The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1907-08-29
EDITORIAL COMMENT

new G. N. depot on NeQruO avenue nave CoASu-
cradle cause to complain for the manner that
the Great Northern closes up the street. When
the G. N. secured the consent of the council to
close the street on Nedrud avenue it was with
the understanding that viaduct would be built,
giving them an opportunity of crossing the
tracks. So far no steps have been taken for
this viaduct, and the chances are that this year
will slip by without anything being DONE Ere
quently carriages and wagons are compelled to
wait for an hour at time for the Great North
ern to clear the track. and that company really
considers they are accommodating the people
when they do move their cars few feet to al
low the vehicles to pass There is no other way
drive around about two miles. One man cross
ing the track the .ther evening came within two
inches of being killed. He is a we'll known bust
ness man and his story is as follows: l was
waiting for passenger train to pull out and
was standing on track near by. The wind was
train coming from the east-a work train back
ing towards me. The brakeman afterwards
told me that he cried to me to get off the track.
but the wind was blowing so that l could not
hear him A man standing near by saw my pre-
dicament but was too dumbfounded to speak un-
til just before the train would have struck me-
when he shouted for me to jump off. l did, and
not moment too soon, for the cars went whiz-
ling past me"
Such experiences are frequent, and if some
thing is not done soon there will be accidents
too horrible to contemplate. The railroad has
fare" and really no one has any business cross
ing the tracks at this place, but what are you
going to do? The Great Northern has done
Minot at every turn Of the road, promising us
things that she never intended to do. About the
only thing the Hills have ever done for Minot
thooo fhinoc which ho1no6 tho Hills HIM.
dred times more than they did our citizens.
Those who gave the G. N. their own way here
have done mighty foolish thing-but what's
the use of talking. We've acted like a lot of
school boys-we've been jollied and ought to take
our medicine without making up face, but the
pills hard to swallow nevertheless.
It has been known for some time that the
Minot land office has besn behind with it's
proof-in the neighborhood OF l ,5OO-and it is
getting farther behind right along. Only ff-
teen or twenty proofs can be taken day.
Proofs put in three months ago lie in the office
with no dates set for them-it is necessary for
them to await their turn But it seems that an
Injustice il done the homesteader, for altho he
may have completed his fourteen months resi-
0ence he is not able to leave the land before
proof is completed, and in many cases the
homesteader is required to wait six months or
more after the required time. Cold weather is
coming on, and it .oks as tho many who had
planned on getting thru with their proofs be-
lore the snow flies will have to spend the better
part vi the winter on their claims unless the
general land Office does something to hasten
matters In this case law does not seem tn be
insticr but the law must he enforced. even ii in
oscent parties suffer. The Departm ent Of the
lnterior would hasten matters. but in that
event fraudulent proofs would be more or less
e)myDOn.
The Willi~tO on land Office has made arrange
1neDts with the government whereby those
A,nesteaders residing in Ward county, the part
OF which is in the Winston land district, may,
by paying four dollars extra to pay the cost OF
an extra agent, prove mp at Minot at the court
honae instead OF going to Williston. This fact
has beer known but q short time, yet hundreds
Of applications for proof have been made and
have been set at Nlinot. For one thing, the
WilljetOn land office is thousand or more
proofs behind, and another thing, this method
Of proof will save the homesteaders q great deal
OF trouble and expense. The proofs can be
taken before judge, United States Commits.
sioneT, but not within the county in which the
proofs are to be made, unless that portion OF
the county lies in another land district. This
point OF law is rather fine, but the independent
believes that the homesteaders will have per-
aeet right to prove up in Minot IN this way.
4a3eGG
An action has been set for September 18th
before the supreme court at which the matter
Of tn. railroads of the state complying with the
law regarding family transportation tickets
will be argued. The head of the Great North
ern railway didn't ''beat around the bush"
about the matter at al, be simply stated that
his road positively would not comply with this
section of the law and the other roads have
.eemed r., think the same even il they may not
have made like remarks We fail to see why