New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-04-20
ruE SOLDIERS COLONY.
VISIT TO FITZGERALD.
or THE EXPERIMENT WHICH DO
f" NOT BEGET CONFIDENCE IN
ITS SUCCESS.
.r,oN rs RIFE IN TOWN LOTs-7.ooo VET
,.xs AND OTHER coLoNIsTs ON THE
cporSp-vAGUE NOTIONS OF FARM.
INCA PLEASANT CLIMATE
AND BAD HEALTH
70 prpr IN TOWN IOrs-7O0o VET


,SG-A PLEASANT CLIMATE
AND BAD HEALTH
CONDITIONS.
.ro,a Ga. April IS (speciaD-One DESTROYS
F,,,,g At first hand from actual residents OF
ST.. NJ the Union information in regard 10
w 49,, conditions in that Commonwealth can be
"A :, Getting his facts In one Of only two places
W. v.,onal capital. since Congress Is now IN ses-
nc ND the new-hedged city of Fitzgerald There
wv" k., here the other day. says one OF the local
a photograph showing a group composed
Psp. wan from each Of the forty-fve States: but
o. Wv majority Of the thousands Of men, women
u" suaren who within the last few months have
' .,.,n.,ed IN the remarkable migration TO the
y..a-as. region OF Georgia. to form the so-called
,s .o,diers' colony" have come from the West
r,.,s have been colonizing movements IN this
..un,rv before-many Of them but perhaps none
.",.s magnitude and none so widely advertised
~. which has taken concrete shape in the city
!, rr,eerad and It's tributary farms.
NJ. nrotector Of the enterprise. as Is well known
r. Fitzgerald. of Indianapolis. Editor OF
sr,. American Tribune" G. A. r. organ. and
,,,m.ry In the Federal pension service. In August
, IN an article In his paper. he suggested the idea
:. che old soldiers settling in some region where
49,, could live more comfortably on their pension
nonsy. The plan had an advantage over the or
.,.rv colonizng schemes. In that 1t combined with
-. nrospect Of beneting the worldly condition OF
a, n A. r. supporters sentiment. There was
''..,h,ns 10 stir the imagnations Of the Grand
INV men In the thought Of 1ourneying from the
.r-o,.n North" as the prospectuses say. TO dwell
,,,sher comrades from all over the land. under
-. Southern sky. in the heart Of that coun-
49, Which they had visited long ago as foes; and
Of WidesDread
avn, No State Is moro representative Of the New
s,,,h than Georgia as no Southern State pos
..... more solid advantages for the home-seeker
.,a none is more active in inviting immigration
from the North
N, FITZGERALD. who at first had thought Of a
,cs,ion IN the Southwest. came to this State In
March. 1896 accompanied by Dr. II. " Manner. Of
Michigan after some preliminary correspondence
nth Ex-Governor W. J. Northern Of Georgia. whose
business IL the promotion Of immigration. In COM
mny with Governor Northen the two visited first
Yon,somery County. which 10 on the latitude Of
svannah and then went 10 Triton. Here they saw
sourshing vineyards and peach orchards on land
which only few years before had been covered
With yellow pine: and they were advised that large
rscts Of land Of substantially the same character
could be secured a few miles north. In Irwin and
Wilcox counties. Returning to his home Mr. Fitz-
gerald soon came back. accompanied by . COM
m,tee composed Of Captain D. c. WEIGH. OF Nc
Pherson Kan. now superintendent OF the colony:
Peter Nnger. OF Illinois: H. c. Miller. Of Nebraska
Dr. j. NJ Deniston. Of Indiana, and H. H. Winas,
Of Michigan. The members Of the committee were
favoraby impressed. and their report was published
In The American Tribune" Afterward the region
visited by representatives of various pros
pectye sub-colonies. and then began the work OF
securing the necessary amount Of land. options on
which we're secured by the end Of June.
II the original intention to have 100 900 acres
and Mr.. Fitzgerald says that he made a contract
FOR tract Of that size In Montgomery County. but
found that the titles were defective. The present
extent Of the colony property Is only about thirty
four thousand acres. of which 1900 acres are in
Wlcox County. the rest being in Irwin County.
The city OF Fitzgerad-it Is point OF pride with
every resident 70 speak Of II always the city-is
ID the after county When the land was cured was
In the main wilderness Of tall yellow pine. fer from
J railroad. But the colonsts-veterans and many
'ho had not seen service. men. women and children
didn't wait for the completion Of preparation to
eeive them. The advance guard reached Georgia
July. having come overland in prairie schoon-
IS and by the middle Of September 800 or 400 Of
lem were encamped at Abbeve and Triton. re-
,ectvely about twenty-five miles north and south
the embryo colony city. They moved into the
promised land" long before the completion Of the
lrvey Of the city tract early IN November. when
ne aIIOtnent OF the city lOtS began, ana tner
eitlement OF prairie schooners' and tents and
shacks" presented a curious spectacle. As re-
entity November Il only one building had been
rected. exclusive Of the makeshift abodes referred
o: to-day on the city tract there are nearly one
housand buildings of more less pretenson to the
tile permanent"
RAILROAD FACILITIES.
concurrently with the surveying OF the city tract
vent on the clearing away Of the timber the grad |
ns OF streets and the cutting Of drains; and. inde-
pndently Of the colony management. the extern |
ION Of railroad facilites The hve-acre tracts, which
essd'ute the first belt OF farming land around the |
cay we're allotted in December; the ten-acre plots |
sNa later. and the twenty-acre farms are now |
bang distributed
W no railroad map Fitzgerald 10 shown As the |
mnnus Of q line from Triton: but this 10 incorrect.
'13e has long been "tramroad" or '1ogroad" for |
NJ OF the distance owned by the Tiff Brothers.
- operated for the purpose Of bringing out the |
.aow pine from the forests to their big sawmi,. |
iiiton and this road is being pushed on to Fitz-
"a'a. II will be finished soon. some say by May |
, ana others not unul July. Meanwhile. It is a |
',e"'e drive from Fitzgerald to the present ter
A"as' through wregrass and pine woods and two |
Inrse swamps. the water at one crossing coming |
wv ABOVE the hubs Of the wheels and the trans
'ortation costs 30 cents
IA r.. ne north one can ride ali the way by rail |
p.u,""S over the Abbeville and Waycross |
MN This line has long existed on paper. but
.xur,.a.s founding Of the colony 1t was only a
LuJsv,ns ioad ending at the little hamlet Of
the con ana used occasion might require
sca,,.,-. OF cars between Abbeville and the
bean s.'pentine stills on the line. 1t has now
m,les suS from Lulaville to Fitzgerald, four
.oll,n. NV mas regular train service. using the
NJ So v.A OF the Georgia and Alabama road. the
.om.,r, Hhe Savannah Americas and Mont
Irad,n. "s country Is so level that the cost OF
Ntz~.,.,s laying the line between Lulave and
here a.. must nave been exceedingly small: yet
Rom ahs.'A' comfortable roads to travel on.
49,. Aooevlls to Fitzgerald the line trayerses the
y an n.so skirtins frequent swamps and pass
NJ h.S A''onai cleared farm. The Triton railroad
h ~, contend with more engineering Difficult
= .sa... the Abbeville and waycross one being
MIR ,. on lon" trestls Of the Alapaha River.