The star. (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1874-1875, 1875-02-10


Northern Pacific Railroad Company ar
worthless, both for agriculture and as
security tor money. There is no kind @
agriculture in these distant countries
except in a very limited way, that ca
return to the farmer the money he in
vests, and q very large proportion @
this land will not raise crops at ALL
The whole country lacks rain, abound
In destructive insects, and some section
are poisoned with alkali.
After alluding to the violent criticism
which this statement called out he says
my main proposition that there can b.
no general agriculture along the line o
this road, is equally true OF all the i'm
mense region lying between the 1909 me
ridian, the Sierra Nevada Mountains
the British Possessions and MeXico.'
The chief difficulty is lack OF rain. o
course, some '.very limited valleys tha
can be irrigated" are excepted. All thu
streams do not afford valleys of muci
extent, as they are closely bordered will
hills instead of broad alluvial plains.
These facts, he says, have been incon
trovertibly proven by official explora
tions and statistics, by the early ex
pl0rers like Clarke and Lewis, ,and'by am
pie letters from settlers and soldiers
who haa no interest in misrepresentint
the facts.
Gen. Custer made himself the fugle
man of the North Pacific, and vehement.
ly denied the statement of Gen. Hazen
and pronounced that belt to be a "valu
able agricultural country, attractive to
the emigrant, with an abundant ram fall
and that it will produce in profusion the
cereals and fruits common to the East
ern States" This denial was published
in. the Minneapolis Tribune, one OF the
organs of the road. He was severe and
insulting to his brother officer. He wrote
this article previous TO his expedition to
the Black Hills. Any one who ever saw
Gen. Custer knows that he is q daring,
dashing, reckless, visionary enthusiast,
and constitutionally unreliable. We do
not say that he would deliberately de-
ceive the public.
The object of Gen. Hazen in writing
the pamphlet before us was to vindicate
his own veracity and Judgment as well
as to get the facts before the people.
Throughout the 53 pages comprising this
document, he has spread the evidence
that conclusively proves the accuracy
of his statements. He condenses copi.
Gus official meteorological tables show
ing the amount of rain fall and the char
acter of the climate. He gives letters
from several officers, and from settlers
who have had experience on these "arid
Dlains," fully confirming his description |
N the New York Tribune.
A letter is given from Col. sully, who
has seen service in that country much of
the time since 1854. From Minnesota to
the Missouri River, he says the country
''is decidedly bad" Even in grazing,
''cattle would be compelled to roam over
arge sections of it, and in winter would
perish for want of timber or other means
If protection against the climate. l /
would not recommend it as a good coun-
ry to settle in, and large portions of it |
lever can be inhabited, not even by In
lians."
Lieut.. Crowcll, who was of the party |
o survey our national boundary line on
he north, says that between the 105th.
Ind 112th degrees of gitude-7 degrees
1t G9H miles per degree, 1861 miles
there is not an acre of arabic land, and |
ian not be made so for want of moisture, |
perhaps one hundred miles of
he Valley of Milk River" On this |
liver, seventy miles south OF the line,
'unning water is abundant. On his re-
urning march he crossed "no reliable |
'unning streams except Milk River and |
Creek"
NE And .this''constitutes large portion |
if that country marc ed out on the large |
advertising map of the Northern Pacific
Is the International Wheat Garden!
Across the entire breadth of the 'gar-
LEM there was not found one drop of
water"
Major Bryant said Of this country: sit
8 a blank to the Rocky Mountains,
light degrees &C longitude" Major Twi-
ling, Unites States Astronomer to the
Commission, says: "The
country can not be settled, except north
f the Rocky Mountains" 49,.
Newspaper correspondents accompa-
ying the Black Hills expedition last
testify to the same facts. Ex-
racts are made from Lewis and Clarke's
eport to the same effect.
But we have not space to follow Gen.
Iazen further to-day.
We conclude from all the evidence
hat of the 100000 square miles cover
d by Gen. Hazen, not more than 800,
lilies are fit for agricultural purposes.
hus, instead of 1880, ,00O, 900 of acres of
vailable domain, we really have less
nan 200, ,000, ,000 acres In that country that
re fit for any useful purpose, except for
le precious metals 1t embosoms. This
about the quantity given to railways
uring the first ten years. Spectators