The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1907-02-21
Olko1AN VISITS the
Fan HANDLE TEXAS

the Mosquitoes and Flies, I'm.
pleasant Odors, Scrawny Cat.
!. tie and Grass an IDch High.
Iowa Falls, Ia, Feb. IL, 1907.
Ward County Independent.
Minot, North Dakota.
Dear Sir::-I am certainly pleased
with the article in your paper of
Feb. 9TH, when you say Stand
by the good old state l am
one of the number that North
Dakota has made Independent
in life, and no other state seemed
to offer the same inducements,
and if thought that there was
another state that offered better
inducements today than North
Dakota l would not be slow in
making my views known to my
friends.
NY home is at Portal, North
Dakota, where I lived 6 years,
and every time that am out Of
the borders of North Dakota,
that good old state looks better
every time / get back home. Diff
ferent from great many, l ex-
pected to keep my permanent
residence there, and that think
that all the stronger now, is put
ting it mild, for l have just re-
turned from an extended trip to
see the Pan Handle Texas, and ]
never saw as poor a country in
my life. They have not a cattle
country there and where a nu-
tritious grass will not grow,
crops will not grow successfully.
Their cattle are poor and scraw-
ny, and the prairie was covered
with carcasses. The grass is not
over an inch high at the best,
and no signs Of a prairie fire.
That grass does not grow high
enough so that the railroads do
not burn their rightaways. l
came back to Mulvane, Kansas.
and went down through central
Texas as far as Galveston, and
stopped off at some towns that I
wished that I had not stopped at,
Fl. Worth for instance, and the
most unpleasant oder filled the
air. I asked several what in h
it was that stunk so and they
said that they had not noticed
anything, but finally a travelling
man told me that the Mexicans
were burning something in their
fireplaces. asked him if he
thought. they would keep it upall
day, and he did not know but ]
took an interurban car for Dali
las, and there found a more
pleasant atmosphere. l had a
friend there, who is an M. D.
and I took dinner with him, and
he is doing well. He was called
to the phone several times and l
would hear him say to double
that quinine each dose, and if
the fever and chills were not
broken by the next day, to let
him know. At Houston / awoke
with the mosquitoes squealing at
my ears. That was nothing new
for in my shack at Portal, that
same thing had happened before,
but a good feeling came over me
for that North Dakota home that
the pests were not there the year
around anyway, and the flies were
bothering me most all that day,
when in the afternoon by 4
O'Clock / was wearing my fur
lined overcoat, and I would have
frozen if my good wife had not
urged me to take my overcoat
along. / never heard so much
coughing, hooking and splitting
in my life.
One southerner asked me what
[ we people in North Dakota
thought of the race question. |
| told him that we did not think
but very little about it, as it was
the least Of our troubles, that the
great loads Of wheat, oats and
fax that came to town were too
Interesting, and if they ever got
|enough railroads in the state to
lhaul out the great crops that
lwere raised there, was a matter
lof much more interest, that l
Icould not see any inducements
flor me to live where the black
Trace outnumbered the whites. !
lam quite fortunate in one way,
las this winter in Iowa is mild,
Ilbut / do want to say that when
/ lone lives in North Dakota as
Hong as l have, there is some
Vthing there in that climate that
8iwe have not got here, in the way
\ of good breathing, and when you
lind a place that one has more
q c0mfOrtable DAYS in year than