The morning call., 1893-04-14
MANIFEST DESTINY, BUT AT
LONG RANGE.


who is always bright and sometimes accu-
rate. thus delivers himself of his apprehen-
si0ns for the future in the Chicago Tribune:
We are approaching the crisis predicted by
Macaulay. when our surplus population, having
no longer vast, fertile area Of free lands over
which TO diifuse itself, " ould become cOngested
in cities and lest the compatibility Of liberty
with civilization. What manifest destiny re-
quires Is the extension OF our frontier north TO
the Polar Sea and south to the isthmlan canal,
wherever that may be.
Mr.. ingalls, takes a long look into the
future when he contemplates annexing all
North America &c supply the need of our
people for more land. He comes from a
State In which no one thinks he has elbow
loom unless he has quarter section. OBJ
servers of the recent tribulations OF Kansas
are rather of the opinion that they are
largely due to land poverty. and that if
Kansas passed a law forbidding any one
from owning more land than he could farm
with the help of his family the State would
ba better off. To the average agriculturist
ten acres OF land and mule promise more
solid comfort in life than hundred and
sixty Sooner or later. partly by the volun-
tary action OF landowners, and partly by
forced appropriations, this redistribution Of
farm land will take place. Let us see how
1t would affect the crisis which Macaulay
foresaw and Mr.. ingalls, bewails.
The State of Kansas embraces an area of
S0,S91 square miles, aud when the last CEN
sus was taken contained q population OF
1,427, 096. Thus under the present practice,
when every farmer owns quarter section
or a half section of land, Kansas is peopled
at the rate of about seventeen persons to
the square mile. But there is hardly any
waste land in the State, or land which Is
broken or arid. except in the extreme west
ern portion. Ia Connecticut there are seven
times as many inhabitants to the square
mile as in Kansas; in Massachusetts. thir-
teen times as many; in New jersey. nine
times as many; In Rhode Island, fifteen
times as many. The population of the
last-named State is not Dhenomenally
dense; it is 255 to the square mile, which is
considerably below the density of the popu-
lation of Great Britain or Italy or Jaran,
and little more than half the den sity of
Belgium. If Kansas were peopled as
thickly as Rhode Island it would contain
over %, 2,O00 eco people. Take California as
another Illustration. II has an area OF 49,
sol square miles, and population of ,20S,-
13C-say rs TO the square mile. Allowing
that one-third of the area of this State is
mountain, desert, or broken land which Is
not suited for human occupation, we have
still 100000 square miles, which. If settled as
densely as Rhode lsland-and the acre in
California VIII feed moro mouths than the
acre In Rhode Island-woud sustain a
population OF %, 100000 ln other words,
TWO States would support two-thrds OF the
entire present population of the country. Is
not Mr.. Ingalls, little too previous in his
anxiety for the land-hungry crowd that can
hardly materalize in century?
Americans are not as yet a iandless
| people. The nation owns less fertile land
in close proximity to railroads or rivers
than 1t did. The time has passed when a
man could go out on the prairie. locate a
quarter section. and pay for his farm and
his implements out of the first years crop.
| But we do not find that the people who en-
! joyed this astonishing good fortune grew
rich in consequence. Most Of them grew
land poor. The most thrifty farmers are
those who owed less to providence and
more to themselves. And, as matter of
| fact, so long as fair arabic land can be
| bought in the States west of the rivers for
| sum per acre which does not much exceed
| the rental value Of land in England or Ire
land it seems wild to say that land has be-
| come so scarce in this country that we are
| driven TO contemplate the necessity of an
heroic effort to extend our borders. 1t is
more to the purpose to try 10 turn the land
we have TO account. Among the ex-con-
stiluents of Mr. ingalls,. as among the ran
cherOs in this State, are many who plant
their land to grain ana leave the issue 10
| providence. That is not the way 10 thrive
| as farmers. Such men are like the old
Scotchman who when assailed by some
calamity threw up his hands in despair and
cried, Now, God mend allW To which
his companion promptly and wisely re-
sponded, Nay. Donald, we must help him
| to mend itP