The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-09-22
Settling in the Far West.

Correspondence Country Gentleman.
Eastern and Middle States people are far from
being through with the undertaking of coming
West to find home on Western lands. When
the whole question is properly analysed. the
mere fact of getting Western lands at ST. % per
acre has rarely proved to have within it the in
ducements that many have supposed. Why9
Simply because the pioneer who took his family
to location remote from railroads. schools, So
ciety, wagon roads and bridges, paying high for
what he was forced to buy, and selling his hard
earned produce for a song simply because he
had no railroad outlet to market-doing this as
an inevitable annual result during fifteen to
twenty five tedious years, as many have done,
has earned what seemed to be great advantage
in many cases at a fearful cost. To the draw
backs named, add, among several other serious
discouragements, the frequent defamation of the
family circle growing out of the absence of suit
able medical skill, AID of suitable quarters for
the sick, there being frequently but room in
the house that was warmed, and this one the
cook
No market for anything, yet compelled to have
farm appliances or else not farm! The writer
paid So per hundred pounds for hauling COM
bined reaper and mower 100 miles, this being
the distance from the railroad terminus to the
point to which teaming was regularly done; then
sending thirty miles for the machine, that being
the distance from his own farm. Wishing to
add farm wagon to his equipment, he, at a
later day. paid So O hundred as freightage on
this, the teamster loading the new wagon with
freight, deeming this frontier privilege, thus
securing double freight, or $4 per hundred
pounds.
There is another view to be taken of this
early pushing for the West" Many men have
sold farms in the Middle and Eastern States
that have steadily made greater advances in
value per acre, than the new lands that were
obtained at government price, though this pros
pective advance was leading incentive in max
ing the Western move. / am we'll aware that
there have been many cases where men have
owned no farm to sell, yet had little cash
ahead, and no family to be offered up a sacri-
fee under the influences limited at Under cir
cumstances of this kind to men rightly consti-
tuted. the West has been full of opportunities,
and not few Of them have seized upon them to
their great advantage. But when we have
seen an emgrant wagon creeping at its
slow gait westward, containing the hope
full wife, highly cultivated mentally, but
of delicate physique, with children having the
same characteristics, clinging hopefully to her,
it requires no effort of the Internationally a
knowledge of the adverse happenings TO many q
similar group-to enable one to conjecture what
the picture is likely to be year or two later
Especially is this easy, if you know that the not
infrequent happening-the early dissipation Of
the funds-has overtaken the undertaking.
But now for the picture that relates more par
ticularly to the major portion of the West at our
day. Men who have held to their farms in the
older States until railroads have stretched their
numerous arms through the country, villages
having in the meantime grown to be cities, can
now, in many cases, obtain for their farms a
large advance on the prices possible to have been
realized decade or two back. And, it is asked,
what can one do now in the West, better than
TO have pioneered upon land at 81. % per acreq
The answer is easy because to the family toler-
ably we'll fixed, and accustomed to somewhat
select rural privileges there are several reasons
why a remove to the West now involves very
different conditions from what necessarily fol-
lowed such a step few years since.