The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-01-25
PRAIRIE SCHOONER GOING SOUTH
Emigrants From the West Going in Great
Numbers to Georgia, Alabama and
Other Southern States.

(Atlanta (Ga. Letter In New York Sun. }
The thousands of emigrants who are
leaving the western states for the South
are undergoing some of the rough expert
ences of the pioneers who settled the
country which they are deserving. Many
of these emigrants are old pioneers and
know what it is to rough it. The specta-
Gle of wagon trains crossing the plains 40
years ago was common enough. Once
more the laundering prairie hoe ners are
climbing mountain passes and fording
Streams, but this time they are headed fer
the South.
So serious has this migration of me-
hanics and farmers become that railroads
aud business organizations in some of the
western states are taking steps to cheok
it. One colony movement has "a, 900 men,
women and children enrolled now, and it
is constantly growing. Real estate agents
aud railroads in the South have been
busy. for two years sowing the West with
literature descriptive of the productive
ness of the lands down here. Southern
Georgia, northern Alabama, Tennessee
the valley of the Mississippi, Louisiana,
Texas and Arkansas are getting the set
tiers, who are attracted by the cheapness
of the lands. Thousands and thousands
of acres are bought for from So to S. an
acre. The colony organized by members
of the Grand Army has loo, 600 acres at
Fitzgerald, Irwin county, Ga. The tract
runs right ucto- the spot on which Jeffer-
son Davis was captured. The very ground
on which the capture was made wa
offered to the colony, but was declined
for fear that the purchase might provoke
criticism.
The land is generally covered with pine
forests, although some cleared land is
found here and there. The work of clear
ing is going on this winter. The colonists
live in their wagons or tents until they
can nail together some pine boards into a
shack. 1t often happens that tree is cut
down in the morning and by night has
been converted into a rude temporary
shanty for family of pioneers. In the
Mississippi valley the settlers are getting
both cleared and wooded land. In Geor-
gia most of the land which is being set
tied is wooded. In Texas the immigrant
is guided by the character of the land
which he left, usually looking for some
thing like that to which he is accustomed.
An interesting feature of this migration
is the clan idea in many of the colonies.
There is the 6. A. r. colony referred to
above. The Quakers of Pennsylvania
have started colony in Florida, some
yoff ion 1f how i,n
Georgia, the Lutherans have one in Ten
nessee and one in Alabama, and will
locate a third in Georgia, and in dozen
western states there are clubs regularly
organized with memberships running up
to 200, the purpose of which is to settle in
communities. The farm villages OF Ger
many are being initiated in some places
the colonists living together in town
and working their farms which lie round
about. The comm unity idea has it's ad-
vanIages. The chief one, though, seems
to be that it secures congeni al neighbors.
There is really no ground for apprehen-
sion of an inhospitable reception, for the
southern farmers are glad to sell their
land and to have people come among
them who have some capital. All these
newcomers have money. They often
bring $1,000 along, and some of them are
worth $50, 600. The reason given by all
for their removal is that the winters are
too cold in the Dakotas, Nebraska and
neighboring states. Numbers of mechan-
les from Pullman, ILL.,, are found in all
the new settlements. Most of them de-
clare that they have moved to stay. They
lind an abundance of work in the COLONY
villages, whore the only handicap is the
trouble in getting building materials as
rapidly as desired.
1t is remarkable with what CELEBRITY
some of these new villages are built.
Fitzgerald, the G. A. R. colony town,
has population of 1000 now, whereas 80
days ago there were not 100 people in the
place. This IS the most rapidly growing
colony of them all, for it has larger
system of clubs to draw FROM II ana
several other colonies are strictly white
land being refused to blacks. Blacks are
not employed in some of these new set
Elements. This strikes the southerner as
singular. Preference is always given to
colony members in colony work or in
purchases In one town of 1000 shacks
and tents there are 90 or mora shops of
various kinds. The southern merchant
who moves into the community to do
business with the settlers does not get
much trade if he has to compete with a
member of the colony. In all the CO.
operative colonies liquor is prohibited.
Some Of them have no police regulations,
but depend entirely upon the sheriff for
protection.
The influx of settlers will completely
change the political complexion of some
counties in the south. The indications
are that Mississippi will see several coun-
ties go Republican by white votes in the
next year or two. Irwin, Wilcox, Berrien
and possibly Ware counties. in this state,
will not be Democratic much longer. IT.
win and Berrien may be cut up in three
counties, as the Democrats outside the
colony may want county which they
can control The western women are