New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-08-08

hundred miles west of Worthngton il already rap
idly filling up with settlers, who find this place tner
most convenient market Some idea of the magni-
tude Of the lumber trade Of this town, only two
years old, may be obtained from the fact that
single dealer paid during the last eight months OF
the year 1873, to the St. Paul and Sioux City
road. more than $4,000 for freights alone.
have said that the colonists representatives
of the best class of people from the Eastern ana
Middle States One of the fundamental principles
of the colony is total abstinence from the use OF n-
toxicating liquors. The charter of Worthington,
granted by the Legislature, forbds the manufacture
sale of sprituous or malt liquors. and the people
of Mobiles County elected by an almost unanimous
vote Supervisors who have refused to license the
sale of liquors There is not drinking saloon or
bar in the whole county. The religious, social. and
educational institutions of the colony are, of course,
still in their infancy but promise to be in every
spect worthy of the people who found them. The
provision that has been made by the State for the
support of common schools is of the most liberal
character and this will be supplemented by local
taxation and individual bounty insuring to South
Western Minnesota as good schools as there are III
the United States.
THE CLIMATE OF THE COUNTRY.
The climate of Minnesota has been described a
but the weather is subject to less sudden changes
than encountered in lower ATTITUDES. The " biz
yards" are intensely severe and full of danger for
the luckess traveller who is caught in one of them
upon the open prairie. The Summers are short.
with some very hot days which bring forward the
crops with wonderful Tapidity. while the cool nights
are favorable for tho proper ripenng of the wheat.
1t is no uncommon thing. on land that has been cu
tvated for several years, for the farmer to begin
blowing on the 18th of April, and on the 18th of
August four months after to have his crop of wheat
harvested, threshed and sold The effect Of the dry
atmosphere upon consumptye5 is often very bene-
hcial and the country is entirely free from all
malarial diseases.
Beautiful as this country u.s. it has some faults, of
course One of the greatest of these its lack of
timber. The Great Woods of Minnesota, which are
the nearest are nearly hundred miles away, and
lumber and fuel are, therefore, very dear. Wood Is
sold at from six to eight dollars cord, and soft coal
from Iowa at So and 50 ton. Lumber costs about
S2j a thousand The colOnists have already planted
hundreds of thousands of trees, many of them hav
ing taken advantage OF the Timber act" and
nearly all of them having set out groves about their
houses. On an "Arbor Day" last Spring, great
number of trees were planted along the streets of
the town. These trees grow with wonderful rapidity
in the rich warm soil. and in few years they will
not only afford grateful shelter, but furnish fuel
for the people. In the meantime the colonists hope
to utilize peat that has been discovered, and they
have already found that the dried slough grass
aud rosin weeds make very good Summer fuel.
The water, like the most of that in the Mississippi
Valley, is hard
THE FUTURE OF SoUTH-WESTERN MINNESOTA.
Taken altogether with its drawbacks and discour-
agements, the success of the National Colony has
been very gratifying to its founders and members.
Even with the loss of two successive crops by grass
hoppers the people not in the least discouraged
There is to fear that these pests will re-
turn again next year, and the coloniss will go on
this season, breaking up new ground and preparing
to much greater amount of grain than they
had in this year. The grasshopper raid of this year
may retard immigration for a time, but this will
only be temporary, for Southwestern Minnesota
has before 1t great future, and it does not seem to
farn off