The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1898-06-10
Old Settlers Picnic.

terday Of course in such a rainy
country as this We can never count on
the day being without shower, and
the people who like rainy country
must submit.
About noon the crowd began to
gather, and by the time the first num-
Der was called there were several hun
dred persons at the park. Mr.. Robt.
McCanse, who oas the honor OF being
the genuine "old settler" in Edwards
county, made the first address. He
gave an interesting history of the
county from 1880 when all the terri
tory west of the 9th p. NJ. was in one
county with the county seas at
Birch valley. Mr.. McCanse came
here in 1872 when Edwards county was
a part OF Pawnee, and lived here six
months before there was another per
son in the county. He has seen its
growth from a desert over which the
buffalo roamed, to a wei-settled and
prosperous farming and dairying
country with two lines OF railroad;
country with cosy well-kept homes,
where the song of the farmer and the
laughter of children greet the ear, in
stead of the cry Of the panther and
the howl of the coyote. The wind
swept stretches of sand where once
grew only the cactus, now yield the
husbandman rich loads of golden
grain: and fine herds of fat, lazy cat
tie stand knee deep in fields of lucio
alfalfa; or the jaunty yellow corn tas-
sells whisper sacily to each other down
long undulating rows, of the satisfac
ton to be derived faom a harvest of
its burden of grain, when the mellow
October days come. Fruit orchards
that are a mass OF flowers and frag-
rance delight the eye in the spring
and later on in the long summer days
the palate of the pioneer and his wife,
who have battled with Nature for
every tree insisting the desert should
blossom as the rose.
We have only been here ten years
and have to make ourselves realize
that Kinsley is the same town, and
the country the same land we first be-
held.
To the genuine pioneer q further
retrospective view must seem like
dream. In the words of Edward Ev-
erett: "Student of history, compare
for me the baff1ed projects, the desert
ed settlements, the abandoned adven-
lures of other times and find the par
allel of this After the early history
given by Mr.. McCanse, Mr.. A, c.
Dyer followed and he must have had
Edward Everetts thought in his mind,
for he congratulated our people on
all they had attained. Mr.. F. D.
West foil owed, with look into the
future for our country, and as he is
always hopeful he made every one
feel that his roseate prophecies would
be fulfilled. In the light of past
events, and Judging by the sterling
quality of the citizens of Edwards
county, they will all ''come to pass"
After the completion of the program
came the usual outdoor sports Incl
dent to a picnic. In the pigeon shoot
M. DeTar and L. F. Beal carried off
the honors. A trotting race between
Ewing Wells horse 'Looking For
ward" Cyrus Roberts colt ''Klon-
dike;" and "Baby Wells'' owned by
Ed Wells, Looking Forward was the
winner. A ball game was played by
the Kinsley team and picked nine
and was won by Kinsley by a score
of Is to 6. Mr.. Heath umpired the
game. A running race was won by
Cyrus Johnson horse.
Whatever else we must omit let us
have an old settlers picnic, here
where we owe him so much.
DIR. Mosher is chairman of the COM
mittee and Mr.. Max Boettcher secre-
tary and treasurer, and much OF the
success is due to their energetic eff
forts. They have purchased and paid
for the tent, and wish to thank every
one who assisted financially in MAX
Ing the aft air success.
>Tatum & Tuttle made the following
cattle sales this week: 20 head to J :.
w. Whitbeck, of Burlingame; 100 to
A, c. Blair. of Lyons, and 80 head to
Groves & Schaffer. of Harmony, Kan.