Hand County press. (Miller, Dakota [S.D.]) 1882-1893, 1888-12-06
MORE FARMERS.
A Farmers Appeal for More
Neighbors.

Eds. PREss:-Permit me to use some Of
your space in this issue to give vent to
few notions Of which | am possessed
regarding practical method of inducing
farmers to seek homes in Hand county.
In the first place let me assume / am sick
and discouraged and believe Dakota and
especially Hand county is, of all agricul-
tural countries on earth, the poorest and
most unsatisfactory; gaat to go TO some
other country and OF course sell my pro-
perty for the most can get. In that
event the greater demand fur Hand county
land we can create, the sooner [ can sell
and obtain n satisfactory price. On the
other hund-and as a matter Of filct--I am
positively convinced there are no better
opportunities offered in the United States
to the average farmer, than is offered in
Hand county. But you notice at the last
election Hand county polled Il triflle oyes
in the towns from this and you leave just
about one farmer for every four quarter
sections of land. Now sir, in common
with all the rest Of Hand county farmers,
| want more neighbors 1t is not necessary
for me TO go at length in pointing out the
benefits accr ling to tle county as a whole
and as individuals, by having the country
thickly settled. We are all agreed we want
more farmers, and now we come to the
important question-what is the best way
to induce immigration One practical way
that has suggested itself to me and one
that has cheapness to recommend it rs
compared with the usual cost of advertis-
ing the advantages of country, is by
each farmer investing 81 cents in Il local
paper and have the publisher send il TO
some old friend who is probably renting
land for a o-ffthS crop, who could
and should be here on a farm of hIs own
worth having. Let him drop his friend II
postal card and tell him he has paid for
local paper to be sent to him for four
months. HIS friend receives the paper
he finds it is nothing remarkable as Il
newspaper, but ne looks II over because
his old Dakota friend has sent it TO him
During the four months he becomes ia
miliar with the news messenger from
Hand county and with what is going Oh in
that particular locality. From time to time
during those four months, let there ap-
A ,,fa /
cal Hand county farmer telling what he
has accomplished in farming in tins coun-
try and what he thinks of Its resources
Just so much as can easily be digested by
an eastern farmer--but at no time let there
appear any thing in the nature of boom
edition | feel almost willing to guuan-
tee that fifty per cent or more of those
who receive such papers fol four months,
will eventually make up their minds to
tell the ''old woman" that they are going
out to see the country in Hand county,
Dakota We need not fear the result if
they do-fOr the country and it, oppor-
tunities will be fully up to the statements
made that induced him TO come. l claim
this is far superior TO your boom edition
scheme. Sappose the Miller or st. Law
rene citizens get up boom edition Of lO,-
900 copies OF a local paper and they are
sent broadcast. Soma one receives a copy,
he dnds it stuffed from corner to corner with
magnificent editorial utterances about the
marvellous resources OF the country. The
average man will exc!aim "chestnuts,
throw it aside and take up his New York
Ledger, American Agricultualist, or
other paper he is used to reading, and will
know little about Hand cou4ty rs though
he never had received copy from that
locality. Now farmers | want you to
think over this matter, remember the in
vestment is only 80 cents, or dollar if
you want to try the experiment on two
old friends. There are hundreds OF thou
sands of farmers who are utterly ignorant
of the advantages this country oilers.
Suppose one thousand Hand county far
mers make the effort suggested above, it
is possible We might induce thousand
more to come, but suppose we only cap
tured four or five hundrCd-the invest
ment would surely be grand success. l
am serious about it and want you TO be.
am not working in the interest OF any
paper-send any one you please-but send
one or more if you think the end in view
is worth accomplishing. The loan COM
panies and town citizens ought and prob
ably will take hold of the matter-but it is
not safe nor business to depend on others,
let each one do what he can ana the ag-
gregate Sill accomplish much that is good.
The attention of the whole nation is now
being turned to Dakota because Of It's
chances of soon becoming admitted into
the Union as two states. Special efforts
will be made by the several counties and
towns to attract attention TO their respec-
tive localities--let us take advantage Of
the opportunity ana acquaint them with
Hand county, Respy.
NORRIS WHITMER.
Florence, Hand Co. Oak.
ONT OF DEBT.