The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1904-07-01
FARMER AND THE CAPITAL
Located Where State Off
GERS Can Take Families

"A OFOJOl. Drown County ldrUlcF.
in the Aberdeen Democrat:
The Clark Republic-Courier, a re-
publican paper has to say of repub-
lican state Office holders:
'.Ex-State Auditor Reeves for four
years drew his salary from the state
and showed it down his jeans and
state auditor is playing the same
the people submit to this state of
atfairs?"
| clip the above from the Groton
Herald. | am of the opinion the
answer to this is plain, but do not
think it is in the direction indicated.
The aspirations, if they may be called
such, do not apply alone to Ex-
Auditor Reeves and the present in
cumbent but to nearly all the state
officers. | can think of only two that
have made their homes in Pierre while
holding office. | have frequently
asked the reason, and have invari-
ably been met by this answer, that
they do not wish to take their families
there to live, following their reply
by the reasons, which explanation is
unnecessary to give at the present
time.
1t is enough to know that it is for
reasons that II state officers deem
good and sufficient. For the fifteen
years that the state capital has been
located at Pierre, all our state Off
Gals except one or two, regardless OF
party utilization, have refused to live
at Pierre-which certainly is a mis-
fortune to the people of the state. [
am not going to enter into any elab-
crate discussion as to the merits or
dement's of Pierre for a permanent
capital of the state of South Dakota.
In explanation would say, | have 40
personal interest in either of the as
p~irants for capital honors. Still | be-
lieve our state capital should be To-
Gated in a city of sufficient import
ance to afford educational, social and
commercial advantages to accOmmO-
date all our state officers so they will
not have an excuse to abandon their
duties and leave them to be per-
formed by deputies and clerks.
Such cities should be centrally To-
Gated as to business and population,
on some main thOroughfare where
people to and from the great centers
of could reach it without
SO much inconvenience. But it is
claimed Pierre will be such a city.
To this I cannot agree for the follow
ing reasons: After fifteen years of
probation, Pierre remains the same,
while our state has advanced to the
front rank among western states. All
towns throughout the state have in
creased wonderfully in population
and business: many having been
doubled and some have trebled, but
Pierre remains the same. | am OF
the opinion their business is not as
large as it vas when the Pierre &
Deadwood stage and freight lines ran
out there.
Pierre is the terminus of the G.. &
N. w. r. r.. and has no competitor
for business for 100 miles on the west.
20 miles on the north and south.
With this immense territory, which
the Pierre people claim is fertile land,
and having the further advantage of
being one of the oldest towns in the
state, the state capital, and home of
some of the most astute capital boom
ers in the west, Pierre has made no
material advancement for nearly a
score of years.
There must exist a cause for this
and it must be unsurmountable or
those same shrewd boomers would
have overcome it and made a pros
porous commercial city of Pierre,
which thing they have signally failed
to do. 1t still remains one hundred
and twenty miles west of any main
thoroughfare, and every citizen in the
state, in order to reach the present
capital, must travel over this dis
lance and pay tribute to Huron and
the G.. & N. w. r. r., unless he live
on the line between Huron and Pierre.
Although he may live in the Black
Hills he must travel the line from
Huron t o Pierre.
Has Mitchell any advantages over
Pierre? To this question we must
answer in the affirmative for the
following reasons: First, it is much
easier of access being located on two
main thoroughfares, one running east
and west, one running north and
south, and the Omaha running east
direct to ST. Paul and Minneapolis
and connecting with the Omaha main
line running direct to Chicago en-
abling people to reach it from all
parts of the state, from all directions
and in passing to and from our COM
mercial markets. Mitchell can be
reached without inconvenience be-
cause it is on the main line in the cen
ter of population and business. Sec
ond, Mitchell is one of the substantial.
Aourishing cities of the state. It's
educational advantages are unsur-
passed by any city in the state. Com
mercially it ranks among our first.
It's future is assured whether it sue
ceeds in this contest or not. Our last
reason is: If the capital is located
at Mitchell it forever settles the cap
ital question and our state can make
a home for it's government and it's
officers. The opposition are aware of
this fact, hence the fight in all the
rival towns. AS long as the capital
remains at Pierre, it is a bone of con.