The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-08-16
AS SEEN BIZ A STRANGER.

AS SEEN BIZ A STRANGER.
A Wealthy and WcII X uown Iowa Gentleman in
the City and Talks Entertamingly.
Hon. E. D. Wishard, prominent law
yer and banker of Des Moines Iowa, was
in the city yesterday visiting his friend,
Mr. ]. NJ. Bristow, of the Lombard Invest
ment company, OF this city. Mr.. Wishard
was en- route to his home after a week s
sojourn in this and adjoining counties
where he has been transacting some bust
ness relative to the loan company, OF
which he is one of the officers. In tran
sacting his business be had occasion to
visit the counties of Sumner, Harper, But
Ter and Cowley, besides Sedgwick. Mr..
Wishard is gentleman of vast experience
in money matters and In business ana is
at the present time interested In banks IN
Iowa and South Dakota, Is Interested IN
the South Dakota Land company, and is
vice president and treasurer of the Des
Moines Loan and Trust company. He has
also by dint of his knowledge IN financial
matters acquired a reputation which ex-
tends beyond his state This is his hrst
visit to Kansas. Mr.. Wishard was
seen at the Carey by an EAGLE
representative who in answer TO
interrogations put by the reporter regard
ing his opinion of Wichita and southern
Kansas, stated substantially as follows:
las l have stated, this is my first visit
to sunny Kansas and your beautiful city.
I have heard numerous and various stories
about YOUR wonderful state and your great
city, but / was surprised at what l beheld
when l arrived here. After carefully look
ing around can truthfully state that L
found your town in a much better condI-
ton than l expected to see it.
"As one Journeys from Topeka towards
Wichita an improvement IN the condition
of the country is seen and it gradually
grows better the nearer to southern Kan
sas one gets. From what have seen and
been able to Judge, ! should say there is
great abundance of grain as well rs fruits.
From what l have seen myself should
Judge that the average yield OF wheat IS
thi~ty-five bushels to the acre. Oats VIII
run from sixty to siXty-five bushels to the
acre and perhaps even more The corn
Weld I estimate to run from sixty-fve to
seventy bushels to the acre. believe, and
can safely assert without fear of successful
contradiction, that the general yield in
Kansas this year far exceeds that of Ne
braska. Dakota, Iowa and Missouri, over
which states I have travelled within
a short time since notwithstanding the
fact that the crops have been unusually
good this year in the states named
81 am favorably impressed with the value
of Sedgwick and Sumner county land for
raising wheat. The excellent crops which
YOU have been blessed with this year Will
reduce the mortgage Indebtedness on
farms so per cent. Farmers who have
been grooming under the weight OF mort
cages will be relieved. think L am not
exakgerating one iota when | say that %
per cent of the total mortgages of southern
Kansas will be lifted this year in conse-
queuce of the bountiful crop with which
your country has been favored.
''From what have been able to ascer-
tain, your county alone will yield 100000
bushels Of corn. l think l can further
safely venture to assert that seven out of
every ten farmers came to Kansas without
any capital Most of them had to borrow
the money needed to prove up on. From
that time their Indebtedness increased as
they made Improvements. After the first
expense the more prudent farmer con-
tracted no debts until it was necessary to
purchase machinery with which to harvest
his crops. A few partial failures in the
crops caused some more Indebtedness to
be heaped upon the farmers. But of late
years the indebtedness has been gradually
paid off and the farmer has secured
a ffrmer footing until now he is monarch
of all he surveys and this year will greatly
reduce, if not entirely remove the thrall-
dom of mortgage Indebtedness and leave
the farmer the sole owner of fine farm,
good improvements, a good crop, cattle,
horses, swine and implements, all free
from debt and his own. What pleasant
thought. Many day has he labored and
many a night worried. but now he has
reaped the fruits of his toll. When we
contemplate the fact that so large per-
centage came to this state with absolutely
nothing save the clothes on their backs,
and now own fine farms, it can be said to
be remarkable l have a very good report
to make to my people of Wichita and
Kansas when get home"