Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1871-06-14
THE RED RIVER OF THE NORTH.


/ Iand OF promise ana PROMISED land. nat
| is, the routes from St Paul, Hastings, and
hereabout. Emigrants from Iowa and even
Missouri and Kansas. there are indeed. who
strike the Minnesota line on its southern bor-
der. at divers points west of the Mississippi
river, almost to the west line Of the State, ard
pursue as direct line as possible to various
points on the N. p. r. r.. in the region
where it is TO cross the Red River.
But. the great majority of emigration by
wagon. is by following Dads nearly parallel
with the St Paul and Pacific Ra ilroad. out
to breckenridge. and thence norhward, de-
ploy ing 10 the east or west
Nearly as many wagon trains may also be
seen daily. riding by rail from St Paul 10
ST Cloud. on the ''branch line" of that road.
One hundred and thirteen emigrant wagons
we've counted by the writer hereof. from the
train, in ride over that road last Friday
Crossing the Mississippi at ST. Cloud. these
trans push northwest. mostly ria Alexandria,
and thence deploy northwird. northeastward
and northwestward. from the Ottertsil coun-
try far away TO the north, even as far as the
! Pembina river.
These are the classes who emigrate with
their own teams. A majority. it is generally
admitted. of these wsgoners, are foreigners,
mostly Swedes.
Then, ria Duluth. westward cia the n p.
r. r., TO its Terminus, swarm hordes of these
classes: spectators. gamblers. mechanics Of
many kinds, farmers looking lands. adventur-
Gus boys and young men, Jews to skin them
of their watches, pistols. coats and baggage
when they are flat broke, peddlers Of fiat
bottles of mean whisky. hucksters in suffers
goods-from bacon and bread to canned
goods.-and all manner of other sharpers.-
A general hubbub and disorder prevails all
along the line of the road for many miles
east of the Red River. All points. or
"posts." where few tents and log or pole
shanty constitute the cities which adorn
the paper plots the cursed Spectators have
been duping the people with. abound in men
= dead broke" begging chances to work for
their board, boring wa, on-masters of every
train going in any direction, for chances to
J work their passage" mule .whack or bull.
whack." A little German hit it all in a nut
! shell. when he told The writer, Z" tell you
he ish pretty tam hard times arount here
already tam many mans he gets tam
many shances to DO noting - There are ten
men offering 10 work for their keeping, where
! there is one job of work TO be done. And
| still they pour in, hundred team-loads a
| day-squ1tting. living in their wagons and
| tents. resting their oxen, horses and mules.
| (the grass is very fne,) talking of putting
out for Sheyenne river, Rush river. Elm riv-
er. Goose river, Turtle river, Salt river. Pork
river. even TO Pembina. Many who have
provisions or means to return, /" pull out and
skin back to America ;" as they express it,
| Hundreds. aye thousands, live greatly on fish
which are abundant in all streams and lakes.
Geese ducks. deer and muskrats were plenti-
| full. but are getting shy.
Society AS rough as we used TO read of
in the mines. Selfishness is the Characteristic
feature; everybody looks upon everybody
dead beat. and nearly the whole lot unite in
cursing the country and tie spectators and
monopolists who hold all the valuable lands
at higher prices than people can afford to pay
True, many pre-emptors are pitching in, and
those who got seasOnable start for a crop.
seem hopeful. and many crops are looking
finely.
The general public inquire, what kind of
a country is it. any way ?" l can tell them !:
There are nearly as mary varieties of soil as
in This region. There is some timber, in some
regions of the banks of the Red River and its
tributaries. that will do Tor fuel and common
coarse work. Too much Of the land is low.
and needs draining, while it is so level thai
TO secure fiowage of drains is difficult. THIS
done. when in dry time good fire can
be made TO burn out foot or so of the
crops of centui les. and then the plow strikes
a soil, lightened by the ashes atop. the like
whereof is not on the face of the earth. for
depth and richness. Red-top grass is full six
feet high already. on lands thus improved -
TwOuld seem that more than quarter of the
land is lake. pond or marsh. producing fish
Of many kinds. all sizes in wonderful plent.-
tude, and mosquitoes big as eagles. and in
such swarms that cattle's and horses ears are
al. scab. and horses have been killed out
right by them. Indians protect themselves
against them by smear of fishoil and certain
herbs, while folks and Scandinavians sleep in
smudges, and by day wind their heads and
hands in musqaito-bar or cloths. and look
like mummy wrapped up in napkin.
Health Not as bad as is usual in low,
marshy lands A certain pestiferous. malar-
ions stinky perfume" oft-:imos when the
dew falls. or the Inns come. But water is
fair. and not often very hard. save sometimes
nigh or in belt of upland, where stone are
found
Hear now tAe truth of the whole matter !:
The Red River country will eventually be a
rich and well-populated country. At pres
ent. there is all the suffering and privation
there. incident 10 a ten fold too great influx
of emigration. And ninety nine per cent. of
those who are now leaving Wisconsin or 9th
er States. searching for home in Jay Cooke
Co s New Northwest" will heartily re-
pent them of il. Immediately on their arrival.
Everything save farming is already overdone,
fem flld and II lie too lafo IN eoyv or plant for