Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1881-05-27
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PORT TOBACCO 0:
Friday Morning, May 9th, 1881.
Immigration.


Immigration.
Mr.. Francis Fontaine, the commissioner
of and and immigration ter the State OF
Georgia, has received reports from his
agents who have been operating Ia Eu-
rope several months, which go to show
that his plans for securing the best class
of immigrants is working we'll. 1t is their
aim to ship the immigrants direct to-
Savannah. One Of the agents in writing
expresses the opinion that hey may be-
gin the shipments next fall, when the
great stream of immigrants for the North
ern ports begins to tall of.-Balto Sun.
The above illustrates the enterprise ard
energy with which our sister States OF the
South have entered the great and neces-
ssry work of recruiting their agricul-
tural population. In this way they are
rapidly building up heir waste places,
and developing the great, and heretofore
unknown, internal resources of their coun-
try. The war and the emancipation have
completely revelutionized the system of
agriculture in the South. The institution
of slavery, which led to the formation Of
the large plantations in the South, having
passed away, the necessity Of conforming
the system of agriculture in this section
to that of all other parts of the world is
too evident to be disputed. The attempt
to continue the old plantations by heirng
the labor of the former slaves, now I'M
steady and unreliable, can lead to no other
conditions but poverty aud debt.
1t is in recognition Of these self-evident
facts that the governments of nearly all
the Southern States, except Maryland, are
adopting measures to increase their agri-
cultural population, and thereby effect
the subdivision OF the extensive and
proftIess ancient "plantations" into profit
able and thriving modern farms. That their
efforts in this behalf are being rewarded
by complete success is attested by almost
every Southern paper that comes to hand.
In this plan of inducing immigration,
as in almost all schemes of internal i'm
provement, Mary land is, We say it with
regret, laggard and defaulter. We had
provision made in our constitution of
1867, for the establishment of an immi
grafton agency, but our wise law makers
appear to have been thinking SO much
about keep ng their friends in office, and
other grave affairs of State of similar i'm
port that they have allowed this most
necessary public service to pass into an
undeserved desuetude. Under the pre-
visions of the constitution this service
may still be revived by the Legislature,
and this is certainly most opportuas and
proper time for Doing so. Indeed, we dc
not see that any express constitutional au-
therity should be required by the Legis
lature for enacting measures which tend
so directly to the internal improvement
and development ef our State. We hope,
therefore, to see the establishment by the
uext Legislature of an efficient bureau of
immigration. We would not like to see
the functions of this bureau confined to
the narrow limits of the former imnigra-
tion agent Instead of the duties Of this
department being confined to travelling
through the1Northern and Eastern States
of our Union and giving lectures, we
should rather that our immigration Com
missioner, like that of Georgia above re-
referred to, should be empowered to send
agents to Europe (or employ them tbere),
to secure the most desirable agricultural
immigrants, and be furnished with the
necessary funds TO carry on this service.
We do not think that the Northern States
furnish the proper field from which our
agricultural population should be re-
cruited. Rather let. US seek the thrifty
husbandmen of the overcrowded Euro
pean countries, who will como 10 US BIZ
ased by no political antipaI hies, and
whose sole aim will be to improve their
lands and protect their property.
We do not apprehend that there will be
any serious obstacle in the way Of procur-
ing the cooperation of the State in effect
ing these measures at the next session of
the Legislature but, in the meantime, it
is extremely desirable that some organized
efforts for the advancement of our imme-
diate interests should be made by eur
county people. We have been recently
much encouraged by receiving assurances
from some gentlemen of influence and en-
ergy in our county, who have long given
serious consideration to this matter, that
we'll directed effor,s will be made during
the coming Summer to effect the organi
zation of an immigration society in our
county. We hope the people of our
county and State will become thoroughly
aroused to the Importance of these meas
ures, and that every one will be found
willing to cooperate in carrying them
into execution.