The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1874-10-10
SPEAK OUT

SPEAK OUT
The course of the ADVANCE is being
condemned by Il few disconnected spir-
its who want us to conceal the facts as
to crops and magnify the loss and des-
tltution. What do the responsible and
substantial settlers in Mobiles county
say? Do those who have made invest
ments here and who intend to make this
county their home want us to publish
an honest newspaper or not? We wish
to request them to speak out through
the ADVANCE. Will our friends in
each township write us a short letter or
two giving their views?
THE CROPS
A gentleman in GAINESVILLE, Wiscon-
sin. writes for back numbers of the AD-
VANCE beginning about the middle of
August, as he wishes to see the crop re-
ports. Fortunately the ADVANCE con-
tains some statements concerning the
crops, and they are as correct as we
could make them, seeing that we had
to rely upon mere human statements.
But it has now been decided by few
men in the country and several in town
that the ADVANCE must not say any,
thing about crops hereafter or the office
will be found some fine morning lying
at the bottom of the lake. Hereafter
we must turn our column rules upside
down and proclaim to the world that
there were no crops raised in Mobiles
county and thatevery man, woman and
child is in starving condition.
OF course we yield, and to begin with
we remark that Miller, Humiston &
Co., raised about 5000 bushels of wheat
around Worthington, five varieties. of
which took the first premium at the
State Fair; that Mr.. Jonas Bedford, of
Dewald township raised abo 1t 1000
bushels; that Mr.. S. D. Times, of Bige-
low, raised about 900 bushels, and that
Il number of farmers raised from 100 to
500 bushels. All the farmers would
have raised double the amount produced
had not the grasshoppers cut crops
down at least one-half.
In some portions of the county, es-
pecial|y in Graham Lakes and Seward
townships, as we have stated in nearly
every issue of our paper since the
grasshoppers left, the crops were al
most a total failure and many families
are in (; destitute condition and must
have aid to see them through the win
ter. Those who raised anything are
not able to divide with their neiyhbors,
for they must sell portion to pay
debts and to obtain other supplies be-
sides bread. We have a Relief Com
mittee here and the County Commiss-
toner's are doing all in their power to
obtain supplies for the destitute.
We have no doubt that just as soon
rs the Legislature meets an aprropri-
alton will be made for the relief of tile
frontier counties. Our people are hope
full and plucly, with a few surly excep-
tons, and expect after next harvest to
be fairly on their feet again. All are
satisfied that there is not a finer climate
nor a richer soil, i'll the whole west,
and are just as sure that this region has
a great and prosperous future before it,
as they are that the grasslopper vista
ton is an exceptional calamity and not
to laid to be the climate and soil.
We wish to add that the crops in
Rock county, west Of us, were not as
severely injured by the grasshoppers as
the crops in this county were, and that
wheat is now coming to Worthington
from the regions west of us in consid-
cradle quantities. The Olabena Mills
for some days have been receiving from
500 to 600 bushels day and other buy
ers have been taking in a considerable
amount. Some fifteen hundred bush
els have been received at Bigelow sta
tion just Southwest of Wortllington.
The farmers of Mobiles county have
this year proven the wonderful capabil-
tiles of the soil, and a few years will
see all our fields laughing with album
dant harvests, and men will congratu-
late each other that they did net aban-
don the country because, like Kansas,
Nebraska, Iowa, and all the frontier
States, we were visited in 1873 and
1874 by the most extensive grasshopper
raid which has occurred since the States
West of the Mississippi began to be
settled.
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