The Bad Lands cow boy. [volume] (Little Missouri, Dakota [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-1886, 1884-07-31

the toplof butte the valley of the Belle
Fourche lay below us covered with farm
houses and several small towns. We
reached the new town Of Debtors at $50
and were welcomed by D. C. Baker, who
has built a good building and stocked
it abundantly with grocery and general
goods. Messre. Guild and Gallop; who
came to the Hills by way of Medora ex-
pect to build railraod from DeMores to
the Hay creek coal mines and it undoubt-.
edly has q good fighting chance to be-
come one of the best towns near the
Hills. sl5 III AZ N; .sS S$i, IA II
Starting on at o'clock we reached
spearfish at 1880 and putting up at the
Spearfish House, enjoyed the luxury of
splendid spring bed. Mr.. Rogers, the
proprietor, is very popular hotel man,
and he has been forced to build 50 many
additions that he can scarcely tell his
original building. .,... 4 (.
The morning of the 4th Of July, all
Spearfish had on its holiday clothes and
in spite Of the inevitable rain-storm, the
parade and celebration were great sue
cesses. !i.i
Under the able guidance of Dr.. Louth-
an and Maj. Snyder, we took sin5 the
town and surrounding country and were
more than delighted with what we saw.
Spearfsh is located at the base of the
northern Black Hills, near thes eastern
end of Spearfish Fa1ley, "a. picture oi
loyeliness. The whole valley is the very
best agricultural land and irrigating
bitches Of magnificent spring water run
all over it. Spearfish itself is beauti-
full town of about eight hundred inhabi-
tants and is one of the liyeliest in the
Hills country. TIE merchants are q
wide-awake, generous lot of men, alive
to every interest of their town. 1t is
supported largely by stockmen and
farmers and is bound to grow with the
development Of the country.
The morning of the 5th wc started for
Deadwood in one of Mr.. Spears stages,
driven by Hank Monk, a fit descendant
of the original. We had the honor of a
share of Hanks seat and found him a
regular encyclopedia of information.
The first part of the ride was over the
same agricultural country for which the
Hills are famous. Many gypsum beds
were seen, practically valueless now,
but with railroad facilities it will be-
come valuable export, for use as fer
tilizer and to be manufactured into
plaster of paris. Falsebottom is Gu
rious freak Of nature that we crossed
midway on our ride. 1t is the wide
channel Of a river but contains not a
drop of water. A few miles above, there
Is strong current that sinks gradually
into the sand, continues its course un-
derground and "hobs up serenely from
below" several miles farther down.
Soon we are in the Hills proper and now
1t is almost continuous ascent to Dead
wood, eight miles distant. The road
bed is remarkably good one, although
winding along at the foot and on the
sides Of Hills from four to eight hundred
feet high. Everywhere, covering the
sides and submits Of the Hills has
grown a dense forest Of pine, closely re-
sembling the Norway species. 1t is
rather harder, thus improving its build
ing properties. Except for the brick
buildings, every house in the Black Hills
region Is built from these pine forests.
The deep red waters of the streams at
tracted our attention. The discoloration
Is caused by the pulyerized quartz
hammered into powder by the stamps
Of the immense Homestake mills and
Others. The Homestake controls the
water right Of the Hills virtually, CON
Quoting it for many miles over mount
aims and gulches, by system Of bitches
and fumes that is a triumph Of engi-
neering skill. This water Is conducted
to other mills than those Of the Home.
stake system and thus a large royalty is
made by them. ss s
The trip through the Hills was q jolly
one, the echoes fairly shouting back the
refrain to aHark, I hear 4 voice, way up
In the mountain top" and many other
college songs. Rounding bend, We
came upon the first miners we had seen,
three Cinnamon sluicing, at which we
afterwards learned that they made,
sometime six bittee, sometime dolllah
thap. when dig like heilee." 4" No sooner
had we passed these bias-eyed sons 81
toll than another band brought Dead
twood, the metropolis Of the Hills IN view
i.A iSist TO be continued,