The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1873-04-04
immigration.

The efforts which have been up to
this time to induce foreign emigrants
to come to the Southern States have
failed, because in our humble judg-
ment they were misdirected. The South
needs settlers mot laborers) who will
bring with them capital, intelligence
and good habits, who will purchase our
surplus lands and establish colonies,
and thus conduce to the prosperity and
productive wealth to the country.
To induce this class of people to en-
igrate we must send commissioners to
Europe. whose services will be recon-
pensed otherwise than by a given num-
Der of dollars a head for the emigrants
they gather and send out. The COM
missiOners should be men of high char
acter and intellectual capacity, thor
oughly conversant with the industrial
resources of the South, andwho, armed
with the commissions of the Governors
of their respective States, will inspire
confidence among the people, and not
be regarded as the g foreign commits
sioners hitherto sent abroad have been,
in the LIGHT of hotel tOuts or steamboat
runners. Instead of engaging the first
man that can be caught who "speaks
Dutch, " and getting him for as small a
compensation as possible, the very best
and most prominent man should be
sent, and his compensation should be
sufficient to give dignity and importance
as well as efficiency to his mission.
The class of people who can be col
lected on the wharves at Hamburg and
Lubbock, and paid to emigrate to the
South, are the very people we do not
want. They are generally of the lowest
order, have no means, and are only fit
to do mental labor. They are in no
sense the people to develop the resourc-
es of any country. They are more of a
hindrance than help.
We want the better order of educated
settlers, who have been small farmers
in their own country, but who, from the
high price of land at home, are unable
to become proprietors, may be induced
to come to this country to improve their
conditions and provide amply for their
families.
In our opinion there is no laborer for
the cotton States so efficient as the
negro. We may be compelled to en-
ploy the German, Danish and Dutch
peasant when we cannot obtain negroes,
but while we can hire the latter it
would be sad mistake to employ Eu-
ropean labor.
We have plenty of room for the set
tier. We need his capital, his intelh-
gent skill. and the example of his fru-
gality and thrift. And if the right
means are employed, the proper agents
commissioned, and if accurate informa-
ton as to the agricultural, mineral and
industrial resources of our country, its
soil, climate. geography, etc, be diffus-
ed, this class of population may be
readily induced to come and settle
among us. The most effective means
to this end is to induce leading citizens,
say of Great Britain, France, Germany,
Denmark and Holland, to come here,
see the country, judge of it for them
selves, and then become the leaders of
future colonies of settlers.
When we heard that the Rev. G. I'll.
Howard intended to visit Europe last
year to promote immigration to Geor
gia, we had hope that great move
ment of the right sort and in the right
direction would be made. We know
that Mr.. Howard is opposed to the inn
portation of common labOrers, and that
he understands desirable immigration
to mean the settlement of our surplus
lands, and the development of our
mines, the Improvement of our stock
farming, the planting and management
of vineyards, ETC., by foreign emigrants
with the means, knowledge and morali-
ty necessary to do these things and to
become useful and worthy citizens.
1t is men like Mr.. Howard who should
be sent to Europe as commissioners, If
they can be found and induced to go
and they should be literally remuner-
ated, and their office and duty exalted
as much as possible. There are plenty
of men who "speak Dutch" who can be
6 hired, " as the phrase is, to undertake
the duty for few hundred dollars, but
the expenditure Just amounts to paying
the expenses of the hired Dutchman to
visit his native village, drink lager beer
in the wharf taverHs of some foreign
seaport, and bring with him a few I'M
profitable farm laborers, who, after try
ing labor in our cotton fields in the
dog days, "throw down the shovel and
the hoe" and become the presiding
geniuses of peanut and apple stands at
the corners of the streets of orr towns
and villages