The Topeka state journal., 1903-06-27


The people of North Topeka. and the
river valleys that were flooded, may
find something to cheer them in the
true story of the Old Settler.
This Old Settler lives in Topeka. He
is an old man and his hair is white
He came to Kansas in the latter fiftiss.
a young man then, full of the hope of
success that was kindled in the hearts
oned stories sent about by the first
press agents who ever doomed KAN
sas. That there was any chance for
failure never occurred to the Old Set
tier, who was pioneer then and who
was to lend his life and energy N
pushing the ever advancing frontier
The Old Settler went down the Ohio
river, UP the Mississippi and Missouri
10 Westport, and walked to Lawrence
With man who was later to be a gov
ernor of Kansas. The Old Settler was
a free state man and that meant. in
those days. that his life would be full
OF trouble. In fact, it meant that no
matter which side he was on 1t was
q strenuous time that he had for some
Years.
Then the Old Settler took IN a home.
stead. Everything looked good to him.
He could not help but succeed with 169
acres of fertile Kansas land. The land
mad to be improved and the govern
-AASAAe ACC WdS 10 De pdlQ. II was quite
a struggle for a few years for the
young farmer.
The first blow came in 1860; the year
OF the big drought when everything in
hansas shrlveled up and the state had
70 can upon the east for aid That was
the year that S. c. Pomeroy# was given
the nickname of seed Corn Pomerov
because OF the seed corn he distributed
Everyone -, IN Kansas had to have aid
All that the Old Settler, then the Young
settler, had was his farm with nothing
on II out his house and barn But the
Old settler was not to be diScOura geA
he Dlowed little deeper the next
spring and put in his crops and gave
them even more attention than before
The Old Settler didn't know it but he
was only getting things ready for an
other drought, that of 1864. That wear
Jhefe was nothing but ruin He could
follow row of corn across an so acre
neld and get nothing but one nubbin
fotatoes were worth SO a bushel and
the Ola Settler had neither potatoes nor
dollars All he had was courage
he did not desert. He STAYED by the
farm and got ready for the first visit
OF the grasshoppers in 1866. That year
the hoppers only damaged the corn, they
didn take it ALL and they could not
blight the courage and determination Of
the Old Settler.
He was still in the ring and during
the few good years that followed he
prospered- He made himself snug Just
in time for the drought of 1874 to wipe
out every spear of grass and all the
crops he had. It was a blow. but the
Old Settler rallied. Like the saying of
the people from Hoop Pole township IN
DIANA the Old Settler lived through the
winter to almost die in the spring"
For the next year. the terrible grass
hopper year of 1875, everything he had
was swept away. He couldn't even paw
taxes, and taxes were less than they are
now. Since then he has suffered other
droughts but to him they were insig-
nificant compared with the dry spells of
the early days
But droughts were not his only trou-
bles. He went into the hardware bust
ness A fire destroyed the store and
stock. He managed to recuperate, with
the assistance of friends. only to be
/ burned out again and TO lose all that he
/ had put into the business and some
money that others had invested in the
store.
Then he went into the stock raising
/ business and prospered for a time until
there was a shortage of crops. the bot
/ tom fell out of the market. the cattle
died and he lost all. Not thing was
/ left but the homestead he had taken. He
still had that.
This same homestead was IN the flooded
district OF the Kaw valley near North To
peka. the Old Settler went cut to see il
after the flood water subsidcd The farm
/ had been totally submerged but it was
not injured in the least, except that there
was a little sand left on a half acre ir
I one corner.
THE Lord was good to me, said the OLD
/ Settler He let me off this time without
! injury and I can well afford the setbacks
of my youth for now in my old ge wher
a calamity might be too much for me tc
recover from, [ am one of the blest, for
my farm is uninjured and 1 am truly
/ grateful"
The Old Settler has gone through many
calamities in his day Reverses have
come to him He has lost and he has re-
gained. More than once he lost his all Il
he could survive one calamity after an
/ other one failure and then another, car
not the people of the flooded districts sur
vive one flood2 They may take heart, fol
there is sermon in the story of the Olc
4 Settler individually, this flood has beer
no more severe upon the people than were
several scourges that the Old Settler wenf
/ through only to rise. stronger and more de
/ termined than ever