Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1884-09-12
WHAT He SAW.

4
A Mr.. B. F. Cove of Clinton county,
Iowa, who lately, it seema. made Z
trip through southw estern Kausss,
writes . letter to the Advertiser, pub
lished u his homo place, from which
we make the following extract touch
ing this city and county:
"Ileft Wellington and went north
to Wichita, in Sedgwick county. This
is lively place Of 1900 Inhabitants
on the Arkansas river. This stream is
bridged at this place, bridge about 900
feet long. Wiehita has water works
from the little Arkansas river, which
empties into the other river Ut that
place. This has been built in the last
dozen years. From Wichita went
out by team sixteen miles northwest
up the Arkansas river bottom. Twas
told that farms were selling out three
or four miles from Wichita for 800
per acre and sell readily at $50 an acre
out sixteen miles. This is as fine coun-
try Is ever saw. Corn, wheat and oats
do well:all kinds of fruit in abundance;
peach trees so full many are break
ing; apple trees look very healthy;
grapes and plums are abundant
wherever they have the vines and trees.
l saw but little tame grace; l was told
that ii does well, but would want to
be sure of it before would cast my
lot in that country. l was well pleased
with the appearance of the people,
they seem to be thrifty and are as
friendly as could be wished. They
have had good crops for three years in
succession which l think has given
them boom in speculative prices.
We do not wish to pull down Kansas, or
any state, but we concluded that much
of their prosperity had come through
our adversely of the two last crops of
Iowa. But Kansas is G great and..grow-
ing state; is well established, but the
history of many of its individual
members is the same as our early set
tiers: "they have come up through
great tribulations."
One of the greatest advantages that
Kansas has over Iowa is in its greater
length of season for corn raising. They
begin to plant about the middle of
April. In my trip northwest of Wich-
ita, went to see DIR. j. B. Minturn,
whose name ! saw appended to an art
icle in the Chicago National Live Stock
Journal, ON the subject of hog raising.
found his to he the most complete
system that have ever seen; his arti-
Gle was in the July number of this year.
| found the Doctor man of much in
formation,a man ofpositive conviction.
though liable to mistakes. The day l
went to his place was rainy. had on
my oil cloth coat and carpet sack in
hand when ] addressed him. He re-
ceived me civilly, but thought rather
coOlly. When told him l was an
Iowa man looking over the country and
had come all the way from Wichita
to see his hog arrangement.h he said are
you an agent for any thing? told him
l was not. He said, all right, l
thought you was a cOlporter. We had
good laugh over the mistake. was
well paid for the sixteen miles travel
in looking over his premises. On 60
ing to his house l found in his library
and on his reading table, positive evil
dence that he was an evolutionist. OF
course we needed no further introduce
ton. Suffice it to say, that l was
Loyalty entertained for three days, and
every assistance was given me in my
search after the bottom facts as to
the country. In recounting the good
qualities of the country ne did not
neglect to tell the other side of
the question as he had seen it for
fourteen years, which included
three years of grasshopper trouble;
one year that he did not harness his
team for six weeks after he had plant
ed his corn, so rainy; one or two
years of blighted or spoiled wheat
crop. He told me he lived four years
in dug out. The doctor lives on the
Arkansas river bottom: He says of
the bottom lands, there is vein of
quick-sand that extends under the
whole country about six feet deep on
bottom lands and deeper as the land
rises back from the river. They all
drive wells and say they are inexhaus-
tible. He says the Arkansas river
never overfows, although the banks
are higher than the country along be-
side it, but the water rises up through
the ground when the river rises.
This mans statements can be taken
for he does not want to sell out.