The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1910-02-25
THE NEGRO IN THE ROSEBUD.
Gregory County CoIored Man Advises
His Race to Come West and Farm.

Gregory, S. D., Feb. 80 Editor
News Making mention of the negro
problem" in this part of the United
States appears like raining oranges in
Alberta. However, during the six
years of my residence here on the
Rosebud have been asked repeatedly,
"How came you away off here farm
ing?" 1t seems at times rather SILLY
question to be asked when | am only
one out of eleven millions here in this
united land. | am aware, however,
that it has concerned me not little
in trying to console myself in noticing
the absence of my race in these parts.
| began studying the negro about M
teen years ago when | was small
boy in southern Illinois, for it occur
red to me then, "Why was the negro
so generally poor" and the white man
more or less prosperous. 1t would take
thousand pages to tell what l nave
learned since, for in these nfteen
wears have discovered much, but con-
trast has brought it out in the truest
form. What mean Is, six years away
from my kind by living here where one
Is rarely seen | can, as result De
brought more closely to see the.
might say, pitiable plight OF the negro.
BY way Of explanation, l will mention
that we, or the people of the north
west, have no acquaintance OF the col
ored people in reality, that is. with
perhaps a few exceptions you see only
the floating and worthless class OF ne
groes in the west who represent such
little thrift and energy that he couio
not be compared with the more intelli-
gent and aspiring negro OF today. but
nv subject Is to explain why the ne
gro is not on the Rosebud and more
in the northwest.
Since the days of slavery he mas
been mostly in the south. The south,
so far as increase in the valuation OF
land is concerned, Is has been. Inc
negro has worked and accumulated
many acres of land in twelve southern
states. He owns land valued at $4oo'-
600 600. OF this amount he has pald
in cash dollars the total amount, so,
as a result, and to make long story
short, he has not known what the
word increase means. For instance
a neighbor of mine recently sold MS
homestead for 81 ,440, or $7l.5O per
acre. 1t was three miles from town
and the cost to him was, VIZ: In l9o4'
5000 for ACCOMPLISHMENTS; 81 per acre to
the government; and the improve
ments in all, about 81 800, of which
he had five years TO make BACK
While this is the top price paid in
this part of the county, yet prices up 10
$4,000 per quarter are common TOT
good quarters, we'll located. The fact
that Gregory county Is recent acqui'
sition and the raise has been so rapid
every one has the idea that 1t is eX'
ceptional, while, in fact, Gregory ana
Trim counties have both required tar
more capital of their pioneers than
others counties of South Dakota, Ne
braska and other states, where most
of the land was free some time during
the last thirty years, or so cheap II
made little difference, so, as matter
of fact, every one that was an investor
enough to simply hold their place IN
these parts have accumulated fortunes
of $4,000 and up. These sums are
common in the central west, while III
the south land, the home OF the Amer
lean Ethiopian, fortune OF $4,000
being the wealth of a farmer Is some
thing immense. l have investigated