Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1893-12-02
COMPLIMENTS. "REMINISCENCES, ETC.


The following is from ]. F. Nc
Dowell, former Cherokee county
newspaper man, and at one time a
resident of Baxter, but who is now
associate editor of the Kansas Com
moner, a Populist paper published
at Wichita:
WICHITA, KANSAS, Nov. %, 1893.
EDS. BANTER SPRINGS NEws:-I
cannot resist the temptation to not
only thank you for the mammoth
copy of the NEWS of the 18th inst.
received today, but also commend
you for your enterprise, the neat
ness of print and make up and
the very interesting matter from
pages to IL.
Really, boys, the people of Baxter
Springs, and you, too, may well feel
proud of the NEWS, and l assure
you l have read your Jumbo" sheet
with more than ordinary interest.
AS | read the local items and ads.
familiar names and faces come to
mind, and incidents and memories
are recalled that had been forgot
ten.
Baxter Springs has peculiar his
tory. Some one ought to write its
history and entitle it THE Rise and
Fall, and Rise of Baxter Springs"
You might assign the duty to Char
lie Daniels if he could be induced to
branch off little-not give himself
wholly to religious and temperance
subjects.
OF course John NJ. Cooper took a
page adv. in your paper. Baxter
without John NJ. Cooper would be
like Hamlet with Hamlet left out.
And then there's John Opperman,
another old Baxter standby. What
in the world would the farmers in
that vicinity do if John should quit
manufacturing gears" and hickory
bark should play out:
Billy Horror. another old-tiiner,
who was there before the cowboy
and beer jerky" made Baxter fam
Gus, remained through the fall"
and is still a-campin' with her on
the rise"
/ see my old friend, Captain Ken
nedy, is still peggin' away. wo: =
der if he is as fool a Republican as
he was some years ago.
Bob McGregor, / suppose, when
not attending lodge meetings and
helping to run reunions, inciden =
ally gives.his attention to the paint
business. but I'm told that since
1890 Bob don't carry "red paint in
stock.
1t seems only few years ago
when John Polster was a kid, but
now evidently an enterprising and
prosperous merchant, with great
faith in printers ink.
If all the good people of Baxter
who want to go to heaven were
called on to stand up, George Gregg
would sit still. Baxter is good
enough for George. He has stood
by Baxter and Baxter has stood by
him-when he ran for treasurer.
see George Polster still holds
1.-The corner" down. and in my imag-
ination | can see Ten Glenn and
Billy Justice picking their teeth
after limberger feast.
wonder if Bull Widrum, or Bill
Woodrum is still cuttin' meat and
| SdSSlu CNCi OobN liiht WINS avn p
as of yore: Will Bill Woodrum
and lust English continue to cut
steaks and chops when they get to
heaven:
Mrs. Stark, too, still pins her faith
to Baxter.
Among the old stand-bys / notice
Henry Ohlen and his estimable
frau are still feeding the hungry.
/ see many names new to me
among your business people, and
learn that -BaXterites, like myself,
who have not seen your town for
wears, would hardly know the place
so greatly has it improved and
changed.
have watched you people in the
years since the rehabili alton of the
place-if l may use that term-ad-
mired your enterprise, commended
your energy and praised your pluck,
but at the risk of having you say,
Hear that old crank again"
will say that you people have ex-
pended enough of effort, displayed
sufficient enterprise and spent
enough money in advertising to
have built town of 250O0 people,
and that the only reason why you
have not that number is because of
the insufficient money volume of
the country.
Methinks hear you say, "Cranky
as ever"
With kind regards to old friends l