The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-01-17
A Home for Immigrants.

'o'rso'ernihent. TRAx. %
A Home for Immigrants
One ofthe most singular of the social nha-
no,nena which perplez and battle at once the
pn'i'ii'nfopist and the political economist. is
Sno"h In the inveterate propensity of our
population to crowd themselves tooeth-
CT IN towns, in preference to seeking comfort
aOie homes in the agricultural regions The
scarcity OF labor, the high prices of fnrov;s,ons
the lack OF comfortable tenements tho r,o;,
mposs,oiity ofproclring even decent sup-
ply OF the neeessaries of life, are considerations
winch seem to have no influence. Our cit;o.
are crowded to repletien with a population
which cannot find adequate means of s,,nnort
while in the great farming districts of the
west, where food is cheap and expenses faw
tney are suffering for the labor which this
class are fitted to perform. Necessarily. the
result Is privation and pauperism on the one
nand, anu on the other development needless
~ retarded and imperfect Corn meal in
Portland sells for dollar and ten cents. while
at the door Of the Western farmer II br;noo
only ten cents without the dollar, and thew
ourn 1t for fuel. Ofcourse, we do not nut ont
ofsight that in this case the lack of ADEQUATE
means Of transportation is at the bottom of
much OF the difference; but that does not real
ly affect the point at issue. 1t is a case like
that of Mahomet and the mountain. The
corn cannot come to Paddy; why in the name
OF reason and common sense, does not Paddy
go to the corn9 And not Paddy only, but an
immense class beside; the scores and hum
dreds of young men of American birth who
annually come swarming into the towns from
the country. Why should they come here to
spend their days in selling tape and stockings.
or bending over the pages of ledger, and to
divide their nights between the billiard room
and some close clearinghouse attic, fritterine
away their money on fine clothes and fast
horses, wasting their vigor in unwholesome
confinement, and merging all manly and no
BILE ambition in the petty rivalry of fashiona-
Bile display, while in the great free west there
are fields to be titled, mines to be worked.
roads and cities to be built, fair homes to be
created, and a civilization to be opened up
which the best of them might be proud to aid?
Melancholy philosophers tell us that the race
on this continent is deteriorating; and one
might wen believe that they are right, If he
were to judge only by the young men who
t1rong our city streets. Young they are, but
not youthful; effete when they should be in
the prime of manly strength, blasee before
their boards are grown; and not a pleasant
subject to contemplate when it is considered
that with the generation to which they belong
must soon rest the destinies of the Great Re-
public. afito a|sl lar.l.-l llet
We have been lel into tn Is train ofthouQht
by looking over little pamphlet entitled
Minnesota as Home for Immigrants, y which
comes to us from st. Paul. 1t contains the re-
suits OF an act fthe Legislature of Minnesota,
directing prizes to lie awarded for the two best
essays setting forth the advantages which that
State offers to immigrants, and giving useful
information in relation to it. Perhaps no
State in the Union offers more attractions to
the settler. The climate Is one of the healthi-
est in the world. True, the extremes of heat
and cold, as exhibited at different seasons, are
great; but abrupt changes are not common;
and owing to the dryness and cearness of the
atmosphere the extremes are not productive
OF disease and suffering as In the damp ci-
mates OF the East and South. The soil Is
wonderfully fertile, and so well adapted to the
growth of cereals that the average yield per
acre OF corn, wheat, oats and rye Is greater
than in any other State, not even excepting
Ohio, Illinois, and Iowa. Fruits ripen well;
| grazing Is rich and abundant For wool-grow-
ing and for cattle-raising there is no better
country known; dairy products yield largely
and OF excellent quality.
The country is well timbered and well wa
tered; millpower abounds; navigable rivers,
and the neighborhood of great lakes make
transportation easy. The earth teens with
mineral wealth. Copper, iron, salt, lime, build
ing stone, are found in abundance. In short,
almost everything which renders a country
desirable for new settler, and ensures him
an early and rich return for the labor he may
expend Is there to be found.
The pamphlet before us makes the follow
ing estimate Of the average cost of good
start in this inviting field:
| n
gress In 1852, the actual settler upon a QUAR-
ter section (160 acres) of land, by paying a
sum sufficient to cover the expenses of sur-
veying, may after a residence of five wears nm
on the land, secure an absolute title TO the
same. The expense of fencing forty acres
with a board fence, was estimated at $3.50.
when lumber and labor were cheap and plen-
ty; prices have advanced, and at the present
time would cost it considerably more. A much
cheaper fence can be made OF rails, which can
be had in most localities for the labor of
cutting and splitting. Horses are worth from
500 to $500 each; oxen $50 to 500 per yoke,
and cows from $40 to $50 apiece. A comfort
able log house can be built with an outlay of
from $40 to $50, for windows, nails, doors, &c
Cattle can be well sheltered in straw-cover-
ell howell. A wagon and few farming tools
would cost 500 more. To this must be add
ed the cost of substance for the family till
the crops can be harvested. Thus 1t will be
seen that with the outfit of few hundred dol
lars, one could make decent start on the new
lands of Minnesota; and If wanting even this
small capital, one need not be discouraged If
he have health and strength; these, with hab-
its of industry and economy, VIII surely over
come all obstacles. The history of pioneer
life abounds in instances of penniless settlers
who in a few years acquired comfortable in
| nendence
iaboring man in the cities and large
, towns paws srom $50 to 500 yearly rent for a
, tenement. as devoid of pure air and sunlight
as it is in conyeniences, a sum which If saved
for one year would make him the owner of a
) healthy, comfortable house on the prairies Of
, Minnesota; whilst the remainder of his hard
earned money, increased by the earnings of his
wife, and under her prudent MANAGEMENT,
scarce sufices to procure food, clothing and
fuel for the dependent little ones in good
times; but when sickness comes, suffering Is
T the inevitable consequence.
10 sucn, Minnesota ofiers home, comfort,
: and ultimate wealth, upon the sole condition
of a few years of patient toll and welldirected
! effort. Nor to these only are such offers made
!, they extend to the millions of the Old World
1 oroaninp in misery, driven to despair by bad
f soyernment, burdensome taxation, surplus oi
/ = f,-s - &l,s,, - IT.