Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1854-03-27
HOMES IN WISCONSIN.

ing, and so on. My son talks of moving on to
it. Here is dollar for your HERALD and
trouble for six months. Send them to Spring.
vile, Pa.
You can see whether the taxes are paid by
looking at the Treasurer's De!inqunt List in
our paper. The land is situated somewhere
north Of the WooDHoUsE and KETNER settle
ments it is all rolling prairie through there
from Patch Grove to Beetown, distance OF
some twelve miles. There are numerous ra-
vines, throwing the country into slopes east
ward and westward, but all of the lands have
a moderate inclination southwark. There is
not much dead level land, except on the divide
between the waters Of Grant river and the
streams flowing into the Mississippi. You
must not imagine there are any lands on B,ake's
Prairie that are untillable by reason of hills,
rocks or swamps. We have been all over that
region and do not remember seeing an acre of
untiIlable lands from any such causes. There
are fine rock quarries along the spring branch
es, and the lands are just rolling enough tc
drain them, but their descent southwark is ra.
pid, so as to cause the waters in branches t.
flow swiftly. 1t is unnecessary for us TO ado
that such region must be healthy.
There are some timber groves, principally
of young timber. The population for few
years has been sufficient to suppress fires, and
timber has spread in patches; in some places
small oaks, hiclories, and other tmibers Nave
taken possession for miles, and begin TO sup
ply fuel. The PRrDEAUx settlement, where
there is plenty of timber to supply all Blake's
Prairie for generations, lies near your land on
the east. There never can be any difficulty a
bout timber for it will grow where the fires
are kept off, faster than the consumers cal
multiply.
TAFT's new stone Touring mill, on 3lak e's
Fork OF Grant river, is in the nei ghborhood of
your land. 1t is one Of the most valuable mills
in the country, supplied with water from
springs near by. Springs are plenty, although
the lands on that prairie are among the most
elevated in the country
The lands of that prairie have limestone
clay basis; the soil is black and mellow under
cultivation, and is from nine to fifteen inches
thick. 1t produces wheat very WELL indeed
you would be astonished at the product of
wheat per acre. We believe however that
could all the soil be removed, and the clay sub
soil cultivated, wheat would be a surer and
better crop. There can be no better soil for
other crops, SO that more would be lost than
gained by such an operation.
lii order to answer your letter in respect to
markets, We must explain the commercial! sit
nation of that region of country between Grant
river and the Mississippi. Most any country
has its inland villages, which answer very wei
as places of barter and for the sale of limited
amount of farm products, but they cannot pur-
chase more than they can consume. The sur
plus must go to market elsewhere. Formerly i,
Beetown consumed most all the products of
B!ake's Prairie, but now less than tenth of
that surplus would supply that village. Far
ming has gone far ahead of the home wa nts,
and without an outlet for such surplus, farming
would have to be abandoned Fortunately
however, for that lobe of Grant County, west
of the Grant river valley, the Mississippi forms
one of its boundaries, and that river affords
market, of unsurpassed permanency and value
The favored points for receiving and storing
the farm products of Blake's Prairie, are Cass-
vile and Wyalusing. Forored we say, be-
cause those two villages are situated at the f.
nest landings, and have the best roads leading
TO them of any where else below Prairie du
Chem at both places, the river is a broad
sheet of water, unobstructed by islands, tow
heads or shifting cur rents. Beats will always
land at their wharfs without charging for the
mere call, by putting on high rates for freight,
so that transportation to or from those places
will always be at the lowest rates that free
competition can establish. CaSsvile and W.
abusing have the best landings, roads, farm
supports and trade facilities generally, of any
Mississippi river towns in the state,-there
can be no question about it. If they were
both un-damned from the mortgages and dis
putesui titles hanging over them, we beley e
they would be our largest villages in two
years. tits shame the holders don't do some
thing now while the times are good to make
titles and let Cassvile and Wyalusing go "a
head, as nature and circumstances designed
they should.
Well, Cassville and Wya,using are about ten
miles from your land, and viii always be the
best market places in Grant County, though
heretofore little resorted to for trade ard less
known abroad. The country back of them is
equal TO any we ever saw. PAS from Nc
CARTNEY's, two miles in the rear of Cass-
vile, or by way of PRIcE's to the ScoT1 Set
tlenent, .iust west of DIVERS mill then ON
through the RAY Settlement to Patch Grove.
and we don't believe mortal eyes ever dwelt
upon country surprising it, either for beau
y or the clements of wealth At McCARr-
NEY's there are delightful timber groves, and
all along the brow of the Mississippi bluffs,
there is good timber. North of LoRp's
at Bunker Hill Post Office, there are over fifty
sections of elegant timber, then there is the
broad prairie east Of you, rolling like troub-
led sea.
Most of the buildings yet erected are OF
pine lumber, but rock will be resorted to as
the permanent building material. Limestone
may be quarried out of the ravines, as we said
before; it is the blue, stratifed limestone.
win VEINS dividing it perpendicu,arly into
h.neks, so that there is not much shaning ~
hammerins necessary. 1t is said TO be the
finest building rock in America, except mar.
bic. You can get pine lumber for fences and
b,,,lSino W ,..r-