Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1904-07-15
oAnToN SOUTH DAKOTA. FRIDAY. JULY Is 1904

SOUTH DAKOTA. FRIDAY. \
town lot boomers went back in tn
country for miles and bought 40 AM
8O.acre tracts Of - and $3.an.acre land
laid out addition after addition to tn
town Of Pierre and East Pierre in 20
foot.front lots and thousands upor
thousands Of these lots were given away
to men who would work or agree tt
vote for Pierre for capital. These lott
were scattered all over Hughes county
some in the St. Louis addition, thu
Chicago or Milwaukee addition and
some Of them in the Woonsocket Cspi
tai Investment Company's addition
down near the Missouri river south Of
the Indian school. A book af 200 pages
might be written giving facts how these
Pierre town lot boomers swindled
thousands of men ont of money. The
present governor Of Wisconsin and his
law partners bought eight of these 30.
foot lots north Of the East Pierre Rail.
ROAD depot, paying nearly $S,OOO for
which few years later we're permitted
to revert back to the city OF county fol
taxes. because there was no selling
value for them: Out Of all this Pierre
boom and Pierre pledges Of fourteen
years ago she has never redeemed one
oS the pledges, to the shame Of this
young state Pierre never built the
railroads promised to Washington
Springs, Gam Valley. Mt Vernon,
Plankington, Letcher. Parkston. Mitch.
ell, Woonsocket, Howard, Lennox,
Alexandria, Bridgewater. Parker.
Sioux Falls, Salem, Oneida. Orient.
Faulkton. Rockham, Merauds, Zell.
Worthwhile, Red6eld, Mellette, Mans
field, Warner, Aberdeen. Rapid City,
sturgis. Buffalo Cap. Custer, Ho,
Springs, Whitewood. Deadwood, Lead
OF spearfish.
No other promise made by Pierre
fourteen years ago has been kept. The
men who bought town lots for cash or
with their votes either have them yet OF
they have been sold and re.sold for
taxes,
$4,000 BACK RAxEs.
Today Pierre ows the state $40. 900
back and unpain taxes. The men who
bought lots near the street railway
have seen the tracks torn mp and the
ties burned for fuel and the iron sold to
scrap iron buyers. The East Pierre
railway station has long since been.
closed. the East Pierre postofice has
been abandoned, the college has gone to
Huron, the Wells house has beer closed
for years, the East Pierre stores and
most of the resinences have been torn
down and moved away. residences have
been sold at half OF one.third original
cost. The Woonsocket Capital Invest
ment Company nearly all went broke.
One Of their board Of directors had to
skip the state to avoid the pen, another
of them went broke with his bank at
Armour and lives on cattle ranch
near Pierre. which the 1000 suckers
who each bought and paid for share
Of Woonsocket capital Investment stock
at $5 apiece.
! But the real town lot and Pierre
capital boomers Of fourteen years ago,
whore are .heys Billy Wells and Jim
Ward. who promised 80 much, went to
Huntsville. Alabama, and bought some
cheap land . couple miles ont Of the
city and built another street car line
and are booming the west addition to
Huntsville, but recently Billy Wells
passed over the great divide and has
left Ward to skin the Alabama suckers.
Welman started . national bank there
ont Of the clean up he made at Pierre
from the sucker voters of this state.
TO STAND PAT.
A few Of the original town lot boom.
ers are still at Pierre telling the people
Of the state Ito stand pat" and keep the
capital there until they can unload
some more of those 2O.foot gumbo lots,
and procure a few more gas wells, that
produce hot water, and stand pat"
until they can open up their cement
mines, and pay the state the go. 900
back taxes, or the interest on the half
million bonds that are delinquent
Where are the 1900 men who paid
the, Woonsocket capital investment
ss5, 900 for the privilege of voting for
Pierre fourteen years ago? Are any Of
them standing pat" this year2 Not
one Of the original suckers who bou ght
the stock is standing pat" Only .
few Of the board of directors among
whom are N. b Reed, of Woonsocket,
and George Lumley. of cattle ranch
fame at Pierre, and they hope to unload
! few of their gumbo lots three miles
out from the wooden capitol building
that has 60 rapidly increased the value
Of property at Pierre the past fourteen
years.
GOOD LIVE STOCK COUNTRY.
Pierre is located in good live stock
country that has q railroad on the east
.ide of the cattle range and another one