Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1905-12-26
A KANSAS TRAVELLER,
A Recent Trottcr Through That Vale
OF Fever N Agor Gets Some Sur
priaing Information.

smith would hardly be called much Of
% traveller in these globctrotting days,
for 900 miles from $50, Louis Be- The cN.
trrmc limit Of his wanjcrings, and he
never departs Far from tho regular
beaten routes. But he has a way Of see
ing things that other people would
overlook. n sort Of digging out big facts
from an Ter small indir1tionsi nud whnt
hr sees be- remembers aud can toll about
4 little while hack business took b m
down tho Iron Mountain railroad and
held aim at Newport over Sundnp, and
Instead ~ ioafing around the hotel
Office, as respectable travelling man iu
supposed 90 do, especially Ia Arkansas,
he caught a morning train for short
run further down tho road, anl then
took 10 tho woods. Smith said Il was
just six jumps from The lepot 90 tall
timber but this Is probably Incorrect
During the long years when nll Iron
Mountain locomotives were wood burn
crs the heft of the hig timber was cut
within "toting" distance of the tra-k
Besides, there IL an indufement 90
clear. and cultivate tho adjacent land,
since tho railroad company builds one
string Of fence. But 20 Is best 90 let
Smith tell the story In his own way,
'i offered q hoy go cents 20 walk
around with me ana show me- tue eoun-
try hut his father volunteered in his
place, with the stipulation that
shouldn't let IL be- known that he hal
worked on the sabbath. Mind YOU,
this was in Arkansas-prououneed Ike
the last letter was "A "w." / hal half
expected 10 find IL a lawless wilderness,
but they have legislation there 20 keep
a man in the straight and narrow path,
ami the statutes are an enforced. / told
the Oh man / would give aim a quarter
more II he would talk steadily an the
time We were out. which was the same
as throwing good money away for he
would have knocked 80 per cent on the
first mentioned figure for Just that priv
ilege, Tie liked 90 talk, ana he knew
now. Stop the first forty men passing
the corner of Broadway AMI Olive
streets, and the chances are that not
one of the gang could match him with
general information and good, hard.
sense. ann smart enough along a few
special lines-form and forest products
have brought me the biggest part Of
nay present bank accouut-but ne could
teach me tricks i'm my own trade and
hen branch on 20 fortv other subjects
giving facts ana figures that would con
vince a deaf ana dumb man.
- ate dinner at ais home on the
bank Of White river, There was neither
silver, china nor glassware on the table.
but the tin plates and cups nad been
washed in hot sOapsuds and thoroughly
r need, for that was my own part of the
Job There was only one room I'm the
house, about 10 feet wide one way, but
the limit was on as TO length. You see.
the front wall was lacking, aud if toe
occupant felt crowded al any time he
had the circumference of the earth 10
spread over. There are plentv of big
tarmhouses down that way but IL struck
me that they suffered I'm comparison in
point Of hoor space. We hal two kinds
Of meat and three Of fisn, an procured
free of cost within shouting distance
Of where We enjoyed them; butter and
milk from a cow that never cost her
owner cent for grain or pasturage; in
fact, the only expensive luxury on the
table was corn bread Ny host sai a
that corn cost him 65 cents a bushel
and was rarely cheaper in that country.
though the average land in that vicinity
would yield 80 or 40 bushels 10 the
acre. The same land would. one wear
with another, make from three-fourths
70 a bale of cotton. Take it as il runs.
IN ITS Wild state, this land could be hal