Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-05-18
LEADS GRUMPY COUNTY IN
THREE SUCCESSFUL
EFFORTS.
FIRST TO PROMOTE
CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL
Also First to Secure State Park and
to Obtain Relics Of Late War
Grocer Tells of Travels of Car Of
Sugar Before its Delivery to Him
c. e. Wilson's Observations.
IBy c. E. wilson,

Beaman, May 1S.-1n an imastn-
airy contest. in which all the towns
of C;rundy county might be consid-
cred competing entrants, the time
period extending from the days of
homesteading to the present time,
the little town of Beaman has car
ried off at least three ''firsts." viz:
The first consolidated school, the
first state park and the first two
pieces of ttye artillery which the ma
tioniu government is presenting to
the different counties of the states.
Grundy always has been celebrated
as one of the best of the Iowa coun-
ties because of Its almost 100 per
cent of tillable soil. 1t contains no
cons derable streams nor rough land
to cut up its farms, almost every
acre in each of which is capable of
being cropped. The possession of
anything in the nature Of state
park under the circumstances, is a
matter for qualification on the part
of a community fortunate enough to
secure it: and Beaman evidently
realizes tho fact. The tract recently
approved comprised about fifty acres
of land just to the east of the town.
About thirty acres of this is rather
roiiiaS and heavily wooded with oak,
elm and linden. The historical. name.
corresponding to that of an early
day postoffice in the locality and re-
ferring in some way, it is said, to the
rather commonplace name of the
stream that traverses the section
Wolf Creeks Wadaloup Park. Pri-
marily it is u memorial to the, SOL
diers. Sailors and nurses of the ma
tons wars. the ones that have, &C.
Cured earlier in our history as well
as the greater one recently closed.
In the years to come there will be
outside visitors to Wadaloup park,
for 'hree automobile highways make
tile place accessible to the traveller,
the Geranium Trail, thru Waterloo
and Marshalltown; the Indian Trail.
thru Eldora and Toledo, and the
Grundy Center and Charles City
Pike.
When Pioneer 8. S. Beaman home
stea,1ed in Grundy county some sixty
years ago. the idea that one forty of
his selection would some day be-
come part of a state park was per-
'haps about as far from his reflec-
tions as were matters concerning
automobiles, rural mail routes or
$500 -per-acre farm land.
While a car load of wheat has
beer standing on the sidetrack in the
pit at Clifford for the last two
mont and other cars loaded with
everything else from oats to cleo
tric,,l hosting engines at the, same
PORT and for that matter at every
other point, a car load of sugar has
beer faring in a very different man
ner, according to "a travelling man
who had the story from retail gro
GER at Cedar Falls. Accused OF pro-
fitee ring, this retailer defended him
self by telling how his sugar started
from Fort Dodge for Kansas CITY;
from there 1t was taken to st. Louis,
mex to Sioux City, from there to
Mason City and finally to Cedar
Falls. AS consequence OF this jour-
ney brokerage and freight bills had
accumulated to- the amount of some
thing more than $500.
80
On one Of last weeks very rainy
days a number Of men were in the
office OF feed shed, talking, of
course. about the lateness of the
planting season brought about by the
persistent wet weather. After listen
ing to an especially pessimistic
prophecy one young fellow remark
ed. well, I should worry. I've got
only twenty acres to pillow and 1 can
ployv and harrow that in one day
and a night and plant it the next
day All need is two dry days aft
er l get started"
Patrons Of the Clifford postoffice
certainly have no cause for com.
plant about Postmaster Ole Shines
office hours. For instance, on the
occa sion of one Of the recent numer-
GUS wrecks on the "St. L." mail
train was reported three hours late,
Sale a resident of the town reply
ing to mo paper tonight" remark,
Il don't know about that. Let's see:
six forty-three and three is nine
three; nearly ten o'clock. He
may not keep open quite that long.
and then again he may"
Another instance of smaII-town
postoffice courtesy. A stranger en-
tered the office OF Postmaster John.
son, OF Lawn Hill, and inquired
about a citizen Of the place. "He is
working on a farm about mile out
Of town." said the p. m. Get into
that car and will take you out
the-e." he suggested pointing to his
Ford. and remarhing that he wasn't
busy just then. Most men seem to
vafle their time pretty highly these
times and reasonable people do not
expect much gratuitous service, but
the spirit Of courtesy is not quite
out Of existence yet, especially in the
sms II towns.