Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1871-03-09
LETTER FROM THE WEST.

Editor of the CAGE. | have no sta1
tIing disclosures to make 10 this as i
my last: everything has been quiet o
the Missouri, so | must fall back on th
weather for something to write about
Poor weather! whenever bashful youtI
CHATS me) gets out of ideas, he fall
hack on the weather; whenever persor
wants to 60 anywhere and it happens t
storm he 'cOntounds' the weather in fact
the weather is handy to fall back on anC
make q stand, even so likewise are riff,
pits. The fact is, we have been having
and still are having some of the mos
splendid weather ever known unto man
kind, since the memory Of no man run
meth to the contrary. No snow till about
two weeks ago, when it fell to the depth
Of four inches, and the next day, as i
to show the world, and the people Of
Dakota in particular. that its light was
not to be hid under half bushel, the
sun came out in all its glory, and the
snow, unable to stand the flash of its
eagle eye and withering scorn, skunk
away and hid itself in the ground, and
but little snow is now to be seen.
The seat of NJ. X. Armstrong, who
has the Board Of Cauvassers Certificate,
as the Delegate TO Congress from this
Territory, is to be contested by w. A.
Burleigh, pretended Republican, for al
legged fraud They are having a nice
time taking affidavits, dc. The opinion
of nearly all the people Of Dakota is that
the shoe pinches the other foot. A Com
mittee of the Legislature, who investi-
gated the subject during Its session, re-
ported that the shoe did pinch the other
foot, and that other belonged to w. A.
Burleigh. Poor Armstrong will have
to stand up till the fight is over unless
he borrows a seat.
On the eve of the 18th inst. we had
Calico Ball, and the youths and lasses
of Yankton tripped the light fantastic
toe, dressed in calico, to the music OF
the "Yankton Silver Cornet Band. II
is fact established beyond doubt tina
we have got a Band, and not only a
Band, but the best Band this side OF
Chicago. Yankton is well represented
in Washington at present as all the big
guns have gone there to see the sights
and look after their official heads. Oul
Telegraph line works splendidly, and we
get news from Europe and other parts oI
the earth every day, Although it is
winter, houses and stores are rising up
all around us like mushrooms. When
spring opens we are to build brick
Hotel three or four stories high, and
several brick blocks are in contempla.
tion.
In your last issue l read something
like this -" A Railroad Land Grant
bill has just been defeated. Good We
have some hopes yet. Now | should
think from that, that you are not in
favor of Gland Grants, and it is Just
because you do not see the real use oI
them / think. You Eastern people q
am Westerner now think the Govern.
ment is robbing itself and the people by
giving land grants to railroads, and
there is where you are mistaken. Un'
like the East, the West is only settled as
far as railroads run, and the more rail
roads the faster the country is settled
The Government has millions of acre:
of land lying idle on its hands, doing
neither the government nor the people
any good, and never will until settled
upon and improved. The only way tc
settle and improve this land is TO rur
railroads through it, and the only way
to run railroads through it is by Gland
grants, as the people, who are far of
from the railroads, are not able to do il
themselves. Now supposing you owr
twenty million acres of land in Dakota
it lays, some parts of it sixty and some
four hundred miles from any railroad
A railroad company comes to you and
offers to run a railroad through the cen
ter Of your possessions for 100000 acres
of it, to be taken in alternate section:
along their road, when finished, or ever
5000 or 100000 acres, and counec
with some other important railroad
thereby enhancing the value Of your re-
naming land from nothing to FIVE, ten
or even one hundred dollars per acre
how long would you hesitate to give
them the amount required, two minutes
or three seconds? To be sure you might
hold your land until another food, but
the man who owned land next to you