The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1884-01-02
THE PROMISED LAND !!
MOntana's Prime Garden
SpOt--of Proportions
Immense
Which Flows With Milk and
Honey, in a Eigurative
Sense,
Where Smiling Valleys and
Bunch Grass Covered
Bench,
Vie With Each Other in Rich
LuXuriance.
Where in Every Mountain Gulch
and on the Rocky Slope,
Here "COlOrs" Can b and
There the Hopeful S. Float"
y
In Short, an Interesting Article, as
the Reader Will Diskiver,"
Written by One Who Knows the Land as
the Pilot Knows the River.
Where in Every Mountain Gulch
and on the Rocky Slope,
Here "COlOrs" Can b ant
There the Hopeful S. Float"
In Short, an Interesting Article, as
the Reader Will " Diskiver,''
Written by One Who Knows the Land as
the Pilot Knows the River.
In THE FIELD, December Is, 1888.

In THE FIELD, December l5, 1888.
We expect the 48th congress, now met
will open to settlement the fertile coun-
try lying north and east of us. There
are many views as to the extent the
country now set apart for the Blackteet,
Gros Ventres and other Indians should
be reduced, bat there is only one senti-
ment among onr white population,
which is that it be largely reduced, and
at once. AS has been several times
written, there is too much land lying
waste in this reservation which could be
utilized by farmers, and is demanded
by our increasing stock interests and
which is of no benefit to the Indians
who call it their country and hesitate to
surrender their title to it. A description
of this much coveted and highly priced
region at this time will not he inappro-
pirate. Bounded on the north by the
49th degree of latitude, on the west by
the main range of the Rocky moun-
tans, south by the Marias and Missouri
rivers to the 1O7th degree of longitude,
a point on the Missouri river near old
Fort Peck, thence due east to the Dako-
ia line, and on the east by our sister ter
ritorv. Dakota. It lies in shape par
alIeIoeram, 500 miles long and averag-
ING S. miles in width. 1t is subdivlded
for the different tribes of Indians who
now possess it as follows: The Yank-
tonnais and Canoe bands OF Asslna-
BONES from the 1912 of longitude
to the 1852. These Indians number re-
spectively $500 and 1900 souls. Their
agencies are at Poplar creek and Wolf
Point The Gros Ventres du pralrles
and Upper Assinaboines occupy the
country between the 1882 and the III,
or Sweet Grass hills country. They
number LOO and 900, according to a
recent census, and their headquarters is
at Fort Belknap. From the Ill OF lon-
gitude west to the Rocky mountains is
the country of the Blackfeet, Piegans
and Rloods. who number about 5000.
From this it will be seen that 3 600 per-
sons occupy $4,000 square miles OF the
best portion of our territory, about f1ye
square miles for each person.
This district contains three small
ranges of mountains or hills, viz: the
Sweet Grass, Bears Paw and Little
Rockies. Milk river, the prlncipai
stream within it's boundaries, rises near
the main range of the Rockies, and af-
ter running through portion OF British
North America, enters the territory near
the Sweet Grass hills and takes an east
erly course through the center OF the
reservation to its snlouth, near Fort Peck.
Milk river discharges a considerable vol
ume of water during the spring and
early summer months, but owing to its
bed which is quicksand, it absorbs and |
loses by evaporation nearly all its water |
during the heated term and early fall.
1t is alkali in character, as are all its af-
fiuents to some extent soon after leaving
their sources Milk river is well TIM
bered east Of the 1902 Of longitude Fort
Belknap. The streams flowing into it
from the north are Porcupine, Buggy,
Rock, Frenchman's, Woody Island,
Blacks East and West forks. From
the south, the Sandy, several streams
called Box Elder (which seems to be a