The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1885-04-25
From Dakota.
DAYTON. Day Co., ID. r., Apl, II, 'S5.

DAYTON, Day Co, ID. T., Apl, ii, 10.
To the West To the West To ihe land of me iree'
Where the mighty Missouri rolls down 70 ne sea-
A few lines from the Little, Old Sod
Shanty on the Claim may be of interest
10 many of the readers of the FREE IRA
DER, for those who have neither friends
nor acquaintance in Dakota are few in
deed
DAYTON is in the northwest corneroi Day
county, on the survey of the Black HIS
branch of the Northern Pacific II. r., and
Is 80 miles northeast of Columbia. IL Is
not down on the maps yet, but hopes to be
ere long. Meantime the gopher burrows
in front of the postot1ce door and the +.
NJ. shoots prairie chickens ont OF the back
window. There is something intoxicating
in the clear skies and pure atmosphere OF
this northern latitude, and perhaps to that
fact is due to some extent the marvellous
stories that go back to the states of impos-
sible crops, of gigantic fortunes made IN IA
few months, etc. TO one who believes that
great future awaits Dakota II is sufficient
10 point to the government statistics, which
show that as an agricultural country she
will compare favorably with the best Of the
older states. One thing is certain in re
gard to big crops, there are more babies to-
the township than | ever saw anywhere
else in my travels.
OF
winter, as there were in Illinois, 50 that
the ground was ready to work earlier than
usual. Sowing wheat was begun in few
cases as much as month ago, and most
land that was plowed last fall is now seed
ed. The principal crop here is, OF course,
wheat. Corn did well last year and consid
cradle acreage of that cereal will be plant
ed this season. A large amount of flax
seed will probably be sown, owing to the
high price it has brought for some time
back.
Prairie fires are common at this time of
the year. At night can be seen in all di-
rections on the edge of the horizon the
bright red line of light, so beautiful in the
distance, so terrible when near. For a
prairie fire means, when your property is
not protected by a sufficient fire break, a
hard fight with that destructive element,
and often the settler is doomed to witness
the ruins of his home saddened by the re-
Election that few hours work at the prop
er time would have prevented the loss.
There is heavy penalty for setting prairie
fires 1t is done in some instances to clear
the ground for breaking, and often that the
buffalo bones may be more easily found.
But buffalo bones are very scarce now
Two years ago the prairies were strewn
with them. Their market value in railroad
towns was eight and ten dollars per ton, and
many settlers bought their provisions and
coal for a long time with the proceeds of
this strange first crop of the land.
The sod shanty is fast disappearing and
many large and substantial farm houses
may be seen in days ride. The white
school houses Mt the crossroads are already
quite numerous; the faithful but slow OK
is fast leaving the field to the horse and,
taken all in all, we are making rapid
strides towards the comforts and conve
niences of older communities.
The one great want, cheap fuel, seems
in fair way to be supplied, as bed of
coal six feet in thickness has been found
five miles east of here at IA depth Of 120
feet Little is known AS yet in regard to
the extent of the find, but everything now
indicates that Day county has bonanza
Y. b. NJ.