Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1882-05-26
DAKOTA.
Directions for Persons who Con-
template Going There.
LESSONS IN LOCATING LAND.
Water, Surface, Stones, Farms, Fences,
Gumbo.
Editorial Correspondence.

Gumbo.
| Editorial Correspondence
The facilities for travelling in Da-
kota were SO much greater than I
anticipated, that I accomplished my
contemplated travel much sooner
than / expected.
promised in one of my former
letters to give some directions for
the benefit of persons who contem-
plate going to Dakota. Emigrants
must procure round trip ticket, as
it will not cost as much to get there
and return as it will to return after
you get there. The reason Of this is,
every inducement is offered to peo-
pie to remain there, and these in
ducements are strongest among the
constables, sheriffs and hotel-heepers.
The landlord of the Dakota House,
in Huron, tried hard to induce me
to stay longer and no doubt would
have succeeded, if my baggage had
not been in another place. This
is point | would like to impress
upon the attention of emigrants:
they should always store their bag
gage at one hotel and board at
another, then they will not exper-
fence any inconvenience or delay
when they wish to leave.
All round trip tickets are first-class
tickets other-and those tick
cts will admit you to the sleeping and
dining cars, and after you are admit
ted you can settle the admission fee
with the gentlemen who preside
there, whose eyes are always of the
same color as their white vests, and
their boots of the same color as taeir
faces.
Every convenience possible is
afforded for the comfort and CON
venienoe of women and children on
the Chicago & Northwestern railroad,
and the servants Of the company
are uniformly kind and obliging,
with the exception of the heavy set
man at Elroy, Wisconsin, who took
particular pains to impress passen-
gers with the hallucination that he
held chattel mortgage on the whole
concern, which he was about to
foreclose, and hereafter run the road
for his own especial pleasure, and
not as branch Of public industry.
The fare for a first-class round
trip ticket is less than one and two
thirds cents per mile from Dodge
vile, and good for thirty-fve days.
The time on the outward trip is
about thirty-six hours. A carload
of freight will be billed through for
about $50; with free passage for one
person to care for the stock. The
better plan for those going west, is to
get car and put into it everything
they have, except their cisterns and
bay windows, and all they can get
from their neighbors, as almost
everything becomes useful there.
! If car is billed to a certain point,
and on arriving, the emigrant de-
sires to go to another point on the
road, the company will as a rule,
send it on without any extra charge.
! LOCATING LAND.
Before man goes west he should
take lesson in locating land, so,
that no matter where he might be
he could tell what section, town
and range he is on.
Every town contains SO sections,
the numbering commencing with l
at the northeast corner Of the town
and numbering to the west then
east, and so on backward and for
ward and ending with sc at the
southeast corner of the town.
Towns are numbered from south to
north, and ranges arc numbered east
and west from the meridian or base
lines. If the numbers increase
toward the west it is range west, and
if they increase toward the east it is
range east. All the towns east or
west in the same row or tier, are the
same number, but in a different
range. Huron, in Beadle county, is
in two towns, both numbered 10,
but in two ranges 81 and 60 west;
Warrington in town 112, range 60;
St. Lawrence, Hand county. town
III, range IS; Miller, in the same
town and range; Rec Heights, town
III, range 70; Highmore, Hyde
Co., town liz, range y; Hitchcock,
Beadle county, town 113, range 63;
Crandon, Sphinx county, town lis,
range Ga; Redfield, town 116; range
"a, and SO on; and from these towns
any town, range or section, or quar-
ter section of land in the territory
can easily be located.
Beadle county is all sur eyed, and
contains 80 towns; Sphinx contains
AZ towns, all surveyed, except the
west tier of towns. Hand county
contains 40 towns. with only s towns
surveyed. Hyde county has but
II towns and none surveyed.
A settler may locate upon any of
the unsurveyed lands and hold a
quarter section for farming purposes,
but cannot hold a timber claim;
timber claims must be taken on
surveyed lands, and then only to the
extent of 160 acres III each section.
Sections 16 and Sc have been set
apart by the organic act of the terri
tory for state school land. Regula-
tions for disposing of this school
land will he made by the legislature
as soon as the state is admitted into
the Union; at present all the school
land is vacant. Any person may
get a title to the school lands by
settling upon and improving it before
the survey is made, but not after
ward.
WATER.
Streams of water are very scarce in
the northeast corner of that part of
the territory below latitude 46,
the Jim river being the principal
stream, and Turtle creek its only
tributary. A few other small
streams exist, and all are mainly