The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-04-05

problems OF what TO 40 with the
Immigrant, Of crowded cities and
Of idle farm lands can all be in a
measure solved by project for
giving the immigrant every oppor-
tunity to obtain = farm as soon as
he arrives. in America, in the 0pin-
ion Of the new commissioner gen.
eral Of immigration, W. ". Hus-
band, as expressed In an exclusive
interview.
Mr.. Husband has not yet perfect
ed hts plan for doing this, but will
soon bsein holding conferences
with his colleagues for that pur-
pose. His general idea is to use
uncultivated lands In private own
ership, under some commercial ar
rangement, with government super
vision or cooperation. The immi-
grant is not to be given . ready
made farm, but aid and instruction
in clearing waste land, as the pio-
neers did. The farm is to be paid
for in long installments.
While there is wide disagree
ment as to how the thing should be
done, all students Of the agrarian
problem of this country agree with
Mr.. Husband that the great need is
for some system by which the man
with little or no capital, who is
capable Of farming, may get hold
of land on such terms that he can
make a living out of it.
The immigrant" according to
the new commission general, fought
to be the illogical element in our
population to, restore the balance
between rural and city population.
A considerable part OF the normal
immigration of the United States is
q farming population that knows
nothing but farming. These people
hold the love of the soil as ma
tive inheritance, and their hope ia
to own a few acres of land and
some stock. have visited the
peasants of various countries OF
Europe, l have eaten with them
and slept in their houses, and ]
know that land is their dream and
ambition. That is one big thing
You have not got to teach the i'm
migrant to love the land"
Mr.. Husband went on to explain
that this desire for land ownership
does not lead the immigrant to
seek a farm for. himself when he
comes to this country. because in
recent years friends and relatives
who have preceded him have moi
gone to farms. The immigrant
comes here more or less dependent
on others Of his race to help him
He follows the example of these
others, and settles down in New
York's east side, or in New Eng
land factory town. and starts vend'
ing or working in a factory. NJ
matter what his race may be, thu
foreigner is timidly clannish anf
clings to the program mapped ou
by those who came ahead of him..
| Mr.. Husband holds that the quail
tiles that make these immigrant!
follow the Leadership of others Ail
attract them to the farms, once thu
tide is detected from the cities t.
the land.
when immigration was Target.
from northern Europe" he says
the alien who landed here mad,
straight for the farm. Then south
err and eastern Europe began tt
send more immigrants coinciden
with the enormous industrial de
velopment of the United States, be
ginning about 1880. In 1880, TO-;
per cent of the population Of thi'
country was rural. and then begar
the drift to the cities from tn,
farms and from Europe, until las
year the rural population was onl!
4S6. The trend toward the cit,
would have existed anyway. Blu
the millions who have come from
Europe since it started have yer.
largely contributed toit.
in this period we have develop
ed a wonderful industrial system
and the immigrant has been a bill
factor in its success. We owe hin
i. a good deal. But more immigrant,
! continue to pour in from Europe
and there is a constantly decreasing
opportunity for them in the cities
They are merely increasing the diff
ficulty Of an already difficult situa
ton.
Eve will probably have immi
grafton in the future as in the past
and we must soon do something Il
attract the aliens to sections wher,
they are needed and where they cal
make fair living.
The remedy proposed by the com
missioner lies in the millions o
acres of waste land in this country
There are no longer enough desir
able homesteads on government
land to supply many immigrants. l
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