If only those old walls could talk.

In a way, they are talking inside the old railroad depot at Arnegard.

Maggie Woollings and her husband, Bryan Bjornstad, have been hard at work converting the depot into a home this winter.

They started with replacing the windows and then moved on to clearing out debris that had been tossed behind wide interior boards that rise about six feet off the floor.

That's when the walls started talking.

Among the couple's finds is a packet of love letters wedged in the wall of the freight area. Some of the letters had never been opened.

Woollings said they won't disclose the name of the man who received the letters until they learn more.

Bjornstad said the discovery process has been archaeological in nature. The older stuff is at the bottom; more modern junk on top.

One find was a 1909 novel by Gaston Leroux, titled "The Perfume of the Lady in Black." Others were magazines from 1914 and 1915.

Other finds were a set of upper dentures, with gold work, official railroad documents, worn work shoes, some women's clothing, shipping and luggage tags, and about 100 bottles, many with ceramic or porcelain stoppers.

Some of the boards have writing on them and will be preserved.

The boxes of artifacts will be sorted and eventually some displayed in the depot, when it becomes Woollings' and Bjornstad's home.

"We wonder about each item's story and how it got behind the wall for all these years," Bjornstad said.

- McKenzie County Farmer

Weeds run amok

It might be January, but weed control on Lake Sakakawea is on the minds of McLean County officials.

Phil Brown, lake manager, got that message loud and clear when he met with the commission to talk about the 15-year management plan for the lake.

The weed problem is getting increasingly tough to manage as the shoreline recedes, leaving a perfect environment for weeds to flourish.

The commissioners told Brown they'd like the corps to take advantage of the knowledge and experience of McLean County Weed Board employee Vance Tomlinson.

State's Attorney Ladd Erickson said the corps should add more funding to its weed-control efforts.

Erickson said McLean County's big problem around the lake is Canada thistle and leafy spurge, but he thinks controlling those noxious weeds is taking backseat to the corps' work to control saltcedar.

Saltcedar was found around the lake and in its western drainages about three years ago. It can get tree-sized and sucks up vast amounts of water, literally drying up creeks and drainages.

The commission said it budgets money for weed control every year and the corps should do the same.

"It's not a one-year shot," said commissioner Steve Lee.

- McLean County Independent

Party planning

With the calendar turned over to 2006, the spotlight will soon turn to the final Lewis and Clark signature event in North Dakota.

The Three Affiliated Tribes, also the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation, will host the event Aug. 17 through Aug. 20 and a committee's work is starting to take shape.

The event will commemorate the downstream return of the explorers, who took two years in 1804-1806 to seek a Northwest Passage from St. Louis, Mo., to the Pacific Ocean.

North Dakota hosted a signature event at Bismarck in 2004.

The tribes has been working with a volunteer committee from New Town, to prepare for the thousands who are expected to attend activities, presentations and performances.

At the committee's recent meeting, topics of discussion included traffic control, hotel and camping accommodations and the actual name of the event.

New Town will continue a "Reunion Days" theme and there is talk of designating New Town as the host city in a proclamation from the tribe.

Richard Mayer, tribal chief executive officer, said he'd take that idea to the tribal council meeting and to the Lewis and Clark tribal advisory committee that meets Tuesday.

The Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara Nation has been named the official host of the event by the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Council.

- New Town News

Law and order

The Mercer County Sheriff's department, headed by Sheriff Dean Danzeisen, has another big job to do.

The Beulah City Council reacted to the resignation of its longtime chief Rod Sagen by asking the sheriff to serve as active chief for an interim period.

The Beulah force is down to four officers because officer Kelly Nannenga resigned in December.

Beulah Mayor Gary Allard, along with councilmen Clyde Schulz and Robert Schutt, tapped the sheriff to help last month because of some sick leave that would leave the department with only two officers over Christmas.

Danzeisen said he suspended all the ranks of the remaining officers and assigned them to work patrol.

Schulz said wages would remain the same, but no officers would have rank over any others.

Danzeisen said one of his challenges is curbing overtime in the Beulah department, because a number of officers use frequent sick leave hours.

The sheriff said he and deputy Terry Ternes would cover shifts in the meantime.

Ideally, the Beulah force would have five officers to cover the 13-shift schedule every 28 days, plus double officers on busy nights.

The two departments will have to work with their existing budgets and no contract could be signed until 2007.

The mayor said it's time to get the situation under control.

"I do believe we need to get our department in order and in shape, and in short order," Allard said.

- Beulah Beacon