Omaha daily bee., 1885-06-16

e make q city in Dakota. Hillsboro ar
d Grafton, with about 600 and ] 800 inhsI
itauts respectively, are incorporate
Q cities. During most of our Journey sine
leaving Fargo we are in sight Of th
q fringe of timber which marks the cours
b of the extremely crooked Red river. TIL
distance from Fargo to Grand Forks b
y rail Is 20 miles, while by river II Is nearl
y $50 miles, which illustrates the tortuou
1 course of the stream. The banks Of th
numerous streams emptylng into the Re-
9 river are lined by q growth of elm, ash
. cottonW God and oak trees, which pleas
: antly breaks the monotony Of the leve
landscapes. The Red river rises In west
} ern Minnesota, flows south and westerly
, for about fifty miles before making al
abrupt turn toward the north pole
Emptying as It does Into lake Winnipeg
In the province of Manitoba, the lei
usually breaks up first near the source,
occasionally causing some overflow in the
upper or southern part of the valley.
At Neche we cross the boundary line
and are out of Uncle Sans jurisdiction
and in the land where Sir John A. Mac.
donald presides by the grace of Queen
Victoria and vox populi. Although
there many "Oanucks" in Minnesota and
Dakota, there are few Americans living
In Manitoba, and English typesssnd
characteristics now begin to appear and
predominant. A ride of 60 miles from
the boundary line brings us into the city
of Winni peg, whice has at present about
2 5,001 inhabitants. In this city property
sold three years ago as high as $4,000 per
front foot. 1t annoyed q real.estate
boom with vengaencs. Speculation was
rife and the excitement ran high and
property went up with q rush beyond
all reasonable bounds. Every building
was crowded and the overflow lived la
tents which surrounded the city asthouqh
an army was encamped roundabout. The
inevitable collapse anne and the prospsc-
tive millionsrles now look seedy and are
willing to saw wood for a living. But
the city Is bound 10 recover from the de-
preston and continue to be the metropo-
lis of this far northwestern country, the
point of distribution for supplies over a
section of country as large as New Eng
land and the Middle states C ombined. The |
Canadian Pacific railroad. now completed
beyond the Rocky mountains, opens up
a magnificent stretch of to-be productive |
territory which will be largely tributary
to Winnipeg and insure its permanent
growth and prosperity. Money Ia scarce
now and the commercial life alugglsh. |
seems, however, to be enough
change to enable the average Mani
toban to drink lots of whisky. Go into
the Queens hotel bar room in the even
ing and the bar will be lined by a row of
men, each with q glass In his hand; the
man standing at the head of the line will
raise his glass to his lips, at the same
giving vent to a prolonged hoo,
which will be taken up by the next man
and repeated all along the line with vary.
Ing infection and tone, making a pecu.
liar rythmlc sound, a sort of bibulous
chant of good fellowship and fealty to the
house of bourbon. Manitobans, as a rule,
drink too much American whisky and
sooner or later pay the sure penalty. Win
Justly boasts of the hospitality and
public spirit of it's citizens. The south
has won a reputation for generously en-
pertaining the stranger within It's borders, I
but up here In the frozen north the duly
accredited traveller will meet with a most
cordial reception and handsome enter
sainment SO long as he remains IN the
,ity of Winnipeg. |.
We return up the Red river valley on
The eastern or Minnesota side through a
rich agricultural section of the country,
The counterpart of that on the western
side. At Crookston, q thriving city of
1, 900 inhabitants, we Cross the Red Lake
river, and at this point we are within q
villas pf thu l,poopoo fo,a.Su &c
northern Minnesota, which will afford an
supply of fuel for this
prairie land through which we have
been travelling. About fifty miles north.
east of Crooxston lies Red lake, which
we learn is the largest body of fresh
in the United States, excepting, |
Of course, the great lakes. The Red
is nsvigable for light-draft steam
boats from Moorhead, Mimi, to Winni-
peg. Two lines of boats do considerable
business, and these, with the
two lines of the st. Paul, Minneapolis &
Manitoba railroad. afford at present full
for shipment of the valleys
products. The soil Of the Red river val.
ley seems especially adapted to wheat.
and this is the principal crop raised, be-
1t pays the best, but this is not
necessarily a one-crop country, and each
season witnesses more diversified farm.
ing, and especially an Increase of stock
Not more than one-eighth of
tillable land Is yet under cultivation,
and when a majority Of the remaining
acres are made to yield their abundant
harvests, the valley of the Red river OF
north cannot fail to become one of
The richest sections in the United States.
n T. T..