New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-12-09
Aetp2lprk DAILY Gribm,te
NORTHERN MICHIGAN.
To u. Edito, of tn. ~ y. Tribune.

To the Editor Of The ~ " Tribune.
SIR: You will recolect that in the article yOu pub
lished relative TO State after your visit to
Grand Rapids, last Spring, you made some remarks
relative TO the Northern portion of the State, which
were considered erroneous by the Press as well as
people of Michigan and while your political enemies
condemned your motives in the severes terms, your
friends regretted that your widely and high
ly-przed journal should have given currency and the
weight of s vast influence TO incorrect statements, in
vented and circulated by interested parties to divert
the tide of immigration from borders and direct it
to regions further West. You then said, if mistake
not that you would with pleasure publish any anthem
tic accounts relative the topography of Northern
Michigan calculated to correct any erroneous impress
sions and avail myself of your kind offer to present
a few facts relative to this vicinity.
Near the center of that portion of the Southern Pc
nnsula north Of the Detroit and Milwaukee Railway
is the source of four rivers, flowing in different drec
tons viz: the An Sable the Ttibawassee, the Mans
tee, and the MuskegOn. All these are large and i'm
portant streams Houghton and Higgins Lakes, in
Roscommon County, are beautiful sheets Of water,
deep and cold, with graveIly bottom; they fed by
springs and their outlet is our lively pure and spark
ling Muskegon River. Flowing in a sOuth-westerly
direction its waters distance of more than
two hundred miles before they are discharged into
Lake Michigan.
The country along all these rivers is less
rolling and considerable portion OF it is covered with
nine vet there is farming land enough 10 sustain
population far greater than that OF the whole state az
the present time and the day is not distant when the
pine lands will become fertile farms under the skIltul
hand of the scientific agricuurst.
Stupendous frauds were perpetrated by the men who
received pay for making the survey OF great portion
of this country. Whole townships returned as
inaccessible swamps or pestient marshes, which are
now known TO be fair portions of creation az any
God ever made. Many more were returned as prop
erly surveyed, on whose soil the perured surveyors
never trOd; they merely forged their maps and held
notes and accomplished whatever else was necessary
in order 10 obtain payment, by the blacklist perjury,
and one can readily the reason they represented
the country almost inaccessible and totally unit for
settlement 1t was also the interest of men engaged
in hunting and trapping, the only parties acquainted
with the facts 10 confirm the evil reports, thus reserv
ing the lands TO the dominion OF the beasts oil the ior
est. Gradually, enterprisng lumbermen penetrated
the country adjacent 10 the streams but rs their object
was to steal valuable timber from the Government
lands they too had little object in opening the country
TO immigration. -
But these things have passed away, and an enter
prislng population from Ohio, New-fOrk, aud New
England, is flowing in, and with strong hands and
brave hearts, is tOng TO subdue the Wilderness ana
AngloSaxOn energy and perseverance are accomplish
ING wonders in the work of transforming the forest 10
fruitful fields BY the wise acts of our last Republic
can Legislature State roads penetrating the Wild
est portions of the state and what has heretofore been
only the trail Of the red and white hunter VIII soon
become the thoroughfaTe of civilized people, Inc
locomotive is also waiting mpatently TO penetrate
these northern forests The Grand Rapids and indl-
ana railroad extending from Sturgis on the Michigan
Southern and Northern Indanana railroad 10 Grand
Traverse Bay passing through Kalamazoo and Grand
Rapids is steadily progressing, and the hrst twenty
miles north Of Grand Rapids will speedily De com
pleed. When the road is finished, II VIII afford an
avenue of communication from Grand Traverse Bay
TO Cincinnati and connecting at Fort Wayne, Sturgs,
Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, with all the great lead
ing throughfares between the East and the West II
must prove of immense advantage 10 Northern hlch-
gam and especially TO the Upper Peninsula. :,
From the East, we have the Pere Marquette rail
road connecting with the Grand Trunk railway OF Can
ada at Port Huron which is slowly but surely APP
poaehing MS. When completed, We shall be only p
hours distance from New-York City.
Big Rapids, the county seat of Mecosis County, rs
stuaied on the MuskegOn River 6fty-fve miles north
of Grand RAPIDS; il is in 49, north latitude being
about the same as 0swego n. Y. The whole OF Min
nesOa two-thirds of Wisconsin, all OF Canada East,
onelhird of New-York, half of Vermont and New
Hampshire and the whole of Maine are in higher lat
itnde than this county, With fertile soil and health
full climate the valley of the MuskegOn is OF lti-
mately becoming the home of teeming population.
The ague and fever unknown and fevers OF all kinds
are exceedingly rare
The soil of the timbered lands is rch black, grav-
ely loam well adapted TO the growth of all kinds OF
grain and grasses as well as roots and vegetables:
Northern Michigan surely holds out strong induce
ments 10 enterprsng men, who deslrous OF seek
ing new homes in the West Being surrounded by Tie
great lakes, our Winters are less severe than 10
many localities two or three degrees further south
The lberaty of the State in opening good roads INTO
those portions which have hitherto been inaccessible,
must result in a speedy settlement OF the country.
Water mower is everywhere abundant. AT thls point,
the fall in the Muskegon River is snch 10 render the
whole of it's waters available, thus forming wSter
power not at all inferior to that of Rochester, y. 4
An we want is energetic, true-hearted men aud wo-
men 10 come and make their homes among us; 70
share with us the tolls and ultimate rewards of snbdu-
ino The wlderness; Of building mills and workshops,
tll the busy hum of machinery shall minge with The
vo;se of he babblmg river; aud when Nature has
welded her dominion over the primeval forest, I
slall become the home of free and enlightened
people. CAN DoN n: .a r0LhhN'
Bg ReDias MecOsts Co, Michigan, Nov. Is 1889
mi. is mistake Our inionsiion was manly oo'Aiea
"a ,,rr, ei,i.cu Of Michigan row deceased but who had
travelled widely over the region referred and knew whereof be
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