Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1907-06-28
They Did Not Like 1t.

was a Dig crowd III town that Is not
to be denied but besides the Presi-
dent, Rev. Conklin and Gus FOwles
there were none of the other officers
present and at the carrying out of
the program few people were present
and almost all of these piked out as
soon as the information came that
the races were going to be pulled Off,
and only handful of the old timers
remained to wind up the program.
Gus FowleS was toastmaSter but bless
you, the genial Gus was not himself,
for he got reckless last week shed his
winter tlannelS. caught an awful cold
and could hardly talk even in whisp-
er, so his job as toaStmaSter was cut
out and there were no toats.
Mayor Gemmill, Judge Cuthbert
and President Hawn made fine
speeches while Bro. Linn's Grafton
was the finest without question ever
listened to by the old settlers of the
county, but only handful of people
remained at the exercises to hear it.
1t was shame.
AS a field day or premature
Fourth of July celebration Friday
was great success in Canton, but as
an Old Settlers Picnic it was miser-
able failure. That is what Canton
gets hogging everything. She has
nailed the annual picnic for all time
to come instead of passing it around,
as was formerly the custom. There
are six towns in the county and every
one has always shown the old settlers
better time than Canton has shown
them in the last two years. When
they had the picnic here everyone had
good time, out at Lenn0X, up at
Worthing everywhere where it has
ever been held the people were there
in bigger crowds than at Canton this
year. and they all had fine time,
but when the matter of selecting a
yearly meeting place was discussed
Canton knocked US all, and we were
reliably informed that people up there
said that Hudson was not fit place
to have an old settlers picnic anyway,
Harrisburg was too far in the woods,
Lennox was too free with its booze
and Fairview and Worthing were too
inconsequental to consider and there
you are. SANITY Canton got the
picnic. But we have heard it freely
said down here that there would be a
larger attendance were the picnic
held at different places in the county
every year. We are not knocking
Canton. We(are only echoing some
of the disgust we have heard express
ed at the way the picnic and the pro-
gram this year were pulled off at the
county seat. The officers elected were
President, J. P. Hawn: Vice-PeesiVent
Edgar Dean: Secretary, Asa Forrest
Jr.; Treasurer, ThoS. ThorSon. The
old executive committee was retain
ed.
Our good brother down at Hudson
is little off on some matters con-
nected with Old Settlers Day. In the
first place an audience estimated at
fifteen hundred assembled in the aud
itorium and remained until the en-
tire program was finished with the
exception of the election of officers,
and that is part in which the crowd
never takes part. Everyone in the
auditorium seemed to be we'll pleased
and the young people who love ball
game or likes to see a ''hoss' race, do
not attend the regulation program.
They are out for sport and fun.
The writer heard great many say
that it was the best Old Settlers cele-
bration ever held in the county; and
we are of that opinion. Nowhere in
the county could seats have been pro-
vided for half of the crowd in the aud
itorium and no bowery ever built
could have given the comfort and
pleasure that the auditorium did.
The auditorium part of the program
was delightfully."- pleasant. The Presi-
dent of the Association was present
and performed his duty gracefully
and pleasantly. Secretary Forrest
was unavoidably absent rusticat-
ing climbing glaciers in Norway.
swimming fiords and eating CANINE
lost bytimes, but an able and pleasant
native of the county was present as
substituted and none are more compet-
ent than Charles L. Kundert.
1t so happened, Brother Shaber,
that weather conditions kept good
many old settlers away, because the
day was fair and fast growing weeds
in the corn rows needed cleaning out,
but nevertheless we saw good many
genuine old settlers present and any
scarcity of old settlers was more than
made up by their wives and handsome
daughters, and you should be gall ant
enough to recognize the fact that the
wives of the old settlers constituted
an element that made it possible for
the early settlers to live in a new
country.
The editor of the Hudsonite is evid-
emily not familiar with the trials and
troubles which beset the old settlers
in providing for the annual meeting
until they got a permanent home.
Every town in the county had the ex-
perience Of providing for the annual
meeting until the old settlers began
to get disgusted with the temporary
meeting places provided at large ex-
pense and great amount of work.
None refused the task but it was a
big undertaking for any town to pro-
vide necessary accommodations, and
even Canton has no place outside the
auditorium, where big crowd can
find seats and comfort, therefore our
Hudson critic is entirely wrong in his
claim that Canton was "hogging"
anything. The old settlers them
selves decided where they wanted the
annual meetings to be held. Canton
had no more to do with 1t than Hud-
son. Worthinp, LennoX, Fairview or