Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1882-05-15
LETTER FROM DAKOTA.
FARGO, May 5, 1882.


Dear Sir: While a comparative
stranger to you, [ am not altogether
so to many of your subscribers, and,
at their request, send few lines for
your paper. | am here in Fargo,
the great business center of northern
and eastern Dakota. 1t is a grow
ing, enterprising place; there is no
discount on that, but as in most new |
and some old settlements, some |
things 90 under the name of enter
prise that should rank as nuisances !;
for while we have excellent water
here both from wells and the Red
river, which needs no adulterating,
yet some of it, as prepared here, will
bring a man down; though the seller
and the drinker is pretty well looked
after, when it comes to that. But
the evil lies in allowing the indis-
eliminate sale of the stuff. Enough
on this head for the present. Soci
ETY. is of a very promiscous charac
| ter. A man can find his choice here,
as in most other places. The lead
ing orthodox denominations are all
fairly represented, so one need not
long be stranger. I think there is
as much pains taken by the M. E.
pastor, and church, to look after
strangers and make them feel at home
as in any place where I have ever
been, and learn that it is so with 9TH
er denominations also. Fargo has
over $500 inhabitants. Among them
may be found good many foreign
ers, but it would be unfair to heap
all the outs upon their shoulders, or
even upon native Dakotans, for
though the soil is extremely rich and
produces rank growth of almost
anything, it has not had time to pro-
duce from the start all the variety
and magnitude of character to be
found here; it has been imported,
and no small share from the east.
AS for sabbath dissertation, pro-
: family and impiety, there is abund-
ance of all that sort of thing and
probably seldom outdone unless it is
east. / think l have seen places
there, population considered, that
would rank A. No. hard. 1t is
through the gospel that men are saw
ed, and where that is rejected or neg
D lected there is no substitute.
Y The weather has been unfavorable
S for business until quite lately, and
: the floods an obstruction to it also
t though but little serious damage has
!, resulted therefrom in these parts
= There seems to be a decided change
e in the weather now, and everything
O is on the move. People general,
e come west to make money, and it il
s a fine place for that and equally gooC
l. for spending it. If man come
west he will naturally want a littl
IS money to start with, and he will flint
d it quite gratifying to his friends t
t. know he has it, and he may rest as
A. sured he will get all the attention h
s. would anywhere while his none,
t. lasts; then, of course, he will be al
at lowed the privilege of looking out fo
I'd himself, and, often, this is no disad
I'd vantage, if he of the right stamp
10 Some come this way and do not like
at (when man looks through smok
glass everything around looks dis
It. NAL. In many respects it is in striE
al ing cnotrast with New England seer
of cry and enterprise. But while it cal
he not equal the former, it takes til
i'm lead in the latter, and cannot be on
ce done. Farming, and all else, is dor
lis on magnificent scale. An easter
man can hardly conceive of the el
gs tent and growth of business unles
I'm he comes west and sees with his oW
hit eyes.
cir For my part, / like the ives
mt though of course my ambition an
he expectations are not such as mig
St fire the hearts of the young, yet s
len a wide field open here, both for worl
ad ly and christian enterprise. The
on- has been some sickness of late, but
nat see no reason why, when santa
am measures are perfected, as in t
zen east, and this is being done, it m
sak not be quite as healthy here as thel