The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-02-20

opment Of which / believe it does not
dream, in which. as | said before, the
chief factors will be the economy of land.
built upon the individualizing of the for
eigner rs a citizen, upon the higher
grade of cotton fabric turned
cut by your mills. and upon the re-
Iation of the railroads to these different
classes of interests. / believe there viii
lie under the new order plenty OF
freight and passengers To insure good
dividends for the systems OF railroad
now trayersing or about to traverse the
South.
Having made my journey by the Sea-
board Air Line my attention has natur-
ally been directed, to its intentions, its
Possibilities. and to the recent struggles
through which it seems TO have passed
in order to effect the consolidated line
from New York to Tampa, and thence
to Cuba. While knowing little about
the details Of these matters, | do NOT
hesitate to say that the young president
Of the Seaboard Air Line, Mr.. John
SHELTON Williams. with the carrying out
CT his plans as proposed, will have es-
tablished his status i'll the front rank of
the worlds fnanciers. During my jour
ney it was my good fortune to meet with
the vice-president CT the Seaboard Air
j inc, Mr.. e. st. John by whose courtesy,
] was facilitated in many ways in my
study of the Southern industrial situa
ton. / do not know much about rail
reads and therefore am unable TO speak
OF this remarkable man from Il technical
standpoint, but / have mentioned his
rame because it recalls and illustrates
the phase of the subject upon which
have touched above.
in this connection l would remind
You, in reply to a question which you
asked little while ago as to why this
white element had not been attracted 20
the South before now, that | think the
main reason for it lies in the fact that
the men who have devoted years OF
study to the immigration problem were
not in the South but i'll other sections
especially the North and Northwest.
have heard during my journey that Mr..
/ S. John was one of these men. | have
| been so impressed by the rapid influx of
immigration along the territory traversed
by his line that / have taken time to
| inquire into the methods by which he has
! brought about such a result. | have been
| told that he spent over thirty years of
| his life in the West and Northwest on
| the great Rock Island road and per
| fetted Il system through which Minneso-
tn and other Northwestern States are
today populated by thrifty bread-win-
ming citizens the plain, hardy population
| that is behind the city Of Minneapolis
| and has forced it forward with astound-
! ing rapidity to the position of one of the
| greatest jobbing cities of this country.
! believe from conversation with Others
| that the South has been q great gamer
even from Mr.. st. Johns short sojourn
| CT the last five or six years in that sec
| ton. What he did for Minnesota and
the West he is now dong for the South,
and while not wishing TO make any I'M
| Just comprehension the railroads in
| that section are doing great work
| he is the only man with whose methods
| am acquainted that is pushing forward
| this great work on the most scientific
and effective basis.
But III this comparison with the
! Northwest the South comes out a great
gamer, for it's products are eighteen To
| twenty-four hours nearer to the great
marts of trade than are those of Min
neapolis and Duluth. In Mr.. Williams
| and Mr.. John st John is, in my iudg-
| ment. d combination OF the South and
| West working in harmony toward the
real upbuilding of that section which
is at once unique and interesting, nol
only to the railroad. but To the tinan-
cial onlookers OF this country. The
| officials Of this road have been most
courteous 10 me in every way and they
seem to have been selected with refer
ence 10 their technical fitness for their
| work
II would not wish to close my remarks
about my weeks sojourn i'll the South
, without acknowledging the good offices
Of General Passenger Agent Allen
without whose assistance [ should have
failed to see much that | did see
The subject is large and interesting
! one and presents many phases uxpon
| which. for reasons YOU may imagine ]
cannot touch with good taste, but
! shall long remember the hospitality OF
| the people. and return with Il new faith
| in their future If the balmy South
| does not realize to the full the possbili-
| ties predicted for it by its late brilliant
| Georgian, Henry w. Grady, it will be
| its own fault. The climate is such as to
| allow long outdoor work. free from rig
| orous weather. and working in the mill
ard factory free from much of the ex-
pense of heating and building incident
to the harsh climate of Northern ana
Eastern States. The very richness of
its resources entails a greater RESPONSE
bility upon it people and if the richest
results are not attained from these re-
sources, it must necessarily be on ac-
count of the poverty Of effort put for
ward by its people. And ] do not be-
lieve from the history of these people
since the Civil War; that any man will
have a right to accuse them of lack OF
honest and effective effort
w. T.. CHRISTIAN.
A THOUSAND TONGUES.