The Iowa transcript. (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1858-1866, 1861-02-21
Georgia and Illinois.
frrom the Phil. North American.

named stand ycrvsprominenuy before
the public; Georgia, or those who pro-
fess to represent her, being outrageous
ly violent in hostility, not only to Hi,
nois and her representatives, but to al
most the whole country beside. What
is the great merit and strength Of the
dogmas Toombs and Cobb represent
and what have they done for the State
of Georgia itself? It happens that the
results Of the census just taken in these
two States were given to the public at
the same time, and within the past
week. The comparison by counticsfor
both States and for every county OF
each between 1850 and 1860, is now
before us and we extract some items Of
information which men Of all parts OF
the country will do well to consider.
Illinois has an area Of 35,4eo,ooo
acres, and Georgia 37,l2o,ooo acres
In 1850, Georgia reported o,378.ooo
acres ''improvcd," while Illinois had
but 5,ose,5oo acres improved by occu.
patton. Georgia had then oo6,le5 in.
habitants and Illinois s5l,740. Az the
unoccupicd portion Of Georgia embrace
ed the best lower counties, admirably
adapted to cotton in all cases, and in
many fitted for sugar planting, it would
be but reasonable to suppose that it
would grow rs an agricultural State
nearly or quite as fast a. Illinois while
Georgia had ut that time also develop
cd u far greater amount Of manufacture.
ing than existed in Illinois, and very
much was hoped for its future in that
department Upper Georgia has = rep
utation for energy which gained for 1t
the name Of the Empire State Of the
South, aud number of important and
profitable railroads were already open.
Cd. Ten years have now elapsed, and
their results, so far as population is con-
scrned, is before us. Georgia has gain
ed but lG9, ,7oa inhahisants, or less than
II per cent. of the total for 1850 while
Illinois has gained sos,o20 Inhabitants,
or l02 per cent. Of her total in 1850, a
gain just ten times rs great as that Of
the State Of Toombs ind Cobb.
An analysis Of the gain in Georgia
discloscs the fact that most Of tho in.
crease Of the past ten years is in slaves.
The lower countics--which are occu-
pied only by large plantations-have
gained $4,000, while the great body Of
the central counties have gained moth.
ing Of consequence. It is remarkable
that the central counties-which con-
tain the cities Of Augusta, Milledgeville,
Macon, Columbus, Atlanta and Lagrange
have not gained two per cent. on .
Of 100000, the remaining
gain being in the grain-growing coun-
ties Just north Of the railroad lines, and
in the mountains of the extreme north.
The oldest cotton-growing counties
have lost as much as the cities located
in them have gained, the gain itself be-
ing small, and bearing no proportion to
the growth Of cities in Illinois. No one
of the towns gains more than four or
five thousand, and Illinois has now >
dozen counties which exceed in popu-
ulation the largest and most popu-
lous county Of Georgia, which is that
containing the city Of Savannah.
The decade just passed, it must b.
rememb sred, is the crowning time Of
cotton prosperity for Georgia. If cot.
ton is king, and 20 bene6cent as well Al
powerful ruler as we have been in
formed, why do ten years Of uninter'
ruptedly prosperous rule give to Gcor.
gia but ten per cent. in growth, and
that ten per cent. in slaves? Why are
there not at least two hundred thousand
Of prosperous whites added in this per
iod which gives almost nine hundred
thousand to Illinois !? There do moi
appear to be SO many As ten thousand
whites added to the Empire State ol
Cottondom in the last ten years Of its
existence, though we are not yet in
formed what the precise number is; and
yet If cotton is so powerful as we have
been informed, it should have doubled
the power Of Georgia in these critical
ten years. Hereafter, the lands will
waste faster than the new lands will be
opened, and the official historian will
come to that part Of his work which
treats Of ]" decline and fall.,' Georgia