Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1876-12-30
farm uf go acrcs i'm Fairfax,
$4,000

The above sales have been mad in about ton
months to The 1914 OF Oct"bar. S!nc5 that tim"
but little has been done, W scr think L. NIL
~ owing to The great Interest thu; nus heen
taken in the election Of a President. - our bus
mess has generally been better in the latter part
of the full, in winter and eariv - lig. Ii 1t
should take three months more to lind out VINO
is to bu inaugurstcd Presidanl business may Do
dull during that time, but al.sl " sri | All sails
fed that sales 0! lard wi! be brskrr tiI"n evsr,
as this centennial has brought very il.Hy people
to Virginia and tbs Soltn WAC express them
selves generally very we'll ptAscd aid l think
will be more so, u they have head l"At lamr
ton 81 Co. have no horns. The onnthlng mostly
needed in our State is to get 1t pptu ated, Tor
there are many millions CT acres that are no.
cultivated, not svai!ab! :, And consequently q
burLhen TO the wl"rs, "lo have IL paJ t!xos.
| am . itisfad tha. WIN proper oAert'on, a very
large qusntity OF Tirg:iia lands can b: SID
W thin tho next year, and tn.t quAntitF c"htihu5
TO increase at q very raplG Tate, ff 0u: Stat,
| with its pdvautsrns O! c!iiaate, being lnter;ne.
uiate belw zen Two extremes. the proIuct.y :ness
of the land il propuriy cuILivatod, it= i9e msr-
kets, its proximity TO the ~nati4nat capit.t, IL;
! vast mineral waltz which is beginning to be
developed, It's wt.er pCw'r watch IL not sur
passed, &C., &c, cunnut fail 10 stlr Ut settlers.
| In order 10 induce yeopio here there are some
things very important. The lrst tning is t. try
so sell them the verv brss b.rgIins in !S':ts that
can b, had. Ii ii w .1ts $50 per acre nhd 3 " il
take $40, and the lulds arc equally god, it is
the duty rs W Ill rs the interest OF tae agent who
knows tho lauu 10 advise his customer to buy
the > o :sra. 1t is al! Important iof a msn
having u family dependent upJa hin, and wis
mas worked hard sad 5cun0inizei 3 save y !Cw
thousand dollars 10 bug q home for himself anu
family, TO invest ms lard esrned money lrhpct-
~. If nc should buy n horse Tor 500 worth
only $50 he might recover from II, but ~ guy n
farm Tor $4,000 and ind that he could nave Done
a, "a. III ,uytb S.1 N /. a los. winch he prpbAbiy
never will recover. I have aad shall adopt THIS
plan, as | have tried 20 do, though | hsv3 sold
some farms 100 nigh, but never w2en L could
help it. :,
Then when they settle among us al shouts
try to make them ieei ct home and satisfied, rs |
think is generally the case; blu. there is . very
great error that soma OF Us commit, and that IS.
when one buys and settles he most always tl.d:
ono good nclghbor wac ba2lls to express great
sympathy for him because ne has paid too mucn
tor his firm, bat it be had Dpugh; ms fam ne
would have got y much better D.rg@ll-notth that
he would have sold his for the price pad, but 1t
il a better farm, or has q larger orchard ana two
of the trees bear the finest apples III the ctat",
or something that he ms is better than The
strangers. What a pity that some people !e:
self interest lead them astray, and DO BON
II e~lnsclve5 and the community an injury
People had better, in my op'HiGn. rut ln':r
lands worry low, and if they have 1870 or :OUt
acres md pern4ps cultivate iU, they had best
mako a sacrihce, or us l have thought aah think
vet, if the lands were div d.d into % II 100 Are
lots and half given lway, reservlng the Inter,
mediate lots with the understanding that the
party is to build and fence and make n home
the remaining half would sell more readily nnd
for more money than sill would have brought
at first. If | had n horse mere II the sable and
had to pay fifty cents per day for Keeping him
when | had TO use for him, 1t seems very clear
that | had better give him away or knock him
in the head than keep him and pay for the priv
ilege Of keeping him. So it is with m.ny larso
farms and smaller ones also whose owners are
kept poor by paying taxes.
There are many thousand acres OF land OF. tie
railroads coming into the city which, if cut ur
into 50 or 100 acre lots running from the rail-
road track on either side, and every alternate
lot given away on th~ terms above named, !
have no doubt would make the remainder sell
more readily and for more money than Eli would
now. Only get people enough in here and The
land owners VIII not be So much concerned
about putting Il big price on their land, Tor il
would command d big price; and then only
lnink Of the immense advantage TO tho State, rs
we'll as, in my opinion, TO the largo land owGer,
the railroads and indeed to sll OF Us. +.