Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-09-29

| the time we reached Parsons, Kan, We
lbad become accustomed to our home
| on wheels and were travelling as one
large happy family. From PARSONS on
| we traversed Kansas the sunnoWer
state in the night, and when morning
opened We were at the threshold OF
| Oklahoma Territory. i'll the lttle town
| of Usage where we breaKlaSted ana
got our first general idea of the terri
tory, or in the language OF me red
Imam beautiful lard" and the Indians
have set the white man hard stunt To
Improve upon the name. For Okla
bona. as the Indian name implies, is
beautiful land" and we saw II at its
hest.
Miles upon miles of tillase land, the
wheat and corn waving III the breeze.
the Young orchards in fruit, foretold
what the harvest would be. Well
wooded and watered tracts all inn
pressed US with Okiahoma's natural
lrcsources, and her possibilities. Okla
Ihoma's development has 0een remark
able. Sixteen wears ago this was the
he'd mans country wild and undcvel-
Hoped Today, it is a garden spot.
where the whit, man rules supreme.
land the hardshirs and privatioms the
| first settlers suffered III bringing order
out Of chaos are but Il dream. State
hood. tie pleading cry from every citi-
zen in The territory. and il is just that
she should have it. will do more for
| the development of the prolific country
than any gift that the wise Father at
Washington could grant. Il viii give
| an impetus to the growth Of these new
the most enthusiastic boomer. III"
statehood ball is rolling. and it is
practically certain thai oklahoma anG
her sister territory Will soon receive
their statehood garments. and Guthrie.
the land of the fair God, will undoubt-
eddy De chosen as the capital city. Lei
lus hope so.
| Iii 1880 the United States census
| showed oklahoma to have 81, S34 in
| ha bitahts. The census Of 1900 showed
that the Territory had Il population of
39S, 81. making the remarkable gain of
81 per cent i'll Il decade. As shown by
| the assessors returns for 1902, the
| population was 541 $50. Il gain over 1901
o. l43.1 o. nearly IS per cent. This
shows clearly what Il rush there is for
lands in the new country. Still. it
doesn't mean that the residents of
Oklahoma are at all crowded for elbow
room yet The last enumeration indi-
Gates only an average Of fourteen per-
sons Ia the square mile. on IN area of
IS $50 square miles.
TE- country which we 1raverScd for
the most part consisted of rolling
| Jrdi!i,s. There was considerable TIM
Der land though rot of very heavy
growth. Practically every square mile
Of the district is tillable. Very little Of
the land is so cut up or so rough rs To
De unavailable for farming. Corn,
wheat. potatoes. cotton, alfalfa, apples,
peaches. grapes and all kinds of berries
are successfully cultivated. There is
not 4 crop produced in the temperate
Zolt which will not thrive in this dis
tricl and in the case of many of them
the returns are unsurpassed in any
lquarter. Northward wheat and corn
are the dominant crops; but side BY
side with them the planter gets good
returns from cotton, a southern plant.
But ii any point along the line this
staple can he cultivated with profit.
| Oklahoma cities and towns are a rev
ieIatio,. Here are Il few statistics on
lGuthrin. Guthric is IL years old and
has Il population of $4,000; altitude. 49,
feet; 8 lines OF railroad, four banks
with 4 total deposit of $4,000. 900; TWO
daily newspapers and eight WeeklieS;
Masonic Temple worth $4,000; a city
lhdll worth $4,000; public library we'll
equipped with the best literature and
worth $4,000; Il government building
under construction worth s150.0oo; six
miles of well paved streets: sanitary
sewerage system worth $4,000; IL per
feet water works system costing Sl30-
600; $l50,0o0 gas plant; $350,cOo cleo
tr;c plant: two telephone systems sew
eral banks, Il union station that cost
$l00, 900: federal jail, hospitals, etc.
Guthrie has just started in oman elab
crate park system under the personal
lsaporvision of DR.. Morse. a rising
lyoung physician fom New York STATE.
who has east his lot in the West. Th'
doctor has pat in an immense amour,
OF work. and has the corporation of
the leading citizens: some Of the best
landscape engineers in the country
h.iv, been consulted ana have sub
mittrG plans covering the proposed en-
tire park system. and it is only Il qucs
4
visitors into as fine L system of parks
as any city Of Ter size in the southWes,
ana Il system that will put to blush
many an OLDER and larger city.
| our entry into Guthrie was an ova
Itioan. The city and its people re
Iceved the party with open arms.
lcommittec from the Commercial clul
boarded the train at the junction. pre-
Isented US with very pretty badges an'
IarIanged for our comfort during on
Istay Upon the arrival of our spccia
lat the Union station. carriages We're il
waiting to convey us Ia our home.
lsay "our home" in the broadcast sens
of the word, for every home in tina
beautiful city was thrown open to US
There was feeling of home-likc wei
come iii the air Of Guthrie unmistaka
BILE. even the whistles and bells rams
lieut. with glad welcome, and the simple
fact t1at this little 16-year- old city il
Ithe heart Of the Southwest received III