Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1899-04-29
RESOURCES OF KANSAS.
flower State-Cotton Mill Mt
Independence.

Independence.
William E. Curtis, In Chicago Record, from Inde-
pendencc. Kas.
The first cotton mill in Kansas is now
being built in this city. The Santa Fe
Railroad Company gave the land, the cit
izens subscribed money to put up brick
building 200 feet long. and Rhode Island
company will furnish plant of modern
machinery for the manufacture of denims
and other coarse cotton fabrics. From
sixty to seventy-fve skilled operatives will
be imported from New England at the
start, and it is expected to increase this
force to 200 hands by educating local labor.
The power will be furnished from the
natural gas wells which are found in all
the towns in this section of Kansas and
flow with enormous force. The cotton will
come from Oklahoma and Indian Terri
tory, where 1t Is produced in quite as
good quality and as economically as in
Arkansas or Tennessee. Some cotton is
produced in the southern counties of Kan
sas also, and the erection of this mill is
expected to encourage that production.
Several large flour mills here and brick
factories are run by natural gas. Bricks
are shipped to Texas. Louisiana and other
Southern states, and one of the companies
is now making contract 10 ship a cargo
to Yucatan. Much of the Kansas -four
goes to Europe. The Topeka mills ship
their, entire output. to Glasgow, where it is
popular because of its strength. 1t has a
darker tint than the Minneapolis flour, and
1t is not so popular in the American mar
kets. but the working people of Great
Britain prefer it because ii is stronger than
they can get anywhere else. Mr.. Page,
one of the Topeka millers, ships 1900 barrels
a day for export.
This is a great hen and egg country. The
Kansas farmer has gone in for diversified
crops much more extensively than his
neighbors in some of the other new states.
iS he nj oil
of putting all of ones eggs in single
basket has been demonstrated beyond a
doubt t., in this state state. as rs half i the farmers ne
learned that single crop was little bet
ter than no crop at all. Therefore diaries
and creameries have been springing up all
dairy products in 1897 was s.. 259. 152. and in
1895 Increased Is per cent to s6.049.552. From
partment the increase for 1899 will be still
greater. ..-
The town of Independence was the home
of the notorious Bender family, who, twen-
ty years ago, on the road to Cherryvale,
enticed travellers into sort of roadhouse
emerged. Guests were usually seated in a
room with their backs to a calico curtain,
and while Kate Bender, the siren, enter
tained them "old man Bender hit them
in the back of the head with a hatchet or
an az When night came the family buried
its victims in the garden and took care of
the travellers teams IN some manner, gen.
orally driving, them over into Indian Ter
ritory, and selling the horses and wagons
for what they could get.
A number Of mysterious disappearances
gave the Bender tavern bad name. and
finally, after a brother of State Senator
York was seen to enter the place and never
appeared again, vigilance committee WIS.,
tied them and advised them to leave the
country within twenty-four hours. The
friends of York were not satisfied with
the report of the committee, and when
the Benders packed up and started on
the Western trail followed them into the
night Nobody knows what happened, but
the popular impression Is that the entire
family was buried in the sand of an ISL
and in the Arkansas river. and its outfit
burned The Benders used to turn UP oc-
casionally in distant places all over tine
country, but they were never satisfactorily
Identified, and several men now living In
Independence know the reason why.
Senator York is the man who defeated