The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1875-06-25

Editor Democrat:

IhiS Is not as " WHICH pollLcaA
party shall elect their man to Con
gress in October next, from Oregon,
nor whether the Changers or Monop-
olists shall overtop the others, but
it is @ local "crisis" whether we shall
throw away the present golden OPP
portunity to double our wealth and
population in less than two years
hence, or not. Circumstances un-
fcrcscon by man have transpired ro-
Gently, which are forcing away
large amount of settlers from the
Western, Northwestern and North
ern parts Of our Union. The excess
i've cold winters in those sections,
the untold millions Of choppers"
eating up the peoples substance, the
drouth and chinch-bugs are turning
the eager attention Of many thou
sands to this coast, Not only is this
so with persons shattered in their
means there, but with business men
who foreseGthat if the masses are
depressed, their own business must
decline greatly. More than thirty
thousand immigrants have left those
districts within five months past
bound for this coast. With all the
IeCturing, printing and whitewashing
of California, the immigrants find
her in cinders and trouble. She now
succumbs to the inexorable logic of
courts, and turns back all the
strangers she can not accommodate,
rather than they shall come to our
State. Hence as many now are 60
ing back as are arriving off the cars
and ships. But there are enough
intelligent persons arriving here to
see for themselves, who, having seen,
are reporting favorably to their
friends in the frozen grasshopper
countries. Oregon this year presents
the most charming and fruitful ap-
pearances. 1t is the store house of
provisions and tho land OF health,
and untold resources Of wealth, and
a climate unsurpassed by any other
country. The reports are now
actively circulated that Western Ore
gon is full, and that there is no fur
ther need or room here for immi-
grants. There are provisions here
.-meat, bread and vegetables-for
three. times our present population.
There is but mere tithe Of the good
lands in all Western Oregon, yet in
cultivation. And of our iron, coal,
lime, timber, gold, copper, silver and
fish mines, less is developed. And
is there not room and grass in East
ern Oregon for beef and mutton,
stock enough to feed two millions of
people yet to come here? And is the
one-twentieth Of our splendid water
power yet in use? And do we put
up the one-hundredth part of salmon
and other good fish which could be
taken in our rivers and seas?
There are thousands of our broad
sections and half sections which
ought to be, and soon will be, divided
up for settlers in Western Oregon.
Our splendid lands are offered for
sale, with clear titles, at astonishing
ly low prices. There is just one per-
son now in our State to 300 acres of
land. And yet not one-third of us
cultivate the soil. The Willamette
Valley alone, with its slopes, can
sustain, in all its varied resources,
three millions of people, and yet we
have in it not over sixky thousand
persons at present From letters re-
ceived here from the friends of
immigrants there, and from what l
learn from those arriving now
amongst US, the destruction Of crops
in Missouri, Iowa, Kansas and Ne
braska, by the grasshoppers, drouth
and chinch-bugs is fearful and dis
tressing to the people. They must
not be left to perish there for food
and raiment. Whether had they
better come here, even on charity, or
have supplies sent them by chanty2 ?
And when will the curse of the hop
pers and other scourges cease there? !?
These plagues are ten fold worse this
year than ever before in those dis
tricts. About all the immigranta
sent to me by tho State Board Of I'm
migration arc thorough going work
ing men, temperate and intelligent.
They ask no aims, they only want a
fair show here. But they have COME
to stay. Many Of them are men of
means, who are buying farms, teams
and wagons, and taking right hold
Of business, 1t is too true, that
many Of our people are disposed to
keep shy aud mean, in order to skin
the immigrants, as many did here in
times from 1886 to 1856. But there
are many whole-souled people here
now who step forward and cordially
welcome the strangers as they arrive,
and give them useful and true infor-
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