Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, June 05, 1910, EDITORIAL, Page 7, Image 15

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C. M. ORUENTIiER.
TRUBTEa
That' the lisn hanging outilde the office
.at 307 FlrBt National bank building In
. Omaha. The offices are occupied by the
man who ! planning the most stupendous
land sale outside of those conducted by the
United State government.
C. M. Oruenther Is his name. He's a
young man. too, to be acting as trustee1
charged with ' the disposition of nearly
1750,000 worth of rich land. Aside from this
there's a reason a cause and effect for
everything. Mr. Oruenther has already
made good on similar trusteeships, that's
why he waa called to Colorado to assume
this Important position.
In Columbus, Neb., his home, the man
Oruenther Is held In high esteem. Not like
the prophet, whose words of wisdom are
best appreciated where he Is unknown, Mr.
Oruenther bas fceen lifted by hia townsmen
to clerk of the court at Columbus, an Im
portant position for any man to hold. For
his knowledge of trusteeships and His sue
cessfu! record In big land deals, closing
large estates and the like, he la sought by
attorneys and to act tinder direction of
courts far and wide. .
In the First National bank building; he Is
at big desk, where everything moves for
ward under his personal direction. The Im
mense tract Is to be sold at auction, and
.nr. uruentners aim is to clean up the
whole SS.000 acres In a day. The Immensity
of his undertaking can hardly be appre
ciated. It la stupendous.
From this plain, honest-looking man, the
plan of disposition must be envolved. Ills
tenographio dictation la constantly Inter
rupted to answer Important questions, meet
men, hear their story and give his decision.
Then back to his work.
Men are fast learning that here Is one
great chance to buy land that has been off
market under private control until the
surrounding country has become built up.
Here oan ba had dear land at a cheap
price.
Thousands have become wealthy through
investments In good, cheap land. Land
that fcaa good toll, good climate, and good
prospects for future gain by an Increase
in Us Intrinsic value.
This big tract was owned by A. W. Wine-
gar, mree years ago, Mr. Wlnegar lived
in umana, naa spacious offices In the New
York Ufe building, and used many full
page advertisements for his Kit Carson
wuutr "u iiBnr X)uriineton. In eastern
Colorado. At that time tils lands became
invoivea m litigation, which necessitate
he closing of his offices, for the court
wouia not allow any more sales. Mr.
" in uriuging a oo tit a
ettlement or all trouble and all the land.
o.vw .lie. nearly f.jV.WU worth, will be
i sola at auction June at Burlington
ft Colo., by the trustee, C. M. Oruenther.
Eastern Colorado, partlculurly that part
of It served by the Itock Island, has fully
established Itself as an agricultural region
of high quality. If anything woe lacking
io prove sucn a claim It was supported
last year when crops were raised that
equaled those produced in any farming
section. Eastern Colorado farmers have
demonstrated that dry farming Is an exact
science and there Is absolutely no need for
crop failure. epetlally since the United
States government records show the aver
age rainfall at Burlington for the pist six
, jeara Is almost nineteen Inches, two-third
fwimu, uuiui mo giuwing season. Many
farmers near Burlington and Stratton
Showed production of thirty bushels of
wheat to the acre. The 33,000 acres to be
kald by the trustee at auction are right
par the town of Burlington.
. Title la llrar l.anil Fertile.
When Mr. Oruenther consented to talk
this la what he had to say about this un
usual method to be uaed to turn this tract
Into cash:
' "I have been appointed as trustee to sell
33.000 acres of farm land In Kit Carson
county. Colorado. 1 will sell this lnd at
pybllo auction to the highest bidder In the
Opera house at Burlington, Colorado, be
ginning at t a. in. Thursday, June U, 1M0.
Tbe land will be sold on eaiy terms In
mall parcels, tiacts of 140 acres to 3J0
acres. The man of small means will have
the sense show to purchase his 1 acres at
sVMow price per acre aa the man whose
nfan enable Mm to buy large acreage.
Tbe terms of sale are exceptionally easy.
l will be conveyed by warranty deed, ab
stracts furnished and title guaranteed.
Formerly It was owned by (he Kit Carson
Land eompany of Burlington. Colorado, and
waa controlled by Mr. A. W. Wlnegar of
that city. It has bten tied up by litigation
during the last three years and, could not
" .ww l'0 i.mw unil Mi
ll, and I have been directed to sell tbe
Jand.
."Tefora accepting the renponslbillty nt
tnd'nv this trusteeship I made a taieful
exiHon of the land and a personal In
spec io of conditions In Kit Carton county.
"lvK Carson county Is practically In the
ce-ur of Uue continent, la tbe rain bvlt of
n
CM
eastern Colorado, on the main line of Ne
Rock Island railroad between Omaha and
Denver. On the outside cover of this an
nouncement Is a map showing Us location
near the Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska
state lines," and he held up a little book
let which he la sending out free.
"I found Kit Carson county a beautiful
prairie, lying In level stretches for miles
and miles. I found It to be the best grain
producing county In eastern Colorado. Its
cltlsena claim it to be tho best agricultural
county In the state and have the awards
to show that Kit Carson county has car
ried off more special prises and sweep
stakes at state and Interstate agricultural
exhibitions than any other county In the
mid-western states. It Is In the rain belt
of eastern Colorado and grows Its crop
wholly with natural rainfall. The rainfall
Is ample for maturing all general crops un
der proper cultivation.
"While examining the land I was greatly
Impressed with the fact that I was never
out of sight of well Improved, prosperous
farms with growing crops. This land is
distributed throughout the territory tribu
tary to Burlington and Stratton, a territory
that Is well settled, where lands are selling
rapidly a 110 to $30 per acre. By far the
greatest number of quarters lay frpnv four
to eight miles from town. Some of them
are as far' away from present railroad
towns as fifteen miles, but the distances
do not seem great on account of , the coun
try being so level and the roads good. An
other thing that impressed me was the re
markable uniformity of the land one quar
ter being practically as good as another.
with no difference In the real value except
that of location,' the quarters that are
closest to town naturally being worth a
little mora thaJh those farther out, you
know.
"The soil on all the land Is as good as I
ever examined. The surface soil Is a dark
loam, varying In depth from two to three
feet, underlaid to a great depth with a
porous clay subsoil. Just the kind for con
serving moisture. An abundant flow of
pure water la found at a depth of from
25 to 176 feet.
"Another thing that Impressed me was the
opportunity that Is here for obtaining first
class farm land at a low prloe without be
ing obliged to go to the frontier for It. For
three years nothing could be done with this
land on account of the litigation. It was
the first choice of the early settlers and
the first land taken up In that community.
It has been idle during the years while the
adjoining land waa being sold to thrifty
easterners and developed. The litigation Is
now settled and the land must be sold.
The whole 33,000 acres a veritable empire
In Itself Is to be brought under the ham
mer and sold at this sale. There is so
much of It to bo sold that it can hardly be
hoped that It will bring what it Is worth
There are bound to be many bargains and
downright snaps for buyers who will be
there. In my opinion, this Is the best op-
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LAND
BY A.T
portunlty that has been placed before tha
American people to get good land, well lo
cated, with every prospect of being able to
get It for less than it Is worth.
, I am well versed In land values and have
made a specialty for a number of years In
selling land at auction under legal pro
cedure and have sold thousands of acres. I
want to say that In all my experience I
have never seen a body of land offered for
sale that would compare with this, In qual
ity, productiveness and location as com
pared to the price it can be reasonably
hoped to bring. We have taken every pre
caution for the comfort of those in attend
ance at this sale. A special Pullman train
will be run from Omaha to the sale and re
turn. Ample conveyances by automobile
and teams will be provided free of charge
to convey the people out to Inspect the
land so that It all can be seen before the
sale commences."
Located In Center of Continent.
The soli ts a dark loam from one to four
feet deep, with a good clay subsoil, free
from rock, sand or gravel. There ts prac
tically no waste land In any part, the land
lying almost level. Kit Carson county Is
unique In Its location, being almost In the
territorial center of the continent. It has
unsurpassed market facilities. On the east
are the great packing markets of Omaha,
St. Joseph - and Kansas Cltly, with their
great packing plants and Immense grain
elevators, on the west Denver and Pueblo,
the gateways to all the vast mines of Colo
rado and their ever Increasing markets.
The development of the country In the
past few years has been very rapid. In
1906 there were thirty-eight school districts,
with thirty-eight school houses, the ma
jority o( them being sod. Two years later
there were forty-four districts, with sixty
school houses. The greater part of the new
school houses are frame and a number of
the old sod school houses have been re
placed by up-to-date buildings. In 1906
there were forty-three teachers in the
county and In 1908 there were seventy
three. Today the number far exceeds this.
Not only have the schools Increased in
number, but the standard has been raised
until now it is entirely up to that of any
section.
The population of the county has natur
ally increased with the other developments.
There are now about lu.OO people In the
county, while four years aso there were
i it I
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, WHEAT IW HUi riELP 3 ft. HIGH rf
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FIiOW Or IiaMSCD TtEAR 'bTOlrNOToyr
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How 5.000
750.000 Wopth OF
to be, (losed Out
less than 3,000. At the November election.
1908, there were 685 votes polled, while now
the county has over 4.500 voters.
(Substantial Homes and Schools.
In driving over the country one notices a
large number of new, modern homes, the
old sod houses having been torn down.
The county has built an elegant court
house, modern throughout end up to date
In every respect, costing about 130,000. It is
paid for in full and the county has no
bonded debt
Wheat, rye, barley, oats, millet, arfalfa,
all theBe and more, are very productive.
Many of the fields of corn In the past five
years have ranged from twenty to forty
five bushels per acre.
Corn Is grown more or less in all sec
tions of the state. It is grown extensively
In the nonlrrlgated sections of eastern
Colorado. A (number of large ranches har
vested forty bushels of corn to tha aore
without other water than the seasonable
rainfall.
There can be three crops of alfalfa raised
and It Is profitable not only for the hay,
but also for the seed, similar land in this
locality having produced In a number of In
stances six bushels per acre. This send
readily sells for S10 per bushel.' In five
years this portion of Colorado may be the
leading locality In the United States In tha
production of alfalfa.
One must understand that this was form
erly a short buffalo grass country and that
the land, lying for. ages In this manner,
being used principally for stock indus
try, had become very hard, the buffalo
grass forming a thick coat over the soil,
making it almost impossible for the rain
fall to penetrate the ground, unless very
slow Bnd protracted. Being smooth and
mildly rolling, it ran off into the small
ravines and valleys ond sank away. Old
residents say that since the land is In
cultivation and moisture can sink Into the
earth as it falls, It has caused a damper
atmosphere and plenty of moisture in all
cases to raise a crop.
All sorts of vegetables thrive and are a
profitable crop. Any kind grown east may
be raised on this vast tract. Potatoes afe
very prolific and are of good quality.
Fruits do well, especially peaches, cher
ries, strawberries, gooseberries, currants,
etc. Plums grow rapidly and prolilfc.
There are several towns In the county,
the largest being Burlington, which is the
county scat; It is thriving and growing
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ACEEcT,
rat Illy. Burlington has four aencral stores.
two hardware and furniture store?, two
bunks, two drug stores, three or four hotels,
two or three restaurants, three livery
barns, two weekly newspapers, an elevator
or two and two lumber yards. The town
has a local telephone system and has long
distance connections with cities and towns
all over the country.
The water is pure as crystal, soft and
never failing. It is to be had at a depth
of from twenty-five to 175 feet, this being
determined by the lay of the land.
The climate Is delightful and healthful.
Winters are mild, there being at least nine
months In the year that one mav plow.
Grasses grow wild. One of our most Im
portant of these is what Is known as wheat
grass of spontaneous growth. There is alro
the buffalo and gramu grasses. Alfalfa Is
being raised and is proving one of the best
crops that can be raised.
The section Is full of caUle. hoisea and
mules. Hogs thilve and ;o well, not being
subject to cholera. Not a cuo of
cholera has been reported ii;sre. Chlckcnu,
I oucKs, geese and turkey.--, ulso, seem Im
mune from the many pots. Stock does not
suffer and Is easily wlnttrtd, It hc-ir.g neces
sary to take but few extra precautions to
protect the cattle during tiu winter months,
Dairying is an Important Industry. The or
dinary cow averages . f;uiu 1 to $4 per
month for butter fat from glass ulone.
Since the 2-cent rate through Kansas, Ne
braska, Missouri, Iowa and Illinois the cost
of going long distances Is very hinall. The
distance from market towns Is not great.
Burlington is Just 1C7 milrs east of Den
ver and 1ST miles east of Colorado Springs,
and only one night's travel from Omaha or
Kansas City.
Kit Carson county carried auuy some
great honors at fairs anj such gatherings
last winter. At Denver and Pueblo, com
bined, the county carlod ar.-ay fifty-one
first premiums, thirty-clht seeond prem
iums and three of the third class. This
list was bigger than t ai from any other
three count'es In the ttMn.
strung; at Dry Farming t ongresa.
Tho Dry Faii.ilng Congress was one
place where. Kit t'arnon county showed
up very stror.x The state as a whole
won at that event the grand international
sweepstakes, fifty-three I premiums and
five sweepstakes. Of this Imposing num
ber Kit ('arson county s display took
tvteuty eight premiums and captured two
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sweepstakes, one of the latto- being :'
the test Individual exhibit ai'l ti e '
on spells grown by Mi". "r '!'
display placud 8t the Nation. . ,
rosltlon In Omaha attra-.tc 1 a.
tent'.on as any other exhi'JU ...
lutlding.
This year conditions point to a repeti
tion of all last year gave, and even better
things. Each year finds the farmer better
qualified to solve tho problems of the
work, thus Insuring greater success. The
increase In cultivated area near Burling
ton, or rather In Burlington's trade area,
will be close to DO per cent. A number
of steam plows are being kept busy get
tlTig the sod turned over.
lxiierlmcnt Stations.
A iiiort Important worK ts carried oil at
tho ColoraJo Kxpci iment station In con
Hccllon wltii the asilcultui al collego at
Fcrt Collins. This work eiAbraues many
branches cf cereal and forage culturo for
the determination of their best adaptation
to the climate and soil of tlui arid an 1
scrnl-arld country. One of the result is
the organization o( many new vcriHi? of
yheat and other grains to the e.id c com
lir.Lcd improvement with each creation.
The benefits of tho vuriouK kinJii anl
clt sses of ex. riuicntation ac. rye to the
fanners and live bloc!", growers nf f'.i;
state In many ways. Through tl.o b .lie-
tii s of the station and. frequent publica
tions of the college tiu la.mers rccr-lve in
struction In Intensive rnd scientific coil
cultivation and Iho lesson.) ;.o:nult:uted
are made to apply to each rartlciilur cer
eal, fruit, gra.-.s or root crop for Us most
bountiful yield nnd most p.'ufttablo re
turns, whether from the markets or from
the feed values of tho products to the live
stock Industry.
These, and many other things for tli-j
advancement of all agricultural interests
of the state, are the purposes to which
the Agricultural Experiment station rl
Kurt Collins Is dovoteJ, and much of th.
splendid progress which h&s been made,
and a large share of the f?eneral prop?illy
are creditable to this Institution.
An Authority on liry t-art.r:ac.
W. 13. Forbes, who has probably dune
mora farming than any other man in Colo
rado, may be regarded a an authority
upon dry farmlug. Few seasons ago
he cultivated over 4,000 acres for himself
and for others under contract. All of this
ws without irrigation, Mr. Forbes lives at
7
T.onsmont. Colo., the center of the hlghest
li'icil Irrigated farms In the state; but ha
lit'iii to farm In the dry belts where he
. wo steam plows breaking sod, double
il si ins and drilling In wheat. One year he
f:.r.ncd C40 acres on his own account, sow-In-
thirty pounds of Red Russian wheat ta
the acre the following year this amount
was Increased to fifty pounds to the acre.
On other similar lands Mr. Forbes farmed'
1,180 acres, planting Red Russian, which
threshed out fifty-four pounds to tha
bushel. On that ground ho sowed forty-five
to fifty pounds to the acre and will un
doubtedly duplicate this achievement Id
eastern Colorado this year.
"I think," says Mr. Forbes, "there is
more profit in dry farming than any other
business in Colorado. When you come to
nav ditch assessments, taxes and labor on
irrigated land you cannot secure tho same
results. 1 know what I am talking about
for I own H acres of Irrigated land near
Donjmont and prefer to farm in the dry
belt, i have been dry farming for seven
yeais :.:ul I know the soil can not be
beaten. It la nlo sandy loam with about
53 pu' cent sand enough to cut It and
maKO It easy fcr handlliiji. The best way
for a farmer w.io Is rowins winter wheat U
not to a-'l II In too early. He should wait
until after Cic inlddlo of September and the
p;.;siiu: (f toe early rains. In thct way hla
wl.'-al i not likely to rprout. J. Y. Jlwnrou
has t:!cJ lejwlr.s In L-ptcmber, October,
NovinV.cr und December und v. hut ho
sowed In December yielded LeUt.r than tha
earlier planting.
"i'!v ivara dry farmlns rhould i:lve a
maa a fjrti-no if hit go.-s about it rljhl.
My syiem Ij to plow In .Tune. uuilMo disk
in September and ivccd about tun ""
September or tho first of October. This
HhoulJ give a yield of forty to fifty bu.ielj
per acre."
fcven though one docs not buy. a trip out
there will pay for 1U-If, b.caus it of furs
an excfcllmt opportunity to see the wonder
ful development In that portion of the
Colorado cralu b;it. A ::nowljdgo can ba
gained that every one should possess.
There is much satisfaction In 'buying real
estate at auction, because one gets tli'J
benefit of the Judgment of others who aro
b'ddlng, and almost universally laud sold
at auction goes at a lower figure than al
private sale. This Is especially true when,
as In this case, so much land must und
will be sold to the highest bidder, regard
less of privw.