New-York tribune., 1870-05-23
IMMIGRATION TO THE SOUTH

The tide OF European immigration 10 our
shores still continues with little or no abate-
ment, though but a small proportion of the
stream is DETECTED southwark. Out of
quarter of q million of foreigners who landed
last year at Castle Garden, less than 1000
reported as intending to find homes in the
Southern States. One cause for this is,
undoubtedly, the fact that the largest proper
ton of this immigration is from the northern
latitudes of Europe. The whole history of i'm
migration shows that farming populations
always move upon lines of latitude. We
see the inhabitants of Norway and Sweden
cOngregated in large numbers in the North
Western States, where snow and ice cover the
ground during nearly half the year. People
from the northern portions of Germany settle
upon the lands bordering upon our great
lakes; those from the middle parts of Germany
on the banks of the Ohio and our great Western
rivers. BY the dialects of the different prov
inces of Europe, we can trace the immigra-
ton across our country; the new settlements
everywhere bearing the same relative latitude
as those from which the immigrants started in
Europe Man seeks in a new home to surround
himself with climatic conditions, scenery, soil,
and agricultural productions, similar to those
he has been accustomed to.
Our Southern States need large accessions of
thrifty, industrious citizens. Vast areas there
await the hand of the tiller to blossom like
the rose and swell the aggregate of our na-
tional wealth; but this settling up of the coun-
try can only be accomplished by inducing the
people Of Spain, Southern France, Southern
Germany Italy, and Austria to follow the
isOthermal lines, and make their homes where
the climate, productions, and scenery, are
similar in character to those Of the countries
named. Cotton is the great staple, and is in
such demand in Europe that vast efforts are
made to produce it by Great Britain. For this
purpose over 35O,OOO,OOO has been OF is being
expended in British India in opening up that
country by railroads. Unfortunately for these
gigantic efforts, the people of India, as q
first necessity, cultivate articles of food;
and the cotton-crop is left to be gathered
when the more Immediately necessary crops
are harvested. The cotton is thus left to
fall upon the ground, is gathered dirty
and stained, and is freed thereafter from
seed by the rudest cOntrivances, that crush the
scotland thereby stain the fiber. Twenty pounds
of this imperfectly cleaned cotton is good days
work for one person; the cotton is then tramped
into bags by the feet, after it has probably
lain for weeks exposed to the changes of eli
mate in open sheds 1t is next carried on the
backs of bullOcks long distances to the rail
roads at a rate of not over ten miles
per day transportation, and is pitched off
the animals at every halt, into the dust,
or mud, or wet grass, so that the bags
are often worn out by the journey. Long
years of persuasion, bribery, and even coercion
have failed to induce the native cultivators of
cotton in India to change these methods and |
practices in any perceptiblc degree and now, |
the stimulus of high prices for cotton paid |
during cur war having died out, the gathering |
and marketing in India have decreased from |
100000 bales in 1866 to less than 1900 900 |
bales in 1SG9-7O. Irrigation is carried on by |
machinery at large expenditure of money |
and many other things are done in the inter |
est of the cOttOn-spinners and operatives
at home; yet the native population of
India presents an impassive, dOgged, hone
less resistance, based upon dstrust of the
English, to all these efforts for changing their
ways, and still adhere, with fixed determine
ton, to the methods their forefathers found
satisfactory two thousand years ago.
But so pounds to the acre under the most ap-
proved methods of culture can be obtained in
India, while at present our lands cultivated in
a very slovcnly way yield $50 pounds Of ginned