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Uou ShouCd Know '
By EDWARD EMERINE -A. R K A N S AS
WNU Features.
“A good place to visit—a bet
ter place to live.”
That is Louisiana’s boast. It
is Louisiana’s promise, backed
by every square foot of land
from the pine forests of the
northern uplands to the marshes
of the Mississippi delta.
Louisiana is a land of incredible
natural richness, in its swamps and
bayous, its cane and cotton fields,
its lakes and streams, its farms and
cities—and its people. Here the beau
ty and romance of an empire was
formed by the alchemy of time.
It was a miracle of chemical com
binations that brought about the
transmutation of these base metals
into gold. Geologically, the chemist
Nature, with pestle and mortar,
mixed marine and alluvial sedi
ments, added the acids of eons, and
brought forth a wondrous combina
tion to make the Louisiana of today.
The extremely fertile top soils, pro
ducing agricultural products and
valuable forests, are the state’s
basic resources. But beneath . the
surface are rich deposits of salt,
sulphur, petroleum and natural gas.
Oyer all hangs a favorable climate,
with sun and rain proportioned and
balanced to bless the land.
Racially too, Louisiana has had
its minglings and infusions. The
Creole is a descendant of the
French or Spanish settlers. The Is
lenos, in spite of intermixture with
other nationalities, retains much of
the Spanish. The descendant of the
German, almost completely ab
sorbed by his Latin neighbors, still
lives above New Orleans on the
“German coast.” The great-grand
child of English Royalists resides in
East and West Feliciana parishes.
The Russian, as well as the Central
and South American, now makes
Louisiana his home. The Filipino
has Manila village, and there is a
Chinese settlement at Bayou Defon.
It is doubtful that a full-blooded
Negro can be found in the state.
Two centuries of linguistic inter
course have modified the French
dialects of the Creole and Acadian,
with words and inflections borrowed
from the English, German, Negro
and Indian neighbor. There are
Negroes who cannot speak English,
yet early Anglo-Saxon idioms and
expressions may be heard in their
archaic purity in some sections of
the state. Regardless of the dialect,
words are soft-spoken in Louisiana
and pleasant to the ear.
Under Many Flags.
Louisiana has known many gov
ernments and many flags. Discov
ered in 1528 by the Spanish ex
plorer Narvaex, in 1682 LaSalle
claimed the territory in the name
of France. He later attempted
colonization with 280 men, who per
ished with him. The colonial period
comprises the French domination
down to 1769, Spanish domination
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CANAL STREET . . . With modern New Orleans on the left and ancient
New Orleans on the right.
from 1769 ■to 1803, when there was
a brief period of French rule again.
The “Louisiana Purchase” in 1803
brought the region under the Stars
and Stripes. Louisiana joined the
Confederacy in 1861 with other
eouthern states, and figured prom
inently in the Civil war.
Statehood was granted Louisiana
as the War of 1812 began. Not the
least picturesque of those who
fought at the Battle of New Orleans
was Jean Lafitte, the pirate, and
his crew. Lafitte, upon whose head
a price had been set by Louisiana
authorities, spurned British gold
and offered to guide warships with
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gulp of ~~M EX ICO l-
in striking distance of New Orleans.
Andrew Jackson, with the Tennes
seans, Kentuckians, Creoles and pi
rates, won a great victory at Chal
mette when they turned back the
tide of Red Coats. Parkenham, the
English general, fell fatally wound
ed on the battlefield.
Out of a colorful past emerges the
Louisiana of today, tranquil, hos
pitable and progressive. The chem
ist is still busy there. The labora
tory of the scientist and the fac
tory of the industrialist are collab
orating in a new field of develop
ment. Louisiana has within its bor
ders the raw materials and facili
ties necessary for the successful
operation of chemical industries.
Its farms supply cotton, sugar cane,
rice, corn and sweet potatoes. Its
forests provide many kinds of tim
ber. Its deposits of oil, gas, salt,
sulphur, coastal shells, sand, grav
el and other minerals are abundant.
Wealth From Wast^,
Wallboard is made of once use
less sugar cane pulp, rubber from
petroleum and carbon black from
natural gas. Chemical and scien
tific research has opened new fields
for plastic and synthetic manufac
ture, using Louisiana’s great re
sources. Seven paper mills manu
facture newsprint from pulpwood,
salt cake and other chemicals. Cook
ing oil, stock feed, rayon, film, cel
lophane, celluloid, felts, surgical
dressings and glycerine are pro
duced from cottonseed. Sugar is
made from sorghum and countless
by-products of rice are being util
ized.
Starch, glue and industrial al
cohol are manufactured from sweet
potatoes. Oil from the tung tree is
used in making paints, varnishes,
linoleum and waterproof materials.
Soy beans are converted into plas
tics. Collection of peat moss is
simple and cheap. Lime, both hy
drate and caustic, is made from
oyster and clam shells. Rice hulls
make an excellent insulant. There
are fabulous resources in the
state’s Gulf coastal waters, yielding
annual harvests of sea food.
Even with accelerated industriali
zation, the charm of Louisiana and
its people remains unchanged. Mag
nolia trees in the moonlight, soft
voices to speak of romance, gayety
and color in recreations and cele
brations, unparalleled beauty and
serenity that is Louisiana. And
that it will remain: a good place
to visit—a better place to live.
THE HOME JOURNAL. PERRY. GEORGIA
J|» '
JAMES HOUSTON DAVIS
Governor of Louisiana
“Jimmie” Davis was born on a
hill farm in the Beech Springs com
munity of Jackson Parish. He is a
graduate of Louisiana State univer
sity. Former school teacher, court
clerk, Shreveport police commis
sioner and public service commis
sioner, he was elected governor in
1944, His hobbies are music, sing
ing, fishing and hunting.
Louisiana ’s Famed
Creole Cooking Is
Gourmets 9 Delight
Mark Twain spoke of the pom
pano cooked in Louisiana as being
‘‘delicious as the less criminal
forms of sin.” William Makepeace
Thackery found New Orleans ‘‘the
city of the world where you can eat
and drink the most and suffer the
least.” Irvin S. Cobb found New
Orleans bouillabaisse, a fish chow
der, unexcelled.
The people of Louisiana set tables
of luscious Creole dishes that have
evolved over a period of more than
two centuries and present a trium
phant synthesis of the French love
for delicacies and the Spanish taste
for pungent seasoning. While Creole
cooking today is found at its best
in the vicinity of New Orleans and
in the Teche country, its excellencies
may be enjoyed throughout Louisi
ana wherever the French influence
has penetrated.
In the preparation of sea food
Creole cuisine is at its best. Oysters,
with crabs and shrimp, are cooked
in gumbo and it is said that a
Creole puts everything into gumbo
except the Creole! In addition to
sea food, game and domestic fowl,
there are varieties of roasts and
other elaborate dishes.
Rice is used by Louisianans as
Irish potatoes are used elsewhere.
Hominy grits is to breakfast what
rice is to dinner. The perfect com
plement to a Creole meal is Creole
dripped coffee—although a taste for
it has to be acquired since it is
blacker and stronger than that used
in other states. '
As one goes farther north in Lou
isiana the cooking more and more
resembles that of the South in gen
eral, but there are few places
where Creole methods have not had
some influence. In the vicinity of
Natchitoches, the Spanish influence
is particularly noticeable. The Mon
roe area is famous for its barbe
cues. Usually 15 or more ingredi
ents are used in preparing sauces
for barbecued meats. A popular
“country dish” of this section is
pot liquor and corn pone.
INDUSTRIAL LOUISIANA
In sharp contrast to Louisiana’s
well-known agricultural importance
is its extensive industrial develop
ment. This is a section of the huge
refinery of the Standard Oil com
pany at Baton Rouge.
At the beginning of the present
century, Louisiana embarked upon
an era of intensive industrial
growth. Discovery and development
of abundant raw material resulted
in the establishment over the state
of refineries, chemical plants and
other large industrial units.
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ICE CREAM FOR KIDS? . . . Mrs. Sarah Young (left), 89, and Mrs. Susan
Liston, 95, are enjoying ice cream and cake at a monthly party held for 63
women at the GAR home in Pittsburgh. This party was given by a Swiss*
vale Lions club committee. The “girls” at the home range in age from
65 to 95.
News Programs Rate First
With Rural Radio Fans
WASHINGTON.—RuraI radio lis
teners place news programs first
on their list, the agricultural de
partment’s bureau of agricultural
economics has revealed.
Based on interviews with 4,293
men and women in rural areas, the
study showed that:
About two rural women in fen lis
ten to their radios less than two
hours a day. At least two out of
ten listen six hours or more, and
another two listen from four to six
hours.
Men listen much less. Four in
ten listen less than two hours a day.
Men in different sections of the
country listen to the radio about the
same amount of time. Among wom
en, regional differences are pro
nounced. Western women do the
most, southern women the least lis
tening.
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/NEWS or FLIERS AMD FLYING
NEED LESSONS TO FLTf?
Most new plane owners go into
this flying business slowly. First,
they spend hours of practice flying
around the airport, perfecting their
landing and taking off technique.
T'lie first flight is usually a short
one, for a new pilot can get lost
within a few miles of his own air
port, so different does the familiar
earth look from the unfamiliar po
sition in the air above it. But be
low is one for Ripley:
• • •
The story is being told of how
a woman who had never been in
an airplane before, took off and
landed without accident. It
happened when an Ercoupe pur
chaser flew his shiny new craft
to a pasture near his home and
persuaded his wife, who had
never been in a plane before.
She settled in the cabin while
he showed her how to operate
the throttle while he spun the
propellor by hand. The engine
caught; the wife pulled the
throttle the wrong way, pulling
out instead of pushing in. The
husband managed to jump aside
as the plane lurched forward
and took off. For half an hour
the woman circled the field, but
finally got up nerve enough to
land. While the apprehensive
husband stood by, she made a
perfect landing and stepped
out of the plane a confirmed fly
ing enthusiast!
• • •
The Skycar, now strictly experi
mental, may some day be used for
both sky and road travel. It is a
four-wheeler, with a movable wing
doing the work of ailerons, rudders
and elevators. The maker is Con
solidated-Vultee.
• * •
Blazing the Trail
Blanche Noyes, the CAA’s air
marking specialist, spends all of her
time flying over the United States
in an effort to get cities, civic groups
and others to provide suitable
markers for the pilots of civilian
planes. Blanche admits she has
been lost—and has been grateful
when she came to a town which had
air markers on buildings, pave
ments, or in fields, to let her know
what town she was flying over. She
believes 100,000 air markers are
needed to make civilian flying safe.
• • *
Aviation gasoline, now often
sold at a markup of about 10
cents a gallon, may be reduced
considerably by competition
when mass production puts
more planes into the air.
• * *
The Jefferson Republican, news
paper, Ranson, W. Va., is now offer
ing an “ex-army plane with an ex
army, ex-navy flying instructor” to
give free airplane rides or instruc
tions for people selling subscrip
tions. Five one-year subscriptions
are good for a free ride.
While news held first position in
all regions, there was no such agree
ment on other kinds of programs.
Religious programs are special
favorites of the South. They rank
somewhat lower in popularity in the
north central states and are chosen
by only half as many people in the
West as in the South.
Women in the West rank comedi
ans and popular singers next to
news, but southern women place
such programs seventh.
Western men rate sports events
and scores higher than do the men
in other parts of the country.
The study on rural listening hab
its was prepared for the FFC in con
nection with hearings to determine
whether to allot more air space for
so-called clear channel stations
which serve wide areas.
Editorial
“Boys coming home from the air
corps are whooping it up for an
airport here at Polo. And well they
might too, for it looks very much
like the future is going to be in the
air—even though some of us old
fogies will continue to insist on
keeping at least one foot on the
ground.”—Tri-County Press, Polo,
111. (Bet that editor will be flying
his own some day I)
• • •
Join a Flying Club
Thousands of American flying
enthusiasts are organizing into
flying clubs in their communi
ties, particularly returned vet
erans and those who want to
take up flying. In many cases
these clubs are finding ways
and means to establish airports
and hangars as well as facili
ties for servicing planes in their
areas.
• • •
Low flying violates the federal
civil aeronautics law and most state
codes. Most regulations provide
that a flyer must maintain a height
of at least 1,000 feet above congest
ed areas, crowds of people, or
cities. The flyer must also main
tain altitude enough to be able to
glide away from cities or congested
areas in case of engine trouble.
• * •
‘Once a Paratrooper— ’
PORT CHESTER, N. Y.—Tom
Thomas, recently discharged as
a paratrooper, leaped from the
window of his second story bed
room recently into snow and
zero weather. Clad in summer
pajamas, Thomas awoke as
soon as he hit the ground 30
feet below. He was unhurt.
Later he explained it this way:
“I could swear I heard the
sergeant yell ‘jump.’ ”
What Is Pilotage?
Pilotage is the science of naviga
tion by visual reference to the
ground. Briefly, it is accomplished
by drawing a line on a map espe
cially prepared for aerial navi
gation, from the starting point to
the intended destination. This line
is usually marked off in ten-mile
intervals, the compass course is
found, wind drift is computed, mag
netic deviation and variation of the
compass is applied, and corrected
compass course is determined.
(Sounds complicated, and it sure is.Jj
