The Florence tribune., 1901-08-10
A New Plymouth in Idaho.
From the Land of sunshine.l l

 we have never known too much. The Plymouth Colony of Idaho furnishes some light ca this subject, although neither an old nor great settlement.
 The Plymouth effort began with the adjournment of the National Irriga- tion Congress of 1894, held at Denver in the autumn of that year. few who had been prominent in this move ment conceived the idea nf establish ing colony which should illustrate the feasibility of making small farms on the arid lands. Localities in eight States were examined before the site was selected. What was wanted was tract of fertile soil, watered by a completed irrigation system with abundant supplies, and then local interest which would be warranted in backing au earnest effort with pro- motion fund of req sonable amount.
 The right conjunction of favorable conditions was found in the Payette ! valley, in the southwestern corner of Idaho, near the Oregon boundary. Here was d large tract of the most fertile bench lands, covered with tall sagebrush. The point selected was twelve miles from the Oregon Short Line railroad and the same distance from the nearest town. A few settlers had already located in the valley, but practically it was wild erness. The Payette river, one of the largest tri6u- taries of the Snake, is noble perennial stream, having sufficient volume atits lowest stage to irrigate more land than the valley contains. The climate of the locality may be described as the best type of the temperate zone. While l the extremes of winter cold and sun- mer heat are very considerable, 1t Is an excellent climate both for men and for crops. IL is suited also to the pro- dattion of tae more delicate fruits, such as prunes and peaches.
 
 Having selected the land and secured the necessary promotion fund, the colony leaders went East to enlist settlers. The plan of settlement which had been mapped out had two or three unique features. In the first place, it was desired that the colonists should .t&<. ..l 4 q. ..,z nI fr,f d they were urged to diversity their crops so that they might produce the variety of things which they would consume. Exclusive fruit culture was believed to be an evil which would in time bring harvest of disappointment to those who built their hopes Ipou it. In the second place, it was thought feasible for many, if not all. the set tiers to assemble their homes in village center, so that they might realize unusualsocial advantages from the beginning. Finally, business co- ! operation was provided for by the for nation of a company in which all the settlers were to be stockholders. This 7 company was to own the townsite and such simple industries as might be created from time to time.
 , The colony obtained it's first impulse in Boston, where the battle cry, 'It : is time for New Plymouthp' was
 warmly echoed by number ofinHuen- tial men, of whom Edward Everett
 Hale was foremost. A public meeting
 was held and brief account of it tele- graphed to the newspapers throughout
 the country Strangely enough, not a single settler was obtained in Boston.
 But, even more strangely, the Boston
 meeting resulted in the speedy enlist
 ment of fine nucleus at Chicago, to
 which point the campaign was quickly
 transferred as the result of the mani
 festation of an unmistakable degree of
 public interest.
 The Chicago work began with a
 modest meeting at the Grand Pacific
 Hotel early in March, 1895. These
 meetings were continued at intervals
 of one week over period of nearly
 two months. The Plymouth Society
 of Chicago was formed at the first
 meeting It's membership gradually
 increased, until 250 heads of families
 were enrolled at the end of the brief
 campaign. It is worth while to note
 the fact that it was the colony plan,
 especially the social advantages of moving number of families at one v time and grouping their homes in g village center, that aroused the deepest
 interest, rather than the advantages of the locality in which the settlement was to be made. Very little was said about profits to be realized by the set a tiers. Their attention was riveted
 upon the proposition of making homes where they could work for themselves . and achieve an independence in the midst of pleasant surroundings. In g Y word, most of the things which colony boomers do, the Plymouth promoters
 left undone; while most of the thing:
 colony promoters leave undone, tht Plymo1th promoters religiously did.