warehouse. The Poles control the town and own practically all the land in the locality. The farms are located around the town in every direction.

In 1875 three Poles settled in the town. Soon after 1880 three American business men owning property in the locality sent tickets to the relatives of these early settlers, that they, too, might come to Texas. In the course of time 20 families came. They were taught the cultivation of cotton, and were soon able to pay the money advanced for their tickets. The colony now numbers 120 families, or over 600 persons. A great majority of the families have come from other parts of Texas and from the Northern States. Only a few aside. from the first families were imported directly from the old country. The colony is growing slowly. Twenty-five new families have moved in from other localities within the past five years, and the prospect for growth is good as land is available and markets are near at hand. Forty per cent of the Poles here own their farms. The rest are tenants paying a share rent. Cotton is the money crop, hay and corn being grown in sufficient quantities to furnish feed for all live stock that is kept. The cotton is sold in Chapel Hill or in Brenham, ten miles distant.

In the town of Chapel Hill there are 4 American families and 2 German families, the others being Poles. The Poles have little opportunity to associate with the Americans, but they often serve on the juries with them. The Americans, owing probably to their limited number, exert little influence on the Poles, but the Poles have been quick to grasp and seize the American ideas.

The Catholic Church in town has been built 11 years and the Poles are regular attendants. The priest has charge of the parochial school, in which 100 pupils were enrolled in 1909.

The Polish people in this locality have created a favorable impression, have a reputation for being very industrious, and have been very successful in the cultivation of the crops grown here.

BRENHAM, WASHINGTON COUNTY.

Brenham, in the southern part of Washington County, is the county seat. Beginning 2 miles from town, and extending for 8 miles, are found 200 Polish farms, supporting 1,000 people. The first Poles came to this locality in 1875, moving eastward from the Polish colony at Chapel Hill. Only a few have moved in directly from abroad, the majority having migrated from other localities in Texas.

About 40 per cent of the Poles in this locality own their farms. The others believe that they can make more money by renting land than by purchasing at $30 to $50 per acre. Here, as in other localities, the Poles by their thrift and energy have greatly increased the value of land since their coming.

MARCHE, ARKANSAS.

Near the small flag station of Marche, Arkansas, 16 miles northwest of Little Rock, are located 60 Polish agricultural families, with a total of nearly 300 persons.

The first Polish settlers came into the locality about 1877, and during the three years following other families arrived. They set

tled on railroad land which at that time was selling at from $3 to $6 per acre. Many of the first settlers were able to pay cash, and others purchased on easy terms, a small amount being required at the time of purchase, while the remainder was payable in one, two, or three years, with 6 or 8 per cent interest.

The settlers came from various parts of the United States and many occupations were represented among them. One of the first came from a cotton mill in Massachusetts, and a few migrated from Pennsylvania, while Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois contributed a considerable number.

The land was not fertile, stones and trees covered the surface, and these had to be removed before crops could be grown, and in several cases the settlers became discouraged and deserted the colony within a short time. About the year 1890 a considerable group migrated to Oklahoma. At one time, when the colony was at its largest, it numbered 100 families, but now it has dwindled to 60 families, and the last family moved into the locality in 1903, coming directly from abroad.

The soil in the locality is composed of sand mixed with a large proportion of stones and gravel. The land on the hills washes badly and as a whole is not of great fertility.

The farms average about 80 acres although some are larger-160 acres and a few are only 40 acres. The Polish farms are all somewhat remote from the railroad station, the nearest being about three miles distant. There are no groups of farms or farmhouses in the colony, the Polish settlers being scattered along several highways. In fact in most cases the houses are so isolated and the country is so wooded and hilly that it is impossible to even see one house from another. The land was originally covered with heavy timber and the settlers experienced great difficulty in clearing and preparing it for cultivation. Cotton is now raised to some extent and is the chief money crop. The average yield in the vicinity is from one-fourth to one-half bale per acre. Corn and hay are raised in large enough quantities to feed the live stock. Every farmer has a garden near the house in which vegetables of many varieties are raised, mostly for home use, although small quantities are sold.

Every farmer has one or more cows, and some dairy products are sold, while some families have an income of from $50 to $100 a year from their poultry.

The houses, for the most part constructed of hewn oak logs, are small one-story buildings, built in two parts, with a roofed-over passageway between. They were erected by the settlers. As a rule the houses are whitewashed both inside and out and are kept in a neat condition, especially when it is considered that the majority of the women and children spend more time in the fields cultivating the crops than they do in the houses. Near the house are ordinarily one or two outbuildings, used as storehouses, and in some instances as dairy rooms. The barns are small, but sufficient to shelter such live stock as is found on the farm. Attached to one or both sides of the barn is a small shed, for sheltering farm wagons and such machinery and implements as the farmer may possess. On most farms the land is ...

The roads are of the poorest type, many of them being simply a clearing in the woods; sharp ledges and large bowlders are frequently found in the middle of roads. These poor roads undoubtedly retard the growth of the colony as they hamper the marketing of crops.

All the Poles own their farms, some having small indebtedness but by far the larger number own their property entirely free from debt. By clearing the land and building houses they have increased the valuations of their property so that the farms which were originally purchased for $5 or $6 an acre are now valued at from $20 to $30 per acre. As a rule the surplus income of these farmers has been invested in improvements, although some are known to have accounts in the savings banks of the city. Almost every farmer owns a horse or mule, and sometimes as many as six are found on one farm. Very little money is invested in farm implements or house furniture.

During the early days of the colony some of the men found work in the fields as farm laborers, others worked in the woods, lumbering, but at present the opportunity for outside employment in the immediate vicinity of the town is small. Farm laborers are in demand only for part of the year. The nearest place where other than farm work is avilable is Little Rock.

Situated as the settlers are, away from everyone else, they have little opportunity to excite race prejudice among the natives. They necessarily depend on themselves for all amusements and social undertakings. A Roman Catholic Church with a rectory near by was built some years ago. The colony supports a resident priest. There is also a parochial school which in 1909 had an enrollment of 50 pupils. There are in the settlement 75 men, 21 years of age or over, and about two-thirds of them are voters.

It may fairly be said that the future of the colony is problematical. Few new families are added to it and it is said that the majority of the children are dissatisfied with the locality and that many have married and moved elsewhere.

STATISTICAL DATA FOR SELECTED FAMILIES.

The following table shows the economic history and present financial condition of six typical families. All the families have been in the locality at least twenty years:

TABLE 64.-Economic history and present financial condition of certain typical Polish families, Marche, Ark.

TABLE 64.-Economic history and present financial condition of certain typical Polish families, Marche, Ark.-Continued.

Data reported.

Family 1. Family 2. Family 3. Family 4. Family 5. Family

Occupation in locality previ- None..... Farm la Cutting None..... Cutting Railroad

cord
wood.

ous to purchase:

borer.

cord hand. wood.

Wages per week.....

$2.50 and

$6.

$6..

$9.

Old house.

stock,; 10

acres

Occupation until living could | None..... None..... None..... None....

cleared.

untilla- prove

ble.

ments.

None..... Railroad hand.

Not reported.

60 plus house lot

50.

Live stock now owned:

None..

None..

None.

3.

2.

Mules..

1.

2

Financial condition:

1.

Value of land and im- $1,000..... $2,500..... $2,500..... $1,500..... $1,000.... $2,500.

ANNUAL FARM INCOME FROM PRODUCTS SOLD (AVERAGE FOR 2 YEARS).

Clover Bottom is located in the north central part of Washington County, Mo., 9 miles northwest of Union and the same distance southwest from Washington. Germans and Poles are the two races which predominate in the locality, and although the Poles came into the locality first the Germans outnumber them at the present time. In the early fifties a few colonies of Polish settlers were to be found in Illinois and Texas, but it is said that because the lack of any established place of worship several of the families became dissatis fied and decided to migrate to some place where there was a church. The Germans had founded colonies all along the Missouri River as

early as 1833, but they did not come to the vicinity of Clover Bottom till the early sixties. In 1859 four Polish families moved to the locality from Pike County, Ill., and in the same year three families arrived from Texas. At that time practically all of the land was covered with woods and brush. The land was all held by a single individual. Six dollars an acre was charged, and as the immigrants came with little ready cash, the owner sold any number of acres that they wished, receiving a small amount down and the rest on time at a low rate of interest. The next year eight families came from Texas and nine from Russian Poland, having received encouraging reports from their relatives who had settled there the year before. There are now thirty-six Polish families in the settlements, numbering 200 people. The last family came from Poland twenty years ago, and only two of the original settlers are now alive, the present population consisting largely of children of the settlers. At present there is little to attract people to the locality, as better land is to be had in other parts of the State.

After these settlers had cut down the trees and burnt out the stumps, they found that they had settled on a very inferior type of soil, which time has not improved. The land on the hilltops is infertile and the top soil is worn very thin. Wheat grows fairly well on this soil, and in the bottoms corn can be grown successfully, but on the whole the farms in this area are not very productive. The Poles, however, own good houses and are as prosperous as any other farmers in the vicinity.

The thirty-six families all own their farms, the average farm being 80 acres in area. Wheat and corn are the chief crops, and these Polish farmers raise crops that compare favorably with those raised by any of the neighboring farmers.

A Roman Catholic church was built several years ago, and weekly services are conducted by a priest from Washington. A parochial school is maintained, and in the fall of 1909 twenty-seven Polish and thirty-three German pupils were enrolled.

Krakow, which is a little southeast of Clover Bottom, at one time. had a flourishing settlement of Poles, but they have moved away, selling their land to the Germans, so that now only three Polish families remain. The failure of this colony is attributed to the poor quality of the land. Owensville, in Gasconade County, the county adjoining Franklin on the west, has a flourishing Polish settlement of 22 families, and a few from Franklin County have moved there, as the land is cheaper and equally as good. These three small towns, containing a total of 61 families, illustrate the agricultural achievements of people on poor land and without a large expenditure of money. Their farming has been successful, their crops fair, and, in all, they represent a type of farmer who by hard work have attained moderate success under difficulties.

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