The Washington herald., 1909-06-27
BY JAMES B. MORROW.


I believed" Martin n. Johnson. the
new Senator from North Dakota. had
said. with the we're OF the winds which
have tanned his dark and eager face.
that was permanently out OF politics
and public Office The county seat was
sixteen miles distant. but during the four
years Of my residence in that part OF
the country ] had not been there once,
not even 10 pay my taxes. I stayed on
my land and worked.
"A local newspaper came to my sod
covered house every week One evening
read that a lawyer from somewhere
purposed 10 move into Nelson County and
run for district, or prosecuting, attor-
ney- I was apathetIc and Immediately
forgot the item The week following I
read that the lawyer had found a house
and was living ct Lakota, the county
seat. Still I was Indifferent
But the next morning I plowed in the
tall. harsh grass. turning the earth I'D IN
long. unbroken burrows. as is usual on the
prairies. Like Enech. I was walking with
God, and not running after the devil. as
Is done on Broadway I was barefoot
aud wore a straw hat. a hickory shirt
and ovtralls. but nothing else.
Time for Contemplation.
THE mind or the man at the plow
travels far and fast. and sometimes it
is revolutionary, If he has any mind al
all Many a boy has plotted treason
against the home and the old folks out
there in the fields among the johnny
jump-ups the wild Strawberries. and other
plants and flowers. BY o'clock I had
concluded that Nelson County. when the
unknown and presumptuaus lawyer moved
in. had suffered an unnecessary insult
Before Il was time for dinner I had de-
termined 10 be a candidate myself
Under our Territorial form of govern
ment carpet -baggers had done many evil
things. Bonds had been put out and
they were mortgages on our unfenced
and half-broken farms. A vigorous and
courageous prosecutor was badly needed.
Ny brief note Of announcement greatly
amused the struggling bar and laity Of
Lakota when it was published. A Nor
wegian whom nobody had ever heard OF
wanted 10 be district attorney. II was
altogether probable that he could not
speak the English language. An OK
driver from the wilds was trying 70 break
into public Office. Perhaps he wore a
sheep pelt i'm lieu of breeches. tt was
well that they laughed when they had the
opportunity.
7 had a spring wagon twenty-five
light harness. Ny lines were made Of
binding twine-tolerably safe but rather
woolly. The sUrcingle was rope princi-
pSlly Collar and tugs were big enough
Tor a Norman stallion. even though the
weather-beaten animal 7 drove was
sarcely more than pony. I lacked speed
and had TO proceed carefully. but Wis
tied all the Norwegians IN the county
II IL natural for a foreigner TO believe
that no man would be so heartless or
dishonest as 20 lie 70 him in his own Ian
guage. The NOrwegians looked ar my
tumble-down wagon. at my long-haired
horse. and at my ridiculous harness, and
on hearing my argument promised TO vote
for me. I also called on a good many
Americans
Really Enters Politics.
A week before the convention was
sure Of the nomination. 7 had learned
politics in Iowa from James ". Grimes.
who destroyed himself politically by vot-
inC against the conviction Of Andrew
johnson in the United States Senate.
from John Henry Gear William B. Ali
son. and poor old Dave Henderson. They
played the game with consummate skill.
but they played IL fairly. Well. I was
nominated and elected and renOminated
mixed politics with farming pretty con-
Jinuously
Three years after 7 emerged from the
:all grass in Nelson County-a barbaric
NOrseman, as I had been described. with
gibberish OF broken English. although
as a natter Of fact. 7 was native Of
Wisconsin and had been graduated from
a university in Iowa-I sat well 10 the
front IN the convention which wrote a
constitution for the new State Of North
Dakota. I was chairman Of the commit
tee on corporations. The following year
] took my place in the American House
OF Representatives. serving through four
Congresses, and being a member Of the
Ways and Means Committee which draft
ed the tariff bill that was named after
Nelson Dingley. Yet II I had done some
thing else on that spring morning Of 1856.
other than plOWing in q straw hat hicI-
ory shirt and Overalis. an automatic task
that requires no particular mental effort.
bCt gives the mind liberty to think Of war
and government. as did Cincinn8tus or
TO write poetry as did Robert Burns. I
might have failed 70 realize the insult
that a presumptuous and peripateiic
lawyer had offered Nelson County In
which event I wouldn't be here"
His Trying Experiences.
Tell me-" asked, about your first
experiences in North Dakota
Another Iowa man and myself went
there TO examine the country to find land
on which 20 settle. We travelled in the
spring wagon. OF which 1 have spoken.
carrying plenty Of oats for our horses.
eating prairie chickens, which We cooked
on an alcohol stove. and sleeping on
the prairie We picked up another man
and took him along. After looking at
the country for several hundred miles. we
settled on se.pe government land in the
northeast part Of the Territory. A home
steader. under the law. had to provide
himself with a habitation. We hauled
1000 feet Of lumber from Larimore. the
nearest railroad station, twenty-five niles
away. and built three houses, each Of
which was seven feet wide and nine feet
long.
The next spring returned to my
land. accompanied by my wife and chill
dren. several relatives. and their hired
men. There were eleven men. women.
ard children In my family Mrs. johnson
was a graduate from my old university in
Iowa. and could read Greek and Latin.
everything else that was practical and
womanly I contrived a shelf, ike the
upper berth IN Pullman car. and there
Mrs. Johnson and the caildren slept at
night The rest Of US went TO bed on
the floor. At first we had no door and
wild animals gophers. and so on. came
and went just about as they pleased.
One night a COW got into the house and
frightened the children. After that I tied
= piece Of carpet across the opening we
called a door.
Lived on Frugal Fare.
Two empty nail kegs were used for