit the water.
I tread water for a second to get my
balance, then I struck out for about a
dozen strokes before the boll of the
water got me.
"A grating hatch hit me and I held
on. I couldn't climb onto It because
the seas rolled me ofT every time 1
scrambled up. I was getting tired of
trying when another grating came
along. I grabbed it with one hand
and held on between them. I guess I
was in the water almost half an hour
when the boat from the Gresham
camo along and pulled mo out. I di
rected the men where to look for the
captain and we found him in another
five minutes."
Williams saved a brier pipe and a
poclcetnlece out of the wreck and that
was all.
.lack Blnns, the wireless operator
who flashed the news of the Repub
lic's rammlne to Siasconset wireless
station una wno subsequently kept at
his place communicating with the
ships hastening in relief, seemed to
believe that the loss of 600 cigarettes
be bad with him when the Republic
left New York on Friday was one of
the most scrlouß features of the
wreck,
"Part of the wireless cabin was
torn awn* In the crash," said Blnns,
"but the Instruments were not hurt.
| As soon as tho captain beard what
I the damage was he sent me orders to
send out the distress signal. I found
that the Instrument was dead. Tho
electric motors had gone bad with
the flooding of the engine room. I
knew where the accumulators —stor-
age batteries you call them—that
are carried for emergencies just such
as that one were kept, and I groped
for -them in the dark. When I got
them coupled up 1 tried the koy and
found that the spark was light."
Virginia Railroads Lo«e
Richmond, Va.—The light of ap
peal to the Stata Supreme Court ot
Appeals In the two-ceut rate case was
refused to the railroads. The roads
now have two courses open to them.
Th.-y can either go Into thu United
States Circuit Court of Appeals and
have tbo caso heard, at liJl'gtn, or they
can go to the Corporation Coi.imission
and make for. s u revision
of ti;o rates ou thu giutiml that tin
roads are loswig uionv:. Alea'UJuiie
the n.u-tciu
CUBAN GOVNNADGURATED
Provisional Governor Magoon Es
corts General Gome* to the Palace
For the Inufimttoß Ceremonies,
and Then Sail* From the Island on
tiie New Maine—Onban Gunboat
Sees the Amerteuu Safely Off.
Havana, By Cable.—Major Gen.
tral Jose Miguel Gomes was inaugu
rated President of the restored Cuban
republic Thursday at noon and with
in an hour after he taken the
solemn oath of office administered
by the Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court, the American officials who had
been in control of affairs since the
autumn of 1906 had departed from
the island.
The American provisional Gover
aor, Charles E. Magoon, who escorted
General Gomez to the palace and
there turned over to him the reina
of government, sailed on the new
Maine. The Maine was followed by
the battleship Mississippi and tha
irmy transport McClellan. A swarm
of small vessels joined in the procea
lion out ov' the harbor.
A Cuban gunboat also accompanied
the ships soma little distance to sea
with a band on board playing from
time to time the Cuban national an
them. Earlier in the day Governor
Magoon and President-elect Gomes
were seated side by side in the car
riage en route to the palace in the
wake of a galloping escort of rural
guards or native cavalry there was
silence on the part of the holiday
throngs who lined the sidewalks.
Hats were lifted as the carriage
swept by, and the saluteß were return
ed in the same manner by the Gover
nor and General Gomer..
At night fireworks burned through
out the city in the same profusion
that characterize the 4th of July in
the United States, and the cafe*
were gay with music and singing."
About 3,000 troop are still on the
island under the command of Majoi
General Thomas L. Barry. These
will be returned to the United State#
as fast as the transport service will
pennit, the last of the troops leaving
on April Ist.
Cuba begins her new period of in
dependence under conditions which
seem as propitious as could be evolv
ed. Peace reigns from the western
extremities of Pindar del Ria to the
eastern promontories of Santiago
province, and no disturbing element
is anywhere in evidence.
TWO MORE JURORS ACCEPTED.
Nine Men Are Now In the Jury Box
to Hear the Cooper Trial—Fourth
Venire Is Ordered.
Nashville, Tenn., Special.—The
ninth day of the trial of Duncan B
Cooper, Robin Cooper and John D.
Sharp, for the murder of former Sen
ator Edward W. Carmock closed with
two additions having been made to
the jury, which now numbers 9.
The two recent acquisitions are Gus
Ktjipfer and P. 0. peirman.
Up to Friday Night, 1,165 tales
men have been examined in an effort
to get the 12 men. Of those who
qualified the State challenged 13, the
defense challenged 23 and the court
summarily excused two after they had
been declared satisfactory to both
sides.
It if conceded that the action of
the Stat« in charging two talisment
with perjury has greatly reduced the
chances of getting a jury at once.
Many of those summoned say they
may have expressed an opinion at the
time the murder occurred, and for
fear of an indictment, they disquali
fy themselves.
After hearing testimony in the case
of Juror Whitworth, whose health is
said to be such that his life would be
endangered by the confinement inci
dent to the trial of the ease, Judge
Hart was disposed to excuse him at
once, but tjie State asked that a de
cision be withheld until the next pan.
el was exhausted.
Bulgaria Complins of Turkey' 6 At
titude.
Sofia, By Cable.- The Bulgarian
government, has delivered a note to
the representatives of the powers,
complaining of the irreconcilable and
uncompromising attitude of Turkey
and declaring that the Porte must be
responsible for the consequences. The
note does not solicit the intervention
of the powers but draws their atten
tat*. to the tension of the situation.
Desperate Man Breaks Jail.
Wilmington. N. C.. Snecial— Jap B.
Walker, a white man in jail at South
port. charged with the murder of
Sheriff Jackson Stanland. of Bruns
wick county Inst December while re
sisting arrest by, a por-se headed by
the sheriff, made his escape from the
prison at Southport b>' braining the
night guard, J. B. Fountain, with
some heavy instrument procured in
some unaccountable vnv after he had
escaped his cell i'lto the corridor. The
guard was disarmed of his pistol and
all the eartrdiges he carried and a
white iran named Butler, held as an
nceomp'iec of Walker escaped too.
E-nrripa/n Payers Kcemn- Be
tween Trrkoy and B^l*#rla.
Paris. Special.--An official note
issued hero sets forth that tl.e
powers of Europe are earnestly con
tinuing their efforts to prevent an
outbreak of hostilities between Tup
key and Bulgaria, an outcome threat
ened by the recent mobilizations by
both couu tries concerned.