The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-01-26
IMMIGRATION TO THE SOUTH


 MT. P. II Gadsden. vice president of the Charleston chamber of commerce, whos was one of q committee of three appointed by the South Carolina branch of the Southern Industrial and Immi- grafton association, and a special rep resentative of the city of Charleston to visit Germany last year in the interest of immigration to South Carolina, sums up the report of his trip with the following pointed statement: We have been proceeding up to this time on purely artificial and unnatural plan in reference to this subject of immigra- ton; nowhere has it ever been possible to bring the laborer first-alI success fu immigration movements have been started by the settler and followed by the 1aborer." I quote this remark from among many excellent points Mir Gads- den makes in his report to the mayor of Charleston, because it sounds the key note of the wh ole immigration movement in the south; because it points out in few words the prevail ing mistaken idea in the south in reference to immigration, an idea upon and towards which the small efforts so far made in the south in this cause, have been enormously directed and mostly with disastrous results namely, that immigrat tion merely con sists of inducing laborers to come south to work in our various indus tries, mines and mills.
 In connection with this another ms take has been made, that Of paying transportatfon for the imported laborer either direct from Europe or from the port in which he arrives, and so strongly and generally has this two fold mistake become prevalent in the south. that the general opinion at the present time seems to regard 1mmi- grafton to the southern states as an imp O ossibility because we. can no longer prepay passage for the immigrant from Europe, or promise him definite job. Nothing can be further remoNeo from the true aims and objects or.iiii- migration, than all the futile enorts to bring laborers to the south. AS WIT, Gadsden aptly indicates, all successIni work in the interest of immigration anywhere has been directed hrst to- wards inducing desirable immigrants with their families to settle on tne lands. This can be accompllsheu in course of time by distributing amount of literature, issued py the state. amongst the people we want " settle with us, literature Which ue scribes the great opportunities a"ais- ing the thrifty, practical iarilel, seiu
  which tells the true conditions or the south in regard to lands climate anu neople. thus counteracting the many islanders heaped upon the fair soutn- land for years and years by Jealous' malicious northern papers, by competi- tive districts and by hundreds or ln- diyiduals actuated by selfish purposes as well as by the false reports oi .iie very laborers for which southern in- dustries have paid transportation' line and again we ma the sanie
 results in the end.
 In addition to suitable literature rep resentatiyes of the southern states can pc sent amongst the people we deslre .o '. settle on our lands, to personally soncit immigration to the south, and II sucii work is systematically and conunuaiiy followed up for a number of years IL Miii hevond doubt prove successful. It IS .he only plan promising the desired resui.s' practically every immigrant landing In on. norts in addition to his steamer ticket has a railroad ticket to some polnt west or north, or east. Why? Because he has either relatives or friends hvihg there. or having been persuaded to coihe there by either literature or personal so- licita tion. AS I indicated before, results cannot be obtained in montn or even a year But after a beginning IS once made results will multiply. Each laiii- ilv of immigrants contentedly and fortu- pately settled in the south VIII cause their. friends and relatives to come also, inc same as in the north and west, and what a. blessing it would prove to the south to have it's lands settled by thou sands of industrious practical farmers and gardeners from Germany and the north of Europe.
 If would make the south the greatest and richest part of this country. It would