Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1885-10-02
DAK0TA'S GIRL FARMERS.

Most of the young ladies who
own and work farms in Dakota
have a great adherence Of notorie-
ty because Of the number of bOrcs
that are sure to hunt them up,
either in person or by letter. a
floating paragraph about young
woman who has farm near
Mitchell which appeared in the
newspapers "A few months ago
brought her more than n hundred
letters inside of there months.
These missiyes we're Ofeyery vaIie.
ty under the sun, and included
nearly everything, from an oler OF
advice on wheat-planting to prop
ositions of marriage. While speak
ing with her yesterday on this sub
ject she said:
i had some Of the funniest let
ters you ever read. About a dozen
of them were from men who wanted
to marry, evidently a lazy, shiltless
lot, for not one Of them could spell
and in every case the letters indicat-
ed ignorance even of the common
c0urtesies Of life. They were prin.
cipally from widowcrs, and all be-
gan by saying that they had been
thinking of going to Dakota for a
long time. | suppose they all
thought that would jump at the
chance to get them. Ineyer | an
swered any of them. Some of the
letters were from old ladies in the
Eastern and Middle States who
wanted to give me good advice, and
Others were from girls, widows,
and old maids asking how manag-
ed to get along, and what was
necessary for them to do in order
to get themselves established as
well as am. | answered some of
these. and two or three Of them
have written to me since.
The worst nuisances that ! have
to deal with she continued, are
the men, young and old, who come
out to see me. They are about the
toughest lot ] ever heard of. |
have had to drive some Of them
off the place, as they seemed deter
mined to stay. | suppose it II so
everywhere, but it seems strange
that q woman can't 90 ahead and
accomplish something for herself
without being worried to death by
all the old bummers, crankS, wild
overs, and dudes within a thousand
miles. One young fool came to
see me last spring, and, after fol-
lowing me around a slxty-acre lot
twice, just because | treated him
decently, actually had the nerve
to ask me if my thoughts ever
turned to matrimony. | told him
that they never had, though |
didn't know whatmight happen if |
came across just the right person.
That seemed to help him on a lit
tie, and he asked what sort Of a
person it would have to be. told
him didn't know, and called his
attention to the fact that my of
horse was little off his feed.
'Iow would | do? said the
Young fellow, and says:
Tf | had ton.acre lot full Of iel.
lows like you | wouldn't take the
trouble to scrape you up with a
horse rake
I remember once crushing a
young fellow who was out here,
looking for a place to settle, he
said. He had been following me
around about half the day, and
along toward evening, as ! was
doing some chores at the barn, he
grew sentimental, and proposed to
me right there. | pretended to be
awfully busy, and | said:
just give me boost with this
bag of corn now. Pleasure first,
business afterward.'
TIe never returned to the sub.
iect, nor did L.
There are "A great many young
and enterprising women IN the
Territory, and nearly all Of them
are doing well. They are highly
respected by all, and any one who
was guilty Of Offering them any
anront would find Dakota, big as
it is, too small to hold him. As
far as heard from, not one OF them
was ever annoyed by anything
more serious than repeated offers
of marriage, which may be cOnsid-
cred inevitable, perhaps, in a soci-
ETY. largely made up OF single men.