On presenting the petition to the board. Von Harris, the chairman, instantly noticed the unlawful signaures. "How- is it, Mr. Edgar," quickly interrogated Von Harris, "you overlooked getting the signature of the commanding officer, Col. Fletcher?" Mr. Edgar, quick to grasp the import of Von Harris' remark, answered, saying: "Why, certainly, Mr. Von Harris; the colonel would have willingly signed it, had he been there ; let's go and have something," and the two proceeded to "irrigate."

for grain, stock and hay.

The site upon which Crawford is built was formerly a tree claim, taken up by W. E. Annin, the first postmaster of Fort Robinson. It was town sited in 1886 by the Pioneer Town Site company, which was virtually the Elk Horn railroad.

Whitney, Bordeaux, Dunlap, Marsland, and Belmont are all small places of more or less importance to the surrounding community. A store or two, a blacksmith shop, school house, postoffice, and possibly a few minor industries tell the story of their magnitude.

C( )UNTY ORGANIZATION AND GOVERNMENT

The territory embraced in Dawes county was first settled in 1884, by a band of as hardy and determined pioneers as ever crossed the plains to seek homes in the great west. In the spring of 1885 the county was organized, on a

petition of some of our first settlers and foremost citizens, among whom were Cyrus Fairchild, B. S. Paddock, E. S. Nesbitt, E. Egan, B. F. Carley, F. M. Dorrington, J. H. McMillan, and W. H. Reynolds.