Jasper County Democrat, Volume 7, Number 14, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 July 1904 — LETTER FROM SOUTH DAKOTA. [ARTICLE]

LETTER FROM SOUTH DAKOTA.

Jasper Kenton Writes Entertainingly From That Country. Mitchell, S. D., July 3, ’O4. Editor Democrat: I write you this morning, thinkings few lines might interest your readers. I must still speak commendable of this great Northwest, and think it as beautiful as any one could wish, and equally as good. This neighborhood where we are staying for the summer is very levej, and three-fourths of it is under Cultivation—wheat, oats, speitz, corn, flax, broom grass, millet. It is common to see 160 to 310 acres in wheat, an evengrowth the entire field. Brother Will has 160 acres of corn knee high, one row equally as good as another; oats the finest I oversaw; all other grain equally as good. This section has had plenty and abundance of rain. Mrs. Kenton and I have just returned from a northwestern trip among the Wessington hills north, which included a part of our ride of 200 or 300 miles, more or less, there had been no rain. The people were getting uneasy, but still hopeful that rain would come soon. This brought us through the grazing lands and prairie dog villages. People tell me there is not so many cattle as there used to be kept on those grazing lands, and I thought it true, as we did not see the cattle. The lands are being fenced, and will probably be farmed later. The prairie dogs live on grass roots, are not very numerous and not dreaded much by the average ranchman. The Wessington Hills made ns feel lonesome, or ghostly, an unexplainable something; bat we did not see any ghosts, bat instead a very friendly people, that insisted we might stay a few days longer. We met the Rowen brothers, Doc and Sime, J. Wenrick, 8. Greenfield, George Keever and Mr. Halbower, land agent at Miller, all seemingly very well satisfied with their prospects for a livelihood. We also visited the Major brothers, and George Harris, who has lived iu Dakota for twenty-one years. He says he would rather spend two winters in Dakota than one in Indiana. He formerly lived at Remington, and is a brother of Mrs. Doo Rowen. On our way home w$ thought to visit Weesington Springs but missed the way, so we decided to wait till next time. The western towns are

up on the modern improvements as far as money will admit. Garden farming is a decided success, and small fruits, including strawberries are fine. The summer climate here is fine, not so extremely hot in day time, and always cool at night. It is daylight about eighteen hours, then a great many ranchmen do not get to bed till eleven o’clock, because there is # still something more to do. I ex’pected to put iu a good deal of my time chasing my hat, but I have not realized it yet. There is some wind, but only a few disagreeable windy days. If nothing happens to the Dakota wheat crop, Indiana can still have a bisenit if the biscuit material is needed. “Summing it all up,” “shaken down, and piled high in the middle,” Dakota is all right, if the thermometer does drop low in the winter season. The people are learning to take advantage of the disadvantages. They have school bouses and churches, have barns built to accommodate horses in bad weather, etc. Teachers are instructed to keep fires and keep children during bad storms till they are over. A good thing, too, I recommend. A good ranchman is supposed to have sheltering and feed handy for extreme bad

weather.

J. KENTON.

Artesian, S. D.