Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-01-16
B|GFARN LAND MERGER
The Northern Land Company
Buys Large Tract in Scott
County
WILL BUILD FLOOD DlkEs
Company Owns Other Large Tracts
Feared That Movement Means De-.
struction of Small Land Holders and
Absorption of Farming Business by
Large Corporations.
WILL BUILD FLOOD Dixie
to Times Republican

Davenport, Jan. 16. - The Northern
headquarters at Independence. Ia. have
purchased some 1900 acres of land in
Princeton township, and will take pos
session of the property March 1.
What the company intends to do with
this immense tract it has so far refused
to state, but large sum of money is
to be spent in it's improvement.
Most of the property purchased lies
along the Wapsie bottoms and the
flooding from this stream has proved a
serious damage In the past.
TIE company have decided that to
prevent 1t a dixie will be built along
the river edge to confine the water to
it's channels.
This dixie will necessarily have to be
of considerable length and the outlay
for such n construction will be large in
proportion.
1t is claimed, however, that when this
has been constructed so as to stop this
overflow, the land will be one of the
richest In the county and will soon re-
pay the owners for the money spent to
enrich it.
There is a far greater significance In
the purchase of this tract of land, how
ever. and it may be the embryo OF a
movement that will affect the farmers
all over the state of Iowa and not only
that, but in every part of the United
States. 1t has been limited at for some
time past, and has grown to such a
Significance that it was preached at
the farmers institute yesterday that
the small farms are being rapidly abb
sorbed by these big companies and that
Ethe situation here is rapidly growing
into that of the land baron and the
renter as it has been in England for so
many years.
1t is a well known fact that these
large companies have been absorbing
immense tracts of land within the past
few years and there are several OF
these companies in existence. who own
thousands and thousands of acres of
land.
1t is stated authoritatively that this
| Northern Land Company has property
all over the state and that the tract
purchased here is burt a drop I'm the
bucket compared to the immense acre
age it has secured in other parts OF
Iowa.
First Start.
This is the first move OF that kind
that has ever taken place in Scott
county and 1T may be the beginning of
the absorption of the local farming
land of one of those trust companies
which will soon be in control of all the
valuable soil in the vicinity OF Daven-
port. This would mean that large
majority of all the farmers would soon
become renters and that few country
homes would be owned by those VINO
titled the soil. 1t would mean crush
ling out of the small industries and the
forming of a big farm trust that would
| set in a like measure as some of these
Immense corporations in other lines OF
business
The farmers of Scott county as In
other parts of the state have realized
for some time that there was no pusi-
ness less organized and more dlVersi-
| fled than that of farming.
There have been several small move
ments to get the farmers to organize 70
protect their interests but such move
ments have died of their own accord or
| for lack of a capable organizer.
| Now these big land companies are
coming into the field and are doing
what the farmers have attempted TO Go
in a few instances but failed and what
has been attempted in most places.
Whether this movement of the North
ern Land Company is one In accord
with other like organizations and
4 whether it is the beginning of trust In
forms is mot known, but If 1t should be
snch n company with a large capital
has secured a foothold in Scott county
and It may be here that this new move
ment may get it's start.