Year: 1874

u - t-t+zas 49, =


MORE TESTIMONY.


Evidence From y DifFcrcut part
Of kansas-Mr. Wright cOrrOb.
| Grated.


OSBORNE CRY, Kan, Dec. Is, 1874.
Through your kindness, the cheer
ful face Of the ADVERTISER reaches
us every week, with its gay and spi-
cy articles. The news of Cedar Co,
ii spreads among so many families
are especially interesting to us, as it
is almost the only channel through
which we obtain information as to
the doings Of s'Old Cedar" We no
tice occasional letters from Kansas,
though none from this county; and
we feel that too much cannot be
said in praise Of these beautiful prai
ries, where little doggies and ugly
snakes and owls live in the same
den. And since coming here have
learned that you used to tell great,
big fib about my present home
when you called it "The Grea,
American Desert" and "Uninhabita-
BILE regions" but I'm not very angry
with you for this Bit of SANDER, for
thus had you been taught from your
cradle up. There are others with
better means Of information, who
hove treated our sunny plains worse;
and towards them We would feel
very indignant, were it not for our
sympathy for them, ] mean mechan.
les and lazy school teachers, who
know nothing about farming. and
less about the priva,ions of pioneer
life; who came here, and because
they could not enjoy the comforts
and luxuries Of lite, and the prospect
Of speedy wealth, grew dishear,ened
and returned to their former flesh
pots; and with all the bilingsga,e
they can command, abuse our fair
country. Now ! want you to deny
much tha: is said by these parties
and tell your friends that these abus-
ers can only see through glass
darkly, and are not competent wit
nesses in the case. And in spite of
all these croakers, had anyone two or
three thousand dollars to invest here
as experience dictates, he could
not help realizing a handsome for
tune in very few years.


The facts are that the soil on the
tributaries of the Solomon, is as rich
as any in Cedar CO., and full twice
as deep. And yet Kansas is not and
probably never will be the grain
growing state that Iowa is, unless
there should be great change in the
rain fall. There has been an abun-
dance of rain this season but it came
too much like deluge. From the
goth of May to the 9th Of June there
fell more rain than there has been
all the time since. But we know Of
no place a distance from market
where grain raising is as profitable
as stock farming, and here we have
the best country ever saw for stock;
cattle do remarkably well, and for
sheep it is paradise. 1t is now the
18th day of December and stock have
not needed more than five or six
feedings other than what they get
by grazing. But to get the stock
requires capital which many of us do
not possess.


Our climate is all one could de-
sire. The winter mild and the sum
mer pleasant, | cannot imagine more
delightful winter weather than we
have been having for several weeks.
About the middle of November.
short winter of four or five days
stopped blowing, but since then the
ground has been in splendid condi-
tion, and the plows have been busily
turning over the soil.


But fertile as our soil undoubtedly
is, and prosperous as we may be in
the future, we are now suffering more
privations than we can well endure.
The most Of us have been here three
and four years, and last spring our
means were well nigh exhausted =
what little we had we spent for seed
and planted all the ground We had
prepared. We thought that by econ
omy and short allowance we could
manage opass thorough the summer
and in the fall be supplied with abun-
dance. But the drouth cut short our
wheat crop, and grasshoppers devour-
ed all our corn and vegetables. Some
of us killed our pigs rather than see
them go hungry as we have to do
Your Cedar county farmers with their
comfortable homes, with corn IN their
cribs, bins full of wheat, and beef and
pork in abundance, have little idea of
the wants and necessities of some of
our settlers here. The few chickens
many are trying to keep over, are dy-
ing from unheard of diseases, but
think the plain English name is, star
vation.


We are not lazy, neither are we
beggars, but rather the unwilling OBJ
jects Of charity, for many Of Us are
very hungry and thinly clad; al
though we have done the best in our
power to provide against such cal
amity.


The action of our unworthy and
uncharitable Governor has doubtless
prevented our receiving relief already
needed. 1t sounds well to proclaim
that "kansas can take care Of her
own poor" and would be well en-
ough was Kansas willing and able to
do SO /; but unfortunately, however
willing, she is unable, for the calamity
that affects US SO much here, extends
to greater or less extent all over the
State. Several Of our leading jour
mails have discouraged the sending Of
supplies from sister States. | know
not what their object can be, unless
il be the fear of checking the tide Of
emigration and thereby robbing them
selves of few bites of bread and but
ter, were the true state of affairs gen
orally known.


But we read in the columns of the
ADVERTISER that the benevolent cit.
izens Of Upton and Cedar county,
have been sending generous supplies
to aid in relieving the destitute in
Nebraska and parts Of Kansas. And