Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1897-12-23

ing the Kansas City, Pittsburg. an'
Gulf railway. The Port Arthur
Route. for the south in the evening
Kansas City is big town and a busy
one: it surprises visitor by its great
ness and the number and magnitude
Of its buildings and industries rail
roads, stockyards, packing houses
ware houses. stores and factories. II
is second Chicago and promises tc
far outrun It's neighbors and rivals in
the race for supremacy.
At Kansas City we parted company
with Dick Mahan. who took the
train for Perry. Iowa. where his
brother resides, about the time .All
aboard for Port Arthur was called.
SOUTHWARK no.
The rolling prairie country OF Iowa
and northern Missouri extends for 200
miles south Of Kansas City. in the
southern part Of which are the great
est zine mines id the world besides
large mines Of lead and valuable de-
posits Of coal. potter'- clay and alumni
num- The city Of Joplin IS the me-
tropolis Of that region and the center
OF the lead and zinc district The
output Of its mines is said to be 500,
600 per week
THE MouNTAfNs
Ii southern Missouri the undulating
prairie commence to lift and swell ia E
to foothills and for the next $50 miles
through Missouri. Arkansas into
eastern Indian Territory and back
again into Arkansas the country is
high and billy, in some parts wild and
mountainous. The highest point
reached by the railroad, about eleven
hundred feet, is near Mena Arkansas,
where the hillsor mountains rise from
1900 to 1900 feet higher.
The rugged and undeyeloped APP
pearanee of the country and its sparse
settlement justify belief in the follow
ing paragraph from the guide book:
The quail and wild turkey make
their home in the prairie sections Of
this region and abound in countless
numbers. Deer hunting is the most
fascinating winter sport of the more
mountainous parts. The wild cat is
native to this section. The wolf is
not unknown and occasionally a bear
puts to the test the sportsman's steel
The Indian river, the head waters
of White river, Sugar Greek and the
famous Cow Skin are well stocked
with bass, perch, cat and variety Of
other fish Higher up in the noun
tains a species of trout exist in great
quantities. This section affords one of
the most attractive and romantic
camping grounds in the country.
Here are cheap lands which land
agents affirm are fertile and with Gull
tivation will produce almost anything
that can be grown anywhere corn,
cotton, wheat, the best apples in the
world. fruits OF many kinds. nclud-
ing berries. pears. plums, peaches,
etc. The climate is healthful. pure
water abundant. droughts unknown
aud fuel plentiful. In fact there is
timber to spare. Hill and dale is
covered with heavy growth of oak,
hickory, aud other hard woods with
considerable mixture Of pine.
The land carries another crop which
ought not to be overlooked and that
is a crop OF stones In all the upland
region OF Arkansas penetrated by this
railroad, blowing, as Grant county
farmers understand rs impossible on
account Of the stones. The only field
products that are grown there are
cotton and corn and the labor in pro-
ducing them is hand labor 1t will
be a long time before the mountain
Gus parts of Arkansas are reclaimed
aud converted into farm lands. That
region will grow splendid fruits. it is
rich in lumber products, il contains
valuable deposits Of manganese ores,
slate. mari, gypsum and chalk; and
it is to these resources that its inhab-
itants should look.
However, the native of Western
Arkansas is not stretching his own
neck much to look anywhere He is
an object lesson Of the doctrine:
Whats the use Of hurryin'; thar's
plenty Of time His wants are few
and easily supplied. His hogs and
cattle run at large. When he runs
out Of bacon all he has to do is to go
into the woods and shoot hog.
There are game and fish. With mule,
I. L. Il 4