Le Nord : revue internationale des Pays de Nord - 01.06.1941, Page 128

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instructive.1) But with all due respect to the right of this intel-
ligent and experienced settler to hold and expound his own views
we are nevertheless of opinion that he goes too far. If we have
understood him correctly he seems to go in for a pure Manchester
doctrine. Nothing should be prepared or done for the emigrant;
everything must depend on the stuff he is made of; those who
cannot stand must fall. This, in our opinion, is an exaggeration.
Johansen has been able to see it through, but he is an exception;
and especially under the present conditions where emigration in
a few years time will be a social problem for a country 1 ke Den-
mark one must, if in any way possible, base one’s policy on a
material somewhat above the average. And why not obtain for
the emigrants the facilities that can be had? If these are not of
a kind suited to weaken the settlers’ own activities it simply
means saving time for them; they will get sufficient work and
struggle to fill their days all the same. ¥e therefore hold that
a middle course should be adopted.
The state cannot buy land in overseas countries, but private
individuals can; and we have in this country men who have
proved in service overseas that they are fully qualified to buy
and administer such land. ¥e must get in touch with them;
their advice and suggestions should be placed at the disposal
of a private company which to begin with must be able to dls-
pose of a couple of million Kroner, and whose capital should
be guaranteed by a fund, which under some name or other should
be detached from the State Budget, and which under private
management might co-operate with the company. This fund
should dispose of several million Kroner, and the interest ac-
cruing should either be accumulated or applied to losses sustained
by the company. The function of the private company should
be to buy up agricultural land or other values that might form
the basis of productive activities in countries suitable for coloni-
sation. For the time being this land should be worked by the
company unless it could be leased to suitable interested parties
overseas who — provided they were of Danish nat onality —
might enter into relations with the company on the same terms
as Danish colonists after the formation of the company. The
object of the purchases is, of course, to settle Danish colonists
x) Oluf Johansen: Nybygger (Settler), Copenhagen 1934, and Skoven
venter (The Forest is waiting), Copenhagen 1939.