The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1872-02-05
letter From the Northwest.
AfINNEAPoLIs, MINI, Jan 18th, 1872.
Az Editor nf tho proce

MILD WINTER WEATHER.
Winter, in this high latitude, opened carly
and with vigor, but seems thus far to nave
spent its force with the exit of the old year.
Though the solid blocks of blue ice, thirty
inches thick, are being quarred by thousands
of tons from the surface of the Mississippi just
above the Falls of st. Anthony, the weatherls
beautiful for winter and at no time during the
season. with exception of a few days, has IL
been uncomfortable for outdoor business.
Tn this portion of the State there has been just
snow enough to throw wheels out of use, but not
particle of surplus, or drifts sufhcien' 70 oo-
struct car wheel.
MODIFICATION OF CLIMATE.
find the opinion gaining ground among old
settlers, that not in New England alone is the
climate undergoing gradual but nevertheless
certain changes-with you modifying its rigors
during the winter months; with us, of this
Northwestern State becoming less characteriz-
ed for dryness, and more like that of the At
lantic coast Particularly has it been the case
this winter that degree of humidity has been
noticed in the atmosphere that would do credit
to the coast of Maine, and changes have been
so sudden and so marked that no one feels dis
posed to boast of the equable character of the
climate.
DULL TIMES
All kinds of business are unfavorably affect
ed by the stringency in the money market, while
local causes conspire to make the present sit
uation of our Minnesota farmers emphatically
unpleasant. Though wheat is in good demand,
and commands fair price in the market I'M
fortunately for our farmers they have very lit
tie of this great staple to spare. The drought
of last season was almost fatal to the crop, in
so-much that in many fields where fifteen or
twenty bushels to the acre were expected, not
more than half or third Of that amount was
actually harvested, In many sections of the
State farms were mortgaged to purchase ex-
pensive farming machinery, such as seed
ers, mowers, reapers, threshing machines,
ETC., the farmer looking to his growing crop as
the means of sure relief The failure of the
crops blasted the hopes based upon 1t, and left
the husbandman, in hundreds of instances, at
the mercy of exacting creditors, and to save
himself from their grasp he has been forced to
fall back upon his other productions, such as
pork, live stock, and other articles that have
been unexpectedly forced upon the market at
ruinous prices In this city the common price
for round hogs has been from four to four and
a half cents per pound, beef cattle have sold
as low as three cents on the foot, chickens and
turkeys have glutted the market at eight cents
for the former and ten for the latter, per pound,
while wild game and yenison have been pro-
portionally low.
The result of this condition of things is that
the farmer-as general rule-is without mon
ey to purchase his needful supplies, trade Ian
guishes in town and city, merchants are hard
up the banks and other money-leaders are
obliged to scan paper offered for discount with
unaccustomed severity, and business is as near
stand-stin as the most sluggish could desire.
GOOD FROM EVIL.
The dark cloud now hanging over our farm
ers is not without it's ''silver lining" Strin-
gency is the forced parent of economy-a virtue
too often disregarded in new States, where la
Dor ordinarily reaps rich reward Last Fall,
while on a visit to this State, HORACE GREELEY
admonished our people against the ruinous
practice of exporting annually the best ele-
ments of naturally fertile soil, In the form of
wheat, while returning nothing to the soil as
compensation for the lime and other ingredi-
ents subtracted from it by the growth of this
cereal. Many of our farmers are taking the
hint, and if not stimulated to proper works by
the Philosophers teachings, they will be
forced to change their course by the irresisti-
BILE logic of events. The merchant learns that
trusting out his wares "don't pay" and the
farmer learns that dependence upon single
crop is often fatal;-that too many eggs in the
same basket is not wise, especially when the
business and financial cars are in danger of be-
ing jolted from the track. sse.1 a.
While wheat is the great crop of the State, it
is questionable if any other cultivated crop
yields SO poor return to the producer. speak
with reference to this State, situated far from
the great markets, and obliged to compete
with localities nearer those markets, and fa-
vored with soil and climate which enable
them 10 produce better quality of wheat than
is raised here. Oats hay beans, buckwheat,
dairy products garden vegetables, potatoes,
sheep, live stock, pork, and even Indian corn,
ordinarily repay the labor of production better
than wheat, and are far less exhaustive of the
soil. The farmer is also learning something of
the necessity and value of manures, and that
he cannot depend upon regularly cheating
mother earth by annually taking from her large
crops while giving to her nothing in return.
With more and better applied economy in farm
ing, with closer application, more knowledge
of soils, manures and adaptation of crops with
less disposition to run in debt for expensive ma
chinery and more disposition to take care of
and preserve such tools as they may have,
with better vs. shelter for 81. their stock
and more care in selecting it, with
more frugality and less bad whiskey, the
farmers of the Gopher State" will increase in
Il ga, i
compare favorably with those who enjoy longer
growing seasons, and have fewer frigid months
to provide for. #sA fs-sfs aa srT 81
APPLEs-AN ANOMALY.
This is one of the States not regarded as favor
able to apple culture. In fact all attempts thus
far to grow apples have been lacking in sue
cess, and even among our best informed pomol-
ogists the question of success in the raising of
this kind of fruit is considered as yet open to
debate Under such circumstances it is never |
theless true that good apples are much cheaper
in this market than in yours, though western
Maine is largely devoted to apple culture.
Michigan, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri apples
have been shipped here in large quantities, and
the best of sGreenings," "Baldwins, % "Wine-
saps" and other choice varieties, sell at from
three dollars to three and half dollars per bar
REL while hundreds of barrels of good sound
apples, of medium size, are sold every week at
auction, at prices varying from two dollars to
two and three quarters per barrel
UNION MOVEMENT.
''The cities at the Falls''-of ST. Anthony
Minneapolis on one side and st. Anthony
ON the other side of the Mississippi,
are situated not entirely unlike Saco and
Biddeford, Brunswick and Topsham, or Lewis
ton and Auburn, in your State, and no small
degree of petty local jealousy exists between
them. The wise men of the two cities are now
engaged in a scheme to unite the two places
under a single municipal government, and if
successful they will do much for the prosperity
of all concerned. The scheme embraces three
free bridges between the two cities in place of
one toll bridge which now obstructs the inter-
course of those whose substantial interests are
Identical To accomplish this desirable under
taking besides legislative action, vote of the
two cities in favor of the project will become
necessary, and the result of a vote is rendered
problematical by the fact that, while Minneap-
oils is largely and intensely Republican, st.
Anthony is quite as intensely Democratic, and
in city made up of the two, her present large
majority would be overcome by the larger ad-
verse majority of the opposite side of the river.
-- MONSIEUR ToNSIN AGAIN.