The Springdale news., 1909-01-01
LIFE IN
 THE WEST, W. R. Hoole Writes of His Jour. ney From Kansas to
 New Mexico.


 Agreeable to our promise to your many readers to give them description of the country through which we passed as we'll as of this particular locality, I will say that despite the urgent request of state wide politicians for us to remain at Greensburg, Kan, and oversee the election at that place, we packed our knap- sack, haverSack, and horn, but 1t was graphophone horn, and boarded the Rock Island train headed toward the land of the setting sun. We left Greens burg with many regrets, as it is a nice, sociable, law abiding town and during our short stay there we made many aequaint- ances that we were loath to leave. The train was the local, which gave us an opportunity to converse with the farmers along the line and the following are about the deductions we were able to make from the pointers given Us by Johnny on the spot people, who ought to be the best authority.
 After leaving Greensburg we enter long level stretch of open prairie land, dotted here and there with farm houses, barns, corn fields, etc, which appeared to be the homes of thrifty, we'll to-do agriculturalists, but be- fore We had added hundred miles to our travelogue the scene seemed to shift and houses grow less in size and appearance, corn fields seemed to dwindle into dwarf cane crops, and the prairie took on the familiar appearance as of yore, with little but dried Buffalo grass as far as the eye could see. But in the place of farms, we found the prairie well stocked with herds of cattle roaming at will. We enquired here and there at the towns along the line and found a variety of opinions as to the country. Those who had land for sale were posl- tive that no better farming country existed on the face of the earth, while those who had sold out were equally as positive that nothing could live on those bleak prairies except crumply- horned steer or long cared jack rabbit, but taking disinterested view after hearing all the ex- pressious of the spot fellows, and the appearance of last years crops and the statistics given us by the K. K. Co.,, We have arriv- ed at this conclusion, that the man who has got a good farm in the old rock-ribbed Democratic state of Arkansas had better hang onto 1t awhile yet, eat three meals day in a good year and pitch horseshoes or play mumbly- peg to forget his three meals on off years, than to trade his farm : there for an element of absolute l uncertainty, for not one, but per- haps many succeeding years, out , in all that territory that lies west of the center of the state of Kan : sas.
 f We were favored with daylight l ito view the land' through DOT tions of three states, Kansas, : Oklahoma and Texas. Crossing the border line of Kansas into ] Oklahoma we could see but little g difference in the climate, soil, f topography of the country or the e people. If anything Oklahoma l has little the best of a compari. l son between 1t and western Kan. d sas. While the land did not ap- : pear any more productive in the S new state 1t was much more t densely populated, owing prob n ably to the excitement created IT S the race for claims at the open s,,cr of fl,a forr,{nrx- yNa fn.,,J