The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1870-11-28
Mnst Cultivate All the Land.

We have great respect for Commodore
MAuRY; but we do not therefore incur the
obligation to agree with him In all OF his
notions. On deep-sea soundings and the
career of the winds he is supreme; but
when he gets upon land, and enters upon
the discussion of domestic economy and
industry, he sometimes gets himself
stranded.
In an article of great length which APP
pears In Saturdays Wing be enlarges upon
the Importance of cultiyating our idle land.
awe want laborers," says he, "to cult
vate these %, OO0, 900 of idle acres, and we
want capital to develope and utilize the
wealth with which the God Of bounties has
endowed our State"
With this summary of our wants." we
certainly cannot say that "man wants but
little here below" Most assuredly not.
The Commodore makes out that we want
q great deal. And why do we want all
these things in such a hurry? Can't we
wait bit, and let things come in proper
order! Can't we leave some land for pos
terity to settle and cultivate, and some
mines for them to developed? Must we
finish up the world in our day? Use up
its forests, exhaust it's mines, and finish and
whitewash the whole great globe?
No, it is neither necessary. for happiness
nor independence. Let us get along regu-
larly and in order, and avoid the forcing
systemo If we bring In emigrants under
the forcing system, we shall surely have a
bad population. If we go ahead too ra-
pidly, we shall be liable to the revulsions
and rough usages which always flow from
too much haste. We may, indeed, 60 faster
than we are going now; but We cannot
hope to crafty the Impotence of Com.
MAuRY. It would be fatal. It would wreck
us all.
To settle up and cultivate 2S,O0O,0O0 OF
acres of land will take many generations.
The introduction of population must be
gradual to keep 1t well fortified. Nor can you
bring In really desirable people with very
great rapidity. To have good immigrants
you must bring them in under those rea-
sonable inducements which act upon intel
Ngent men. If you would do it faster you
must relieve other lands of their paupers
and jail.birds, and fill your land with very
unreliable and dangerous people. Comma
dore MAuRy assumed, in a paper he put
forth some months since, that every immi'
grant was worth large sum to a commu.
nity-some 81 200, we believe. We have two
cases OF recent occurrence. Two settle
ments in this State Of recently-imported
persons failed completely, and last winter
the Legislature was asked to appropriate g
sum Of money for the relief Of colony In
Amelia.
1t is our duty, In our day and generation,
to do what we can to improve the world ;
but we must leave something for posterity,
as our very good ancestors left something
for US. We can't have everything we want
any more than they had everything they
wanted. We can't borrow as much money
as we want for one thing, as everybody
knows. But for one we don't want to see
this-state filed up In our day. We want to
leave land to be settled and mines to be
worked by posterity, and we want to leave
them great deal Of those grand forests
which we love. These wants are not only
natural, but they are entirely consistent
with wise policy and q proper regard for
the welfare Of society and the prosperity
and peace Of the Commonwealth.