Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1889-08-29
WYOMING TERRITORY.
SOMETHING ABOUT AN AsPIR-
ANT FOR STATEHOOD.
The Natural Resources of the Terri
tory-Results of the Woman Suf-
frage Experiment.

Look now upon the map and you wi
1 see, lying almost in the centre OF thu
Pacific Northwest a great square, ane
seemingly almost level, subdivision o
the Territories, which contains 1000,
600 acres, divided diagonally by the
Rocky Mountains, which trend from 1T
northwest to its southeast corner, cut
ting it almost directly into two greai
triangles. This is the Territory of Wy
oming, one of the self-proposed incom
ing States, and the latest organized
of the Territories, dating its birth Just
about far enough back Of the present
writing to be q years old, or 'Jusi
old enough to vote.
Until a comparatively recent period
this Territory was given up almost
wholly to stock raising, the broad up
lands which comprise by Tar the greater
part of its area having been admirably
adapted to grazing purposes until, the
business being overdone, the bunch
grass grew short, and few hard winters,
for which the stoclImen we're UMPIRE
pared, made serious havoc with the
cattle and horses which had previously
luxuriated in summer upon its green,
nutritious abundance, and managed to
subsist in winter upon its dry seed
stalks. These stalks, until eaten down
by -pasturing, protruded through
the snow and furnished ready-made
hay, for which the animals "rustled, 3"
unless overtaken by the billiards that
sometimes, even in the palmy days of
ranging, destroyed vast herds But as
one such blizzard in half a dozen years
was considered about the average, the
intervening wild winters afforded oppor
tunity for the stock. to grow again, and
the remarkable rapidity with which the
herds of the plains increased under such
conditions caused the stockmen to post
pone their good intentions regarding
the future, until succession of severe
winters destroyed the outfits, and, in
Western parlance, 'busted" the bust
ness.
As stock ranging afforded compara-
lively little business for railroads, the
settlement OF Wyoming was for n long
time retarded by the difficulties of
transportation. The cattle men could
drive the product Of the plains to the
distant railway stations, where the
stock was shipped to Eastern markets,
and the ranger could take back in his
settler wagon to his ''lodge in the
such supplies rs he would
need for another year with much more
ease TO himself than he could enjoy if
obliged to fence the land and raise his
grain, fruit, and vegetables. This sort
of easy going life, with its alluIing UNI
certainties and, ON the whole, enormous
profits, offered as little inducement to
modern enterprise as to old-fashioned
industry. Consequently the one rail
road in the Territory which long chad
everything its own way" was not over
anxious for further innovations in its
line.
But recent change has come over
the spirit OF Wyoming's railroad
dreams The competing companies that
walked the echoes in the mountains of
Montana and Idaho and found the great
plains Of the two Dakotas favoraby dis
posed TO answer their efforts with COM
are naturally looking for
other lands to conquer. and so many
ire the natural advantages Of Wyoming
N an agricultural and mineral sense. /
hat the new railway developments not
ret completed, and some of them hard .
" begun, have so stimulated immigra- (
ion that over 9, 360,00 acres of public .
and have been taken up within the
borders of the Territory within the past
NO years.
The lands of Wyoming, though not
o generally afflicted with sagebrush as
hose of Utah, Idaho, and many parts
# Montana, are nevertheless a part of
he great arid regions over which Con-
Tess is 10 be required TO wrestle before
the great iIrigating scheme
low agitating Arizona and reyolutioniz
f Wyoming, though so largely pastoral
S to have hindered their early develop
lent, are as yet almost unknown out
ide of her own borders. A gentleman,
resident Of the northern part, with
ihom recently conversed as we Glanced
D meet in travelling. assured me that, so
lr as prospected, Wyoming seemed
asst bituminous coal bed, with its strata
0 uniformly distributed during some
asst era that no part of its great area has
cen left unfavored by the bounteous
and of nature. The coal lies generally
bout dozen feet below the surface,
nd IS Of good quality and proves easily
uarried. It's presence in such vast
would naturally suggest vast
lbterranean reservoirs of petroleum.
The citizens of Laramie county are
istlv proud of their native marble,
oecimens Of which may be seen in the !
indows Of assay and real estate offices,
ld are often used to adon inches in j
le dwellings of the fortunate owners of
rgin quarTies. 1t has been found of +,
most every variety and shade of color, !
Inging from pure white to gray, black, !
ink, striped, spotted, spangled, and !
Iron and granite also
pound in many localities; also crop
ngs indicating immense deposits of /,
umbago, mica, lead, and other Of the !.
Use metals, but the average citizen of
'yoming makes a sufficient virtue of :,
acessity to boast that, unlike other ter :,
tories, she has little gold and silver :,
cked in the secret holds of her many =