The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-12
Southern Railroads and Immigration. Philadelphia Railway World.

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 Efforts are being put forth by the railroads of the South to direct into that section of the countwy east of the Mississippi River 8 portion of the i'm migration stream now washing upon our shores from Europe. To these ef- everywhere in the United States by an enlightened public sentiment as the success of the venture means so much towards solution of many of the vex- ing problems growing out of the ex- istence within our borders of represen- tatives of so many different races. The particular good of this movement of the Southern roads will be along the line of checking the tendency to an overcPwding of our Eastern industrial centers and of securing for the South a very much to be desired laboring popu- lation that can be made adaptable to the physical and social conditions in that wide area.
 Under the present racial composition of our immigration stream, the success Of the Southern railroads in this direc- tion means the diverting of a portion of the Slav and Italian immigrants from the Eastern industrial centers to the agricultural districts in the South. We are of the opinion that this is newly arriving immigrants of these races naturally follow the haphazard channel cut out by their fellow aliens who preceded them, with the result that our large Northern seaboard and Eastern middle industrial centers are becoming crowded with these elements. Just as naturally as water seeks it's level, they are congregating in for eign" quarters of our Northern cities and around our large industries, and are giving rise to municipal and other problems of serious import The an- thracite coal strikes in 1900 and 1909 are but illustrations of some of the forces they are putting in operation.
 The South. east of the Mississippi, has many sections rich in fertile lands which are now being rendered worse than useless by negro tenantry. The Slavs and Italians come. for the most part, from agricultural environment, and their natural inclination is toward the farm and country. One of the marked tendencies of the movement of population in the anthracite producing countries of Pennsylvania is that of the Slavs and Italians to migrate to farm ing districts in the West as soon as their employment in the coal mines enables them to secure financial means perhaps at the beginning, the immi- grants of these nationalities could be made to fit in the South. We know this from the few illustrations we have ot their locating in that section:
 To take these slav and Italian nationalities and find homes for them in the South in such a way as to result to the benefit of the immigrant and of the section in which he locates Is task worthy the best efforts of any man or group of men. Upon the individual representation of the Land and Indus trial departments of the Southern Roads. and in particular upon the Southeastern Railway Land and Indus- trial Agents Association, fails this work of securing for the South a de- sirable class of laborers and for the immigrant home for the development of his capabilities. Their efforts have already secured the indorsement of Commissioner of Immigration Sargent, a number of the States in the South are lending their assistance in organiz- ing immigration bureaus, private organizations in this country having the welfare of the immigrant at heart and representatives of European Gov ernments have given their sanction to the movement. It now rests with the people of the Southern States to open wide their gates to the incoming tide of immigration which is soon to sweep into that section.