The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-11-27
Sixth District NetUs Notes
Items and "reminiscences by An Old Timer With His
Ear to the Grass Roots.

vention in Chicago in 1904, and
Chan. ~Perdue has retired from poll
tics, haying served Mitchell county
as county clerk and postmaster of
Beloit for many years.
L. o. Maxwell, register of deeds of
Cove county, attended the state meet
ing of county officers. He spent sew
eral days in Topeka, selling county
bonds. He reports Cove City. county
seat, on her high horse in the way of
improvement. In the list Is her $45,-
600 high school and the $4,000 grade
school buildings, besides a new up-to-
date hotel A number of other build
ing improvements are on the list for
the year 1902. This town In IL miles
from a railroad. Cove City and Rus
sell Springs, Logan county, are the
only county seats in. the Sixth district
comprising % counties, without a rail-
road.
There is money in raising turkeys in
Trego county. Richard Owen, Jr..
marketed two loads and got a check
for $216.40. J. H. Brown, another
farmer, sold 40 of the same bird for
$3.50. and another farmer sold at the
same time a like number for $170.40.
Besides raising turkeys Trego county
raised bumper crops of wheat and
corn.
A good story is told on Ike T. Pur-
cell, judge of the Twenty-third district.
1t occurred some years ago, before he
was elected judge, and several years
before he gave UP bachelorhood and
took unto himself a life companion,
former school teacher in Cove county.
For many years PurcelTs home was
where night overlook him. The story
goes that he either was campaigning
Cove county for office, or was helping
some other fellow pull thru. Quite
Iato r1iZ he ont fa far
house, and while seated at the fireside
lconversing with the man, wife and
daughter, soliciting votes, and he was
a friend to everybody, and every FAM
lily in Cove county was a friend of
Purcell's, a violent rain set in, and
invited him to stay for the night
with them, as they had a spare room,
but wanting to see several more
voters, he at first declined, thinking
the rain would soon stop. 1t was
growing late. and still it kept raining,
and he was again urged to stay for
the night with them. After taking
look, and seeing no break in the
clouds, he decided to remain with
them all night. Some of Purcelrs
wardrobe had been left at another
house, and he must have the missing
garment, SO he went after it thru the
rain. Returning soon after, and thoro-
ly drenched, the question was asked
him, Where in the world have you
been?" and Purcell answered, over
to a neighbor friend to get my night
shirt" Later years he moved from
Cove to Trego county and remained in
the Twenty-third judicial district. He
ran for district judge. His popularity
resulted in his election by rousing
majority over his Democrat opponent,
INC. Ruppenthal, who had served sew
era1 terms, and a popular official as
III n lie al a
Purcell had been in the United States
land office at Wakeeney several years,
and also served as county attorney.
An anxious subscriber from Beloit
sends the following to the Sixth dis
trict department of The State Jour-
nal: Being an old settler in this part
of Kansas I have always been very
much interested in the correspondence
/ from this part of the state, and not
/ having heard from him since the re-
cent cold spell, 1 have been anxious
. grass roots SO he has been unable
to write."-For the benefit of ''anx-
I ious subscriber" the writer of Sixth
district notes has kept up this depart
ment once a week for nearly year.
! having never missed a week. His ears
! were frost bitten once in the half
century he travelled IN north and
northwestern Kansas. and that was
riding in an open vehicle from Cay
| lord to Smith Center, which turned
out to be one Of the coolest days that
winter. If ''old settler and anxious
subscriber" is now satisfied send the
4 writer of the notes some reminiscent
items for publication from Beloit.
Mitchell county, and northwest Kan
sas-
The Wakeeney Tregonian is anxious