Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-05-25
ALDEN RESIDENT SECURED
PHILANTHRoPlsT's AlDTERU
PERSONAL LETTER..
ONLY TOWN OF LESS
THAN 900 TO WIN IT
Alden Township Contains One half
More Area Than Established Units
of Counties-Finest Church in Har-
din County Recently Dedicatnd-C.
E. Wilson's Observations.
TBy c. +. wilson,

Alden, May 25.-One August day
young resident OF this town decided
to make a try for a Carnegie library,
small for so pretentious and institu-
ton. He did not even know how
10 address his envelope to comply
with the regular procedure i'll such
cases, so he sent his application
direct to the great benefactor whose
educational monuments now adorn
the cities of the entire country. and
was agreeably surprised about two
months later TO receive assure nee of
favorable action In the request.
Compliance with the now well known
conditions resulted in the securing
OF handsome $4,000 structure odd
style" valuation figures. Gene"
Button. aided by some enterprising
citizens, had thus secured the only
Carnegie library in the United States
in a town the size of Alden, the
900. Alden has been library town,
however, for years. The origi ial as
ISOLATION was organized by Judge
Birdsall. then an attorney of the
place in the year 1882. After a few
years the women Of the town took
over its management and conducted
it until the present building vas Sc
cured. II is n peculiar, institution In
that 1t Is supported by town and
country alike. Alden township con-
tains an area of fifty-four miles and
the hooks and periodicals in the
library contain as much for the
farmer as for the town business or
professional man or woman.
Why does Alden township contain
once and half the area of the
regulation congressional township?
The answer is reasonable one per-
haps to the old settler or to the
present day visitor who can imagine
great stretches of pond and marsh
where splendid farmes exist today.
They simply wanted rea sonable
amount of productive country for
their political unit and thirty six
square miles contained too much
waste territory to make a prosperous
township possible. Artificial drain
age wasn't so well understood in the
Alden community in thos,, early
days as is the case In these days
Another distinction claimed for the
little town is that 1t contains what
is probably the finest Chi rch I'm
Hardin county. The Nc thodists
there having just dedicated beau
tiful structure at cost of nearly
$50 900. and It is said that If the ma
terial had not been bought year
or more ago it would have cost an
additional $4,000. OF course con-
siderable credit for this enterprise
also is due the people of the sur
bounding country. While on he sub
ject of distinctions" it might also
be mentioned that Alden is one of
the foremost egg producing centers
of the country, and astonishingly
large consignments of this food
product are shipped out by he mer-
chants of the town.
Coal dealers in the different towns
are predicting future scramble for
fuel that will make the one of last
fall seem tame in comparison.
watch what happens in ihreshing
time and then take into considera-
ton added freight rates, the de-
mand for many times increased
amount the fact that crops will be
moving at that time the near APP
proach of cold weather. and the re-
suit may be imagined" said one
dealer who declares that every
effort should be made at once to put
in the fuel supply for next winter.