The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1883-02-14

The Husbnndman is incensed at the
assertion in the Courier That there is lit
tie tributary country to the proposed
branch road from Billings to Benton
which would make the road a paying
institution. Well, perhaps there is, but
the Northern Pacific company is not in
pressing need of dairy and ranch pro-
ducts, the bullion output from the Maid
en- mines is not accommodating at an
enormous rate, and the Courier has no
reason to change its views. The country
is a most excellent ~ for agricultural
and stock raising purposes, but it will
be some time before these industries will
warrant the construction of a railroad
Courier. 4HsH
The publication of the above is proba-
bly, due to the fact that the editor Of the
Courier is at present away rom home,
and the person who is temporarily filling
the chair is entirely ignorant Of the sub
ject he has taken up. We are led to
place this construction on the article for
the reason that, as a rule, Bro. Anderson
is disposed to treat other sections Of the
country fairly, nor does he run them
down only for the reason that Bozeman
might be glorifed. But the writer's ig-
norance is shown in his own article, for
after saying that there is nothing in the
country through which the proposed
road would pass to make it a paying in
stitution, he goes on to admit that per-
haps there is. But when he goes on to
say that the Northern Pacific is not in
need of dairy or ranch products he vir-
tually admits that were it not for what
lay beyond, it would not build through
Bozeman and the Gallatin valley, for the
latter has nothing but dairy and ranch
products to show. But we think that
the Northern Pacific and every other
railroad has need of ranch products, and
believe that twill yet reap a profit from
transporting the crops from not only the
Judith Basin but from the Gallatin val
ley as we'll, to say nothing Of the beet,
mutton and wool which will find trans
Judith via the n. P. But his worst
showing is made in the remark about
the Maiden mines. That there are good
and what will in time be handsomely
paying mines in the Maiden country we
have always admitted, but a railroad
will not have to depend for its bullion
freight on Maiden alone. The writer in
the Courier seems to have never heard
Of the Barker, Montana and other dis
tricts, even though one single shipment
of bullion by the N. r. this winter from
one company amounted to 100000
pounds, and made the st. Paul papers
go wild over the sight Of it. Nor has
he heard Of the rich and extensive coal
fields running all along the northern
side Of the Belt mountains for a distance
of sixty or seventy miles, and which far
exceed in extent and quality the coal
deposits near Bozeman that the North
ern Pacific people thought well enough
to purchase and John Vesuvius'' grew
eloquent over in the columns of the
Courier itself. But we cannot, in the
shortspace at our command this morn
ing, tell Bro. A1deTson' S substitute allhe
doesn't know about the section of the
country through which the Benton
branch will pass, and we respectlly sug-
gest that he look over the RIVER PRESS
holiday edition which is lying or his
chiefs table.