The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1921-04-09
BUSINESS N EN-
BEHIND EFFORT
TO BOOST LAND
Hundred Business Men Attend
Dinner at Which lmmigra-
ti0n Work Is Talked
WANT OPTIMISM STATE
Speakers Assert That Perma-
nent Optimism Is Necessary
Want County Agent

"V SvAA'sy 1A6S"s
One hundred business and profes.
sional men Of the city voiced their
approval of the Bismarck Immigra-
ton Association, formed by real es,
tate men Of the city, at an Opeu
Forum dinner held at the Grand Pa.
citic hotel. last evening. 1t was one
of the largest Commercial club dinner,
held in several months, and the pro-
posal to make an organized effort to
bring settlers to the Slope country
was received with enthusiasm.
A permanent state of optimism was
decreed by the business men attend
ing the dinner Utmost confidence
was expressed in the future of the
Slope country. Examples of men who
had come into North Dakota to settle
on farm and had made good were
pointed out
President Young, of the CONNER
cial club, introducing the speakers.
declared that better feeling be.
tween town and country was an abso,
lutte necessity and urged permanent
spirit of optimism.
Thinks It Beet Place.
Gilbert Olson declared he was firm
in the conviction that there are more
possibilities in North Dakota than in
any other state in the union. He de-
clared that North Dakota people as
a whole are in better financial shape
than most states He said he had
seen statements of eastern states, in.
Guiding amounts of farm mortgages,
ETC., and that none of these state
ment3 were as good as that Of North
Dakota.
d. r. Owens declared that "Bis-
marck will not grow unless you de-
velop the country. If the country
goes back this town will go back
He asked business men generally
to get behind the organization and 10
keep the boosting spirit when pros
<pecllve settlers are brought to town.
He cited statistics comparing the
yield per acre of North Dakota with
other states. In 1919 North Dakota's s
corn yield per acre was 80 bushels, to
Is for Kansas. 26 for Nebraska and
38 for South Dakota. -,
Time IL Ripe.
Major Frank Henry said that the
real estate men were trying to bring
in new blood, new spirit, new enthusi-
asm. new settlers"
There is no doubt but that the
people in Iowa, southern Minnesota,
southern South Dakota have come td
the conclusion that they had better
quit paying rent and come to North
Dakota and buy homes of their own.
If the people of Bismarck boost Bur-
leigh county land we can sell it." D.
w. e. Runey, employed by the new
ly formed association to go to South
Dakota to seek settlers for Burleigh
county, told of his experiences as an
agent for the immigration depart
ment, and he said that within the last
year hundreds of farmers in the in
flated land value seton had made the
decision that they must go, and they
were looking toward North Dakota.
Urging better spirit Of town town
and country, he said the country had
not forgotten when townspeople went
into the fields during the war aud
helped save the crops, nor many other
instances of cooperation.
Mr.. Young called on numerous men
at the dinner for short talks:
LESS than II is Worth"
Father Hiltner spoke of the lack OF
imitation of land values in the state,
and declared that North Dakota is
one state where he actually believed
land was sold for less than it is
worth.
: Thomas Hall declared that people
know that we have good land, know
that the farmer who farms we'll and
systematically will make a success,
and urged the diners not to let their
wave of enthusiasm ebb. with the end
of the end of the meeting, but to keep
boosting all the time.
w. E. Holbein said that the Minot
immigration organization had raised
$4,000 for advertising purposes, urged
employment of a county agent, citing
examples of the growth of the potato
raising industry in Ward county
through the efforts of the county
agent, and declared that within two
years North Dakota would have the
best good roads law of the nation on
the statute books. ...
"The trouble with North Dakota"
he said, lis that there has been line
of demarcation drawn between the
town and country. 1t is wrong.
There is the town business man and
the country business man-and the
farmer is just as much a business
man as the man in town.
Has Original Homestead.
{ Judge w. L. Nuessle told the diners
that he believed he held record
among those present. He said that
he still had the homestead he took
Continued on page q
HnHAnM mn nHI AYAH