River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1882-07-13
DAKOTA LETTER.
WAnPEToN. d. 7. !, July Sd. 1882.

WARPEToN, ID. T., July Sd, 1882.
EDITOR JoURNAL:-On the first of June
started on my western tour.
The Sand Hills are an Undesirable range
of elevations and depressions irregular in di-
rection, size and shape. The general diree-
ton is n E. and S. w. The northwestern
group rises very abruptly at the Wild Rice
River, % miles west OF Wahpeton. They
will average about miles wide and A miles
long At very moderate estimate they are
composed of 10000 hills from five to one
hundred feet in height, and half that num-
Der basins. or hollows, from two to twenty
feet deep Among these desolation reigns
supreme. No animal Lille is to be seen, and
but very little vegetable. Sand under foot
and on every side. About the center of this
group found one grassy flat of about ten
acres. At the S. w. termination of this
group they fiatten to about twice the width
and about four times the length till they
reach the Sesseton Reservation beyond
which l have not explored. In the group
there is much level land which is being loca-
ted for farming. The soil is all very sandy,
but where it was cultivated last season pro-
duced good crops OF wheat, corn, oats and
vegetables. The hills here rise very abrupt
ly and are generally in the from of circular
rim with the center scraped out. These
hills ard hollows are nearly all covered with
grass In this group stands a wild an d tow
ering peak called the "Lightning's Nest"
which can be seen for 20 miles and about
Ynidwav hatyvea,, tha rthern oraun aud the
southern. Next is large cottonwood tree
which can be seen about the same distance,
although 1t stands in a basin about ten feet
deep. 1t is well named the "Lone Tree" as
there is not another nearer than the Wild
Rice. My conclusions, whether correct or
not, are that all this fiat prairie country has
been one great inland sea connected with
Hudson's Bay, and probably with the Gulf
of Mexico. That by some action OF the wa
ter tprobably tides) this range was once n
bar, and where the water receded and
before vegetation clothed the surface, the
wind blew the sand into hills and again ed
dying through them scooped out the basins.
West Of these hills is a chain of five lakes
named Marsh, Utele, Willard, Grass, and
Taylor. Lake Taylor is beautiful body OF
clear water with grassy shores, Astounding
with fish. and nearly surrounded with tim
Der. West OF these lakes the surface OF the
country changes to a high rolling prairie
with loose limestone rock on the crowns of
the swells. The grass is OF different order
than that ON the fiat prairie. The water is
soft, and the soil is dark brown loan with
good mixture of silat. What little crop Is
planted this season is the picture of health.
But very little was broken here previous to
this summer. The face of the country is
dotted with shanties and breaking teams.
This description applies to the country lying
between the above named lakes and Swan
Lake and Surveyors Lake West of these
lakes the country is not so inviting, as far as
have travelled which is about six miles.
There has been much rain during the last
two weeks, but there has been no wind
storms. The crops in general look well ex-
eept ON very fiat ground.
There are some grasshoppers in some five
| or six localities that | know of, but they
seem to do but little harm to the crops
They are young ones from eggs that were
| lett last summer from q few struggling swarms
| that got too far north. J. n. MCMILLAN.
| P. S. 1t may be in order to explain why
have added the letter n to my initial. There
is grain merchant in Wahpeton by the
name of John Mcmillan, and in order to avoid
confusion with our mail we have agreed IL
add the initials OF our mothers names and
drop the name John. My correspondent
who read the JOURNAL will please addres:
me accordingly. J. N. Mem