The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1882-09-13
AN INTERESTING PAPER.
Extracts from the Annual Report of the
Surveyor General of Montana s
for the Fiscal Year Ending
Iuna 30. 1854

amined and approved during the nscai
year was 227, and during the same per-
jod 222 orders for the survey Of mineral
claims were Issued, the amount deposit
ed thereon for office work, Icing SO ,575.
Two hundred and thirty-four thousand
one hundred acres of the public lands
have been sub-divided.
With regard to the general features OF
business and the outlook for the mary
and varied industries of Montana vol
ume might be written. but / will con-
fine myself to a brief strtement OF facts
By the most conservative the population
of Montana Is estimated at So, 600, and
the increase during the past.two years IS
almost wholly in the producing classes,
many agriculturalists being attracted to
the eastern portion of the Territory by
the progress of the Northern Pacific road
and the liberal policy of the company,
and the rich grasses of the many valleys
such AZ the Judith, Musselshell, Tongue
river and the Yellowstone have attracted
the attention of stock raisers, many OF
whom have moved their ranches from
Wyoming and other points to the more
attractive grazing lands of Montana.
The lower Yellowstone and it's tribu-
taries, especially those from the south,
How through first-class arabic lands, cap
ably in most cases of producing crops
without irrigation The advance of the
Northern Pacific r.. r. has been rapid,
and. of course, q decided benefit TO our
Territory. At the present writing the
terminus of the line from the East is at
Billings, 235 miles from Helena; while
the western division has advanced
few miles beyond Cabinet rock, which
il 23O miles west Of Helena. leaving
therefore gap Of SIS miles to be closed.
Work In being pushed most rapidly
from the east, and at the close OF the
present season the road will be in oper-
alton to Bozeman, 10 miles from Hell
ena Ss#3 6E.
The Utah & Northern branch OF the
Union Pacific r. T.. has been extended
to Deer Lodge. 40 miles west of Helena,
giving to this immediate section better
rail facilities than it has ever had be-
fore. This road is also being extended
north to connection with the Northern
Pacific
Withthe opening Of another season
Montana is therefore bound to receive
material increase In population from inn
migrants looking for homes Here we
have an immense Territory where lar
ger proportion of productive lands is
open to presumption than in any other
equal area of the United States. A
marked feature of Montana's present de-
velopment Is the fact that It has re-
ceived large emigration from the far
West during the present summer. Men
from the Pacific States, from Oregon,
Washington Territory and even from
California, have settled in the beautiful
and fertile valleys of Clarke's fork of the
Columbia, the Missoula, Bitter Root
and Flathead rivers, anticipating the adj
vent of the railroad. The strange spec
tacle is thus witnessed for the first time
i'm the settlement of any Territory OF
two streams OF population moving into
the Territory, one from the east and the
other from the west.
To provide for new comers large areas
of the public lands should be surveyed
and sub-divided, and it is evidently
short-sighted policy to delay the extern
sion of the public surveys, for it retards
the settlement of our lands. 1t viii
thus be seen that the regular appropria-
ton for surveys in this Territory has
been entirely inadequate, in the past, to
meet the demands of immigration, and
would therefore respectfully urge that
my estimate of S96, 300 for the surveying
service I'm Montana for the fiscal year
ending June 3Oth, 1884, be allowed in
full.
Stock raising in Montana is an i'm
portant industry and is growing rapidly.
The attention directed towards it is
greater than ever before, by reason OF
the present high price of cattle, and 9
veryalarge amount of capital is being di-
rected to this promising business.
But the most attractive of all pursuits
is that of mining, upon which venture
to say that the future prosperity Of this
Territory depends. An industry which
has added to the permanent wealth OF
%t.1~ - Il x,sIv ara,