The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1913-01-30
WOULD COLONIzE
WEST WITH POOR
Former Idaho State Senator on
Great Project.
To DRAW FROM TENEMENTS

Teemins Millions Living In Poverty In
Great Cities to Be Given Chance on
Broad Acres of Untenanted Land If
Plans Go Through-Is Forming Big
Society For the Undertaking..
Former State Senator james n Stacy
of Idaho who went to New York from
Portland intending to make a four
day stopover which has heightened
into four years, has announced that he
Is putting the finishing touches to the
realization of his twenty tive-year-old
dream looking to the organization of
the American Colonization society,
which seeks to coloniZe 100,000,000
acres Of land in the west with the poor
living In the congested districts Of New
York, Chicago and other big cities. Not
only will his great scheme help men to
help themselves. he said, but as soon
as free lands and the great resources
of the west are under development the
happy homesteaders will send to the
helping to reduce the cost of living to
a minimum. 1t isn't going to cost
city man a cent for transporta ton to
his future western home. the ex-sena-
tor declared, and all that is needed
now to launch the society and assure
its success is to get sufficient funds
from philanthropists to pay the rail
road fares and other incidental ex-
penses.
Mr. Stacy has found time since he
has been In New York investigating
conditions on the east side and work
ing on the framework Of his society to
lead the Friday night meetings at the
Catherine street mission. He lives in
a small room at 270 West Eleventh
street just about big enough TO hold
tiny bed, bureau, a table, a chair and
the big hearted dreamer.
Describes Society.
"The American Colonization society
has not yet been incorporated" he said
to reporter. "And neither have off,
GERS been elected yet, but things have
gone so well that l believe the first
shipment of colonlsts to tillable lands
in Idaho, Minnesota and Oregon will
be made In the next three or four
months.
II have watched your bread lines and
have found there men who took their
fathers places in the line. l have seen
the poverty and unhappiness of the ten
ements. Labor leaders with whom
have talked have told me that there
are hundreds of thousands of unem-
ployed In New York alone. The condi-
tions In the congested sections are
frightful And In the west there are
millions Of acres of land, half the area
of some states, waiting to be colonized!
at is of course impracticable for the
poor of the cities to get to the west and
aid in its development unassisted, and
the society will undertake TO give them
free transportation and take care of
them until they are on their feet.
How is this to be done? The sim
plest thing in the world. We will first
get the railroads interested in the plan.
1t will be like casting bread on the
waters TO them, for their return will
be great when the lands have been TAX
en- up. Communities will grow, ard an
ever ceaseless stream of freight, ipclud-
ing crops, will begin it's eastward
course to the cities Then we will seek
the assistance Of philanthropists like
Andrew Carnegie, Mrs. Russell Sage
and Mrs. e. III. Hartman.
Will Ask J. j. Hills Aid.
zone of the first railroad men want
to see about this Is James j. Hill. He
Is a friend Of mine. Back In 1868,
when kept a general store at Monti-
cello, Wright county, Mimi, Jim Hill
and wheat buyer named Henry Ames
Of Milwaukee were stopping at hotel
just opposite my store. The mosquitoes
were thick, and ventilation was bad in
the hotel, so they came over to my
place and asked If they couldn't sleep
there. made up beds for them on the
counter, and they rested well. I know
that Mr.. Hill will like the society's col
onization idea and will help 1t along
all he cam
The ex-senator said headquarters OF
the society will be established In New
York, where there are so much poverty
and acute suffering, and branches will
be located in Chicago and Portland,
Ore.
There is no doubt that we will get
oil the money we need" said Mr.. Stacy
In his little room, las soon as the peo-
pie understand the humanitarian mo-
tives at the bottom of the project
There's man In Brooklyn, whose
name I'm not at liberty to tell, who has
promised to give us $4,000 as soon as
we get the society working Nobody
can possibly make cent out OF It."
Mr.. Stacy claims that when he was
In the Idaho state senate in 1889 he
put through free homestead law. The
senate then stood eleven Republicans
and ten Democrats. he said, and be
was the Republican leader.