The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1895-03-08

Edska sometimes occurs IN our western counties
It occasionally rains" At any rate it used to
that those same lOcatOrs possessed the lost AIT
/ OF ralnmaking, and that Montgomery, Jewell, ct
! al, who
| Sailed balloons and spouted gas,
And fired bombs till Ii came to pass
That az the fields were bare of gTas,
| And Nature blew for quarter
/ are but sorry imitat0rs. Yet many Of us werc so
! infienced by this bomb firing and gas spsuting
/ as to put faith in their ability to einch tho
! drouth. So we planted not only our stock OF
grain, We put our last pennies in the venture.
But then We began to curse the dry,
| Watching the clouds and wondering why
We missed the FaindFop patter.
and III tell You, conhdentially, we that have
missed them for some time both tine raindTcps
| and the raindTOppeFS.
/ How many widows and orphans in the east re-
] gret that it ever did rain in western Kansas.
/ This it was that caused them to loan their money
on our farms and instead of them receiving their
! Semi-annual interest from US they have to send
/ quarterly cOnsiguments OF aid to enable sufi-
Gent voters to live in our counties to maintain
our county organizations so we can elect officers
| to post them Of the amounts of delinquent taxes
against their securities.
/ So, gentlemen, you ought to be satisfied by
| this time that waiting for the pattering rain
/ drops viii never enable you to pay your debts,
| Then listen TO what can be done if we make
/ the raindTOpS patteF-if we iTTigate.
| 1t IS not my task to prove to you that Sherman
county has the undeTflOW, that this can be econ
| Omically lifted to the surface, You surely are
| already convinced of these things for they have
been made as plain to the intelligent mind ''as
/ way to parish church" have been asked to tell
| you of some Of the benefits we may expect to de-
/ rive from bringing this undertiOw to the surface
1 In Sherman county.
/ But for the fact that am requested to enter
tain you for 70 minutes, would simply say land
| would not say cnOughD it viii enable you TO
/ support your families, enable you to pay your
| debts. All! what thing ito be deVOutly wished
| for, for is not this SUGGEST Is not this more
/ than you have done heretofore! But irrigation
/ will do even more than this, twill change your
/ bare unsightly sOddies into decent shaded
homes into fit dwellings for intelligent farmers
Will permit you to live, not barely exist will
make you dependent upon your eIertions alone
/ and Independent of drOughts and public aid.
My friends am sure l am well aware of the
! fact that but for tho charity of Others many of
you would have been unable to have lived
/ through the winter, but am also as fully aWpTe
of this fact: that If western Kansas is to be a
permanent charity farm ], as selfTespecting
/ American, feel like abandoning my attempt to
make home here. You have been depending
| for a livelihood on the seasons, and now this is
your condition after eight years of hard, honest
| toll. lou didn't know what work was or what
! prlVatiOnS were until you came TO western kau-
sas, And the wages for al this labOr-the re-
suit OF all these years of the best of your man
/ hOOd-WheTe arc theyI You and your families
| are dependent upon charity for your victuals
/ and your clothing. Ono of my first memories
| Of western Kansas was a vivid picture of its uT-
gent necessities-peOple freezing and starving,
! That was some years ago, Is 1t not worse this
/ year than ever befOre2 Are you not afraid OF
our charitably -dlspOSed friends becoming tired
! of supporting you out heTe-that they may write
| for you TO come back and live on their county
poor farms whore You wont cost them so much
and where they can look after you betterl
| What Is the troubled Is il with US, OF with
Sherman county, Farmers, 1t is with us. We
have not yet learned tho peculiar climatic con,
ditiOns that obtain in arid America. We have
faTmCd as if We were yet in Illinois or Missouri
risk all-put out our last farthing in wheat and
corn. Expensive farming and crazy farming
call 1t. Oh, yes, SOW your 20 or 800 acres ia
wheat every spring and reap harvest of aid
flour every winter!
Let mo Impress on you, friends. it is high time
we weTo learning this new farming-this intense
farmlng-for we maynOt be able to set much aid
another winter.
don't mean to suggest we can neyor raise
corn or wheat here but [ do say pick your sea
sons. Don't go in for extensive farming" IN
less you have the chances of good season il
your favor, / think OF the thousands of acres O
grain we sOwed ID the dust during the past two
yoars-hOw fOolishG There was no show at al
for harvest,
Such are the years when irrigation will prove
its value.
/ am no wild-brained enthusiast-claiming
that irrigation VIII mako George Gould envy III
our Sherman county farms, but do know from
practical experience that properly managed
irrigation plant viii enable us to keep from deb
and aid that one acre of laud-Wisely wateret
and cropped viii be of more value to each fami
ly than the cost of your living expenses has heeI
during the whole year OF 1891. You may no
be able to make your garden support you tn
| first fiVnTnn lack of
ing water, planting seed and keeping yoHTselYe
away from town every other day. kUai Gun tel
you that to successfully lrrigate you must get
good, steady ali-SeasOn hump on yourselves. 1OJ
can't DO as you have been doing work tWl
weeks in March and spend the rest Of the year il
front of George Hess hardware store, at tiTs
Dragging about how much wheat you are gOln
to make. and along about juno moaning abOu
how much you would have made if
Well, you must forget ali about II When yOl
irrigats. Shall and will" are the winning
words. And if there are no ifs in your labor
there will be no ifs III the harvest.
While l am writing this, the boys come In t
tell mo it is raining. Yes raining hard; so
must put down my pen and feel genuine
! EeaVen-glYen ralldTOP, And / did go out, anl
thought surely this could not be arid Amorics
for there were plenty OF good, wet raindrOps- no
the dry, shrivelcd product of the rainmakers-
but those of Gods own kind-ful of life ar
freshness. And then l thought how many mi
such ciOUds-TeasOning once rain and AWAY
rain. Why, had il rained IN February when
first came to Sherman county, FTisheo woul
have gotten me to have built on the highes
snOW-capped peak Of the Smoky.
Ny dear man, he would have said, don
you see the seasons arc changing, Never TainC
here IN February since the ark was launched
Why, sir. you viii sec the time b3f0re y0uf enid
ron attain their maiOrities, when you viii shi
your wheat and corn down The Ravigable SInok
on whale backs run 5y native gas.
I don't mean to disnado you from TIskrEg til
season this spring. 1 myself believe We viii rails
a crop. bat do say lien pUt u as nGeh q
sou have heretofore done. What you do Sev
SOW II we'll Have some time for fixing ND you
) / irrigation pond and mill; for mark my word
although ] expect Sherman county TO DrCduc
e this geaf q j. bUshes an acre wheat crop, *
along about July and August you VIII wish fc
scne of your neighb0Tss irrigated vegetables.
a If We all irrigated but one acre this year, 20
would fad the result to he-Ep gratifying thi
= next year twice the acreage would be undo
wafer; that II i've years eHT lands would cCu
= maBd Il ssapleFalue; that We. wifi oar oTclarsi
6 ieur fish, Cur fruits aud Eegc aulcs ToasG - i
depcndent and hHRrT
I So. ia conclusion, let me impress CI yo9 gnt
irrigation is OR obly salvation or Only 1op
e car cnly chance OF weathering IL Qua III eri
: america. a1d & leaving 70 car childE sous
thing betteT than the goofi wal Of ctE a.