Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1905-08-03
GREAT IS AUDRAIN.
So Writes a Correspondent in the
Chicago Drovers Journal.
[sPE cIAL CORRESPONDENCE

] l9A y NAhlA AVhhEfHl' D4N lIENA T.
Mexico, Mo- have often
thought that had the Pilgrim ia.
theirs sailed up h . Mississippi
river and discovered Missouri in.
stead of landing at Plymouth rock
the New England states would
still be unsettled" This remark
made to the writer by a prominent
citizen of Mexico, Mo-, as we
drove through the broad prairie
lands of Audrain county, is typical
ofwhdt the progressive Missourian
thinks Of his state, and after a care
ful survey of resources and cOndi-
tons as | found them in the sec.
ton surrounding the thriving town
Of Mexico | am inclined to agree
with the statement.
The majority Of people do not
realize the greatness of Missouri or
its wonderful agricultural and live
stock possibilities. There is no
question but what in days gone by
a prejudice born of ignorance has
existed against this great common.
wealth and it has been looked up.
on by a majority of outsiders as a
country the only products of which
were negroes and mules. This is all
wrong. Missouri is the great agri-
cultural and live stock state in all
the fact implies, and nowhere is
this fact more apparent than in
Audrain county, of which Mexic o
is the county seat.
Situated on the divide between
the Mississippi and Missouri riv.
ers, all high, gently rolling prairie
land, with n soil adapted to the
profitable production of corn, oats,
wheat, rye, barley, flax, timothy,
clover and other artificial grasses,
and with bluegrass pastures that
are ahead of the much Wanted
bluegrass fields of Kentucky, with
fine schools, numerous churches
ample railroad facilities, it may
readily and safely be looked upon
as one of the best agricultural sec
tons of the country, and one that
is bound to go forward very rapid.
ly rs the many advantages become
better known to the outside world.
They produce corn in this coun
ty Of Il size and quality and in
quantities that may well cause the
corn raisers in Illinois and Iowa to
look to their laurcls. At t h t
Omaha expOsitian Audrain county
corn secured first prize for the
be t one half bushel exhibition,
while at the great st. Louis eXpOsi
ton last year the blue ribbon for
the best bushel of corn on eXhib-
itiOn was carried off by a man
from Audrain. AS an evidence Of
what farms will produce in corn,
let me cite the case of Chas. Dean, |
Il progressive farmer from Illinois, |
who settled in this section Il few
years ago: On 100 acres of land,
five miles southwest of Mexico, corn |
averaged 90 per acre, while l2O |
acres close by averaged 50 bushels
Ninety. eight acres of his land in
another section of the county av-
craged Gj bushels while seventy
acres in still another section aver.
aged til" same amount. Mr.. Dea n
is bat one of many farmers who
have come into this section from
illinois and Iowa and secured won.
dcriul results from the proper till
ing of the soil. The old native Mis-
sOurian did his farming in half
hearted rt Of way, content to let
things move along with as little
effort as possible, not realizing the
wonderful possibilities at his door,
but the farmers who have come in
from outside states within the past
few years and with their advanced
methods of farming caused this
section to bear great fruitage have
opened the eyes of the native Mis-
sourians to the wealth they did
not know they had.
To the farmer with moderate
means wishing to secure a farm
and home Audrain county presents
many advantages. Not only can
land be secured at a reasonable fig
ure, but every possible advantage
that can be found in Illinois and
Iowa localities is here. The coun-