Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1886-11-25


WINNIPEG, Oct. 6, 1886.
A singular way OF running trains de
lays me in Winnipeg for day on my
way to British Columbia. No through
train starts on Sunday from either ter
minus of the Canadian Pacific Railway.
The result is that the intermediate towns
on the six-day run are each deprived of
facilities for travel on some one day of
the week. This is a serious hindrance to
business, but the piety of the people of
Montreal stands1 in the way of changing
the system. so long as no train leaves
their station on Sunday they are not
troubled by the fact that the trains leav-
ing on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday and Saturday are running some
where all of the so-called Sabbath hours
on their way to their distant destination.
| do not regard it as a personal misfor-
tune, however, to be forced TO stop in
Winnipeg 10y this absurd system, for it
is an interesting place with a good deal
to show an inquisltive stranger from the
other side of the international boundary.
My first thoughts this morning, as l
walked about the wide, well built streets,
looking at the gay shop-windows, the
substantial brick blocks, the brisk citi-
Gems vi tutlh way ~ puolutoS anu tllS VA
teams of the iarmors bringing in hay,
was this: How ridiculous it is for people
IN our eastern states to fancy that Dakota
is too cold country for comfortable liy
ing and successful agriculture, when here
in Manitoba, two or three hundred miles
further north, there is prosperous farm
ing community large enough to support
this busy, handsome little city of 10000
inhabitants.
Multiply Fargo and Moorhead by two
and you have Winnipeg and its suburb of
St Boniface The situation is similar
the level back prairies stretching out to
the horizon and the winding river; the
general appearance is not unlike, bust
ness blocks being mostly of yellow brick
and dwellings of wood. But the Red
River, after receiving the Assinnaboine is
here much wider than where it Separates
the chief Dakota towns from its Mime
sofa neighbors. There are many more
substantial blocks of stores. The public
buildings are much more conspicuous,
and the principal business street is a
mile and half long before it shows any
signs at either end of getting into the
suburbs. You can go three miles on
street railroad The main street is of
unusual and unnecessary width, and il
we'll paved with cedar blocks. There are
water-works, electric lights gas, tele-
phones and sewers, daily papers, big dry
goods stores and a costly city hall, look
ing, with its many turrets, like the krem-
lin, at Moscow IN brief completely
equipped city. Yet Winnipeg is nearly
500 miles north OF st. Paul and over 200
north OF Fargo.
None of our new western towns grew
as rapidly as did this far northern Capt.
tai in its boom period. There never was
at any tune or at any place such wild,
crazy outburst of speculative frenzy as
occurred here in 1881 and 1882. Ground
was plated and solid expenses enough
/ for two chicagos. In 1888 the bubble
burst, and by 1854 half the population OF
. the place had drifted off. They could
not take the handsome buildings and
paved streets away with them, however.
The city WIS constructed and had TO re-
main and II slowly recovered from the
general collapse of business, so that now
It's structures are not adequate to its
needs. and new stores ale going up. I'M
migration has set in afresh 20 the Caua-
dian Northwest. under tine stimulus OF
the completion Of the new railroad to the
Pacific coast. The government Commits
,iouer of Emigration, whose office near
the railway station is covered with signs
in -four languages, tells me that an aver
age of about 1900 new settlers arrived
monthly during the season Just closed.
\ Winnipeg, as the distributing point and
trade center for an the Canadian country
westward to the Rocky Mountains, profits
by the steady indax Of population, bound
+ 20 the new regions beyond.
An American does not seq much mere
"a remind him that he is in foreign