The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1869-05-06
THE COUNTRY WEST AND aORTI4.
.s9s~~z=~~~~ WEST. o. st. CLOUD.
The Vacant HounestaaA Land. II ~n.>
Region.

~ -MbDVa VI IT. CLOUD
Region.
From tie Minnesota Monthly.
A visitor to Minnesota who fails to see
the country between st. Cloud aud the Red
River Of the North, misses tbs.sharaeteris-
tic, and probably most beautiful scenery in
the State. Such explorers as Eisollet and
Pope described it many years ago in Ian
guage of passionate praise. In 1853, one Of
me editors OF the Journal Of Commerce, (Mr
hallock, made it the subject Of ar illustra-
ted article in Harpers Magazine. In 1860.
Mf' Manton Marble, now editor Of tho
"c1td, published, in the same magazine, q
serles OF papers concerning it, finely illus
trated by his own pencil. The valley Of
Lne hed River, for ten miles on each side, is
nat, with timber only along the river, and
lts branches. The soil is very deep and
rich. From st. Cloud to the Red River.
tue surface is handsomely unduIating, and
favoratly divided into prairie and hard
wood timber. The Sauk River, rising in
Osakis Lake, and having an Arable valley
OF eighty miles, the Long Prairie river tho
Swan, the Chippewa, the Ponme d. Terre,
and the Otter Till, are the main streams Of
that region. Bnt what most distinguishes
it is its numerous magnificent lakes,
White Bear Lake, in Pope county, is ten
miles in length, by from three to five in
width. Lake OsaAis, lying ia Douglas and
Todd counties, is about the same size.
Pelican Lake, in Grant county, though not
quite as large, is equally beautiful The
sight OF t.ese many silvery sheets of wa'er,
their shores in some places hugged by
heavy forests, in others embroidered with
the flower be-sprirkled prairie, sloping to
the waters edge, will we'll reward the tour
Is for long journey.
Win the exception of the bridpea the
roacs are excellent. From St. Clond to
oana Centre, sixty miles, are daily stages
u NohScrd coaches from thence on to Fl.
aoercr'mhie, stages are tr1-weekly. On
Ms fonte are ten enterprising villages,
Two o. which sustain very respectable
ne nswerapers. On the route are seven or
eight grist mills. The main travel ba-
tween st. Cloud and Sank Centre winds
along the valley of the Sauk. There is .
road cut out however direct through the
timber from st. Joseph 20 New Munich.
In tnat timber are yet few good home
steads. (four miles out en that road is
st. Johu's College, presided over by an
Aono-a handsome granite edifce, with
attractive surroundings of lake and forest.)
Excellent timber h0mesteads can also be
had within twenty miles of St. Cloud, back
Of Two Rivers.
Several localities now especially attract
settlers viz Parker's prairie, = few miles
northwest Of Osakis, an extensive area.
with strong clay subsoil, timber and water
handy, and picturesque view of the Leaf
Hills at distance. Many homesteads are
being taken in the lower township of Otter
Tail county, aud also in the valley of the
upper Red (or Otter TaiD River. The soil
ls FIRST rate, the surface elevated, and ex-
treme'y beautiful. vell-to do class of
settlers have made good beginning there.
Fifty miles north Of there is the new White
Earth Reservation of the Chippewa Indians,
a fertile couatry; the soil is
good in all directions, With fair supply Of
wood ana timber, northwest being. the
rich and inviting valley of Buffalo river.
South froui lie nt'er Tail river are the
counties Of Grant and Stevens. The for
mer comprises sixteen townships, and lies
due west of Douglas county The latter
lies west Of Pope county. There is scarce
ly waste acre in either county, and no
better soil can be found in the entire State.
The st. Paul and Pacific Railroad, now
completed into Meeker county, is expected
TO traverse Grant and Stevens counties
inside of TWO years. Glenwood, Holmes
City, Alexandra and Brandon, on line
north and south, few miles east Of those
can afford sufficient base of
supplies to the new settlers.
There is no doubt that this fertile frontier,
aow almost vacant, will be tapped by Rail-
road about as soon as the homestead settler
IAN get his farm under cultivation He has
10 pay only fifteen dollars in money for 16O.
acres of land under the homestead law,
which In ten years will probably be worth
as many dollars for each acre. To inhabit
it he does not need to stick close by it, but
can be absent to work out even the greater
part of the time. The law requires that he
shall cultivate the lan0 in good faith accord
ing to hi. circumstances. For an active and
robust settler yoke Ct oxen worth S15O,
and a b eaking plow worth S35 would to
quite capital to start with. and many q
young man has got independent who started
with ho more of a capital than his hands and
his health Probably the cheapest fence is
The straight kind, three rails high. nailed
to posts. To fence forty acres with such
fencing requires about >. 900 rails, $50 posts,
and one keg Of nails. One man can get ont
IS posts, or l0G rails in day. so 1t will
take about five weeks for a SETTER to pre-
pare the materials with which to fence for
ty acres. AS to breaking, team of two
yoke Of oxen will average one and half
acres per. day.
The markets for the frontier settlers for
several years will consist Of the military
posts, such as Abercromhie, Wad>worth,
Ransom and Totten; and the new immigra-
ton which comes in each year. Wheat has
brought upward of one dollar bushel all
winter at Alexandria. At McCauleysville
near Ft. Abercombie.) thousand bushels
in sacks were sold at So per bushel. Oats
of which the SOL produces large crops, have
always brought high prices on the frontier.
The region is amply supplied with fine hay
meadows, and as one man can cut and stack
= ton Of hay per day, on an average, it can
be judged whether stock raising will be
profitable. After this belt of country has
been occupied there will be no such chances
for the homestead settler and the present
may be called his golden opportunity.
e. r. ANDREWS