āWhat would I do in Mississippi?ā I asked.
āWhat you want to and can.ā He sat down again and turned toward me. āItās all open. Thereās a state to be made, and thereās a free hand for the fashioner. Half the available land hasnāt been claimed now, and thereās a new treaty afoot thatāll send the Chocktaws west of the river to give the state a vast new territory.ā He clenched a hand. āThat country must and will be settled, and itās better that it be done by Southerners.ā