The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1882-09-23
WHY FOREIGNERS smUN us.

adopted py the iasC legislature TO pro-
cure immigration, let no one suppose
that we are not in favor of it, from the
right sort of people. We have some Of
this class in our State now, and they
come from the right qtiarter-ffom our
own country. These sort are to be found
in Monroe, in Lowndes, in Oktibbeha,
and in small quantities in other coun-
ties. They are men OF energy and
brains, andin nearly every case, they
brought some capital with them. Why
others do not come, and come in greater
-uumhers, involves question We.aLe.n not
disposed to discuss at present.
Tennessee, South Carolina, Louisiana
and Mississippi seem to be the four
doomed States in regard to immigrants
from any quarter. Three of these States
are wholly agricultural, and are known
the world over as producing rice, sugar
and cotton, without mountains, and al
most without manufactures or mines.
As rule, foreigners have little desire to
60 into cotton country for three rea-
sons. First, it is a. business OF which
they really know nothing, and seem to
have no desire to cultivate any acquain-
tance with the business. They know
that these cotton States have large guam
titles of low, fiat, rich land where yell
low fever now and then revels in his
decimating visits. They know that these
States have very large negro populations,
and foreigners are utterly opposed to
coming in contact with them as laborers
under any conditions. These are some
Of the reasons why strangers from Eu-
rope give us the go by on their introduc-
ton to American soil.
II it be asked how these unlearned
peasants from all the countries of Europe
learned these facts in reference to these
States especially, we reply they were
learned, in large measure, by Mrs.
Stoves "Uncle Toms Cabin" both as a
novel and drama. The better class read
the book, and the more unlearned saw its
leading features upon the boards of the
Provincial theatres. 1t must not be for
gotten, either, that during the war the
Federals had lecturers in every country
of the old world beating up recruits for
their depleted armies, and in none OF
these harangues were the white people
of the South represented other than
proud, imperious and cruel, while the
negro was presented as an injured, per-
secuted saint with black face. Although
Mrs. Stowe has recently said that Uncle
Tom was wholly an ideal creature, she
did not say so before her book, and the
drama founded upon its chief charac-
ters, had done the work of poisoning
public sentiment across the waters in
reference to the South, with Mississippi
and Louisiana especially: These now,
in our humble judgment, are the leading
features of foreign opposition to the
South, and in connection with those we
gave tast week, constitute the main rea-
sons with them for going around us.
We have said it before and we repeat
it here, that if our farmers are expecting
white people from any part Of the globe
to come here and live, as the negroes do,
in tunble-down huts, and eat pork or
bacon and corn bread, they had as well
abandon any such foolish ideas. If we
could even succeed in diverting any con-
siderable portion of the European emf
grants to our State, what would we do
with them? Where is there planter
In the State ready to take care of them
as they would demand? OF what value
would they be to him for considerable
period, when he could not give an order
that would be understood, nor they an
answer that he could comprehend If
We are tired OF the negro and wish to get
rid OF him as laborer, there is but one
su bstitute, and that is the coolies of
China. They can and would, if oppor-
tunity offered, come here and cultivate
the cotton and corn, and do many other
things, at much cheaper rates and with
much more skill and painstaking labor
than the negro, but they would be ever
iluctuating in numbers. Their initiative
powers are SO great and their general
intelligence SO improved that there is
no work for which their capacity is not |
adapted. They, however, might work
here a century and still be strangers,
with no more affinity for our laws and |
customs and no more homogenity for
our people than they had on the day OF
their arrival. ".
We would like to see skilled artisans
and mechanics from the old country
come amongst Us and establish trades !,
and shops, and thus break up our de-
pendence upon Northern and Western
ingenuity and industry for ali the me-
rehanical appliances that we use. But
lto,r the people OF the high latitudes OF