The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1909-10-29
GREETED WITH
LOUD LAUGHTER
Reference to Senator AIdriCh
by James J. Hill.

Billings. Mont, Oct Ex-senator
Ald:iCl Of Rhode Island played the
goat ut the opening session of the
fourth international dry farming con
greSs, for which James j. Hill. wheth
er with intention to that result oil
otherwise Is uncertain. was RESPONSE
Bile. Mr.. Hill. speaking cxtem?nran
eously. started apparently to pay Z
sincere compliment to the Rhode Is
land statesman
THAT great statesman. Senator Al
drich, was the beginning and the
end of Mr.. Hills compliment
The convention hall, crowded to the
donrs with intense dry farmers, with
the flower of Montana womanhood fur
niSning life to the color scheme. broke
into laughter. Mr.. Hills face was a
study. He endeavored to proceed with
his address. lat the laughter complete
ly drowned out his words.
Mr. IIill himself saved the situation
He abandoned any idea he may have
had Of forcing more extended com
pliment of Aldrich on the dry farm
ers He permitted the serious mold
of his countenance to melt, and pres
emily the whole congress, including
Mr. Hill, was INDUCING Itself in what
was probably the heartiest five min
utes of laughter that ever cnliVened
congress of agricuiturists. But ii
was not laughter that Senator Aidrich
would have relished.
Refused to Discuss Incident.
Mr.. Hill later refused to discuss the
incident. bu: the prevailing opinion
among the delegates was that he In
tended the reference TO the high tariff
champion in exactly the manner in
which it was received by the congress.
Mr.. Hills address was the feature
of the congress. With the exception
of the Aldrich remark, every sentl-
,rent advanced by builder of the
Northwest was received with tumult'
uous applause. When he asked the
farmers of the West to remain good
neighbors with the railroads, as the
prosperity of one depended upon the
prosperity of the other, the congress
approved by hand clapping and foot
stamping that amounted to demon
stration. When he asserted that the
future of the nation depended on the
agricultural development of the West.
and that in the near future every
Western state would be the agricul'
tural equal Of any state in any part
Of the Union, the demonstration be-
came so loud that the speaker was
forced to wait for the applause to
quiet. 90
Nine foreign counties. including
Mexico, Chile, Guatemala. Brazil.
South Africa, Hungary. Germany. Rus
STA and Turkey, and every state west
and south of the Missouri river are
represented at the congress. In addi-
ton to the addresses of the experts
on dry farming methods. IN exhibition
of the products of the farming belt
in Montana. Washington and Wyom'
ing arc shown.
Meaning of Dry Farming.
AS explained in the congress, the
meaning of dry farming is the proper
cultivation of the soil in any country
where the average precipitation is
less than twenty-eight or forty inches.
Cne of the first questions that
arose at the congress was the propo.
sition Of remaining it so as to do away
with the "Dry" feature. Howard Ell
hot. president of the Northern Pa
cifc, brought up the subject, and de-
clared that the settlement Of Montana
and other dry farming states was re-
tarded by the fact that Eastern farm
ers feared the DRY" farming feature.
He was followed in general dis
cussion OF the question by James j.
Hill. who strongly advocated name
for the congress that would eliminate
the dry part of it.
Louis w. Hill also spoke In favor
of changing the name of the annual
gathering.
Senator Dixon of Montana described
the congress as the greatest adver
tisenent for Montana that ever oc
Cured. Senator Dixon declared In
favor of retaining the present name OF
the congress.
The entire city of Billings was
thrown Open to the visiting delegates
Aaron Aaronsoiln. from Jerusalem
told Of the dry farming methods no"
being employed in that land.
A letter was read from James VII
son. secretary of agriculture. which
dealt mt some length with the expert
merits being conducted by his experts
in the dry farming belt.
Senator Clapp spoke at length o.
the business relations between Mime
sofa and Montana
SPEAKER CHNN0N To RETIRE