New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-06-16

slain. Few were left. In the Northwestern Can
adam country, and In the basin formed by the
two lifts Of the Rig Horn Mountains few nnAli
bands remsn. There's captive band IN The Yel-
lowstone, and few little punches here snd there
through the country, and these are all They will
not breed in captivity. and none OF the various
attempts to cross them with ordinary cattle has
proved clear success. The havoc wrought by
the buffalo hunters Of 80, 81, '82 and s3 cannot
be made up for now.
The frontier towns Of Montana and wyoming
underwent now smother distinct change. They
had advanced step or two when the cowboy gave
way to the hunter. They came up many steps
when the hunter forced to starva work or run
away, preferred the last chance and began TO drop
of. The gtn-mils quickly lost their oh-time i'm
portance. Gambling ceased to be esteemed the
chief end Of man. Runaway convicts cess-rl 60 be
the greatest men In o community. Mnrdcrsrs
found numbering too risky a trade Incoming
capital demanded the calm reign OF order. New
immigrants turned their attention 10 ranchns,
banking and store-kceping. They were always
ready 70 help the sheriff when no needed help and
to stiffcn his back when he hreded courage. Every
body was tired Of wild life Everybody wanted
to be comfortable and happy The refining infiu-
ence Of woman the most potent influence Of all
all conditions OF society, and within three years
more, or by thc end OF 1886 the Inst vestige o.
daredevil life In the Northwestern towns had been
swept away. Six years ago Miles City WINS u
veritable hell. To-day 10 is one Of the quietest,
busiest little places In the land I have looked in
vain TO fnd frontier town such ~ nsd 20 'ur-
hish stories Of wholesale shooting matches. There
10 not even a frontier any longer. There IL no
place where civilized life or even SETTLEMENT stops
entirely Just when you tlIink you have reached
such place von see smoke ahead
The cattle district Of which Miles City Ia the
centre reaches 70 the north 90 miles 10 thr south
another hundred, and 70 the east hundred more.
II embraces about 400 outits." aud ench Of these
owns from ZOO 70 30. 900 cattlr The winter Of
1886 WIS q long, cold bitter season, and II
brought heavy losses 20 the cattle men Ordi-
narilv, and always until that seasons unhappy
experience had taught lesson, Tho cattle werr
left 10 shift for themselves all winter the rang"
Montana winters are USUALLY short. The first
severe cold comes with Christmas and the Ice
begins 20 mslt IN March. Little snow fNlls, aud
the percentage Of loss among the cattle on account
OF the weather 10 altogether inconsidrnh'e They
con easily paw away the snow and srt ~ the
grass Bus early in the winter OF $50 monster
storm came, and after II had Ibid font cf snow on
crust over the snow. Week after week. month
aft"r month. the bitter cold continn"d' snd from
90 10 rs Der cent Of the cattle in this country fronr
and starved 10 death Many outfits were utterly
ruined and forced ont OF the business Those that
recovered adopted new policy. They generally
stopped breeding, and spent their time fsttenine
Southern cattle for the marker. VAST herds OF
ycarlnes were brought North from Texas every
LATE IN fny n
Ter, and sold for beef after the spring roundup.
Fattenin9 beef for the market is now the prin.
cjpal work Of the Montana and Wyoming ranches,
That can he done nowhere no oheaply a. here.
The risk IL small the profits large. 1arrr amounts
OF new capital have comc IN since the dread
winter and what was lost has brei, murr than
redeemed. The cattlemen are not m CARELESS OF
their property q. they were. however. They put
away good denl Of Inv. enough 10 cave their
cattle from anv such general destruction IA b.
fell them in sc. Another effect OF that calamity
was 70 give an impetus TO horse and sheep missing.
The od-tlme Texans Ind done much to- bring
sheep-nising into contempt. Their bdagr was
that no white man should herd sh%p. and for
several years they would not allow any sheep IN
the country They would stampede their cattle
through a herd OF sheep with no more conscience
than the Dakota smslboy eNhihi,s chasing
sophers. But the sheep outved the Texsns and
they are menocing the cattle business. Csttle
can't grave where sheep have been before Them
Nothing is left to gfaze on The shecp-men have
two sources Of rrvenue -wool and mntton-to the
cattle-mens one. Their herds require vastly more
attention than the cattle NIX. hut their profits
ore larger The cattle business is not increasing
to-day, but the sheep business grows STEADILY.
The wool market is never orcrstocked. or. " IL
is the mutton market isn't - worst should ever
nr,l hot IN
remains and they tell me that no better spring
lamb was ever tasted than Is furnished by twenty
year-old rams fattencd on the hogs barss OF the
Yellowstone There three stOck-raising industries,
horses, cattle and sheep have built up Miles
City, until it is now large and strong md'',cI-
pality Its principal population 10 Furnished ny
Eastern and Southern Americans, but the China
man and the negro the Mexican nni the half
breed. ere al represented II WIS Formerly sup
tanning even cattle. That dIsprovcd its utter
uselessness as an agricultural country was urgrd
indictment and people are beginning to believe.
what Is the fact that industry and common sense
do anything here tho, ,hs, hey lind Of 40 human
needed, and oil viii surely pay have not heard r
by practical men which has stopped Us engine or
It's wheel single working day since !. doors
were FIRST thrown open. Almost everything the
be made here The Fast needs TO remodel its
ideas OF this county. II is to-day q dead-iD-
country Is not SO proud u0 oi if s pr rs
names of the DAYS when prospecting PARTIES
tonight indians NJ every step they took when
heaSy.bearded cowboys, coysred with buttons.
when miners gamblad fortunes between nightfall
and sunrise, and when whole communities were
held up by single-armci desrcrndccs-thssse are
fast becoming legends and fairy tale, II YOU oni
behave yourself here, Won .arc as free from prrli
IS yon cond be IN PhirdsPhis or Nil Sfw !. X.
~ A W.. I'D "a thc same old iron. barred common
S SIaee a ~ yo N were familiar With esewhere To
the gritty settler. who ia aite, money ana not
n,os time as promising as this for trying ms
chances with nature The odds are all ~ his
favor, for he woos q willing bride L. H. "