cek on the north half of the northwest quarter, and Ján Brasna on the south half of the northwest quarter of the same section, 34.
One man of the New York City club, after writing me a letter, broke away from his club and came out some time ahead of them, trying to play sharp, and get first choice of homestead. He landed his family in Ellsworth, our county seat, and came on to Wilson, walking to my cabin two miles due east of town. I met him with a handshake and a smile, and he asked me, “To je pan Swehla?” “Ano,” I said, and I asked him his name. “Hu! did n’t I write you?” he asked—much surprised that I did not recognize him because he had written to me. I had never seen him, or a picture of him, before. He confidentially told me that he was an “Odd Fellow,” which I took for granted; he appeared very odd. His treachery to his fellows left behind did not recommend him to me as being a very desirable neighbor, so I agreed with his brother Odd Fellows who advised him to settle on Buffalo creek near Ellsworth. After many years of hardships on his homestead, I met him as I was surveying a state road through the county, running close to his place, and he complained to me of the great ingratitude of his only son!
The rest of the New York club reached Wilson safely, and I located them all on section 26 in Wilson township, as follows: Martin Honomichl on the northwest quarter; Adolf Honomichl on the north half of the southwest quarter; Ján Krasnicka on the south half of the southwest quarter; Ján Merchl on the northeast quarter; Josef Krofta on the north half of the southeast quarter; Frank Hubka on the south half of the southeast quarter. I divided up the land for them, showing each his corners and boundary lines, made out the description and preëmption papers, and charged them fifty cents apiece. The Chicago club was a much larger club, and the larger part of it came to Wilson later on. The New York City club had many stragglers who came in small groups, as did the Chicago club also. They kept coming out after they had received letters from their friends telling of the great expanse of nice land that became all their own just for the asking, and a small fee to the government.
In a scattering way the following families arrived: Josef Dymacek from Nemaha county, Nebraska; Ján Brasna and family, consisting of two sons, Ján and Rudolf, and four or five girls, came from Detroit, Mich.; Ján Zaloudek with a good sized family; J. F. Tampier, widower, with one son Josef and one daughter Mary, and Martin Fifer and wife, all came from Saginaw, Mich. Later came one more family from Saginaw; the head of it was named Jakup Hanzlicek. He bought raw land in Wilson township, of the Kansas Pacific Railway Company, at about $5 or $6 per acre, choosing the southwest quarter of section 15. Ján Zaloudek settled on the southeast quarter of section 6, in the same township. Ján Dlabal and family came from Toledo, Ohio, as did Ján Krejci (pronounced Krāchee) with his family the same spring. Krejci settled on the northeast quarter of section 12, township 14, range 11, Plymouth township, Russell county, and Dlabal settled on the northeast quarter of section 10, township 15, range 10, now in Noble township, Ellsworth county. Josef Vancura settled on the northwest quarter of section 12, township 14, range 11, Plymouth township, Russell county. He brought his family from New York City, as did his two brothers-in-law, Ján Stoka and Václav Hubicka; these last two bought out Jack Crawford on the northwest quarter of section 18, adjoining the town of Wilson; they
