The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-04-16
PERSONAL EXPLANATION.
The Common Sense OF the Immisra
tiOn Question.

TO the Editor Of the U'Spdtch: ....t
Sir,-There are considerable number Of
persons in this State who appear to imagine
that the prosperity of the Commonwealth
can be easily guaranteed by the adoption Of
some patent process. These people are gen.
orally very ardent advocates Of immigration,
especially with a view to getting themselves
constituted State immigration officials.
Setting aside the arguments pro and con
respecting State Bureaus, would like to
point out to- the people of Virginia few
facts which have been strongly impressed on
my MUD during several years residence in
this State. ..-----
First. 1t is more important to make exist
ing settlers thoroughly satisfied than to bring
in more settlers to grunble at and abuse tne
country. There is an impression abroad that
the owners Of lands in Virginia are very apt
to use extraordinary efforts to induce settlers
to purchase larger tracts OF land than their
means would justify, the game" OF the
sellers being to "come down . on the buyers
at the very first default in the payment OF
instalments. If the Legislature could secure
statistics of the number of farms that have
reverted to the original owners or been sold
out of the hands Of settlers, am inclined
to think the reason why we do not get set
tiers in greater. numbers would not be far
to seek. / could give you numbers of cases
in which /" sharp practice" has remOrselessly
crushed honest and industrious men whose
only mistake was too much faith in the
representations made to induce them to buy
| more land than they could carry.
Second. 1t is i remarkable fact that the
| most successful settlers in Virginia come
! from the Middle and Western States. Eng
| lishmen, possessed of capital, may do well
here, but the man who comes from Penn
sylvania, Ohio, or Illinois is almost certain to
| succeed. In view of this Virgiuians ought
surely to prepare themselves to receive these
fcllow-citizenS in proper spirit. They do
not come as "carpet-baggers," and as i rule
they have but little, sympathy with political
schemers. They do not, however, consider
| themselves in foreign country, but under the
| Union :" ore and inGivisible," they naturally
expect to take their full share and responsi-
bility in local affairs. Tirginians cannot both
"haYe their cake and eat it." If Virginia in.
vites immigrants, she must not expect 10 sell
| her lands and retain the power always al
| tached to lords of the soil. Out west Tue
| new settler is subject to no jealousy when DC
seeks to labor pro bono publsco, while re-
pret to observe in some portions OF Virginia
a decided desire on the part OF the dnc'en
l nOOtPSSG 10 ItttO1ttfIAC puuItS lAoltSA0s -
other words, many Of those who talk giibly
about their anxiety to secure settlers are
under the vain delusion that northerners anC
Europeans will be content to come and live
in Virginia for the mere pleasure of spend
ing their money and enriching the natives
Third. Virginians Jas the Dispatch has 81
+ forcibly urged) ought to. abandon their az
n,isericordun, complaints. The people o
this State, taken man for man, are better of il
every way than the people of any country !
have visited with the exception of Denmark
1t is true they are not rich, but they are Ger
tainly entirely free from the grinding pow
erty of the North and Europe. Talkin.
: poverty is becoming a confirmed habit will
many persons, not few Of whom are quite
as prosperous as they ever were. know
{, one county which Inns been very actlv
!; in obtaining immigrants in which tn
natives lost several hundred thousand dol
/. lars deposited in banks at the time of TIT
panic. That money, instead of having beer
allowed to lie idle, ought to have been EN-
O ployed in home enterprises. Yet, the very
i. men who lost such large deposits tlked pow
= erty as much before the panic US they dt
now. The time for talking poverty has gon,
By. 1t is evident enough that those Virgi
-, mans who work have pr0spered in recen
years, and although they are just now feeling
I the general stringency of money, they art
e no worse Oft Than their neighbors in thu
North. Talking poverty only lfrightens away
foreign capital and enterprise, and hence j!
, to be deprecated. ,..
Fourth. know hundreds of settlers IN
this State, and In every instance within my
knowledge the first. attempts to create dissa
tisfaction have come from Virginians. The
man who sells his farm to settler appears to
be special mark of envy and uncharitable
ness. All his neighbors commence chorus
Of "bad bargain" "poor land" nobody
can live on Il, ~ &c, until the poor devil of 1
settler wishes himself anywhere out Q
Virginia" These proceedings are as stupit
as they are often without any just cause. .
Fifth. The Legislature ought TO devls'
some plan for improving the roads. Ever!