Will Maupin's Weekly
EDITED AND PUBLISHER BY HIMSELF
ONE DOLLAR PER YEAR
Editorial Rooms, 436 Banker Life Bldg.
Auto Phone B2994
Publication Rooma, 126-132 North 14th Street
Entered at the postofflce at Lincoln. Nebraska,
as aecond-claaa mall matter, under the Act of
iKi-ess of aCaroh I, l!7t. ,
SOME MORE FACTS ABOUT NEBRASKA.
Law Office of Isidor Zeigler, Omaha, June 26, 1912.
Editor Will Maupin's Weekly: It has given me great pleasure to
read your well-written editorials that have been published from
time to time in your paper, and I want to congratulate you, both
upon the form and substance of what you have written with refer
once to advertising the possibilities and advantages of this state.
In reading an editorial published by you in your weekly paper
of June the 13th, under the heading, "Making Nebraska's Resources
Known," I was greatly surprised at the information contained in
the two following paragraphs, namely:
"With less than one-third of her total acreage under cultiva
tion, Nebraska is leading the states in the production of agricultural
wealth."
"Nebraska has upward of ten million acres of the most fertile
land in the world, waiting for the plow of the farmer."
After reading the same, I had occasion to talk over these state
ments you made with a prominent member of the Omaha Commer
cial club and he stated to me that your statements were misleading,
and were not based upon facts. That the tillable soil of any value
has been entirely pre-empted and is in the hands of private indi
viduals, and, second, that every available acre of farm lands in this
state with the exception of possibly a thousand acres, was being
utilized for agricultural purposes, and, third, that it is not true
that only two-thirds of our total acreage suitable for cultivation was
being used.
Have you any or can you give me any statistics to verify your
figures? The reason I am asking this of you is that I heartily agree
with you, assuming the facts stated by you are true, that we should
ndvertise, as you suggest, the advantages and opportunities that
our state has to offer to home-builders and to encourage immigration
to this state.
The person to whom I talked, with reference to your editorial,
stated that the purpose of the Commercial club and the policy of
other Commercial clubs in the state was not to encourage immigra
tion, but to use their efforts so as to educate the farmers to get a
greater yield from the land that is now under cultivation and that
it was imposible, to hold out any inducements to people coming to
this state to locate, as our farm lands were already under cultiva
tion and all that it required was a knowledge of more scientific
farming.
Thanking you in advance for the information and assuring
you that I personally believe you are doing as much, if not more
towards advertising our state by your well-written editorials than
any other newspaper published in Nebraska, I am, yours very truly,
ISIDOR ZIEGLER.
Lincoln, ! Nebr., June 27, 1912. Isidor Ziegler, Esq.: I have
your favor of June 26 relative to the accuracy of some of the acre
age statements made in my newspaper. It is difficult to consider
with patience the comments of such men as the Commercial club
member you quote. I refuse to believe that he voices the senti
ments of any considerable number of business men when he asserts.
that it is not the policy of Commercial clubs to encourage immigra
tion. True, we are striving to encourage scientific, or intensive,
farming, but we are also trying to induce more tillers of the soil to
locate among us, to take upon themselves the task of tilling land
now lying idle, and to get better results than are now being se
cured by the farmers who are trying to cover too much territory.
' The accuracy of my statements concerning cultivated and un
cultivated land is easily verified. , In round numbers Nebraska has
an acreage of 49,000,000. The assessors' reports for 1912 will show
less than 18,000.000 acres under cultivation, this including all culti
vated crops and hay lands. This leaves approximately 30,000,000
acres unaccounted for. Allowing liberally for area taken up by
rivers, lakes, incorporations, etc., we still have upwards of 28,
000,000 to locate. We know no one who knows Nebraska will con
tend that the "sand hills" and "bad lands" take up the half of
that. But call it half. We still have 14,000,000 acres unaccounted
for.
I have never said, nor do I believe, that this idle land is to be
had free. It. is all privately owned, to be sure.; It is owned by
speculators who are holding it out of the market. It has never
been cultivated. It produces nothing save a little wild hay, yet un
der our vicious system of taxtion this idle land is producing more
increase for its owners than most of the cultivated land is producing
in the shape of agricultural wealth. This is because the increase
in land values has been so great that these speculators make more
by sloth than they would by enterprise. The Nebraska Commercial
club man who asserts that "every available acre of farm lands in
this state, with the exception of possibly a thousand acres, is being
utilized for farm purposes," ought to take a few days off and make
a personal visit to different sections of the state. He would unlearn
a lot about Nebraska, which would be the first step in learning the
truth about the state. There are upwrds of 10,000,000 acres of fer
tile farm land in Nebraska that has never been touched by a ploV.
It is producing nothing in the way of agricultural wealth. In addi
tion to wanting farmers who will till more scientifically and inten
sively, we want farmers equally up-to-date to come to Nebraska and
get hold of these untitled lands and bring them into productivity.
We want more small farms well cultivated, and fewer big farms
whereon men are merely "mining the soil."
Men by the thousands are passing by Nebraska and buying
lands in the Canadian northwest, or paying enormous prices for
iruit lands in Oregon and Washington. They can buy more pro
ductive land than any in the Canadian northwest right here in Ne
braska, and get it at from $50 to $75 an acre, on easy terms. They
can buy better apple orchards in Nebraska than any in Oregon and
Washington, get it cheaper, bring it into productivity easier and be
nearer to market.
I am prepared to demonstrate to any man whose mind is open
to conviction that we have here in Nebraska every inducement for
the home seeker; that we have millions of acres of fertile soil that
are lying idle, waiting for the hand of the tiller; that vast areas of
Nebraska land may be had, not cheap' but at a price remarkably fair
considering its productivity, and that we need to encourage immi
gration.
Let me cite you to the case of "Bill" O'Brien of Atkinson. He
las'just located thirty families on land heretofore uncultivated. He
is making a once idle tract fruitful and profitable to himself, to a
score and more of families and to his communitv. Practically every
county in Nebraska has within its borders just such opportunities
JULY REDUCTIONS ON MEN'S ODD PANTS
that will give us the
GREATEST TROUSER BUSINESS in our HISTORY
Judy
ARMSTRONG9
S
Clearance
Sale
j
STARTS SATURDAY, JULY 6
UST as W. J. Bryan towers above every other man in American public
life today, this sale will standout as the greatest ever held in Nebraska
REGULAR
REGULAR
luirs0.50.. $8.75 irT0sAN.D$:6-.50..... $12.75
REGULAR
' $22.50 AND $20.00
SUITS..
$15.75
REGULAR
REGULAR
Z"0925:00. $18.75 T3sAND.$3000.......$21.75
"HESE SUITS are the highest types that can be produced by brains and skill. Each is a
masterpiece. Beautifully tailored, perfect fitting, brand new this spring, and a tremendous
bargain. You can't afford to stay away if you are in need of a suit. Your size, your color
and your idea of the ideal suit for yourself can be found in the immense assortments. Bluts
serges, blue worsteds, fancy blues, and every imaginable weave, shade and pattern of gray.
Hundreds and hundreds to choose from. , . .
HART SCHAFFNER & MARX
Hirsh-Wickwire, and Rosenberg's "Famous Clothes" are included.
$250 AND $3.00
ODD TROUSERS
NOW....
$1.95
$4X0 AND $4.50
ODD TROUSERS
NOW
$2.85
$5.00 AND $6.00
ODD TROUSERS
NOW
$3.65
$6.50 AND $7.50 '
ODD TROUSERS
NOW .........
$4.75
Armstrong (MotMmig Co,
GOOD CLOTHES MERCHANTS
as O'Brien had in Holt county. The trouble is we haven't enough
Bill" O'Briens.
I thank you heartily for your complimentary references to my
newspaper. If a lot of those who hand me the complimentary n
mark would accompany the aforesaid remark with the price of a
subscription, I could do a much better work for Nebraska.
Very truly yours, v
WILL If. MAUPIN.
STILL POSTPONING THE DECISION.
On June 21 the editor of Will Maupin's AVeekly wrote the
State Board of Irrigation and Drainage, asking for a speedy de
cision as to the priority rights for water along the Loup river. On
June 24 a'n answer was received, saying that the board expected to
make an early disposition of the same. It is now July 5, and still
no action has been taken. The report of the engineer was filed
on May 17 more than six weeks ago. Men with millions to invest
in developing the Loup river water power are waiting for the board
to act. The board has had the report of the engineer for almost
two months, and under the law the report of the engineer is the
evidence upon which a decision is to be based.
Why this interminable delay? Why this constant putting off
of a matter that is of vital interest to the general public? What
excuse has the board to offer for not following out the plain man
date of the law? Is there a colored gentleman in the woodpile? JVs
anybody playing politics at the expense of the development of the
greatest natural resource Nebraska has?
Millions of dollars are waiting for a fair chance to come into
Nebraska and develop our water powers. The dillyy-dallying, the
shilly-shallying of the State Board of Irrigation and Drainage is re
sponsible for the fact that the men with this money are not already
at work. Will Maupin's Weekly is not concerned about which
group of capitalists secures control ; it is interested only in giving
somebody an opportunity to get busy with development work.
On behalf of people who want things done, Will Maupin s
Weekly insists that the State Board of Irrigation and Drainage
get busy. ,
To "Anxious Inquirer:" No, Rinaldo, we do not know who
Governor Aldrieh will be for president tomorrow. We can tell you
who he was for yesterday, and who he is for today. But not being
gifted with the tongue of prophecy we are unable to tell you about
tomorrow.
Well know more about where some Nebraska newspapers stand
on questions political just as soon as Governor Aldrieh makes up
his mind where to place those constitutional amendments.
A Joke: The idea that men who believe in federal incorpora
tion and a high protective tariff can amalgamate the men who op
pose federal incorporation and favor free trade.
If we could pipe the Lincoln city council "gas" we wouldn't
worry a bit about the settlement of the present gas problem.
Third parties are not organized. They are born, like Jove,
full grown.
mighty hard to prove that John Morehead is a progressive. "Doc"
Bixby is wrong, as usual. Will Maupin is merely trying to prevail
upon hidebound partisans like the genial Bixby to have some little
regard for the truth. The task may appear hopeless, but we still
believe we are able to accomplish results.
What tickles us is the spectacle of a corporation insisting that
it be allowed to manage its own business without the dictates of a
union, then turning over the business to a "business' men's league.'
Nebraska is frittering away ten million dollars a year by pur
suing a policy that builds up eastern insurance corportions and bat
ters down local insurance corporations. .
Public service corporations should be regulated, but the time
lias come when we should quit cursing corporations simply because
they are corporations.
Keep cool ! No matter who is nominated or elected to the
presidency, we'll have to hustle for a living, just the same. -
Building a state is of more consequence than building a political
party. Stand up for Nebraska!
It's a mighty shrewd man who can keep his p&litics on straight
these days.
The trouble is that people do not always vote the way they
applaud. .
This state needs more water power and less lung power.
The genial "Doc" Bixby says that Will Maupin is trying
We Have
An American Flag Pin
for you; ask for it. ,.
HIGH GRADE DIVESTMENTS Nothing of a speculative
Character. 7
CONSTRUCTION WORK All kinds of building operations.
REAL ESTATE Property cared for, rented and sold at
nominal charges.
LD7E INSURANCE Local agents for Mutual Life of New
York.-
FIRE DfSURANCE Lowest rates in oldest American and
foreign companies. .
ACCIDENT raSURANCE Standard policies covering life
and limb.
SURETY BONDS We'll go on your bond.
DEFINITE CHARGES RELIABLE SERVICE
American Investment Co.
Incorporated
132 North Eleventh St. LINCOLN, NEBR.
Dlractors
M. S. POULSON. President J. BEN VAIL. Secretary
E. G. BIVINS. Vice-Pres. L. A. BERGE, Treas.
T. A. COLBURN. Insurance Department. '
J
'A
