The Worthington advance., 1879-11-06
MANITOBA VS.. MINNESOTA.

LoT0 Ne0cOn&Hefu CONSTndScfed-Ih0 Id
ua"ta0rsof Min'sesota.
A lengthy letter from Winnipeg to the
New York Times gives an account of Mani
toba farming the reverse of racy. We make
the following extracts:
All this may be very interesting reading in
Europe, hut here in Winnipeg, the capital of
this great Northwestern region described in
the land pamphlets, there is little evidence of
this boasted fertility of tie soil. The pros
pect all around is a dreary one. will not
undertake to say what may be the quality of
tue land in those regions described as lying
from 800 to 700 miles further beyond
the pale of civilization, where, as an
inducement TO settlers, some of the prin-
cipal towns are represented as "having
q fortnightly express, carrying her
Majes.y's mail and passengers to Winnipeg"
But must say that it seems strange that
within sight of this town. from which 80
much information has been forwarded free
of expense to I'll the European States, there
is hardly the slightest trace of cultivation to
be seen. You can walk out of the main
street upon as bleak and unhospitable a
prairie as you can find in the wnolo North
West believe am correct in stating that
there is not an ear of wheat, or grain of any
kind-not even vegetable'-gro within q
distance of many miles of the town. And
surely, if the Dominion lands of Canada are
as fertile as they are represented, they ought
to be able to produce food for the support of
tie Inhabitants of the princi pal city within a
reasonable distance of its site. One thing,
at least. as certain, that unless the citizen
here can make better showing in the way
of agricultural products in the immediate
vicinity of the town, they had better abandon
the business of furnishing land pamphlets to
the distressed agriculturists of European
States, and recommend their agricultural
authors to teach them how to cultivate q
patch of garden, instead of wasting 80 much
| rhetoric upon foreigners.
As to the attempt to prove that all the
| valuable lands of the United States have
been sold, and that only few worthless
patches remain, have only to say that the
citizens Of Winnipeg stand more in need OF
| being convinced upon this subject than Eng.
lish agriculturists. Mr. Trail, who is an
| old resident of this town, recently purchased
ten sections or about 1000 acres of wheat
land from the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Man
itoba railroad company, in Kittson county
Minnesota, almost on the borders of Cada.
da. He also owns largo tract of land on
the other side of the Red river, in Dakota
territory, while he has made very little in
vestments in Manitoba. Mr.. Traill was fo,
several years connected with the Hudson
Bay company, and had ample opportunities
of judging of ,he quality of the land here
as we'll as Of the facilities for disposing oi
its products, aud he certainly eau.
not have any prejudice against the old Do.
minion. Upon some of this land he hat
bad an average yield of 20 bushels OF wheat
to the acre this year. Still lower down in
the Red River valley, Mr.. March, of Mime.
apolis, and Mr.. Spsldine of New York. farm
G,OOO or 5000 acres at Warren, and in some
places had yield of 37X bushels to the
acre this season on first crop. Their aver
age yield was about II bushels to the acre
The large farms of Messrs. Cheny, Cass ant
DaIrymple, in Dakota Territory, where, Mr.
William c. DaIrymple informed me, they
Lad $4,000 acres of q wheat crop this year
from which there was yield of over 2OO, O,OO(
| i,ushels-these extensive farms are all within
the limits of this valley. There is also ths
Grandan farm, of some 10000 acres, no,
far distant upon which there wer'
over 1900 acres under cultivation this sea
son. This valley i regarded as one of tn.
finest wheat fields in the world, and yet there
are some 200 miles of It in length by nearl,
100 in width still unoccupied, except il
patches here and there. Within the pas
twel:e Q months the St. Paul, Minneapolis 4
Manitoba railroad has been completedto to St
Vincent, and for 200 miles you drive through
this immense plain without meeting viii
more than q few settlements. Since tn
completion of the railroad, however, farmer
have been flocking in from I'LL parts of tn
country, and it Is safe to estimate that with
in the next few years there will be NOR,
wheat raised in this valley alone than il
many years TO come in tho whole prope
lands of Canada.