Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1883-07-27
TIE RUSSIAN REFUGEES
v FlILFRE

rses by eulOnixing tsem 10 this count,
hssproved q failure. We are sorry fo
two reasons 6rst. because OF the hard
ships and disappointment which thi
prosecuted little band has had to Gu
dare; aud secondly, because of the On
favorable ami. in most cases, unfair
esiaisism which this failure has provOk
" sgainst the fertility Of the soil au,
ether advantages which our county pos
sssses. The Baltimore p pers hav,
been rather hard on Us. and, az in som,
other instances in which they have at
sempted to give facts IN relation I,
Charles county affairs, their statements
nnd comments are misleading anil lacI
jnst the explanation which, when made
would relieve our soil Of the imputatior
!sf being too sterile TO produce anything
ess shrivsled pststOss. aud eur peopI,
VI the charge Of sxelssivsness ADD in.
Hospitality. This is a matter Of public
issersst, Is concerns all our people, and
hence We offer the explanation
We will admit that these refugee,
were placed upon tract of poor land
but We do not admit that this land is a
fair specimen Of most Of the land in our
county. II was not the fault Of our
people that better land was not provided
for this colony. Better land was to be
had even in that immediate neighbor-
hoed. The true ''inwardness" Of the
matter is. as we are informed. that a
leading jew in Baltimore purchased
come years ago. this very land for the
purpose u cutting timber thercfrom. and
for no other purpose. lie exhausted
ull the timber receiving full return for
his expenditure on the land, aud left a
bleak. desolats spot with not even the
semblanee Of habitation upon il and
utterly Vslucless. as cur people would
deem it, for any purpose. To this
desert the poor Russians were shipped
last year just IN tune 10 build up before
winter. by their own labor, half doz-
en- OF 80 novels which the sevcrest mas
ter would not have thought decent abodes
for his slaves before the war. The land
would not bring forth wheat. They
vent upon it too late to plant corn or to-
baceO which might possibly have been
raised BY fer,iliEing, and they left too
early this year to wait for the maturing
ii such crops, If any. as might have
been raised.
And moreover the place in which
tAese people located was removed from
afy Of eur villages and public resorts,
--ss tina. they k@d no opportunity. even
IL their language and customs would
have permitted them. to associate with
our people and become assimilated to
our habits, No doubt they left in utter
disgust and gave very poor accounts of
this whole section.
We do not assail the philanthropy
Of the gentlemen who sent them here,
nor the disinterestedness of the mer-
chant who bad squeezed everything out
sfthe land before Offering it as an asy-
lam. but We submit it is not fair to as
sail eur lands or our people because
these poverty outcasts could
not make living out of that particular
spot without even the advantages pos
sessed by the poorest tenant on the
mesnest land in the county.
We hope this failure and the dismal
accounts Of it will not deter other
strangers from attempting settlement
il our county. We do not care about
eASE coming in groups and budding to-
aasher in cOops after they reach here =
w would prefer that they should pur-
shAst tracts ofland here and there, which
aAAy can do on easy terms, that they
sHeuld miuEle with our people, teach us
nsg methods Of agriculture and borticul.
turs. new methods of thought in some
slaRgs ifPossible, and help us to build
3p a'Sommunity as fertile in resources
a. most Of the counties in the state.
Our county lies between two rivers.
saotAer river and several creeks water
aiseteHt sections oft, and the lands on
these water courses are as fertile aud
eaSbe made as productive as lands any.
where. Besides we have two railroads
roaming cenphetely scross eur county
which, with our rivers and creeks, offer
the Easiest sort Of access to market and
the rest II the wsrld.
We do not wish to delude any strang-
ers into our midst by Overdrawn state
msnts as to our advantages. but we do
inSts hardworking intelligent acricul-
ssfsts Of any nationality or religion to
exsmine our county; and il they will
come to US with serious purpose and
discrimination to work we bespeak for
them a warm welcome, we guarantee
tSap material prosperity and We promise {
them the same liberty of conscience as
was enjoyed BY the earliest settlers of
tais state.