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IS 4.2 Story of an Emigrant.
113
commissioners in the service of the board could get work for
those who vvanted to work out, and direct the rest to the
interior of the state, where they could settle on government
land or buy cheap land from private parties.
Arrangements were made with newspapers in different
languages for publishing articles written by myself and
others, which contained descriptions of Minnesota and its
resources. Pamphlets and maps with more detailed accounts,
were printed in Swedish, Norwegian and German, and
distributed in the respective countries, on board the ocean
steamers, at the railroad stations and at other convenient
places. I was the author of nearly all of this literature, in
which great pains were taken to describe everything in
detail; how the chests or boxes ought to be made and
marked before leaving the old country; what articles ought
to be taken along; what kind of provisions were most
suitable; what measures ought to be taken with reference
to cleanliness and behavior during the long and tedious
journey, etc. On my visits among our western farmers
years afterwards I have often seen pamphlets in Swedish
and Norwegian with my name as author standing in the
little bookshelf side by side with the Bible, the prayer-book,
the catechism, and a few other reminiscences from the old
country. I also spent some time attending to the needs of
theemigrants in the sea-ports and in Chicago, made
arrangements with railroad companies for securing better
accommodations and even free tickets for hundreds of emigrants, who
would otherwise have been compelled to part with their
companions before reaching their place of destination.
While performing my duty as secretary of the board of
emigration I also acted as land agent for one of our
greatest railroad companies, whose line went through Wright,
Meeker, Kandiyohi, Swift and Stevens counties, and near
Lake Ripley, in Meeker county. I purchased some eight
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