The Dickinson press., 1917-11-24
First State Bank has a supply o.

First State Bank has a supply of
blanks and can take applications from
people who may want to borrow at
later date. The Cherry Valley as
sociation will also send the collections
and interest payment slips for this
territory to the First State Bank in
Grassy Butte, thus enabling our
people to step into the bank and set
tie their federal loan accounts.
Mackar Matvienko is one of the
farmers of this locality who bought
some of the drought" insurance of
the Bankers Insurance Co. of Helena,
Mont, and like all the others who took
out this insurance cannot collect, not
withstanding his crop was practically
failure. The First State Bank OF
Grassy Butte, like every other bank
in North Dakota, had a chance to
write this kind Of most questionable
insurance but declined to do SO. The
Helena company had no money TO
speak of behind it to start with and
the bankers association of this state
at their district meetings last spring
advised all who were in attendance
that it was not safe to write insur-
ance for or have anything to do with
such an outfit. The state bank ex-
aminer, j. R. Waters, recently sent
out a circular letter to all banks in
North Dakota advising them that if
they had any funds on hand belonging
TO the Helena folks or others writing
similar insurance, to hold until the
company makes satisfactory, settle
ment with policy holders. He states
further that the companies which So
licited crop insurance are now de.
faulting on their settlement. AS fal
as the writer of the Grassy Butte
items can learn, the Helena company
did the most of this crop insurance
writing.
1t is a real pleasure to visit the
Anton Zurn place mile and a half
north of town. In the palmy ranch.
ing days of this country James Conn
verse owned the ranch and his herds
of cattle, numbered by the
thousands, grazed for miles in every
direction. His stock was trailed over.
land, $500 to 5000 head in a herd
from Texas every year, some seasons
as high as two and three herds being
brought up. A magnificent rancf
house was erected, a structure that
nowadays would cost fully $4,000
The horse pasture is said to have con.
tanned as many as 400 saddle horses
This great ranch was abandoned about
1905, and a little later Tony Zurr
came into possession of the place
In the ravine below the house is g
spring which is believed to contain
the purest water of any in the
country. It is surely famous in the
western part Of the state. The spring
fed creek below has a series of most
interesting beaver dams, one reser-
voir having a depth of about Is feet
and it is here that the people OF
Grassy Butte cut their ice. The
gulches around the. Zurn ranch have
13 different kinds Of fruit, including
strawberries and raspberries. Mr.
Zurn has nothing but the best Of stock
on his place. He has registered 4
year old Percheron horse that is
valued at $4,000. This beautiful ami
NAL was brought up from the R. s.
Brookings stock farm near Richard
ton. The cattle, pigs and all stock
around the place are pure bred ami
amls, and the owner says that it
would not pay him to keep anything
but the best of sires. He farms as
we'll as raises high priced cattle and
horses. Some of the people in Dick
inson will recall Jim Converse as the
fastener who used to shoot up the
town now and then on a night and
the following day he would go around
and pay the bills, regardless of
amount, and tell the owners Of dam
aged property that it was the cheap
est sport he had ever had.