The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1898-08-24
THE TRUTH ABOUT KANSAS.
That Car Load of Cancelled MOrtga
ges-HOw They Came Out.
lTAn1 WatS0p,c poro,.A

That Car Load of Cancelled Mortga-
ges-How They Came Out.
(Tom Watson's Paper.)
We all have heard about the recent
prosperity of Kansas. We have been
told that mortgages by the carload have
been Cancelled and that the debts of the
state have been paid; that bumper
crops have placed the state on the high
road to aff1uence, and that its people are
prosperous, happy and contented.
Having seen these statements often. I
went to Kansas expecting to have them
verified in every particular What did
see opened the eyes of my understand
ing and taught me something about the
exact use of language I saw the most
fertile soil l ever walked over, a soil
capable of producing any crop grown in
temperate climate to perfection. l saw
mulberry and cherry trees that were
loaded with fruit, and other fruit trees
loaded with the promise of heavy crop
this season. l was told by competent
authorities that the wheat crop averages
luz for the state, and the few wheat
fields l saw showed 30 reason for dis
putting or doubling this estimate. Along
the Kansas river thousands of acres of
potatoes grow thriftily, where the acci-
dent of the season does not interfere
The prospect for corn is very poor, but
this is due to the fact that this is one
of the wettest seasons in the history of
the state, and not to any lack of fertility
in the soil. 1 should say that the soil
of Kansas cannot be improved on. The
state lies in the garden of the world as
far as climate Or soil are concerned
but the trail of the boomer is over It
all.
The boomer" is the vampire who
has been sucking the life blood of Kan
sas. He it was who organized the vari-
GUS farm mortgages, trust and security
companies that tempted the people to
borrow, and then absorbed the profits
of their labors as interest. finally taking
the farms in payment of the principal
originally loaned.
I saw farm advertised that is sam
pie. 1t contains 100 acres, all under
fence, has fair farm buildings, young
orchard, and is within two miles of the
city Of Topeka; price, $40 an acre. In
one issue of the Daily Capital, the prin-
cipal newspaper in Kansas, found ad-
vertised a 64O-acre farm in Shawnee
county, the county in which the capital
Of the state is located, which is de-
scribed as being "all fenced, cross
wells, creek and spring water, rs acres
timber about $50 acres in cultivation,
balance grass and timber, one and one
half miles from the railrOad;" price, $13
if you want farm for a song, come in"
A farm Of 1000 acres in Waubansee
county, finely improved, is offered at $17
an acre. Another of 1,4S0 acres in Cof-
offered at $50 an acre, and 640-acre
farm near Eskridge is put at $40 an
acre. The same real estate agent max
ing these offerings says in the same ad-
vertisement: Il have large number of
improved farms all over this-Shawnee
county for SALE"
Another real estate agent offers for
sale $50 acres within two miles Of To-
! peka for $2,40O, which is $50 an acre; 80
| acres on West Tenth street, Topeka, for
$500, and a 9O0-aere improved farm,
| very cheap" which means pretty low
price in Kansas. The following I clip
from the same issue of the Capital:
CHEAP STOCK RANCH.
| Six hundred and forty acres under
plow, IS to 100 acres timber, 800 acres
pasture, all fenced; 25 apple trees, IL
peach trees, 100 acres creek bottom,
stone house, rooms, IL horses, in
| northern Shawnee county, 13 miles from
Topeka; living water on every quarter;
| price, $500.
This is less than $l450 an acre.
Any of these farms would be worth
from six to ten times the price asked
for them If they were located outside Of
the territory where the loan boomer has
operated. They are fertile, in a good
climate, and the great Santa Fe railway
system puts them in direct communca-
| ton with the markets of the world.
why do the owners otter them at