WE WHO HAVE LIVED IN DAKOTA

We who have lived in Dakota
We who have loved her right well,
We who have known her, and tried her,
Marvelous tales could we tell;
Tales of the Sioux and the Mandan,
Tales of the Sheyenne as well;
Deeds of brave Custer and Sully,
Fain unto you we would tell.

Hard have we worked, and we’ve conquered,
Conquered the Red Man—the sod.—
Over the primeval prairies
Forward and onward we’ve trod.
Fought we with sword and with ploughshare,
Wresting our bread from the clod—
Virgin and untouched we found it
As left by the hand of our God.

Yes, we’ve weathered the blizzards.
Crop failures many we’ve known.—
Early and late have we labored,
Felt the cold wind to the bone.—
Glad we have been when our neighbor
Garnered the golden grain,
Knowing our mortgage was unpaid,
And all of our efforts seemed vain.

Glad have we been when the harvest
Yielded an hundred-fold—
Paying the debt and the mortgage,
Lining our pockets with gold.
Yes, we still love North Dakota,
Knowing she’ll compensate well
Those who are willing to try her;—
To summer and winter her well.