The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-09-27
SEES HARD BLOW
TO LAND BUSINESS
JOHN G. LUND SAYS NEW RAIL-
ROAD RULE HURTS. ~
John G. Allen, However, Is Not So
Pessimistic, but. Instead of Seeing
Harm, Sees Good for Minnesota in
the New Regulation. ~ s.a H.

Enforcement of the new railroad law
will necessitate an entire reconstruc-
ton of the land business in the north
west, according to John &. Lund, the
veteran land man.
Mr.. Lund said today that a total
failure of every crop in the northwest
would not have produced worse effects
than the provision Of the new railroad
rule that restricts the land business.
migration will be stopped.
Lund. "a year ago today we had over
three hundred landseekers and used
three cars to carry them. Today we
have reported only four men. We must
reorganize the land business, I don It
know how. Possibly it may, be, carried
are now. making no effort to bring up
homeseekers and immigration is prac-
tically stopped. Land values have,
therefore, stopped, as the values have
depended on the opportunity Of farm
ers to sell the land to the settlers that
Mr.. Lund, who does an enormous
land business in the northwest, takes
a very gloomy view of the situation,
and states that a backset has already
been experienced.
Mr.. Lund supports the recent inter
view in T he j ournal in which
the opinion was expressed that the law
seems to have been drafted without
reference to features of the railroad
business common to new districts and
necessary to their development. One
Of these is the land business and free
transportation to land men.
Not So Pessimistic.
John G.. Allen, for twenty-five years
in the land business, represents the land
men who believe that the elimination
of the pass feature for land men and
land buyers is not bad thing at all
for Minnesota, whatever may be the
effect On the northwest as whole. He
says that it will place Minnesota on an
equal basis with other points which the
railroads are interested in populating
and that the state will have a better
chance to become settled instead of
submitting to an annual draft on its
farm class in favor Of the newer sec
lions Of the country.
operate,' said Mr.. Allen today, dis
cussing the new rate bill provisions
which affects the land business. CSC
far as the state of Minnesota is con
cerned it is the best thing that has
ever happened, because we are not get
ting any immi grafton now, but are fur
nshing the rest Of the states and Cana
da with immigrants. If the specia
| rates are taken off and the free passes
that have been granted by the rail
roads to these agents selling these
lands in Canada and the northwest
then we shall be on an equal footing tt
| compete in the east and the south.
"Before, we had rates only to thu
extreme north and west Of the state
and the eastern and north parts o:
Minnesota have been ignored. The re
suit is that we have furnished immi
grants to other states while no conces
sions were made by the railroads to in
duce immi grafton into Minnesota.
"We shall be benefited by this ar
arrangement. By furnishing transpor
tation to land agents and land buyers
the railroad would get the people to g
to points that they wanted them to, s.
as produce the long haul on freight
I know of a rate of $12 that was mad
from here for the return trip to Texas
and it would cost more to 90 to tn
northern part of the state, to st. Loui
county for instance. The roads hav
been working this territory in favor o
other sections, SO that they were simpl
emptying Minnesota, Iowa has suffere
in the same way"