The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1888-07-12
THE GOLDEN BELT.
sALINA TIE METROPOLIS OF 4
GREAT GRAIs REGION.
The Early History Of = Brave kansas
Colony-salina Step BY step has Attain
ed 10 Metropolitan ProPoTtions-Intsr-
estInE Facts aud FiEures

SALINA, July 6.-Standing on
mount Barbara whose teTTaced
summit il covered by the paiatial
residence OF W. A. Phillips, aud
whose architecture Of Moorish, Tu-
dor and Italian styles, stands like
q beacon over an ocean Of prairie
lands, I am confronted by one OF
natures most lavish scenes. Artists
who have had place in the salon Of
Paris, whose pictures are catalOgued
i'm royal academies and are the
studies OF different schools Of art,
have stood where / do to-day, and
have declared that no finer land
scape was ever spread upon natures
illimitable canvas.
NOrthWard, eleven miles away. is
a dimly outlined mesa. ''Tis in OF
tawa cOuty. Northeast the outlines
uf rolling hills, twenty miles distant,
are the fine wheat fields and pasture
lands of Dickinson county. North
west the sharp outlines OF some
bluffs, though thirty-flve miles
away as the crow flies, locate Lin
coin county. Twenty-Five miles 10
tle west, precipitiOus hills, noun
fAinOus when compared with the
great plains from which they rise,
are the eastern TampArts OF Els
worth county, and to the south
beyond Butte and sixteen miles
from our vantage ground, aye even
thirty miles ON the horizon, lies the
city Of Mcpherson. And the greater
part Of this basin, diversified here
aud there by a butte and scanned
with forest belts, telling uf water
pguraas i Saline eouutv
THE CITY or sALINA.
And in the foreground OF this pic
ture, Just at the foot Of "the mount"
is Salina.
Just where the woodlandS meet the howery
surf Of the prairie.
Wrapped, As it were, In the sin
uOus arms Of the Smoky Hill, Sail
mas walls are the green hedges Of
favored forest growth. But not CON
/ tent with such environment, the
good people have planted frequently
aud 90 such advantage, that the
| town is embOwered in shade. Every
| lot Is a grove, every street is flank
ed with double rows OF gigantic arm
ed trees: and the residence portion Of
| the city is one great and beautiful
/ paTk-the streets are drives, the
sidewalks are paths along which to
saunter, not rush, so AS To inhale
indeed, the grateful shade.
From the mount so embOwered
is the city, its presence would re-
main undetected II some church
spire did not give ITS place away, or
il the busy industry of 1900 people
did not disclose its presence by
sounds that fall as whispers two
miles from the scene Of activity. Dis
cerning "the mount
] and breathing the vapor freshness
| That upruSe from the river and spreaG IT.
| self over the landscape,
am driven into Salina along Iron
avenue.
! Enthusiastically q beautiful city,
with all the drawbacks and misfOr-
tunes mentioned, Salina has in
thirty years-twenty-five years-ae-
complished what towns Of its size
i'm the New England states have
taken q century to win. Indeed,
the comforts its people enjoy, the
city improvements Of which they
boast aud the beautiful homes they
possess, make Salina veritably q
place seemingly in the prolonged
enjoyment Of q prosperity that calls
for centennial celebration. Yet
withal, Salina presents that fresh
ness, activity, business enterprise
and thrift which so signally char
acterizes Kansas towns.
A WEALTHY PEOPLE.
Salina has q population, without
counting the people Of additions OF
g.459. The property assessments,
realty, amount 10 81 ,76T 800; per
sOnal 1891 ,087.
SALINE COUNTY
This town is backed and supported
by as rich farming county as there
is in state, peOpled by q, 800 indus
trious, well-tO-do and thrifty
farmers and their families. They
are possessed of property, assessed
for taxation, amounting to 81, 49,
656. A great pastoral country, the
people are possessed Of live stock,
the figures being rs follows:
Cattle, $4,000 head; horses, 1916
mules, $40; sheep, 3 2O5, showing =
great decrease owing to the Mills
menace to wool; swine, II, 32O.
Last year there were 1921 81 worth
Of cattle shipped from the county
3ss, ,s54 pounds OF butter were ship
ped, and to other than the cream
cries $lO,546 worth of milk was sold.
FIELDS or GRAIN.
The acreage planted this years IL
rs follows:
Crop. No. Oi acres
Corn Observation-Disclosures. II, Isl
Wheat ...... .......-............6 So, l&
| Oats. .............--.- 10000 " ~
Saline county is the Golden
Belt" Il has been famed for its
great yield Of wheat, aud this year
the harvest promises to exceed any
yield Of previous years. There is
new wheat on the market, aud II
grades No. and averages 20 bushels
to the acre. The oat crop is some
what less than the average in good
years.
Having thus curtly disposed Ol
Saline county and its acreage and
crops, get back to the shade OF
Salina, and begin the enumeration
Of the sights-I see-have seen.
SIGHTS AND SCENES IN sALINA.
There are one hundred and ninety