The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1873-07-17
FROM MADISON COUNTY.
Inly 10Th. 1873.

July 18th, 1879.
EDS. Manipulating just re.
turned from short visit to that
section, and thinking that some OF
the many readers of your val
liable paper would like to
hear from that part of the world,
we hope You will find room some
wbere within the columns OF the
HERALD to publish brief sketch OF
the present condition of that county.
Having effected our arrival at eight
o'clock a. m. on the fourth day of
July, as a natural consequence, our
attention was first drawn to the cell
ebration of our National birth. day,
which was almost univel sally cele'
brated Notwithstanding the excess
i've heat of the greater part the
day, the mercury standing as high
as 102 degrees in the shade, until
about four o'clock p. m. when the
weather was cooled by a storm Of
wind and rain from the northwest
which lasted about one hour, de-
stroying the photograph gallery IN
Earlham station on the G. X. l d +.
r. r. and lifting several other
bp;ld;nos from their foundations,
taking teamster with his wagon
box from his wagon in the road and
placing them over the fence into the
cornfeld without much injury.
Thence taking southeasterly direc'
ton doing some damage at Winter
set. But abating in time not to
interfere with the grand fire works
at that place in the evening. Next
we notice the crops which are prom.
Using, although they have been
damaged by the recent heavy winds
and rains, there is large crop OF
small grain in the county this seas
on. And as harvest is nearing,
harvest hands are in. demand, farm
ers are offering from $3.50 to $500
per day for harvest hands. And as
far as natural advantages of Madison,
they are good, although coal is not
as plenty as it is in our own coun.
ty, (Mahaskal timber is plenty, wa
ter plenty and good, there are several
steam sawmills in the county, that
receive all the water necessary to run
them from natural springs. Rock is
abundant and of the best quality,
they ship a great amount of rock out
of the county. They have been
taxed pretty heavily for the new
court house which cost them $685.
900, and must be Que of the finest
court houses in the state. The Gran
gers are at work there, they have
organizations here and there all
over the county, they claim their
total number to be 1900 of which
1000 are voters. The soil of Madi-
son is good being a rich loan with
slight mixture of sand. The beds of
the streams are of rocky nature
therefore they are not muddy. Our
attention was particularly directed to
the southwestern part of the county
near Venus P. o. This is situated in
a beautiful prairie country about Is
miles south west OF Winterset. They
are building town at that place and
expect that the r. R. will eventual.
ly 60 through there. Improved lands
in that section range from $25 to $40
per acre, unimproved lands from
Sc to Sl2 per acre, timber land from
$l5 to 1925 per acre. And to those
that contemplate going notch fur.
Their west, you will find Madison to
be good county, and the people
there tell us the best in the state.
Although when We return to Mahaska
they tell US that there is none as
good as our own county.
r. E. BUsBY.