The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-08-23
THE DRIFT TO THE CITIES

Popui1sAoA lIOHl the country and It's
villages to the great foci of population.
and. in a minor degree, from the coun
try to the interior cities and villages.
The census of this state taken last
year shows an increase of the pon,1
lation of the cities, classified as such
by their charters and ranging from a
population Of 1000 upwards, of 90. sos.
and of the Incorporated villages and
boroughs, having over 1000 inhabit-
ants, of 29,963, making a total gain to
these subdivisions Of the state Of 1922
1853, or As per cent Of the total gain of
the state during the five-year period.
When it is considered how largely ours
is an agricultural state and the large
amount of unbroken arabic land it
contains, this increase of urban popu-
lation is striking. The census of Mas
sachusetts shows that 72.5 per cent Of
her population reside in cities of 5000
and over, an increase of PAT, 436 in the
five years, two of which cover the era
of panic
Many causes unite in forming this
result. Some are social in their ma
ture, others Industrial, and others
financial and legislative They may all
be grouped under these heads The
social force is In the gregarious in
stincts Of the race, melted by allure
ments that gain their charm almost
wholly from their distance. The vii
1o al1r E1e
moves in and longs for the larger and
stronger social currents Of the me-
tropolis, only to find, when he goes
there, that if the circle be wider the
touch is lighter and interest in others
becomes too diffused to make the in
sdiXidual share nsa tisfying At the same
time the ego Is dwarfed by the mass,
and he realizes how much better it is
to be first in the village than second
in Rome" The Industrial force oper-
ates mostly on the young with their
vigor and ambition. Where wealth is
focused is the place to go to struggle
for ones share. Where opportunities
come oftenest is the place for him to
go who would grasp them. The spec
tacle Of rapidly amassed fortunes CEN
tered in cities tends to provoke discon-
tent with the slow accretions Of rural
industry and entices many to seek
their chance to enter the short cut to
riches
Probably the strongest Of these CEN
tripetal forces is found in legislation.
When it is used to give to some indus
tries the attraction Of especial profits
it disturbs the natural adjustment Of
industry, which keeps urban and rural
life on an equilibrium. Men naturally
seek the largest returns for their labor,
and when governmental aid makes
those returns larger than the normal
in one pursuit it acts as a magnet to
draw to it the energetic and sagacious.
The policy of this country Of fostering
its manufactures Is Of this class Of
legislation. Manufacturing gravitates
to the cities by virtue of the facilities
they afford for distribution. There
must be opportunity to scatter as well
as to make This draws with 1t the
artisans and the Iaborers besides at
tracing the dissatisfied young men Of
the farms, who find agriculture, handi-
capped by this favoritism, improbable.
So far as these different influences
are natural they are not to be feared or
restricted by legislation. So far as they
are artificial their causes are within
control and should be removed. Farm
ing has it's abundant charms that am
ply compensate for the substantial ad-
vantages of city life, and which would
use their full force were farming more
profitable. 1t cannot and should not
be made SO by means Of bounties or
anything akin to the policy Of protec-
ton. 1T can be made more remunera-
tive by removing its handicaps and
leaving 1T alone. Take off the burdens
imposed on the farms by mistaken
indulgence to manufactures, and the
relative proportions Of urban and rural
life will adjust themselves more nat
urally.
THE SOCIALISTIC TREND.
Moorfield Storey In his address to
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