Los Angeles daily herald. [volume] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1873-1876, 1874-05-24
WHY Population Does Not Increase.

IN EWION DOOIh.
Why Population Does Not Increase.
The Lompoc tract, lying in the
northern part of Santa Barbara coun-
ty, and consisting of $4,000 acres of
good land, is to be colonized with
Germans. We learn from the Santa
Barbara Press that Mr.. JoHNP. WAC
NER will Immediately proceed to Ger
many for the purpose of organizing
and bringing out the colony. This is
a practical idea, and one that FRIED
LANDER, CHAPMAN, ROBERTS, CARR
and dozen others of our large land
holders might act upon with advan-
tage to themselves and great good to
the people to whom they offer facilities
for searching the Pacific Coast. These
men own large bodies of land now
comparatively non-productive, and at
the prices they are held they are be-
yond the reach of nine-tenths of those
who would become settlers. The
newspapers and pamphleteers do
great deal Of writing about our in
ducements for immigrants, but when
we come to examine the matter closely
we have very little to offer Of the arti-
Gle which is the chief incentive to i'm
migration-public land. We have
plenty of good soil for sale, but not at
Government prices. Our hest land
has been bought up by spectators, and
when the farm seeker comes along, he
is told that old Two Per Cent owns
Township here, and that old Shoddy
Contractor owns all the land adjoin-
ing him. HE'S also told that all
these rich acres, purchased at the rate
of one dollar and twenty-five cents
per acre with college scrip at sixty
cents on the dollar, is now held at from
five to twenty-five dollars per acre in
gold. This condition of affairs is dis
couraging to the man of small means
who would become settler, and it is
due to the fact that we have such a
comparatively small amount of good
Government land that immigrants
who come and remain are so few and
far between. We do not say, and do
not wish to be understood as saying,
no rich soil may be had at Govern
ment rates, but we say, and we mean
it and can prove it, that the great body
of California's farm land has passed
out of the Governments hands, and
We say and we can prove that a large
area of this land is now held by spec
ulators who will not cultivate it nor
allow others to do so. They paid next
to nothing for it and they have never
paid taxes to any considerable amount
on it, yet they will not sell it for less
than five hundred or one thousand per
cent advance on first cost. The San
Joaquin valley is by far the largest
body of farm land lying together in
the State, yet if a party of Immigrants
get off the cars at Stockton and ask
the old resident where lies the Govern
ment land, and he will be compelled
to answer that while some fair soil yet
remains in the Governments hands
in different parts of Kern and Tulare
counties, yet the best and the most of
it has passed into second hands. We
do not question the right of any one
to own ali the land he is able to buy
and pay for. We merely point out
cause which prevents an increase of
population as rapidly as We desire.
Los Angeles valley has not been seri-
Ously damaged by spectators who
bought up the Government land. In
the past her advancement has been re-
tarded by the Mexican grant system,
but now nearly all of the large grants
are broken up and are for sale in small
lots on terms quite reasonable for such
land. In truth, aggregation of land
has almost ceased in this State, and if
we can induce those who now hold
large tracts to sell them out in lots to
suit purchasers or colonize them with
families who will purchase the land
hereafter, we shall have done some
thing that will prove the beginning of
our permanent prosperity.