Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1872-06-11
To the Editors of Tennessee Journals.

GENTLEMEN: Allow me to speak
word through you to the people of Tennes-
see. A few far-seeing men, who have
sought the best good for our State out of
the future, have talked and written of I'M
migration until the people have become
tired of it, at the time when their greatest
interest is to be wide awake to it. So they
were tired of railroad projects and the COM
mon school theory, until the energy and
persistence of the press kept those ideas
alive till they grow into facts. To the
same guardianship the friends of immi-
grafton commit it, until the people can re-
alize that it is the question of all other
questions with us. The greatest question
to a Tennesseean should be, how shall we
enable our State advance to the front rank
with her sister States, where she so Justly
belongs? She has land enough, with
millions of acres as the Indiansllef them.
She has minerals, the value of which is
only lessened by their quantity, Her first
need is people, muscle and brain and her
other and last need is capital.
After many years of thorough and ac-
tual examination of many portions of
these United States, | satisfied myself that
the State of Tennessee was the most suita-
bic place for the location of my country
people who might wish to immigrate
from their crowded homes to this New
World. To carry this conclusion of mine
into effect, ever since the year 1856, l have
been in communication with the high
Swiss officials, with what results and ben
etits to my own cOuntrymen and the State
of Tennessee, need not mention. Partly
from this and similar influences, DR.. JOOs,
a prominent member of the Swiss Con-
gress, accompanied by General Hitz, the
Consul General of Switzerland, lately Wis
tied our State for the purpose of seeking
future homes for Swiss people, and / am
happy to state that the two distinguished
gentlemen found my representations to be
correct and have returned highly pleased
with our country, climate, prospects and
| people; and especially with Swiss expert
ments in Tennessee. a large number of
Swiss immigrate to the United States ev
| cry year, and large number will hereafter
do so. Where will they locate?
Nearly every State is holding out in
| ducements to the disorganized stream, as it
| reaches our shores. They have working
" Bureaus of immigration with ample
means provided to invest, and a good in
vestment it is. Many of them, among
which of the South are Florida and Texas,
| have offered donations of large bodies of
| land for actual settlement. Now, in this
| contest for wealth, (fOr the State in which
! q good Swiss citizen fixes his home, Sc
| cures wealth, whether he brings dollar in
money or not,) what has Tennessee as a
State done? She has talked some, but
done nothing. / speak too fast. She too,
has her bureau of immigration. know
the commissioners personally: - Dona-
hue, of Shelby, NIoffatt, of Davidson, and
Charlton, of Knox. Better men for the
business are not to be found in the State.
But in this rivalry among the States, to in
troduce our own loved and unknown Ten
nessee to the world, and turn the tide of
immigration towards us, they have not
been furnished even a postage stamp. The
reason given is that taxes are high and fl
nances low; for that very reason
more hands ought to be obtained
and more of the farm cultivated more
coal and ore ought to be dug out OF
the ground and more manufactures start
ed. Let these commissioners have some
money, at least enough to buy seed with,
while other States are harvesting; enough
to enable them to tell emigrants the way
here, while other States are offering them
a welcome and home. We have in Ten
nessee %, 900, 900 acres of unoccupied land.
| The only actual value they now are to the
State is, occasionally some owner pays a
little tax, and to that extent they are dead
capital. Much of this is owned by land
owners, in large tracts. The plan of DIR,
JUS 10 IillS @AS COIu peuSdIlOu IOI vi gan
lied Swiss immigration to these lands, be
Invites donation of 100000 acres, in as
large tracts as possible, upon which the
, settlers may have homes free of charge,
J Much of this has been offered, and the
whole soon will be, by those who will be
largely paid from the remainder of Their
lands. The interest of the State is this
She now taxes an acre of that land at .
cents she will soon tax it SO, and to
: that extent she is forty times richer
When all this gets into operation, as
it soon will, what a need we will
have for a live bureau! No man can
attend to it, who has private business Of
his own to attend to, or out of his private
means.
Most of these thoughts have been direct.
ed towards Swiss immigration, only be-
cause / am more familiar with that depart
ment of the subject, but the ideas relate to
immigration from all countries. Let us
, all as Tennesseeans wake up and act on
their subject. Very respectfully,