The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1911-11-03

| ana VINO sui has banking interests
in Tripp county, was in Norfolk today
and talked very freely about the
amount of land subject to homestead
entry in Mellette and Bennett coun-
ties. Mr.. Slaughter said:
There has been considerable in
the daily papers about this land since
the drawing. most of which is a knock
on the country. | believe that this is
largely prompted by the locaters in
an innocent sort of way, as each 10.
cater is trying to show that he is best
equipped to give the best service to
those who drew numbers. and to show
the necessity for those who desire to
file or employ a locator | am not
against the locators. They are a
necessity to those who do not know
the land. | was in the locating bust.
ness when Trip county was settled
and | believe the records will show
that | located more people than any
other individual, and think had as
many satisfied customers as any To-
Gator. 1t is unfair to those who spent
their money to go to one of the sew
eral registration points and register
| for this land to now lead them to be-
lieve that they have secured nothing
by having number. The fact is that
| there is great deal Of good land in
Mellette county which will be subject
to homestead entry, and | will venture
the assertion that after the 5000
names have been called there will still
be good land left for squatters.
I'm Gregory county several hun
dred squatters secured good claims
after the list Of lucky applicants had
filed on all they desired, and some
of these squatters' claims are now
worth $50 per acre. In Trip county
the same condition prevailed, perhaps
to a larger extent, and some of the
squatters' claims in Trip county are
worth above $40 per acre today, and
Trip county has only been settled
little more than two years. In Mel |
lette county the appraisers listed as
A l land, only the very best, and |
much of the land listed as A and |
grazing land is in fact good agricul- |
tural land. 1t is true that the state |
of South Dakota gets sections 16 and |
SO for school purposes in each town |
ship where said sections are not other !
wise appropriated, and for such of |
said sections as are allotted or APP |
propriated the state selects such land |
az it desires sufficient to make two |
sections in each township, but it must |
be borne in mind that the state must |
select in both of these counties and |
foIy 1
CARELESS of their value where they |
are not appropriated. This will leave
several hundred good claims and a
great many fair claims in Mellette
county. The land in the Rosebud
country is so fertile and conditions
are so favorable that a farm does not |
have to be level to be Of great value. |
Any quarter section of land with
eighty acres or more of pillow land is
very valuable asset, and worth taking.
Improved farms of this character in
the settled portion of the Rosebud are
selling above $40 per acre, and at the
rate the land has advanced in the past
five years it will soon be worth SIS.
The Rosebud country is in the corn
belt and the rain belt. We are grow
ing more corn than any other new
country and almost as much as any
old country. For the past five years
we have had more rainfall than Ne.
braska, according to government stat
istics. This year we had more rain.
fall than any other portion of the
United States. During the growing
months of the year we have the same
rainfall as the best portion of Iowa,
where land is 5000 per acre. In 1909 ,
our yield of corn per acre was greater
than that of Iowa. our yield will beat
the yield of Iowa this year. In the
of oats and garden stuff
we have all the states backed off of
the board" Potatoes this year will
yield 200 bushels per acre. In such
a country farms do not have to con-
sist of entirely level land to be of
great value.
Many bankers, professional and
business men who have no idea of ,
using their homestead rights availed
of the special railroad
rate to see the Rosebud country and
Just as matter of testing their luck
So''NNiNN ioi III lOOhlllS ONtl
the list of the winners, | find many
Of them who are not in a position to :
avail themselves of the advantages
hey have gained by having drawn a =,
number and these numbers will neces. :
'arily be called without response.
THE adverse reports in newspapers =
will serve to cause a great many of 6
hose in the lucky list to fall out ,
md | predict that 80 percent of the y
'irst 5000 will fall out and for this =,
'eason | believe that any man who
holds number below 5000, will eXer-
Use very poor judgment if he fails
o attend the filing and avail himself q
If the opportunity he has to file on
and. The quarrel between lOcators q
ioes not interest me, but from what u
know of the appraisement of the
and in Mellette county ! know that T.
much of the land which is classified !,
Is rough land is OF a good agricul
ural nature, 1t is also quite likely 4
hat some of the land that has been .,
classified as A land is of a poorer
nature than some that is classified a