Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-04-08

ABRC0ts "a cAS ~ Aaoe-s 49,
the wants of this State:
Tennessee wants immigration, more
money, because she has thousands of
acres of fertile lands lying idle; because
she has unmeasured forests filed with
the finest timber, that ought to be
felled; because she has miles of mines
of dormant wealth that need to be
worked; because she has sites and
means for factories of almost all sorts
which should be made available; be-
cause while she has an abundance of
everything to give her prosperity and
power, she has not the necessary CAPT.
tai to make her natural advantages as
effective and productive as they ought
to be, as they were designed to be, and
as they are destined to be. Ten
nessee wants money and muscle.
She wants hardy, thrifty laborers
as settlers to aid her In her efforts to
develop her resources. She wants her
big plantations and farms divided and
subdivided, until the tracts are so
small that they viii be cultivated more
highly and made more productive.
Nature has so literally endowed our
State that she seems an especial favor
lite of fortune. Her soil is productive
and so varied in its character as to be
well suited to the growth of almost
everything that can be grown in this
latitude. She is rich, very rich, in
mineral resources. She has admirable
manufacturing facilities, in her water
power, IN her convenience to the mar
kets, and IN the cheapness with which
fuel can be furnished. Her rivers and
roadsteds are equal TO any the world
can boast. Her climate is agreeable,
healthful, and SO free from the ex-
tremes of heat and cold as to permit
outdoor work to be done In mid-win-
ter and In midsummer. But, with all
this, and although an old State, she is
far IN the rea of some of the new
States In enterprise, In thrift, in pros
perity, In progress"
With so many natural advantages,
why do our people lack enterprise"
lack thrift" lack prosperity" lack
'progress?" Our contemporary an
swers none of these important ques-
lions, nor will the importation of any
number of immigrants answer them.
These are grave errors of commission,
which the appeal fails to see, or ig-
nores for reasons satisfactory to itself,
if it understands them. What is the
thought expressed in these words:
Tennessee wants her big plantations
and farms divided and subdivided un-
til the tracts r so small that they will
be cultivated more highly and made
more productive?" How can onethou-
sand acres of improved land give a
dividend per capita, if worked by
100 families with an average of
acres to each, than to ten
families with IN average of one hun
dred acres to each family? Our mis-
fortune is not that we have too few la
bOrers and families to the acre to be
supported on the fruits of Tennessee
soil, but that we greatly misdirect and
badly employ the families and labor
which we now have. We waste and
,oolishly consume the fertility of our
and, our forests of excellent timber.
md all other of our best resources, and
would pursue the same suicidal policy
f our capital was ten dollars
where it is now one. To give
money to spendthrift heirs is not
wise, because they want it.
Labor and capital are not enterprise"
ire not thrift" are not prosperity
n any Just sense of the term, and are
lot progress" Common sense, high
y cultivated and universally diffu5ed,
S the human force that is lacking. A
armer who knows how to get all the
'ood there is in 1000 acres of land out
# it from year to year, for the benefit
f his family and five others, has no
iced of ten, fifteen or more pauper fam
lies, as in Europe, to help consume the
ruits of this large farm. 1t is the soil
its best crops that give a hun,
red fold, as in the time of
saac-not labor nor coined gold.
Iabor and gold have value; but until a
nan learns to use the labor and capital
e has to the best advantage, to give
i'm more viii confuse his best econo-
~, industry and thinking, and lead
i'm into habits of extravaganza and
ply. Tennessee needs industrial re-
'rm among its present population,
Inch money cannot purchase nor
bestow as a social boon.
o divide our acres of sunshine, our
iron and timber with a million
ew corners, will not much increase
lch mans share of this very valuable
roperty.