The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1889-08-15

u Wnicn are strongly tmpregnated with alkati
salts. absorbed from the soil surrounding.
and washed down from the hillsidea Well
SUNK IN the valley OF Bad river flow at the
the water 10 NOT very good for househnId
y imposes, being brackish and yerv hard,
i AL. Kali salts are also held in solution IN ali
1 wat ~ taken from wells In the valley
The rinclpai tributaries to the Bad river
are w. low creek, Lance creek. Plum creek,
| Frozen !an's creek and Grndstone creek
j The first h about ten miles out from Coulson'
a, the mou,h Of Bad river, following the old
1 stage road le. ding into tho Black Hills, II
has some timh r along It's banks. mostly cot
preciabe. the bluffs oyerhanging tRe
creek from it's A'ource to the mouth.
Lance creek has som scattered groves along
Its course, and some. desirable locations for
| farms, though there IA not very extensive
valley. 1t is distant from Pierre about forty
miles. Plum creek flows in to Bad river about
fifteen miles above its con fuence with the
Missouri, and has quite an extensive valley
and some timber along it's ban ks. The grass
along these streams is excellent, and affords
splendid feed for cattle and horses The cat
tie running In this part Of the territory are
| generally III good condition EARLIER thar
| those fed In the pastures on che Write river.
Between the White and Bad river the
Missouri receives the waters OF several small
creeks, the principal OF which are the Yellow
Medicine and Antelope. The Yellow Medt-
cine empties into the river about twenty
| FIVE miles north Of the terminus of the Chi
cago, Milwaukee l. st. Paul railway at Cham
berlain. The valley here is nearly ten miles
wide. and is quite heavily timbered in places
The Yellow Medicine has an extensive val
| ley, and the stream has never been known
to run dry, as have many Of the streams in
this region during the dry season. Lux
uriant crops of grass. from which thousands
OF tons OF hay may be cut yearly, are found
all along the Missouri bottoms.
Between Bad and Cheyenne rivers there
are two quite large creeks which empty their
| waters into the Missouri, the first one, Shanty
creek. being about fifteen miles
above the mouth of Bad river.
and the second. Porcupine creek, nearly
twenty-five miles south of the Cheyenne
river. These creeks are distant from each
other about fifteen miles, and are quite
heavily timbered and afford excel
lent water for stock. About ten miles
above the Bad river the valley of the Mis-
souri, has an average width Of four miles,
gradually descending from the chain of bluffs
to the river in three terraces or benches.
This land. lying in close proximity to the
| town of Pierre, has been looked upon with
longing eyes. Several squnw men, whose
lntermarrlage into the tribes has given
| Them a squaGter's right, have already erected
claim shanties and prepared to file upon this
land when placed on the market.
! Wells in the Missouri valley average about
fifty feet in depth, and generally are filled
with pure and wholesome water. Where
the underground current supplying the
| water connects with the Missouri as its
| source OF supply, the water is pure and free
| from any faint of alkaIi salts. Near what is
now known as Fort Bennett, nearly op-
posite Fort su1ly, are several large
! groves OF timber, and a widening of
| the valley to form what is called Sullv
bottoms. These lands are now occupied BY
Indians belonging to the Cheyenne River
| agency, and as they are privileged TO do so
| they will probably be the first claimants for
these lands-in fact for all the desirable
farming land included in the valley of the
Missouri They may be induced to relinauish
their claims, however, for a consideration
| and payment io- their improvements In
| the Missouri anu Bad river valleys are found
the most desirable farming lands, the Mis-
! souri, valley. However, being better timbered.
better watered, and with better SOIL Suf-
! hclent timber may be had on any of
| the larger streams of which have written
for all the purposes Of stabling, fence posts,
| and. with careful and economical use fuel
| for all those who may settle in the val
ley. Bad river was formerly quite heavily
tlmbered, but the nearness to the towns has
| afforded the Indians market, to supply
which they have stripped the river of its
timber for twenty miles above the mouth
| wooded points in the bends of the river.
What has been said of the conformation of
the valleys of the White and Bad rivers NAV
be repeated in the case of the Cheyenne
river, which now forms the north line Of the
tract of land coded to the government by the
| Indians The Cheyenne river has more tim
| Der than the Bad river, as there has been no
market for the wood, unless hauled great
| distances to the towns on the opposite side
| OF the Missouri river or sold to the steam
boats which operate on the Big Muddy, and
these did not offer much of an
] 10OuCemSDC, The valley Of tho
! Cheyenne river presents to the home
seeker an opportunity to acquire title to a
| quarter section of fine bottom land and have
the privileges of grazing for his cattle on the
| these hills are TOO much broken TO find a
purchaser for many years to come, but
though not adapted to farming are covered
with fine nutritious grasses. The water in
the Cheyenne river, coming from the same
general source as does the Bad river, is much
the same, though not as strongly alkaline.
The wells sunk in the valley are from % to
so feet deep, and afford an abundance of
excellent water for all purposes.
The principal tributary of the Cheyenne
river from the south gives its name to a
region which is supposed to be the best
| adapted for cultivation Of any in the valley
CT the Cheyenne river. Cherry oreek flows
| into the Cheyenne river about sixty miles
its greatest with. being about eight miles
from bluff to bluff. Quite large number Of
Indians have small farms here, and
may choose to take their claims
| where they are already loca'ed
| but may be induced for small sum of
money to relinquish them. Proceeding up the
stream one finds the land becoming more
broken and uneven. The valleys are smaller,
| the soil seems less fertile and the wooded
portions scarcer. At and few miles below
the crossing of the old Fort Pierre and Black
Hills stage road the valley is very narrow,
but has quite heavy growth of timber. The
| opportunities for farming are limited, but
| stock raising may be carried on here success
| fully, there being an abundance of grass
and water with natural shelter for cattle
In the land which on the map forms the
upright part to the IL" shaped portion which
| is left unshaded, is found perhaps the most
diversified and we'll watered portion of the
land TO be sold. Here are found numerous
small streams and many little valleys which
are unexcelled for the growing of wheat and
oats. The grass in this portion of the res
| ervation is the same as that found on the
Bad and White rivers, being an akali bunch
grass, which cures on the ground and affords
| feed for cattle all through the winter months.
| The Rattlesnale creek. one of the principal
streams in this strip, lying to the west OF the
| Cheyenne river reservation as defined by the
last treaty, has considerable amount Of
timber, and affords an abundance of water