Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1907-04-10
" yHILE convalescing from ty-


lands of southern Mexico, my mind
wanders to my trip there, often
wonder il others would not like to
make one of these imaginary trips
with me- l hope will not tire the
reader with detail, but feel to do
the trip justice would require book
Our company, consisting of Mrs s.
w. Matteson. Miss Lou Hughes. Sum-
ner Matteson. Mrs. Baker, and the
writer left Decorah, Jan. 10Th over
the Milwaukee road. We arrived at
! Davenport at 900 p. M. where my
daughter Joined our party. The fol-
lowing morning finds us in Kansas
City. Max Matteson and Mr.. Lock
of ST. Paul joined us here. We are to
have accommodation in the car of
Mrs. McCumber of Des Moines. lady
who for years has taken excursion par
ties all ever the world. This is her
ninth trip to Mexico.
IL is excursion day and we find our
car will not go until the third section
so we are obliged to wait in the then
more than usually crowded depot.
While waiting and wondering where
all these people are bound, l meet
some with whom l am acquainted !;
they are bound, as they inform me.
more than half of the excursionists,
out into the Panhandle of Texas and
the plains of New Mexico The ad-
vertising of railroads and the labor OF
land agents has lured these people
into that country.
But while have diverged from my
subject, we have crossed Kansas and
are at La Junta, where have notified
my niece and daughter to meet us as
they are on the way to California.
We find them waiting we are wheeled
on to Lama, the junction to Santa Fe,
where our car is sidetracked and the
following morning we are wheeled up
to- SAINT ) Fe Trs,scr~ ~ 's5ng 20 -isis
this place for. We went into the old.
est church in this country, saw a very
pretty capitol, but would say it was
not worth the time. We get back to
Lama and the first train ON the main
line pulls US down to Albuquerque.
Here the pretty adobe depot with its
fine Harvey eating house, accom-
panied with its curio rooms attracts
the tourist. Here we leave our Cali
fornia girls and get an increase of
four California excursionists who join
the McCumber party. We get into
our car and early in the night observe
we are moving.
This is the first time the writer has
travelled over this portion of the Santa
Fe system, and his curiosity awakens
him early. After washing / seat my
self in the smoking room and look
out. We are following near the Rio
Grande; near the stream we see
punches of what / take to be ranch
adobe huts; there are number in a
place, almost forming a village. /
look out ON each side. What is this
desert country good for except to
Craze a few cattle on? As ponder
over the amount of poor country /
have seen my thoughts wander back
to Iowa, it's rich soil, it's healthful
climate, it's abundant rainfall. Far
mers of Iowa, do you know that you
can raise more living with the same
amount of labor on an average Iowa
farm than in any other part of our
country? Do You know that had the
money taken from Iowa farms been
expended at home in improving the
farm surroundings, this would have
been the finest improved farming
country in the world? Do you know
you have earned your money so easy
that you are ready to invest in desert
land, mining stock, Mexican planta.
tions, and a thousand other foolish
things from which you will never
draw dividend? The writer has
travelled in every corner of our broad
land and he feels that he is competent
to give intelligent advice. I have
stopped in my different trips will
many farmers had known as such II
Iowa. and / have yet to find farmer
who owned his farm here and haG
settled elsewhere who had improved
his circumstances, while have stop
ped with those who with tears il
their eyes told of their foolish move
You, farmer. who have your farm
paid for, put your money into com.
forts surrounding you where you
will draw dividend every day it il
the best you will get this side of the
line of heaven. l have again di.
verged but my advice costs nothing
and may set some poor deluded soul
to stop and ponder.
| We are nearing Ell Paso; our train
lis three hours late, the train on the