Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1913-12-16
COLONY PLAN OF
SETTLING FARMS.
Method Used in Wisconsin
Declared to be Applicable
to Our Logged Lands
MUCH CAPITAL NEEEED
Environment is Salient Fea-
ture. Would Group Set
tiers in Communities

EVERETT, Dec. 15.-Environmen
lis more successful in selling and set
Itling loggedoff lands than any other
feature entering into the problem OF
converting cut-over acreage into till
|able territory and producing trad
ling mart for cities of the Northwest
declares John r. Stewart, well
known lumberman of Everett. In the
following interview Mr.. Stewart
speaks of a system employed in Wis
Iconsin, system that has in many
respects proved eminently successful
land one that the lumberman believes
could be conducted successfully in
1.-THE state of Washington.
"To explain what l mean," said
John r. Stewart, "let us take, for ex-
ample, a section of land and divide it
into forty acres, which was the plan
followed in Wisconsin some years
Iago. OF course the forty acres in
wisconsin is equaled in fertility by
ten acres of Washington land; bet
tier still for the purpose of explana-
|tion, let us take section of land and
divide it into thirty-two parcels OF
twenty acres each. Now, few fami-
|lies would care to buy acreage of that
kind unless they could be assured
they would receive an environment
that is, that they could understand
that neighbors on adjoining acreage
would be to their liking. In order to
make sure of an environment it would
be necessary for the holders of the
land to send an emissary or agent
Ito some foreign land, like Denmark
Tor Sweden, with photographs Of the
acreage and improvements, of which
II shall speak. In that manner, and
|by giving assurance that fellow coun-
Itrymen only would be taken into the
Icolonizing plan, the agent should be
|able to pick the flower of tentative
|homeseekers as Northwest settlers.
IIOuSc SHOuIU DC 0uttC.
"In order to make the settlement
project further attractive, the set
|lers of the logged-off land should
build a house on each twenty acres,
Jan out-building, and l should sug-
|gest that a COW and chickens might
|well be added, which would, of course.
be charged up against settlers in the
|price paid for their twenty acres. A
time limit of twenty years should be
for all of the districts of the county
lis 4S43 1-3 mills but the levies range
from 23 hundredths of a mill for
those that have a levy of 1858 mills
according to the valuation of the dis
|tricts and the cost of the schools.
There is one district, district 40, where
there is no levy. The county and
|state approportionments more than
allowed settlers to pay for their land
land improvements. Photographs of a
home already built and stocked and
the promise of proper environment
that would surround them with fami-
|les of their own nationality should
form an argument that, backed up
with the generally recognized knowl-
ledge of Washington's wonderful fer
Utility, ought to make easy the work
lof interesting immigrants of desira-
Ible character to invest in the colon
|izing plan.
-Four sections of logged-off land,
handled as have outlined, should
|be financed for from $25O,OOO to $780,
|00O l know of one large owner of
|cut-over acreage who Is interested in
this plan and is thinking seriously
|of investment and launching into the
colonization business.
Environment a Feature
Environment, as I have stated, is
Ione of the most important features
|of the settlement program, and that
point should not be overlooked by
prospective investors in such an un.
|dertaking as the peopleing Of logged
loft acreage. In the center of the Sec
Ition tract a schooihouse should be
built, also a church. When immi-
|grants sign the agents contract to
|buy land, they should also sign a
clause holding them to send their
children to school; no school of o
certain denomination. but just to
school, to county school.
"Once established in their new
homes. the men should be found en-
|ployment in nearby mills. or at other
labor. Men are paid $2.25 day in
Washington for many forms Of com
mon labor, and the company hand