70L.XXHI.   S^., , ; ^INDIANAPOLIS, IND., SATURDAY, JULY 28,1888.
NO. 30
-HE NORTHWEST AND ITS EE-
SOTJBOES-NO. 5.
•/.ntana Agriculture, Mining and its Coming Industries,
yjtorlnl Correspondent by J. B. C.
>*o one can have an adequate idea of the
,-tent and vaiue of this country till they
.__ it. 1 wrote last from the Missouri and
.[ilk river valley. The road runs over 200
liles up the latter valley,directly through
le naturally rich, and late Indian resorption, just thrown open to settlement by
he government. This reservation em-
raced 17,000,000 acres of- land and till recently was held in reservation'for the
1, Gros Ventris and Crow tribes. On
hese lands I saw grazing great herds of
nitle and flocks of sheep. The grasses
mm to be very nutritious, as only on
lane 12th cattle looked fat enough for the
beef market. Improved blood was very
noticeable in the herds. These cattle have
rrazed on these lands all winter and spring
ithout feed or shelter other than the
:imberbelts along the streams and on the
oot hills of Bear Paw and the Little Kocky
.ro.ntams. So the reader may form a
-ood idea of the lands, climate and wild
■rassea here. Further west we saw some
;l this beef in the market, and it looked
like a very choice article, fat and marbled,
good goality. This was a surprise to all.
Fur over 200 miles up the' Milk' river va' -
ey, and reaching 40 to 50 miles south and
rath these lands are about ot the same
■oality, The valley is finely watered,
Mny of the streams having their sources
the gushing springs of the mountains
ilready mentioned, and we were told that
Mny of them were never known to dry
•por fail in the dryest season. The an-
Ml rainfall is about 17 inches here, com
nl usually in the spring and growing season. There is much more rain this season
■hanis desired. There is but little farm-
■H here yet, though last year a small
eld of wheat in this vicinity yielded
"0 bushels, and that crop looks very
promising this season. What are called
i« ''Chinook" winds, a warm current
'lowing this way from the west in the
"inter season, greatly modify this north-
-•'a climate, during intervals of a week
* t*lree weeks, and the grain is sown here
> February on this account. On account
so warm winds the snow lies on the
f°nnd rarely more than 24 hours after it
■wis, and so the grazing is pretty good
r°ugh the winter, these grasses curing
^ae ground and  affording nutritious
problem, or is doing it rapidly. About a'l
the soldiers have to do here now is to settle the disputes between the tribes, and
punish the one found stealing from the
other.
Fort Benton is 70 miles farther west,
where our road touches the Missouri river
again. It is an old town, at the head of
river navigation, and was for years the
headquarters of the American Fur Co.
The city is growing rapidly, and is in the
midst of a fine agricultural section, and
noted as a great center for sheep and
wool growing, as well as cattle. The statistics obtained here in these regards were
a surprise to many, the volume of these
industries exceeding what is generally understood.
Great Falls is reached nearly 50 miles
farther west, situated on the south bank
of the Missouri river. This is one of the
most promising young cities' we have seen
in many a day. The natural situation is
as beautiful as it could be. The rapids in
the river and the great falls gives this
place illimitable water power; here is fine
bituminous coal in great abundance; lumber for building at about the same prices
as in Chicago; near gold, silver, copper,
lead and iron ores and mines; surro anded
by excellent agricultural lands, anil the
finest' grazing district.' This is bound to
The mineral productions of Montana last |
year were ?300,000,000, exceeding those of
any State or Territory. The Northern Pacific touches Helena, and several branches
are buiiding. And for the present this is
the terminus of the Manitoba system,
though it is to be extended southwest.
Coal is in great abundance in convenient
distance for fuel. I found quite a number
of Indiana people here in business, and
doing well, among them, Russell B. Harrison, son of Gen. Ben Harrison, of Indianapolis, and Eb. Sharpe, a well known
business man of your city.
I trust that I have not wearied the
Farmer readers, but must be allowed to
refer briefly to the Turtle mountain region
in Dakota, visited on our return trlp,some
40 miles north of the main line, on a
branch of the Manitoba system. There is
no richer section than this. The wheat
that took first prize at New Orleans Exposition was grown here. It is settling up
rapidlyand is bound to bc a very attractive section.
Richard Grace, of Shultztown, a Logansport suburb, whipped his little boy, because he couldn't sing.- The child's mother used a stick of wood to put music into
his Saul, and both parents were lined $50
for their cruelty.
boine, well up the valley, and
.'°8 north- of the Bear Paw mountains, is
■*ot the best built and most substantial
^tary stations in the  United  States.
l e Wrters of the men and residences of
n™,18*are 8l1 h-ndsomely built brick
^Mures, the grounds  laid off in hand-
' <%  style,  and  everything looks
.^"Mtfial and  comfortable.   The mili-
jYT1*01-*is a reservation of five miles
._** direction from the  high flag staff
■»erv3rWade pounds, and through this
* r9 "ows 8andy creek.   Stationed
"o seven companies of the  20th U.
.,_ «-try under commas o{ Col> E> s
i.$' pDd two companies of the lst
■oil' AiValry under Major Henry Carotid-] ary of nearly -**.000 volumes.
Kc. * * and weekly papers, magazines,
V,Ln here> and accessible to all the
•an   - Fine
;ai
■*« thtPlatS aff°rd the soldIersPlenty of
■j] g,^ a8*- "Vegetables make a wonder-
'^Bdan      ~d  ■"* produced in great
'5*S
The
*PUon *"° Party met with a royal
> 0(fl° at headquarters,by Col. Otis and
'«t-au  "*•  This was far off from rail
i|!» last T?U°n tiU the road was lauilt
•>W», h 0Vei»ner.   The building of this
\   ,Dt* practically solved the Indian
WATERFALL IN PRICKLY
make a city of no mean proportions. A
great deal of capital is already located
here. A smelting establishment costing
$2,000,000, for the precious metals is nearly
completed by New York capitalists. In
this vicinity I saw as tine wheat and oats
fields as anywhere on the trip, sown in
February. From here we are in fall sight
of the Rocky mountains, snow capped,
some 65 miles distant, yet not seeming to
the vision more than 10, so clear is the atmosphere. Health is excellent in this re
gion. A physician said to me that but for
his outside transactions he could make no
money here.
Helena, the capital of Montana, is our
destination, and it is 97 miles southwest
by rail from Great Falls. For over 50
miles we run on the bank and up the Missouri river. The road bed for many miles
is chiseled in the base of the mountains.
The canyons of the Missouri, and that of
the Prickly Pear are grand and picturesque beyond description. And so we
pass through the finest mountain scenery
I have ever looked upon. Helena is
reached as the evening shadows of tho
mountains begin to fall on the pretty foothills and the valley where it is situated.
This is a city ef 15,000 inhabitants, and a
great deal of wealth. The gold and silver
mining^ndustry is a very important one.
PEAR CANYON, MONTANA.
WEATHER CROP BULLETIN
Of the Indiana Weather Service ln Cooperation with the Signal Service.
Indianapolis, July 21.
The Weekly Crop Bulletin of the State
Weather Service, for the week ending the
21st inst., shows that little or no rain fell
over Indiana, except in the extreme
southern and southeastern portions. In
the latter section the rains were copious.
A cool temperature and much sunshine
prevailed throughout the week, and observers reported that this condition of the
weather was favorable to all remaining
crops and the harvest. Corn is in an excellent condition, and farmers have high
hopes regarding its yield this year. Oats
and hay are cut, and wbeat threshed, but
it appears that the quality of the latter is
not as expected, in many localities. Tobacco has become "frenehed" in consequence of the heavy rains of the 8th and
Oth inst. Chinch bugs, apparently, are
still in many fields, but no great damage
by them has been reported. The local
observers reported the following:
Sunman—The past week has been favorable for making hay crop which, although light, is generally free from weeds,
and has been saved in  good order.   Corn
and potatoes are doing well.   Oats  are
very short.   Rainfall, .34 inch.
Delphi—Corn, oats and potatoes are
prime. Wheat is not turning out as well
as expected, being shriveled, although in
some localities the yield is better than anticipated.   No rain.
Crawfordsville—All crops are in excellent condition. Wheat is all cut, but not
of very good quality: so far, buyers grade
it No. 3.   No rain.
Mt Vernon—Wheat is coming in freely,
and is sold at 73 cents. Corn looks flne,
and a large crop is expected. The yield of
wheat is 23 bushels per acre. Rain-fall,
.52 inches.
Franklin—Wheat is being threshed, and
turns out better than expected. Oats is in
shock. Corn in silk and tassel, and looks
splendid.   Rain-fall, .06 inch.
"Vevay—Refreshing rains in copious
quantity have visibly relieved vegetation.
Although the hay harvest suffered some
interruption, the crops have not sustained
any injury. The crops especially benefitted are corn and tobacco. Of the latter
much was planted late, and its growth
was feeble at first. The present rains
have revived it to such an extent that a
failure will not be probable. This staple
is cultivated, in this county, on the most
extensive scale, and is of excellent quality.
The crops of past years have surpassed the
famous Kentucky staple. Rainfall 1.9-1
inch.- —-
Seymour—The weather during the entire week wa3 very favorable to all remaining crops. The yield of wheat varies
from 15 to 30 bushels per acre, and it is
beyond expectation. The oats crop will
be SO per cent. Corn will be 100 per cent,
or more of an average. Late potatoes an
average yield; hay crop is light, but the
melon crop is the best in ten years. Rainfall .75 inch.
Worthington—Corn never was better;
indeed it is much above the average. Potatoes are abundant. The melon crop is
doing well. Oats were damaged by the
rains on the 8th and Oth; the same may be
said of the wheat, as dealers refuse to purchase wheat because of its damp condition.   Rainfall .31 inch.
Mauzy—Oats are mostly cut, but are
difficult to harvest. Wheat threshing is
the order of the day, but the yield is not
as good as expected.   Rainfall .Oi inch.
Degonia S| rings—Haying is the order
of the day, the crop is not more than one-
half. Oats will be two-thirds of crop.
Chinch bugs are in  oats, corn and millet.
Farmland—Farmers are threshing and
marketing wheat; the most of the crop is
poor and brings small prices, still some
farmers fay it is as good wheat as ever
they raised.   Rainfall. .50 inch.
Butlerville—Wheat is being threshed
and yielding well. Oats is being harvested and the crop is light. Corn is injured
by chinch bugs.   The hay yield is fair.
Lafayette—The oats harvest here has not
begun. Chinch bugs are abundant, but
no damage is reported yet.
Angola—The week has been dry and
very favorable for harvesting. Wheat is
all cut and in good shape. Oats give a
heavy crop. Corn is good,but wants rain,
and so do potatoes.
Princeton—Wheat is yielding splendidly ; most farmers are marketing just from
the machine. Corn looks very fine. The
biggest crop of plums ever known is reported.
Logansport.—The past week has been a
busy one with our farmers. Considerable
threshing has been done, and the result is
satisfactory. Oats and corn promise an
unusual yield.
IT. A. Huston,
Director Indiana Weather Service.
Per C. F. R. Wappen-IAns,
Signal Service Ass'U