âWhat would I do in Mississippi?â I asked.
âWhat you want to and can.â He sat down again and turned toward me. âItâs all open. Thereâs a state to be made, and thereâs a free hand for the fashioner. Half the available land hasnât been claimed now, and thereâs a new treaty afoot thatâll send the Chocktaws west of the river to give the state a vast new territory.â He clenched a hand. âThat country must and will be settled, and itâs better that it be done by Southerners.â