The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1899-08-08
RANsANs WELL PLEASED
Over Five Eundted Excursion
lists Visit Oklahoma and be
come Enthusiastic.

CUme EntnuSlhsllc.
wichita, Kans. Aug. THE wichiti
Beacon says
Five hundred and ten Kansans saw the
richest valley and one OF the busiest
towns IN the west yesterday.
That many persons patronized the ex'
cursion train that was run from wichita
to Blackwell. O T. at O'Clock yester lay
morning.
one hundred excursionists went from
wichita. 15i from wellington and tne re-
ma,nder from Derby Sfulvane. Belle
PLANE. South Haven Hunnewen and
Rome
The train consisted OF nine coaches and
- the time 70 reached Blackwell thare
was standing room only.
Il was one OF the best conducted eNcur.
stons ever ran out Of wichita
The rcce. pts ct the excursion IN cash
amounted % S5i5. probably $500 morS ,ha1
rs actual cost.
The cxcursioni.ts wore mot NJ Black
we'll by the local band which Is a credit
TO that city
The program OF the day consisted Of A
band concert and a baseball gamr, the
latter between wellington and Blarkw,"
The welllngtonans won by ascore Of n
10 is
The day was very hot but Blackwell
was prepared by a liberal construction Of
the Sunday closing ord nance. TO ksep
the people reasonably cool. Blackwell
proved In this respect as in others to be
a mighty hospitable city
When God shaped and adorned the
landscape between Wichita and Black
well. He was IN a happy mood The cy al
never surveyed prettier country than
that seen by the Wichita excurs onists
Everybody in Wichita IL they would have
absolute faith In the destiny Of the Peer
less Princess should see H. More ex,ur-
sions should be gotten up for Oklahoma r
for nothing else than a stimulant
How the farmers OF the Arkansas val
ley between Wichita and Hunnewel arc
going 20 dispose OF their wheat and corn
crops surpasseth all understanding. 4 he
whole country seems to be one vast corn
field. Where the wheat grew is puzzle.
and yet the whole valley Is covered wl:h
wheat stacks. The eye couldn'e find a bare
spot anywhere Tho whole scene FOR fifty
wheat stacks. winding wooded streams.
sunshine, fat cattle white school houses
w tn shutters painted green. country
churches surrounded by buggies and the
towns and villages newly painted and as
fresh and pretty as n they were built the
day before by some magic hand not VI
earth
The whole valley was noiseless. You
could hear the corn grow and the glrls I'm
the excursion train laugh and that was
all.
When the train reached the summit II
the water shed OF the Chickasha near
Hunnewell, the scene was grand At least
-four hundred square miles OF valley
could be seen. The trees are young ye..
The country is only five years. ten months
ana twenty-three days old. when 90 IS
double that age the trees will be lareor
and the young orchards older. II will bs
Garden OF Eden
When Dave Couch and his boomers stop
ped on top OF this watershed. sixteen
years ago and looked down upon that
valley, it is no wonder they struggled so
desperately for the grand country to
which il was then opening
What impressed one most was the fire.
quency Of the wheat stacks II hooked
like an army was encamped I'm the valley
and that the wheat stacks were thor
tents. The wilderness OF corn was bewr-
dering. Sometimes II was higher than tho
car windows and one could not Sc, be.
yOnd. When the train was n the open
one could see as far as the Salt ForC on
the south. Kildare on the east and tho
rising earth way On beyond the Nardln
and nearly az far as Medford on the
west. The wheat stacks were everywhere
ana So were the thousands upon dhous-
~nds Of acres Of coru. beyond the erect
of possible calamties and nearly ready
for the huskers
After seeing this the Cxcursionlsts were
prepared for the surprising prosperity of
Blackwell, They saw the city. Ike a gem
in the valley far ahead They saw It's
waterworks tower. IFS church spires anl
great central school houcse. They saW
the CLINT of the sun on new shingles and
on new Tin roofs. The SIZE Of BLACKWELL
and the ev donce Of It's thrift would have
bocn astonishing 10 the excurslonlsts II
they had not passed through the valley
that supports the city
The mayor Of Blackwell told "a Beacon
correspondent that there are 3.01j people
IN the city He did not overestmate "a.
ID. $. Rose said that the clty's revenue
was such that II had practically nl l,bts
ana was paying on every JOlisltsn
thu days after IL was made. The COZ, es
p0ndent tried 20 count every neY huHd
ing going up but they were too many and
the day was too hot he went up 20 see
where Colonel Blackwell WaH Fopg 10
put up his new opera house The grluni
was eNc1Yated for the foundation ani no
brick was on hand It win cover q 800
square feet Of ground
A peculiar man 70 this same Colonel
Blackwell His income Ia rents IS $40 a
day. He ia an equalizer When he exca-
waited the ground for HE opera house on
the north side he proceeded 10 equallze
things ana began erecting "a half dozen
buildings on the south side whenever
he sees IN ngs going In one direction. he
looks at the scales ara proceeds TO equal
But n isn't Colonel Bleedwen VII, is
responsible for the great prosperity OF tns
city Of his name. The credit IS due 10 Hin
who made Colonel Blackwell. It's origin
commenced when the waters receded from
the .ral. plains and left na valley Of
| phenominal fertility
A merchant told a Beacon reporter that
one day prevlous the city was so fun Of
TRADERS that he couldn't move. Business
houses were kept open 70 nearly mid
night