The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1907-02-01
LETTER FROM CHARLES r.
TAGGART.
EDDY, OKLA, JAN. "a, i

Oklahoma certainly has some
interesting features especially for
Yankee. | took a drive this
morning of six miles across fiat
country from Nardin, Oklohoma,
TO this town. No hills here to OBJ
struct the views. The farms are
all of 100 acres each, one quarter
of a square mile, and the farmers
have had such good crops the past
year that cars cannot be procured
to take away the produce. Great
heaps of corn may be seen being
spoiled by the weather because
cover has not been provided. The
soil is rich and black and no fer
tilizer is needed. Great fields
green with winter wheat are seen
everywhere.
| found my train was two hours
late, so | strolled over to the lit
tie town and found a shack with
Lunch Room" printed on the
side and as it was nearly noon |
went in. A good natured middle
aged woman was in attendance,
and orr interview ran thus
"Could 1 get lunch here please?"
"What do you wantw well, have
you any sandwiches ?" 81 haint
got any o'them. Got some pie
though" 'Have you any coffee?"
"Haint got any hot. Make ye some
though" No, don't think [ will
have time. "I'll take a piece of
pie and some cookies and a ban
ana, please" so while | ate, we
talked and watched through the
window for the train which could
be seen a long ways before it
reached the station. [ said, 81
this is one of the new towns that
has sprung up within a few
years." "That's what it is. Had
TO build it all over again a second
time, too" "Why," I said, "How's
that?" "Cyclone." 90, l see."
Did it damage your property?"
Damage it! Do you see that hotel
over yOnder?" | saw the oblong
wooden building she indicated.
"Well, we own that, and it was
blown clean over to the railroad
track (about ten rods and tipped
up on end, and it cost us a hun
dred and fifty dollars to put it
back. We were goin' to build an
other story on it, but we got
scared and put it on the end. You
see it's longer than tits wide"
"Were you in it?" | asked. "Come
mighty near bein' in it. Just had
time to get into the cellar. l got
the money and my watch and
BilPs and shut all the doors in
the house and fastened 'em, and
ran out but the men had to pull
me into the cellar | couldn't
stand, and | wasn't more than in
when off she went right over our
heads" "Why," she said, "There
was couple of young fellows
just put in a stock of over two
thousand dollars worth of goods
in new store and the whole
store, goods and all, was all blown
away even to the foundations"
She saw my ignorance of those
things and said. 81 guess you're
a stranger here amt YEP" l said
yes" Pm from the east" "So'm
|" she said. 'I'm from Illanois."
[ said, "I'm from Vermont" |
don't know whether she knew
where Vermont was or not. She
didn't seem much impressed.
l asked my driver the other day
with whom | was riding, if he
knew where Vermont was, and he
said mo" he thought it was some
where in the east, but he had
never been east farther than Mis-
souri,. | said, "DOes the village
dig a cyclone cellar to use in case
of a Storm" "The villagew
every family has one" We haint
had time to dig one yit, but we are
gOin' to just as soon as we git to
it. 1 said, maybe you will never
have another cyclone" "Maybe
not, but if we don't, it will be a
handy thing to put fruit in"
"We've had some mighty high
water here lately" she continued.
"They had to run two heavy coal
cars on to tn railroad bridge down
here to keep it from washing
away" Quite a scheme | thought.
The little school houses here
and there look neat and trim, not
unlike some of ours in Vermont,
but l miss the fagpole. Perhaps
after Oklahoma has been a state
a while she will adopt this excel
lent custom which will develop
patriotism in the children.
The only mountains to be seen
here are the mountains of wheat
straw which really resemble
peaks when on the hori-
zon. They tell me it is the Gus
tom to burn the straw as soon as
it is threshed, but it seems it isn't
always done.
l have seen only three Indians
as yet, one boy and real brave
with his long braids wound with
green ribbon and tucked down
his coat collar. He didn't look !
a bit with a wide brim-
med SLOUGH hat pulled down to
h ic aorc n ooot with tho SIaovoc