Year: 1868

MARsHFIELD, Webster Co, No.,


February 9th, 1868.


| EDITOR CHRONICLE AS many of my old
friends and neighbors of Iowa county are
desirous of knowing something Of south
west Missouri, allow me through the COL
umns of your paper to communicate with
them. l receive the Chronicle regularly
since | have been here. read the COM
munication of COL Stephens, descriptive
OF Southern Kansas, and Newton and JAS
per counties, Missouri since leaving Dodge
vile last June. | came through by wagon
| with my family, and have travelled over
most OF the counties of southwest MisSou-
ri, and Benton and Washington counties,
Arkansas, and as had travelled over this
whole country before the war extensively,
| lind matters here very much as expect
ed to find them. have just returned from
trip from here to Fayetteville, Arkansas,
passing over the Wilson Greek and Pea
Ridge battle grounds. The main eviden-
ccs of the conflict stranger will discover
is the vast quantities of bones of the horses
killed in battle. My eye has become quite
familiar with crumbling earthworks, and
! rife pits, and in many neighborhoods tie
devastation of war is very complete. On
the main road from Cassvile, Mo, to
Fayetteville, a distance of fifty miles,
but two houses escaped AS general rule
chimneys are built outside of the house,
with the fire place inside. Generally these
stacks of brick and stone attest the folly
and crime of the rebellion. | found a
company of U. S. soldiers holding the post
at Fayetteville, where to my delight saw
the Star Spangled Banner in triumph still
wave. | found many of the people of reb
ell proclivties, calculating upon another
war asked if they wanted any more
war. They said "No, we have had enough,
but we hear the democrats are gaining in
the north, and there will be another war;"
| told them was just from the north );
the strife was principally struggle for
office, and that if they obeyed the laws of
the United States. there would be no war
on them. find among those who stood
firm by, and fought for our flag, northern
man is sure of hearty welcome. The
counties near the Kansas line have per-
haps majority or northern settlers. |
find some scattered over oil parts. There
are some families from Sauk county, Wis,
who have started hop yards. They are
quite sangnine that the hop will thrive well
here, and the time for picking in the fall
largely diminish the number of hands re-
quired to gather the crop My impression
is, everything raised in Wisconsin will
flourish here, except spring wheat Win
ter wheat is considered pretty sure crop,
and Of excellent quality. 1t has not been
cultivated extensively, there having been
no outlet for the surplus. Last fall was so
dry that the sowing of wheat was generally
delayed till rain fell in November. From
January 5th to Feb. 18th we had unusu-
ally cold weather, and the impression is
that wheat is very much injured by it.
Vegetables of all kind appear to do well,
but above all it excels in fruit. The apple,
pear, peach, ounce, cherry. strawberry,
blackberry, dewberry, grape, and every
variety of fruit raised in the Northern and
Middle States appears to do well here.
This county is well watered, and stock
raising is very profitable.


Except in few counties, it will not sus-
tain a very large population depending up
on the products of the soil, as there is
very large percentage of rocky land. Some
one has said if you drop an axe it is sure
to strike rock or silver dollar. Tim
Der is generally in good supply, but much
of it poor. The rocky surface land is
covered with black jack, but upon the
whole consider it desirable county to
settle in. The climate is mild and pleas
ant. This winter has been unusually cold.
! drove my team over the ice here as in
Wisconsin, but now the frost is out of
the ground, and for several days our. farm
ers have been plowing. About three in
ches is the deepest snow we have had.


Land has increased in value very much
since the emigration set in from the north,
but it is still very much below the ruling
price in Wisconsin. The emigrant from
the north must not expect to find society
and schools such as he left behind
large portion of our people are uneducated,
and unacquainted with comfortable homes
Many of their houses have no windows,
and sometimes not much chinking. But
this state of things is rapidly giving place
to better, ard our provisions for the sup
port of public schools are quite liberal
where the people choose to avail themselves
of them. Our railroad prospects have long
been under cloud The war stopped It
at Rolla fremont county extended it l51
miles to the Gasconade river, 'and then the
government seized it for noncompliance
with contract The Legislature is now
maturing bill giving it to responsible
company ready to put it through. Then
this long neglected portion of country will
attract an enterprising population who will
develop her vast mineral and agricultural
resources. WILLIAM SMITH.