, 1889-09-26

case In Montana. sought out the
heaviest cattle-grower in or about
Helena, yesterday, and asked him what
provision he was making for the forth
coming winter.
There will bo no winter to speak of
now for seven or eight years; they only
come about every ten years; by the time
the next big blizzard comes will be out
of tho business"
This is exactly the mans answer.
set II down Us the spirit and substance
OF all his Find here. Each man hopes to
heap up colossal fortune and be out of
the business "beiore tho next big biz-
zard."
That there Is money in cattle growing
here, health, and room and romance, as
well as wealth, no one will gainsay.
For Montana is feeding the city of Lon
don with meat. There can be no abate-
mont In the market; but these cattle
kings will be compelled to narrow down
their tremendous area of operations cad
pursue more legitimate line of trade.
Let us fancy one of these stout cattle
kings of Montana holding hard to one
end OF u rope with the other end around
his wito's waist while she reaped grass
from butting precipico for the COW.
have seen this many time In the
mountains of Austria. These good fell
lows would risk their wives on the
ledge, but not the COW.
Let us recommend compromise be-
tween these two extremes. The Mon
tana cattle king must draw fence
around his narrowed acres, and must
plow and SOW and provide somewhat for
the beasts under his care. For to say
nothing of the cruelty. his risks are too
much like buying lottery ticket to lift
the cattle-grower much above the aver
age gambler.
| iind land cheaper here than any
where on the line of my travels thus
far far, Water Is, generally speaking,
mountain tops. In fact, were you
not told that this Is in the
region of the summit of the
Rocky mountains you would not
know 1t. The agent of the railroad tells
me that they have plenty of good stock
land for sale at So per acre. Some men
tell me there is plenty of government
land TO be had, If you are willing to get
back far enough from the paths of ciyili-
zation. | think this is true; but ut the
same time 1t is n matter that can only be
certainly known by communicating
with the authorities at Washington.
find fruit trees here, and to my SUR.
prise the trees are laden with fruit. And
to my great surprise, some grapes do
well here.
And now am reminded that ycster-
day Idaho tclegraphed after me TO say
that she took the first prize for fruit last
year against the whole United States.
A former chief justice of Idaho tells me
that the finest grapes ever grown any.
where are grown on the banks OF the
Shoshone river, near Lewiston. They
ripen late, however, in September. This
same man, whom | know to be entirely
reliable, tells me that certain large
stock-grower, at the foot of Mount Ida
ho, last year cut two volunteer crops of
grain from field of 1000 acres; the first
crop yielding iifty-two bushels of wheat
and the second crop, three months later,
yielding twenty.eight bushels of wheat /!
And, mind you, not the touch Of plow
oranything else for either crop. The judge
tells me that the same results, to some
extent, at least, can be obtained in Mon
tana, il people will only seek out the
suitable places and go to work in the
right spirit.
~ have q ranch,n said the Judge,
fright adjoining Chief Joseph's old place,
and | grow literally everything, and lots
of 1t too.h
"Chief Joseph, of the Nez PercesP Tell
me, where is he and how is hep
"Well, Joseph is back to within a few
visit his old home except very quietly
now and then. He does not seek To use
any authority now. lie is great man;
says he made mistake and brought
only trouble on his people, and so will
never lead them any more. The govern
ment seems to trust him entirely and
lets him do about rs he pleascs; although
4 believe he is still a prisoner"
"And the brave Nez Perces, how is the
tribe getting onY'
The Judge smiled little and said
Let me tell you something. Last
year an agent of the government came
out to deliver n speech ON the subject of
the members of the tribe holding their
lands in severalty. The man chose Sun
day on which to deliver his great speech.
The gathered tribe listened attentivcly to
the end, and then the great man from
Washington asked what message and
answer he should bear back to their Great
Father. Then the Oldest man, who was
the spokesman of the tribe, rose up, and
lifting his eyes heavenward, said slowly:
"Waka wawa.'
"What does he say?'' asked the great
man of the interpreter.
"ie says we don't talk abont such
things out here on Sundayp'
"Hes, indeed, continued the judge,
'they are truly religious people They
are all more or less educated and all go
TO church. Our Episcopal clergyman is
iull-bloodcd Nez Perce Indian and
one of the best Fourth of July orations
ever delivered west of the Rocky mount
aims was delivered last Fourth by a
Nez Perce Indian. The best | ever
heard, said the judge, soto voce, "and
not entirely because 1t was the shortest
| ever heard either"
"Do they read the papers, judge?n
"They read their own, mt least. Yes,
indeed, they have paper of their own.
And maybe IL is news to the world that
the first paper ever printed west of the
Rocky mountains was printed by the
Nez Pcrcc Indians. Father Spaulding
brought them the printing-pross, per-
haps fifty years ago. Do you know,
saw u squaw with II sewing-machine on
her back in Lewison last weekP She
went down to the river with it, put il in
her canoe and away she padded up the
Shoshone river, all alone, up toward the
great black mountains"
Behind the squaw's light birch canoe
The steamer rocks and raves,
And city lots are staked for sale
Above old Indian graves"
Helena, Mont.
The biggest Rather of All.