Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-12-06
THE TIDE OF IMMIGRATION.


quite freely of the growing tide of inn
migration from the east to Oregon
The forerunners of an army of several
hundred thousand people are now ar
irving on every trail. The hundreds
of thousands undoubtedly are to come
in the next two years. No one can
doubt that the population of the Will
lamette valley will double within five
years and contain round half million
of people.
THE JOURNAL speaks from ptsidye
knowledge when 1t says thousands OF
families in the DAkotas, Iowa, Mime
sofa, Nebraska, Illinois, Missouri and
Kansas will come to Western Oregon
In the next six months. Those state
have all been more or less afflicted will
drouth, short crops aid intolerable suf
fering from hot weather the past year.
In some of them vast areas were liter
ally burnt up by the heat and droutb,
causing great suffering, destitution anc
depopulation. The people in those
sections have food for neither them
selves nor stock, and have no water fr
fuel.
The effect of these widespread dis
asters are two-fold. First, large num-
bers of people have left and gone to
their relatives and friends in states just
east of them. There they will winter
awhile and pull themselves together for
a new start The next effect will be 10
send class of people who have means
to seeking new home. They are COM
ing to the Pacific Coast or going to the
south. They prefer to come west. A
majority will come west. tbs natures
plan. In the older states like Mime
sofa, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois and
Missouri farming lands are steadily ad-
vancing to the 500 per acre mark. Pros
porous farmers are enlarging their
farms. Smaller farmers are being
crowded out. Not being generally
adapted to fruit growing there is no
Q ndency to cut land up into small
tracts. Grain, corn, grass, dairy and
stock-growlng demands large areas for
profitable results. Smaller holders Of
land must leave for new scenes OF ac-
uvlty. The cities and towns there are
over-populated now. This class and
their families must come west. This In
outline Ia the situation that, as we see
II, underlies the great westward move.
ment from the states named. OF
course, there will be Pacific coast i'm
migration from all eastern states, but
we are speaking now from conditions
IN regions actually known 10 us.
The principal mission OF The JOUR-
NAL editor who has just spent nine
weeks In the great Mississippi valley
states was 10 come In touch with this
movement. lie conferred about im'
migration with the officials Of the great
transportation companies 10 see II by
cooperation with them We could not
OOBs Ia direct communication with all
such families who are contemplating
coming 10 the Pacific coast, and place
before them the merits of Western ore
gon. such arrangements have been
perfected With some ~ the leading
railroad companies of the east, who
haye stations IN the region we have
described,
la interviews with some VI the large
daily newspapers of the cast, 'lHE
J0uREAL editor succeeded Ia plaolng .
truthful estimate ~ 0uT resources before
thelT readers, one ihFes'eolump lnter
view shout Oregon IN tho Iowa State
Register going " lbs glO 900 readers "
that great papsfi apd prAelIeslly plao.
lng ~ Within reach of logas g,0o0AOo
population, Tbs sans lpieryles has
besg eopled lnlo lbe Wsehly rresa VI
lewa We speak " lbls not 90 boast
bul ~ iDfoTn ouT readers " shat has
bssn done ny THH JovRsAL ip lhe
alfsollog " uuibfully advertising oug
stats ~ lhs Easl Oregon must lpke
sdgsniass " lhls great westward ilde
" lmmlrIallen, Win prapsl sif'si o'e'
"a A.. II. H. lI.s.Na af4a4..