Delta chief., 1885-08-26
AN oBsERvER.s oBsERvINGs.
A Rambling Trip Among Our Ranch.
men by an Itinerant.

To the Editor OF THE CHIEF.
Through an earnest desire to befriend and
help n'promoting the best interests of THE
CHIEF, we thought letter occasionally dur.
ing our meanderings on the growth, resources
and political pulsations OF the county would
be somewhat appreciated by its readers.
Our irst night out we stopped over with
w. A. Hunt, well.known in Delta, who is
now running the county ferry at the mouth
of the canon. During the evening we were
introduced to Mr.. G. L. Smith and others.
The former gentleman is one of the solid
ranchmen of Delta county, he having located
and is now living on a ranch ut this point.
Mr.. Smith is endeavoring, in the near future,
offer as an inducement to business enterprises
in the neighborhOod of sne-half of the ground
free gratis to permanent locators. This
place is without doubt fine location for such
purpose, and also being one of the best
places at which to bridge the Gunnson river,
we think that his future plans are not with
out foundation. After bridges and townsite
matters were discussed, the conversation
drfted into politics, and the merits and de.
merits of the different candidates and Office
seekers were freely discussed, 1t seems to be
the general opinion among the hardy ranch
men, here as elsewhere, that the existence of
Il ring" of not a few of the present county
officers is fact, and that said combination
ring regardless of their ott.repeated pledges
ly but surely heaping upon the shoulders of
the honest, struggling citizens of Delta coun-
ty quagmire of debt, and that if it is con-
tinued at the present rate for the next four
years, financially the county will be swamp.
ed for years to come. They express them
selves that this combination must be broken,
and that the coming fall election is the time
country, J. B. Hart is spoken favorabiy of
for county commissioner again, and we think
that he could be elected by a large majority.
From this point we paid a visit to Commits
sioner Hart's ranch. Mr.. Hart is busily en-
gagged in harvesting large field of grain,
and has in quite an extensive crop otherwise.
While he does considerable farming. his main
avocation in this section is that of cattle rails
ing, his herds of which are quite extensive
and rolling in fat on the luSurient grasses
that abound on Surface creek. Mr.. Hart
gives it out that he is not an aspirant for the
Office Of county commissioner again, but the
citizens are well satisfied with his past record
and express themselves that they would like
to see him reelected.
We next visited Mr.. Kennico,t's ranch on
Surface creek, and it being about dinner time,
we were cordially invited to partake of al
elegant ranch dinner, which was served up
to an unusual degree of palatableness from
the fact that several winsome and intelligent
marriaseable young ladies were seated near
us, and knowing that the dinner had been
prepared by the dimpled hands OF the same
Here it was that we asked ourself whether or
not the life of Delta county ranchman was
not be envied. When we looked out over the
grassy lrwns, dotted here and there with
wild and tame flowers, or rocked to and fro
lazily in hammock stretched under the
welcome shade of the cottonwood trees, with
the silvery chimes of murmuring brook de-
lighting the ear, we compared our present
city, with its frivolties of fashion and utter
GOODNESS to the stranger, where show is pur-
chased and happiness almost unknown, and
thought that it was here that the few pleas
ures in this lite could be grasped and realized
Nr. Kennicott is now busily engaged in har-
vesting his grain and digging potatoes, hav-
ing in nearly ten acres of the latter.
We next looked on Mcssrs. Wuodniansee &
Halls ranch. During the course of the ev-
ening, while supper was being prepared, we
took stroll over the ranch, when our foot
steps led us plump into melon patch, which
patch was literally strewn with ripe melons.
We stopped and gazed over the emerald
waste with emotions like unto those that fill
ed our breast when We were a bare-footed boy
and filled our hands with sand-burs and wore
our trowsers out at the knees while trying to
make sneak on just such a patch Us the
one before me. But our hand wandered
to our pocket in search of knife it uncon-
sciously came in contact with the bible that
reposed in that one nearest our heart, placed
there by the hands OF the sweet little girl we
left behind, and we crushed down our boyish
emotions of old and retraced our footsteps to
the house We will only add that after few
hints carefully compiled and thrown out to
the owners, our fondest hopes were fully
realized. Now was it because we did not
hook those melons that we had only to
swath our abdominal regions in towels the
whole blessed night thereafter, or If we had
hooked them would we have turned up our