Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1893-03-31
COLORADO LITTER.
LoNGMoNr, Col, March %, '03.

1
Probably a lette
from this State will be of some interest (,
your many readers.
left the grand old State of Virginia tn,
18Th of July, 1892, and came by the wa,
of Harpers Ferry on the Is. & o. r. r. t.
Chicago, and from there to Eaton, Col
on the U. P. r. r., where I met my 1--WE
brothers, finding them both we'll and do
ing well. For long time l had felt {
strong desire to 90 west, the great trouble
and hardest of all was to leave my wifi,
and two children so far behind me, as u
did not suit me to take them along as
was hunting for positlon as miller
Now, as you probably know, was mar
RED to a lady of your community in 1884
and We were never separated longer thar
week before and found that lonI
enough for me. When kissed my wifi
and little girl and boy good by at Pugh''
Run bridge and waved farewell to my
many friends who had come to see me off
l thought it was pretty tough. My frs
step en- landing in this state was to hun
for situation. first went to Fort Col
Inns, called on consin B. f. Hotel and
found them all we'll | saw JOHN Hof
man, formerly of Edinburg, looking fat
and hearty, but found nothing to lc
there. My next trip was to Lnvelsnd
Col, but there was nothing for me there.
| began to feel pretty blue when got q
letter from cousin j. w Hotel, of Mon.
trose, telling me be thought he could get
me mill cross the range, but we failed
there. they all telling me it was rather
soon yet az a great number of the mills
were shut down and wonld net start mp
before the lst of September. So tried
to make myself conte nted, but cOnld not
stand to loaf and went on the ranch with
brother Joe to help him cultivate, ditch
snd irrigate his potatoes. tell you the
gnats and mosquitoes came near running
me out. When we were through with
this work helped him harvest and stack
his wheat. then hired to the manager
of tie Eaton mills as oilsr and sweeper.
1t went a little against the grain but thare
was s. day in it and that was what
wanted. had been over 10 Brcathoud,
COL, TO see cousin W. E, Hotel a few
days before l hired at Eaton. and the first
days work at Eaton brought me q tele-
gram from him to come to Breathond at
once as be had mill for me. You bet
weat and he and landed at Longmont
on the 4th Of September where hired to
the Longmont Roller Mill and Elevator
Co. Just as soon as could get ready
sent for wife and babies, and on the
morning CT Nov. 9th l got telegram that
they would arrive IN Denver at O'Clock,
p. m. had no time to see my employers,
so told the boys TO look after the bus;-
ness as best they could and bit the read
for Denver where waited the arrival OF
my folks, and don't think there was q
happier man in the State than l was when
saw them safe in my care once more
The farmers here are beginning to seed
their wheat. This is a fine country fol
farming. They irrigate all their crops
and just to give your readers an idea Of
the crops will speak of a man living
close to the mill who had his farm out IN
tomatOes,or forty acres of it, and from that
ground he picked 10000 bushels last sum-
mer. My brother Joe realized in cash
from wheat and potatoes off of 60 or 6;
acres over S1400, receiving only IS cts
per hundred pounds for wheat and % cts.
per hundred pounds for his potatoes. An
other person at Grundy, Colorado, had 81
acres in potatoes from which be raised
5000 sacks for which he found ready sal'
after digging them at 95 cts. per hundred
pounds, netting him over a dollar a sack
Ihere are plenty OF such cases. Long
mont is a nice, thrifty town Of probably
3 600 population, and supports three
flourng mills, one large canning factory
and other small enterprises, AID tire,
good banks. 1t is about 30 miles from
the Rocky mountains, aud So miles from
| Longs Peak. You can see snow in tn
mountains all summer, and it is the melt
ing Of this that supplies the farmers will
water Tor ilrigating in summer. The.
have canals leading to large reservoir
and from these they draw off the water il
small bitches. 1t is measured to each on
what belongs to him, and he then doe
with it whatever he sees best Hoping
have not worried you with my first effOit
1 will close by saying that he HERALD ]
great comfort to me aud my family.
Respectfully, WM. B. WILL.