The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-09-07
THE COUNTRY TRAVERSED.
A Vast Area of Fertile Land Waiting the
Advent of Capital and Labor.

"A
Advent of Capital and Labor.
The first railroads only sought to connect
the centres of trade and commerce in all
countries; to bring coal to the sea or ore
from the mine. First donkeys and wooden
tramways; then steam power and iron rails
on the short roads of England and the
United States Now all is changed; even the
rivers no longer direct the course of civiliza-
ton in the great areas of the United States.
The railroad is the pioneer, and
farms, towns and cities follow in
its wake. Aside from Minnesota and
the Pacific coast of Oregon, the people sup
porting and tributary to the Northern Pacific
do not exceed half million-cne-fourth the
population of Indiana-and the cities from
st. Paul to Portland which exceed the pop
ulation of an average Indiana county seat
can be counted on the fingers. But people
do not go West to live in cities-they go to
make farms and ranches or to work in the
mines. The Northern Pacific, like all great
lines, is civiiZer. 1t has fought its way
from Duluth to the Rockies, among the In
dian tribes. 1t has virtually dispossessed the
immense Territories of Montana and north
land ard Middle States, of the Indians,
From Brainerd to Livingston the whole re-
gion is habitable, and valuable either for
farming or stock growing, in this respect diff
fering from the Union Pacific.
Few Indians are left. The Crows, between
two and three thousand, have a reservation
south of the Yellowstone as large as Massa-
chusetts. Here they keep some 10000 ponies
and live by hun ting and by government
bounty.
This area, rich in farming and grazing
lands, and also in coal, easily irrigated from
the numerous creeks and springs that
traverse it, will soon be made tributary to
the Northern Pacific, and its trade center
mainly at Billings.
The railroads are rapidly settling the vexed
Indian question, by locating them on small
reservations, by making them herdsmen, and
by their power of precipitating troops among
them whenever the needs of the whites re-
quire it. The railroad compels them to
travel, to work, or to behave themselves on
limited areas
The Minnesota division extends from Du-
luth to Fargo 242 miles. Duluth has $4,000
people and direct water seaboard communi-
cation. Brainerd has 1000 people, and is the
City of Pines-the gateway to the vast lumber
regions to the north and east But twenty
years ago this region was given over to the
Sioux, who in August of 1862, for 200 miles
whites, driving thousands Of the settlers to
the larger towns The youth and old men
not engaged in the civil war, under Colonel
H. H. Sbley, drove the Indians across the
Missouri, at Bismarck Three hundred were
captured, tried and ordered hung All but
thirty-eight were spared by order of the Pres
ident and imprisoned at Davenport.
Out of Minnesota, one is out of the corn
belt. Wheat is cut from St. Paul to Brain
erd about the middle of August. Early in
September frosts are liable to cut the corn.
From Brainerd to Moorhead is a beautiful
prairie country. Lands are worth from So to
$40 and are rich, well-watered and pro-
ductive.
FARGO AND MooRHEAD.
These sister cities on opposite sides of the
Red river, are rivals, as are st. Paul and Min
neapolis, or Bismarck and Mandan. The Red
is a narrow, muddy stream, between clay
banks, subject to overflow. 1t is navigable
at low water, and has a fleet of sixteen stean-
ers and twice as many barges between Fargo
and Winnipeg.
The valley has $4,000 square miles of the
best wheat lands. 1t is a fiat. rich prairie,