The Republican journal., 1889-10-24
Minnesota is all Right.

| To THE EDITOR OF THE JOURNAL: BY
| special invitation | have crawled out of my
dugout to write you brief letter and inform
your readers that Minnesota is all right. Al
this State wants at any time to give it q boon
II is, think, the largest ever known We shall
raise fifty million bushels of No. 1 wheat, and
1t will cost 80 million dollars to move the same
| This will give employment to thousands of
men, and set the wheels Of industry moving in
| all directions. The crop of oats and corn is
| very large, and there is no limit to the crop Of
| garden truck. Potatoes are selling at % cents
| per bushel, onions at 40 cents, and everything
else in proportion. Building is also very brisk.
| Blocks that were begun last year are rapidly
being finished, and new ones projected on every
hand. The new bank of Commerce is a splell-
did building, as Is also the Public Library and
Masonic Temple. Another magnificent struct-
ure Is the Syndicate Lumber Exchange. In
fact, we have as fine public buildings in this
neapolis IS the queen city of the West, and even
leads Chicago In enterprise and public spirit
while our women are fairer and wear boots
several sizes smaller. Our markets supply
every portion Of the country with produce
Boston comes here to buy a large part of her
market. The other day weighed two car loads
of potatoes and two car loads of squash that
were shipped to Boston. The shipper paid %
cts per bushel for the potatoes and 81 ton for
the squash.
Improvements here come high but we must
have them 10 matter what the cost. This IS
one of the requirements of a rapidly growing
city. We now have over one hundred and
thirty miles OF water mains, thirty eight miles
of sewers and thirty miles of paved streets.
For the last ten months of 1888 our fire depart
ment cost SlS3,000, our police department cost
S149,000, our street lighting cost SlG3,O00 and
it Will cost thirty-threc per cent more this year.
For the last ten months of SIS the city received
as license fees from liquor dealers the sum of
S244 900, and for other licenses nearly $4,000.
The value Of school property here Is not less
than one million seven hundred thousand dol
lars. The estimated value of the city parks is
one million and half, and they would realize
that amount any day if cut up and sold of in
lots All. but we have a daisy of n city, and
you should come and see it for yourself in or
der 10 get correct idea of its importance and
beauty.
Mr.. Editor, | want to congratulate You on
securing the services of Comradc J. H. Beale Is
contributor to your valuable paper. The old
soldiers are well provided for now In the way
Of defenders. | believe the journal has the
ablest corps of writers and contributors of
any country paper IN America. 1t is a credit
and honor to American journalism. And
while ! am about it let me throw UP my hat
for Mrs. Packard. She Is a noble woman and
an honor to her scX. like Batemal'> idea Of
County encampmcnt of all the OH soldiers.
1t is grand idea, and hope the soldiers Of
Waldo will act upon the suggestion and com
mercc an annual cncampment next season. |
will agree to come on to Maine next year
to attend such gathering. II | do.
have only one favor of the boys, and that is
that they will honor me with the position OF
officer of the day for just twenty -four hours.
If they will do this, will agree 10 have
Bateman strung up by the thumbs in less than
five minutes. That is the only way know to
get even with him. Seriously, the time has
come when the old soldiers must unite ana
look after their own interests Politicians will
do nothing for us unless we force them to 10
with our votes.
We have many &. A. r. Posts II this city, ana
politics is not known In them. VIZ also have
Union League OF old soldiers that extends All
over the State, and woe be TO the man Of what
ever political stripe that steps Oil the cprnS Of
that gallant band While eight tenth- If The
League members are Republicans we will knife
any man, be he Republican, or Democrats. who
has not done Justice to the soldiers. We have
got some of these sodieI-later> in office now
in this rity and are only waiting for the next
election to consign them to oblivion. We will
vote, or a Democrat who is friendly to the
soldiers much quicker than for Il Republican
who proves to be traitor. This is the ouly
way we can get justice in the future Politics
in this State are like the handle of ju-, all on
one side, but we are not slaves to party. We
have 80 aldermen. and 80 Of them are RepubIi-
cans. 1t would be better for the interests Of
the city if they We're more evenly divided.
Fourteen Of these aldermen AMI members NJ
the Council the soldiers would like to see out,
even If we were obliged to have Democrats In
their places. And we propose to put them out.
too, party or no party.
Mr.. Editor, can you tell me of any way that
| can muzzlc Bateman? In his hodgcpodge of
Sept. 9th he SAYS | am again boated office
holder and living on the fat ON the iaud. He Is
way off again. Ny salary is not as large as inc
puts it. and am still obliged to live on pota-
toes with an occasional dish of cold crow. Bate
mars siIvery tongue brings him an income Of
one hundred dollars per week; while v. poor
devils who serve the Republican party in an
official capacity are obliged to >ubsist on 4 mere
pittancc. That is " hat man gets Ny being
honest in this country. Bateman must let me
alone or lie will Yet hear something drop. Wen.
don't wish to weary your readers % viii run
back to my dugout. RUFUS RpHHRIS.
Minneapolis, oct Sth 80