Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1909-01-01
SOUTH DAKOTA

WRITTEN BY b. H. TRIP, CANTON, s. d.
Far out in the west where the Fastener knows,
Or believes that the wind continually blows;
Where the blizzard unchecked in its fury and wrath,
Leaves nothing alive in its cold icy path.
Where the grasshoppers eat what is left by the hail,
And snow late in summer lies white on the trail;
A treeless expanse where wild grasses abound;
Where people live mostly in caves in the ground.
The fastener thinks South. Dakota's like this;
In the absence of knowledge there may be bliss;
But here are some facts, may they open his eyes,
And if he will heed them he may become wise.
You'll find us right square in the corn belt my friend,
And of fields and Of cribs Of corn there's no end;
All the granaries are full Of wheat, oats and rye,
And the succulent hay is.stacked mountains high.
Well, as to %hoppers? IL you came here to fish,
And we have them, yes, suckers are as big as you wish,
You'll have to bring bait, for the hoppers have gone
To a land that Is famous In legend and song.
Our homes are palatial where the most of US dwell,
And strange as to you 1t wlll:seem, l will tell,
That orchards Of apples and fruits here abound,
All sheltered by timber that hedge them around.
On the sixth Of November saw pansies in bloom
In our gardens, not In a glass covered room;
And apple trees blossomed like a morning In May;
Spring seemed to be driving old winter away.
"a freak Of Dame Nature well it may be so,
But We who live up here balleve that we know
These freaks Of the Dame, turning winter to spring,
Are settled and fixed as Irregular thing.
With such a magnificent climate and soil,
Our farmers are richly repaid for their toll;
Each farm is a mine where the pillow turns up gold
In %scriptural measure, full one hundred fold.
These men OF the soil are the men of the hour,
While they are not kings, yet they are the power,
In rear OF them; in their presence we stand
With uncovered. heads, for they'er lords OF the land.
Our factories are young, but promise to be
The equal Of those in the states by the sea;
Excelsior is written on the earth and the sky;
Our industrial guns are aimed mighty high.
Than there n m m inoS If SiI vor and ooId w
And fountains of healing that rank as the best,
Flow out Of our hills like a gift from the blest.
We also have rubies and diamonds, as bright
AS ever Golconda revealed to the light;
10 US they are worth more than all of the rest,
They'er our girls and our boys, we love them the best.
10 polish these rubies and diamonds with care,
We build many houses, no labor we spare;
The competent, only our school board employs
10 polish our treasures, our girls and our boys.
'And what can you say of your teachers? we'll now
l am frank to confess, 1 do not know how
To find words with which in a line to compress
The worth OF our teachers, words can not express.
But sure as a state we excell in all things,
So our teachers excel, and only lack wings
To soar to the realms of glory and song
May their wings be delayed, their stay with us long.
The church, like its founder, is striving to gain
A conquest of peace on the spiritual plain
The Christ of the past is the Christ that shall come;
His Kingdom in heaven and earth shall be one.
The professional class stand high in their sphere
And deserve all the praise that is given them here:
To each your attention Is now briefly called
We wish we had genius each class to extoll.
Our attorneys at law stand high as a class,
And deservedly so, for do they not pass
Through a fiery furnace? the laws stern demand,
And the folly Of men on the other hand?
Our surgeons are men Of learning and skill,
In giving relief to the suffering and i'll;
In tying an artery, or setting a bone
Their skill is perfection, ~unequaled by none.
The men who are printing the news for this state,
Are men who must move at a very fast rate;
To keep within sight and in touch Of events,
They spare neither labor or time nor expense.
In conclusion I'll say to those who may read
These lines that I've written, no merit I plead.
The theme is inspiring, my duty is done,
South Dakota,S all r1ohf. Sha,s A nnmhar ona -