The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1873-03-13
Correspondence If the Eusle.
RAILROADS.
SPRING CREEK. March 10, 1873.

allel railroad" do want that road
and as manv others as we can get. We
want railroads, but let us have them
on paving terms, and he careful that
we do not Cypress ourselves. If l
contract debts each year 10 the amount
of one thousand dollars, and the pro-
ducts of my farm when marketed are
| only worth seven hundred dollars, l
would soon be in bad fix, financially,
and l would not be taken for security
at Sol. H. Kohn's bank, if"Enterprise"
wished to get some money there and
use my name. Now ifall the improve
ments proposed by enthusiastic citi-
Gems Of Sedgwick county were carried
I am persuaded that our bonded
Indebtedness would not fall short Of
three quarters Of million dollars. II
I am not inisinformed in regard to the
assessed valuation of our county, our
county "dads" levied about fifty thou
sand dollars last year for county and
"court expenses" We must not lose
sight Of these things when we talk of
lands; if we do our county business
will soon come out like my farming.
"Enterprisc" proposes by way of COM
promise to issue $25 900 of county bonds
to open the inexhaustible veins Of coal
between Wichita aud Ell Paso. I
would just remark that since refer ed
to the fact Of coal being there, Mr..
Smith, on Gypsum creek, discovered
it. lido not know whether he found
an inexhaustible vein or not. "En,er-
prise" also proposed to issue bonds to
the amount of $4,000 and secure the
terminus Of an east and west road to
Wichita, with twenty or thirty miles
Of the road in our county. would
vote the $75, 900 Oh those conditions for
just the same reason that would buy
horse for one hundred dollars that
knew could sell for one hundred and
twenty-five dollars. 1t would be a pay
ing investment. Mind, if the railroad
company do not ask just double that
amount, $l5O,0O0. Then shall oppose
it, and hope "Enterprisc" will stick
for his $4,000. Another thing EN-
tcrprisc" says that I cannot suffer to
go uncorrected. He SAYS "many of the
states nearer market raise stock and
can sell at prices below what we can
afford to-" l do not wish to occupy
your space, Mr.. Editor, with figures,
but will make a few statements that
are SO plain that any one can see the
truth of them without figures. Take
any of the states east Of the Mississippi
river that make any pretcntions to
and feeding and compare
the cost of their lands upon which they
must Craze and rasc feed, and the
length and severity of their winters,
and compare with the price and quail
tv of lands and the climate of this Ar
kansas valley, and it is easy to see
where profits are in stock-raising.
Why, sir, the railroads in the estates
nearer market" may ship the farmers
stock to market free Of charge and
then they cannot compete with us.
The interest on what the land would
cost in any of the states nearer mar
ket-Ncw York, for instance-to pro-
duce four-year old OK ready for mar
ket, would ship our OK to New York,
paw the interest on cost of our land,
and leave us profit. Aud when land |
is worth or sells for as much (it is worth |
more now here as il does in the states
nearer market, our pasture fields will
then be blue and timothy grasses, and !
we will pasture nine months |
Of the year, while the eastern and |
states will pasture five and a
half to six months. That will make
more than the difference i'm costof ship |
ping. The states carer market cannot
raise stock now cheaper than we can,
nor they never will. There arc some
things that | know and some things |
only believe. One Of the things that
know is, that there is no other country
ON this continent, with all their adj
vantages real and claimed thrown into
the balance, that can tip up this Ar
kansas valley, and wish could look
into the temporary homes Of every
renter in Illinois, Ohio and Indiana,
no give the half of their corn for the
use of land and sell the other half for
twenty-five cents per bushel all the
renters in the eastern states who work
FOR nothing and board themselves
would tell them TO come to this valley
md get land. This is better land
han that which you now inhabit.
would tell them that this thing of get
ing on the frontier away from markets
N this age of electricity and steam. is
lnmbug. All the advantages of the
,lder states in bt ing nearer market and
If having timber, and every other adj
vantage they possess, does not come up
o nor make them so good country as
his, and can prove il ifitis required.
FARMER DoOLITTLE.