Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1904-05-26

A railroad from Pierre to the Black
Hills will make Pierre a much more
accessible point than Mitchell. A
road to the Black Hills would mean
much to Day county people and in
fact to all the people of this end OF
the state, more than a road from
any other point. The reason for
this is that the people of Pierre have
already purchased the right of way
and graded a roadbed from the
capital city nearly to Aberdeen.
This road was graded in the early
nineties with the understanding that
it would ironed and operated by the
Northern Pacific company, but about
the time the grade was completed
the Northern Pacific went into the
hands Of a receiver and building
operations were at a standstill.
Then followed the years of hard
times throughout the country when
very little railroad building was
done anywhere and especially in
South Dakota. But times have
changed and with a road to the Hills
there is not a railroad that now
makes the City of Aberdeen that
would not give a handsome price for
the grade owned by Pierre and iron
and operate the same at once. This
railroad connection would bring
Pierre as close to the northeastern
part of the state in railroad connec-
ton az Mitchell now is. The build
of this road would also give the
counties of the northeastern part of
the state the closest possible rail
road connection with the Black
Hills. This railroad to the Hills
country would mean a good market
for our farm produce that is now
supplied by Iowa, Nebraska and
Kansas, and would bring to us in
return cheap lumber and fuel. Two
things very much to be desired by
people living up the prairies of
northeastern South Dakota.
This matter of accessibility is a
good deal of a josh any how when
sprung on us people. A person can
leave any point on the Hastings and
Dakota branch of the Milwaukee
and any point on the Northwestern
line north of Huron on the morning
of any day and arrive that afternoon
at Pierre. And this story about
having to remain over night is GER
tainly a little fshy. How many
people will visit the state capital
or any other city on business or
pleasure and expect to complete
their visit no matter what it's object
in less than one day?
Speaking of a business proposition
we take the following from the
Pierre Dakotan relative to the pub
lie lands of the state:
The party most interested in the
material development of the western
and northern central portions of our
itself, as the far greatest
owner of real property in these
sections.
In the counties west of Pierre,
across the Missouri river, the state
owns 202,237.O9 acres of endow-
ment lands and 10000 acres of
school indemnity lands on the
Development and future value of
which the future support Of all our
institutions depend, if we are
ever to be relieved from the present
burdens of taxation for their
support.
In the ten counties situated west
Of Beadle county and east and north
Of Hughes county in which Pierre
is situated, the state owns 396, 573.31
acres of endowment lands and
o7,221.O7 acres of school indemnity
in all of which the whole
of the state are in like
manner interested.
While the state owns 96,031.47
acres of such lands in districts
directly benefited by the retention
Of the capital at Pierre, we find that
the twenty-one counties situated
from Hughes county
from the northwest cornor Of
Buffalo county east to the Mime
sofa line and south to the Nebraska
line and Sioux City-the state of
South Dakota owns only 1913 acres