Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1888-03-30
v AkINC Up.
FORMA TON OF A VALLEY I'M
MIGRATION SOCIETY ~
BRING WESTERN I'M
MIGRANTS.

MIGRATION SOCIETY TU
BRING WESTERN I'M
MIGRANTS.
A MEETING IN ITS INTEREsT-A COM
MITTEE INCLUDING ROCKINGHAM,
SHENANDOAH, AUGUSTA, ROCKBRIDGE.
ROANOKE, BOTETOUKT, HIGHLAND,
BATH AND ALLEGHANY. FORMED
THE EXCURSION TRAINS FROM THE
wEsT-A LOCAL COMMITTEE TO GIVE
INFORMATION.
&C., &C.. &C.
A meeting was held at the Court House
on Monday last, which had two-fold
object-to respond to the growing feeling
at the West for emigration to the milder
climate of Virginia, and to cooperate with
the efforts uf the Baltimore & Ohio and
Chesapeake & Ohio Railroads, which are
now running excursion trains from the
West to the Valley for the benefit of those
who wish to inspect Valley lands. On mo-
tion of Bishop Samuel Driver, of the Ger
man Baptist church, Judge Charles GRAFT
tan was called to the chair.
In taking the chair Judge Grattan said
that it was of prime Importance to US, as
farmers and citizens of the Valley of Vir-
ginia, that what we should do to encour-
age the feeling existing at the Northwest
in favor Of emlgrating to this section,
should be done noo. In the past we had
looked to the Eastern States and to foreign
countries for emigration, but had been dis
appointed-those quarters sent men who
neither understood our methods OF farm
ing nor had the money to buy land. En-
igration had gone to the West on account
of cheap lands, and because, on account of
the cheap and discriminating freights,
they staid East, though they went West.
But all this has been changed. The tide
which has rolled to the foot of the Rocky
Mountains Is ebbing and we want to catch
the ebb. The Interstate Commerce Rail-
road bill makes the lands of the East as
cheap as those of the West.
THELAsT LEGISLATURE OF VIRGINIA,
it is true, did not do its duty and pass
State railroad law like the Interstate.
The House of Delegates gave it to us, but
the Senate shut its ears to the demand of
the people. But you may be sure that those
Senators who closed their ears will find
the ears of the people deaf when they
want a hearing. All the Senators who
voted against the motion of Senator Cor
don of Albemarle to take the bill from the
committee and act on 1t, will be remem-
bered by the people for it. (Applause)
CLIMATIC AND OTHER sUPERIoRI-
TIES OF THE VALLEY.
Every editor and postmaster in the Val
ley has received letters from the North
west asking about lands in our better Cit
mate. The people there are frozen out.
Human nature cannot stand that climate,
nor can animal nature. The storms that
PROSTATE towns and blow farmhouses to
splinters hang over the farmers of the
Northwest as a menace the year round.
With US in the Valley, our mountains are
a secure protection against all that. At
the Northwest they have stripped The
country of timber and they are suffering
from the consequent drouths which burn
up their crops. Out there they have grass
hoppers-
MIR. Drlver-And the chincbbugs.
Mr.. Grattan-Yes and the chinchburgs,
while we in this Valley hardly know what
the grasshopper and chinchbug are. The
result of this strong contrast between the
two sections has been that the hold of the
land on the people there has been loosened
and they are looking around them for q
better home. 1t is this new emigration
that we seek to draw to US. The people
are Industrious, thrifty and hard working
men. They went from the East. and in
returning they are only coming back to
their childhood homes and the homes Of
their ancestors. They will assimilate with
our people.
VALLEY AND NORTHWESTERN LANDS
COMPARED.
The statistics of Augusta county show
that her land averages greater yield per
acre of wheat than that of Kansas, Min
nesota and Iowa. If we do that and are
one thousand miles nearer market, what
does any emigraDJ want to 60 West for ?
THE EXCURSIONS FROM THE WEST.
That far-seelng Land Agent of
the Baltimore & Ohio. Mr.. M. v.
Richards has seen and appreciated these
facts, and foreseen what is to be the
result of them. He has inaugurated a
series of four excursions from the West to
the Valley of Virginia-to 60 as far up
the Valley as Lexington. The first Of
these excursions brought Mr.. Isaac Chris
man of Iowa, who came as the agent of
300 families in that State who wanted him
to look at farms in the Valley. AT Win
chester he met Mr.. John M. Hardy Of
Stanton, and Informed him of his busi-
ness. Mr.. Hardy communicated the fact
to Mr.. A. g. Gordon, the President Of the
Staunton Chamber of Commerce, who
wrote Mr.. Chrisman a letter inviting him
to Staunton. Mr.. G. replied thanking
! him for the invitation, but saying that he
would come no further up the Valley just
now, but with some of his friends from
Iowa would be here on one of the April ex.
cursiops. so, said Judge Grattan. you
see our friends from the Northwest are
coming and now you must get ready to
receive them. Meet them when they
come here; put your land at their prices;
get some of them to stick here, and you
have started the flow Of the stream this
way. Once started, you may depend upon
It we shall have an increase of our popu-
lation.
TWO GREAT OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE
VALLEY.