Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 131, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 June 1915 — “SEE JASPER COUNTY FIRST” IS SUGGESTED [ARTICLE]

“SEE JASPER COUNTY FIRST” IS SUGGESTED

Trip of Republican Editor to North Jasper Leads to Proposal For Big Picnic at River.

The writer accompanied Attorney Halleck and wife and daughter, Mrs. Richardson and C. C. Jones on an auto trip to Wheatfield and the country home of Commissioner H. W. Marble Wednesday evening. The roads were quite bad as a consequence of the heavy rains of the past week and also because of the heavy travel by the tourist cars during the same week. Fields are being worked in some places and there did not seem to be much damage from the rain except the fact that corn was delayed in coming up and was not growing. Oats, wheat and one or two fields of rye showed wonderful growth and development. Apparently there had not been so much rain in the north part of the county as there had been down this way. The writer’s trips to north Jasper have been infrequent and consequently we note the improvement more than those perhaps who are there all the time or whose trips are frequent. Fields are in cultivation that only a few years ago were in wild hay and there are many fine, level and productive farms that were reclaimed by dredge ditches and tile. The development has only begun, too, for the completion of the great Marble-Pow-ers ditch will reclaim thousands more acres and add to the value of all the land and the commercial possibilities of the towns in north Jasper. Speaking of land values, our attention was called to a deal recently made by William McNeil. He bought a farm of 220 acres for $55 and two months latter sold it for $75 per acre, thus clearing $4,400. The purchaser will have a cheap priced farm, at that, as it is near town and the soil is good. It won’t be many years, we believe, until the land in that section will bring from $l5O to S2OO per acre; H. W. Marble bought a half section adjoining the land Mr. McNeil sold, paying only $45 per acre for it, and is feeling that he is about SIO,OOO ahead on the deal. The town of Wheatfield has made a number of improvements in recent years. There are a number of attractive homes and the merchants are doing a good business. The new station built by the C. I. & S. railroad is as neat a little depot as can be found in Indiana and is located right at the end of one of the business streets. The credit for this depot is given the Wheatfield Improvement Association, which secured the passenger train over the C. & E. I. and has compelled the road to keep it running.

The Republican wonders if there are not a great many who take pleasure-seeking auto trips to other places who de not know what pretty places there are in Jasper county and it has occurred to us that seeing Jasper county first might be a good motto for autoists. One of the prettiest places in northern Indiana is along the Kankakee river north of Tefft, at Dunn’s bridge. Hon. I. D. Dunn saw the beauty of this spot and only a few years ago set aside a portion of his land to be known as Dunn’s Pleasure Park. Several club houses were built there and it is very probable that at some future time the value of the location will be more widely famed and many will erect cottages there. It had been Mr. Dunn’s fond hope to hold a big 4th of July celebration there some four years ago but his health failed and he waS unable to caftry his hope into execution. It would be a splendid place for the Van Rensselaer Club to hold its picnic this year or it would be a fine place to hold a picnic'for all of. the people of Jasper county. We might call it a Jasper county picnic and appoint committees from all over the county and have a program and games and a general good time. My, but it could be a big picnic and it would promote acquaintance and be of lasting value to all. It could be financed with a collection at the grounds and by charging for the concessions at the ground. It might be promoted by the Rensselaer Retail Merchants’ Association. It would be a fine thing for some July or August day. The advertising could say: “See Jasper County First” and nothing but the weather could prevent its being a great success.