Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1890-10-03
the CRY OF THE OPPRESSED.
Touching Letter BY Hon. W. II. Curtis,
On the Importance of Irrigation in
Dakota.
How Republican Thugs and Pretenders
Have Neglected the Peoples Plea
For Bread.
REPUBL1cA1sM VS.. IRRIGATION.

. . Hst j. Il . = T. . +. I =
#r REPUBLICAIsM VS.. IRRIGATION.
K1MBALL, Sept. 6.-HoN. H. P. SMITH,
DEAR SIR: The gravity of our material
condition is such that it pains me to
the heart to see the farmers IN this part of
the state, who have 50 faithfully labored
for the past eight or ten years to break
up the prairie sod, and spent their all in
scultivating their lands, building their
houses, barns and other buildings, and
then finding themselves without feed for
their little stock, without flour for
their bread and without seed grain to
plant or sow for the next years crop, and
without the products of their labor for
all these years, to buy fuel for winters
cold and shoes and clothing for them
selves and their devoted wives and
children, with heavy hearts gathering up
the little from the desolation, not covered
by the internal mortgage, and putting.
their all with family and little ones into
one old wagon and then turning their
backs upon the farm and home they had
worked SO many years and sohard to-
save, wend their way wearily back to the
states from whence they came, never to
return! Don't say this picture is over
drawn, for the truth is have drawn it
but mildly. Not q day passes in which
some of our best, as well rs our poorest,
farmers are now abandoning their homes
and farms never to return. And all are
for what? answer-watcr. and the
want of sufficient intelligence (Or
ambition for office, have it which you
please) to comprehend the situation on the
part Of our governor to provide way by,
which it might be obtained. This latter
grant is serious charge, but it is too
true for me to remain silent. And
for one who was in the first convention
held west of the Mississippi river that
organized one of the grandest parties
known to American history--the republi-
can and one who has been zealously de-
voted to its very life and has cheerfully
helped fight all its battles up to the present
year and will willingly do SO still if it
will only subserve to the interest of my
country as it did so heroically in former
years. will not consent to disregard the
local interests and welfare of the people
of my country and state. and blindly fol-
low the dictation of my party which
spurns every vital demand made by the
farmers of this state. The democratic
and republican parties of our state seem
to be far more interested in putting
certain ambitious gentlemen in place of
power and honor than in removing the
burdens from our people, and so improve
the country by irrigation as to render it
possible for our present population to
maintain their existence here with reason
able prosperity. Itwas only the other
day the republican party insisted that the
same should continue to be our governor,
who but few weeks ago had it in his
power to call a special session of our legis-
lature and let the peoples representatives
provide amendments to our constitution
to SO change its terms, that our legisla-
| ture of next winter could provide for the
raising of all the funds necessary by
state, count or township, to construct
general system of irrigation through
out the state next summer, if the people
should approve of such amendments at
our next November election; as they sure
ly would. But he would not; although,
as you well know he was urged and
actually supplicated by the farmers of
this state to do so. want to give you a
few facts.
After his excellency vetoed the only bill
passed by the legislature last winter, that
would seem to give any real substantial
aid in irrigation to the farmers, called q
county irrigation convention Of this
(Brule) county. The question was, what
can we do to save our present population
Artesian wells must be constructed to
irrigate this country and that too soon or
our people would have to abandon their
farms and the country. 1t was thorough
ly discussed. The only relief I could
Su6ScSt W0S. AS OuH pICScAb COuDGltu.
tion was lin my judgment) an absolute
bar to any aid from or by the state for
irrigation purposes, and so limited the
county and township liabilities that they
could not enter upon any extended sys-
TEN the constitution must be changed by
amen dments so that the state, counties
and townships might be permitted to raise
and appropriate all the money the people
thought necessary to accomplish this
beneficient undertaking, Istated further
that the quickest way to amend the
constitution was by the legislature sub
mitting amendments to be voted upon by
the people at !; general election, and that
as the last legislature had failed to sub
nit any such amendments, we must have