Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-05-18

GnOrlCy OF tIle WeSIcru Hall VI inc Oulteu
States will be waste in few years. 1t
looks as if patriotism had gone to seed
and personal ACKNOWLEDGEMENT and the al
mighty dollar instead of pro-bono-publico
had become the shibboleth.
What matter if the withholding for
est lands from sale should have ham,
pered the westward march of en-
pire? Empire has been marching
west too fast for its own good. Too
much $50 Vest young man for the young
mans good. When have we ever heard
in the countries of the eastern sea board
states the cry of starvation from its farm
ing people? The call for help has often
rung out from the drouth and locust and
cyclone ridden prairies of the West with
blizzard accompany ment. And if there
was no fear of these or of Indian raids
what benefit would result to crowd the
West by depopulating the East-leaving
the old farms to decay. The average situa
ton in the East, in city and country, is bet
ter today than in the West in all that per-
tains to comfort and the welfare of the
people. The houses and barns are better
the farms are better kept and yield bet
ter returns, the live stock is better cared
for (and the comfort of dumb animals
munity) the water is better the people are
more homogeneous and the farmers are
not as hopelessly in debt. The resources
of New England are not yet exhausted
and the people there are not crowded
When that comes there will be better rea-
son for going West and some vacant land
TO go to would be welcome retreat if its
primcval forests were left and it was not
Jxy ,Ic ,v,t ho of
nation under the sun. There was none
too much vacant land 30 years ago in the
western wilds for the natural overflow of
our own people and if it had been left in
its natural state for another half century
it would have been all the better for tn e
future of the country.
1t seems as il the nation has had an
elephant ON its hands in it's public lands
and 1t was anxious to get rid of them as
quick as possible, whether it should or
should not get anything in return and so
the whole world was invited to the feast
and if it had nothing to bring it was all the
same. Go in and take the land not for
homesteads only but go in and take its
timber, minerals and all, and be quick
about it, and the government has received
hardly enough for it to pay for surveying
and making out the deeds If it had any
vacant land it must go into the market at
once. and if we had not enough of our
own people, to gobb!e it up quick, agents
must be sent abroad to invite the rag ia o
and bob tail of the whole world to come
over and help us without money and
without price.
Three-fourths of the paupers that are
being supported in the western world are
of class of foreigners who managed to
reach America without any means to helm
themselves after arriving and at once
became dependent upon charity A man
who accumulates nothing during the
palmy days of manhood will be likely To
hold his own during lite and now nearly
all the available land for either farming |
or timber or minerals have passed out of |
the possession of the government and not
into the poor mans possession but largely
to corporations and spectators from
which to build up the colossal fortunes
which are not only curse to their nos
.essors but to the community where the
owners live Great wealth is no advan. II
tage to them who possess it and it works
serious harm when conspicuous in a COM
munity where poverty. its inevitable com
panion, Is the rule. The United States has
already reached a condition where the rich
are getting richer and the poor are get
ting poorer. OF these two classes there
are ten of the latter to one of the former
and yet the result of national legislation
in its bearing upon the public lands for
40 years has been to increase the number
Of millionaires, thus creating an uncasi
ness and discomfort among the balance
who have not been so fortunate financial.
ly but are striving to keep abreast lin the
matter of extravagant and expensive ry.
ing) with the millionaires and we see the
result in the number of iDsolvents One ~
the worst impediments to the welfare of n
country Is a wide extreme in the finan.
cial condition of its people and nothing il
truer than that extremes of wealth beoet
extremes of poverty.
close acquaintance with the leoisIa. h
ton of the country for the last 80 years
forces one to the conclusion that the pres.
emit generation is the only one about ,
which the government feels any concern I
and even that concern has largely to do I,
with the personal benefits to the legisla-
tors. a
A man of ordinary forcthought and