The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1923-08-09
ANCIENT HISTORY
OF HAND COUNTY
Renaissance OF Hand C0unty's Cam
paign For Capitol of State

p"N' ,"FAtVb VI 1t0h
An interesting bit of Hand county
history was brought to light recently
In an address made at Hope church
chautauqua by Doane Robinson, state
historian. Older residents of the
county will recall the incident clearly.
The excerpt from the address follows:
Perhaps all citizens of Hand county
do not know of the city of Harrison,
and the part it was expected to cut in
locating the capital of South Dakota.
1t happens that | am in possession of
very personal and important informal
ton pertaining to this mythical point
in South Dakota geography and his
tory.
In the old days it is related that in
the famous pork barrel bills for the
improvement of rivers and harbors, an
occasional congressman would slip a
provision into the bill for the improve
ment OF a stream that had existence
only in his imagination. | recall dis
tinctly a campaign in another state
in which a congressman was compell-
ed to face this charge and the OPPOSE
ton fairly plastered the district with
a great cartoon, showing an interview
between the chairman OF the commit
tee and the congressman in question.
The chairman was shown carefully
scanning a map of the United States
and saying to the congressman,
where is this river in which you are
Interested" and Mr.. Congressman
replied:
Don't you reduce OF dock it.
That river rises in my eye
And empties in my pocket"
Some such characteristic might be
applied to Harrison, Hand county,
potential candidate for capital honors.
In the constitutional campaign of
1889 there were openly six candidates
for the location of the capital. Earli-
er, Redfield had been in the race, but
withdrew in favor of Huron; the active
candidates were Chamberlain, Huron,
Pierre, Mitchell, Sioux Falls and Wat
ertown. The real fight vas between
Pierre, Huron and Watertown, all of
whom were cut for blood and spending
money lavishly.
At that time my home was in Water
town. The late David C. Thomas was
chairman of the capital campa gn
committee. The election was called
fer October 1st. Mr.. Thomas, always
resourceful, in the latter days OF
August conceived the notion that a
candidate for the capital, located MIDI
way between Pierre and Huron, might
subtract votes sufficiently from each
OF them to defeat both in a close race.
He called me into his office and laid
the proposition before me and asked
II | would visit Hand county and make
a survey OF the situation. | consented
and supplied literally with funds and
a secret telegraph code | arrived in
st. Lawrence and began cautiously TO
feel out the situation. During the first
day / found that S. l.. Sage, editor OF
the newspaper at st. Lawrence was
very disgruntled because neither Hur-
Of or Pierre had seer fit to- subsidize
his free and unshackled sheet for any
thing what he deemed his influence
worth. Huron and Pierre he said,
had taken too much for granted"
When | got into conversation with him
he began to put out feelers to ascer-
tain what a Watertown man thought
was his just reward in the premises.
After a few preliminaries | suggested
that st. Lawrence might easily take
the wind out of the sails of the res
pectlye metrCpoli of the Jim and the
Big Muddy. He fell for it from the
jump off and | had great difficulty IN
restraining his enthusiasm until the
stakes could be set. He Immediately
took into his confidence, Rev. Mr.. Col
Inns, pastor of the Christian, or Camp
bellite church. Mr.. Collins received
the suggestion with conservative
eagerness. i surmised then, and stu
think he saw an opportunity to sCme-
what fatten the meager ministerial
stipend. He talked under his breath
and restrained the vociferous Sage.
He said to- make a success Of the en-
terprise and absolutely assure the ioca
ton OF the capital in Hand county,
We must have the cooperation of Mil
Ter. He proceeded to slip over to NIL
Ter and confer with two or three
gentlemen he deemed trustworthy. In
a couple of hours he returned and said
he had arranged a meeting of a few
citizens to- be held in the office of
Boyd Milum, of Miller, that evening.
After conference with Sage it was re-
solved to take two or three St. Law
renee men into confidence and invite
them to the council. / was to keep
out Of the matter entirely and to speak
tc no one on the subject, but was in
every way possible to promote the in
terest of Watertown's candidacy.
While the council was in session at
Miller ! attended a social at the Meth
odst church in st. Lawrence and in
the name Of the WATERFOWL Capital
Campaign Committee bought the en-
tire stock of ice cream and fed the
populace gratis.
About eleven o'clock that night /
met Sage and Collins at the formers
Office and they told me the council had
officiated at a case Of municipal OBJ
stetrics and the town of Harrison had
been bern and was at that very mo-
ment a full fiedged candidate for the
capital of South Dakota, and I'm proof
of the fact produced a fiamboyant
editorial compounded by Sage, who
was a facile writer, announcing the
candidacy OF Harrison, located midway
between Miller and ST. Lawrence,
which editorial in double-leaded
double-column form appeared that
week In the st. Lawrence Journal. L
left for WATERFOWL on the morning
train, having first placed in Collins
- 49, Il