The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-04-28
could suit themselves with Claims Z
the women pursuing their housewife;
II avocations mea nwhile some hav-

sbrats'' SAY from six to eleven child
rem, but how they managed their
internal domestic arrangements
would puzzle "Whiskey Jim" or
ANY other man. to explain. There.
in heater, broader, white wagon, J,
comedy family of Buckeyes had
apartments, two or three girls in
their clean, fresh brown linen dresses
and hats to match; the mother, scar
cely less rosy, and no less tidy
stylish even, may say-in dust col
ored alpaca, nice linen collar and
cuffs, and brown straw hat. Having
secured little green knoll near the
lake shore-for our town is built on
the bank of one of the loveliest lakes
in the state-they set two trunks at
suitable distances. and placed two
boards side by side across, spread a
wholesome looking white table-cloth
upon the so formed table, and
brought out white dishes. silver forks
and spoons, napkins in silver rings,
little breakfast castor, with three
cunning bottles, white wire tea set,
a table-mat or two. The coffee,
meanwhile, was boiling in an ample
tin kettle at little distance. Then
the mother brought from the recesses
Of the wagon nice cold boiled fowl,
which was carved with dispatch by
one of the girls. Another conjured
from tin chest plate of as snowy,
feathery biscuit as you would want
for tea party, and from a stone jar
packed in tub of salt, pot of hard
yellow butter was fished out. When
all was ready, the father, tine-look-
ing man, brown and sunburnt, and
a lad, delicate as girl, with sallow
cheeks and eyes too bright by half.
were telegraphed as they stood at
the door of the colony Office. getting
directions as to the ''section, town
and range'' of a claim that had been
selected for them by a friend, but
which they had not Yet seen, It was
really delightful to see them gather
around their table; the boy: as he sat
down, carefully set a pretty prairie
flower by the short stem of it in the
roll of butter, receiving a smile and
nod of approval from the mother, as
he glanced at her, in doubt as to the
propriety of the thing. These were
members of our colony-to be better
known to us in the future. But the
town, with it's wealth of all
descriptions of worldly goods, so
early on the ground for the immedi.
ate furnishing of colonists and other
settlers, was just now in state of
chaos. People, as they arrived,
waived all formalities, and proceeded
to acquaint themselves with each
other, each one extending to every
other cordial greeting, welcom-
ing warmly the newly arrived as
they appeared from day to day and
and from week to week.
The colony was founded on a
sound moral basis, one of the leading
features being the exclusion of the
use or sale Of intoxicating liquors,
and consequently attracted very
desirable class Of people. Our Sun
day services-for there was public
worship in the hotel dining room the
first Sabbath after the arrival of the
first colonists. and regularly there
after-were held in the unfinished
stores and shops. AS soon as one
building was ready to be plastered,
we removed to another, from Sabbath
to Sabbath, till at last we got the
use of a wagon shop, the sexton
volunteering to clean it out and ar
range the seats on Saturday nights.
This was used until a fine hall was
built dy one of the proprietors of the
colony. furnishing an audience room
60 by 80 feet, which was ready for
use in early autumn.
And so, almost incredibly, the
town grew, and the number of
settlers increased till, in the space of
year, the village counted five hun
dred inhabitants, and three times
that number of the best people occu-
pied the adjoining country within the
colony limits. And such country!
Such magnificent prairies!-not your
low, level, monotonous expanse, that
having once seen. you know. But
our prairies roll and tumble their
beautiful green surfaces in great bill
lows so like Old Ocean that when
fine breeze is blowing one almost feels
the "Oh my!" of the "Innocente
Abroad" These grand, graceful un.
sweeping and stretching
so majestically away to the horizon,
bear on their gently-rounded crests
fully many a bark freighted with
life's dearest treasurers.
To-day a year and three months
since we landed here, I count from
my piazza fronting the east, seventy
houses outside the village, which
sits yonder, three miles away, at the
eastern extremity of the lake, SEEM
ing, in it's comfy proportions, attain
ed in so short space of time, like
the reality of some fairy tale-as if it 1
had been called up by some genii;
and it has, indeed genins of
far-seeing philanthropy and progress,
marching with rapid and widening
strides. Already has it annihilated
that mythical yet not all unreal
boundary 80 long recognized as the
''far West" and sees now only the
Great Northwestern open, inviting
field for the planting of institutions
which shall give character, and power
and wealth to the following gener-
atoms. ~ y.
In the vicinity, and in sight of the
lake on every side, are pleasant resi-