Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1897-12-17
TILE RICHEST 100 MILES,


Col. kellar Responds to IL Toast Upon
/ That Subject Before the State
| bar Association.
At the banquet given by the Sioux
Falls bar in honor of the attorneys in
attendance upon the State Bar Asso-
citation, Col. Kellar, of this city, was
called upon to respond to the toast,
"The Richest One Hundred Miles on
Earth" which he did in the following
happy manner, as caught by the Sioux
Falls Press:
"Mr. Toastmaster and Gentlemen of
the Bar: The extraordinary words of
the toast to which | am called on to
respond constrain me to disclaim any
part in it's authorship, and to thank in
the name of all the bar and of all the
people of the Black Hills, the commit
tee who have made up this evenings
program. thank the committee for
this splendid tribute to the Black Hills
i'll the language of the toast, whose
4 SOAV'' MCaC SOulC years ago Oy
great business manager. The Rich
est One Hundred Miles on Earth are
the words of Marvin lIughitt, and
which he used in describing the Black
Hills, when he addressed the Chicago
and North Western Railroad company
to extend it's lines from the Missouri
river to the west and northwest.
''The Black Hills were then distin-
guished for its mines of gold. some
time before the single gold standard
was lifted up to be fought over. The
most reliable gold mine on earth is in
the Black Hills, and it's annual divi-
dends are as certain as the payment of
interest OH the national debt. Its coal
mines on the west side are as finely de.
veloped as the Great Homestake gold
mine in the north. The Hills furnish
building timber and fuel; its building
sandstone and grindstone quarries and
gypsum beds in the southern Hills. are
OF the first quality and ineXhaustible.
The largest single shipping station of
cattle i'll the world in the upper Black
Hills, and the most extraordinary
health resort, remarkable for it's dry
air, perfumed with the fragrance OF
the pure and warm water. and over a
lake of warm water, that mitigates the
rigor of winter. is in the southern Hills.
These wonderful Hills are as vet sparce-
~ settled. but promise future devel.
opement and of such kind as to
warrant the opinion of Mr.. Hughitt.
The Black Hills, gentlemen, have made
South Dakota farmers: to many of
your people it is unknown We. in the
Hills. are a great way off from you.
separated from you by an immense In
dian territory, and without direct rail
road transportation.
"But while we are perched on the
Hills, and isolated from you we are
made an integral part of the state by
constitutional law, thanks to the sa.
gacity of the men who framed the con-
titution. The Black Hills. lying be-
tween the Cheyenne River are dis
tinguished not only for it's precious
metals, its timber. it's coal, its grind
stone. its building stone. its gypsum
beds, its cattle and sheep, its horses.
but 10y its schools, its colleges, it's news
papers and its preachers.
I'VE have the trails of mountaineprs
but we shall not therefore consider
you, who live over here to be inferior to
us because you are lowlanlers. 1t was
said today by the elegant president of
our new association. that the bar forms
to Il large extent the character of the
community; that if people are order
ly. law abiding.syou may be quite sure
that members of the bar are men of
integrity. honor aud ability gentle
men. The people of the Black Hills.
not only occupy the Richest One Hun.
dred Miles on Earth but by their in
dustry. pluck. intelligence. they de-
serve to occupy them and will devel-
op them until South Dakota, east of
the Missouri river will look upon the
Black Hills as the apple of the eve cf
O1r state f"