St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-05-26
To What the Prosperity Of the
City Is Alleged to Be
Due.
Education Of the Farmers
Necessary to Minneapolis
Advance. y.
Some Pointers Which Should
Be Well Received by the
Boomers.

which deserve wider circulation among
the people of Minneapolis than 1t would
probably receive from its publication in
that periodical. This article takes up
the history of Minneapolis from its
birth, carries it through its struggles to
get out of its swaddling clothes, and
finishes with a description Of the pres
sent standing and resources of the city.
In the beginning, the struggles or the
Northwestern farmer with wheat rails
ing, and the final introduction and
adoption of the Scotch Fife wheat as
the seed peculiarly adapted to North
western soil, are detailed, and the artl-
Gle continues thus:
sit should be noted that up to the
time of the proper treatment OF Scotch
Fife the city of Minneapolis had not
made much of a stir in the world. st.
Anthony, on the opposite side OF the
river, was looked upon as the coming
city, and the saving of lumber was
deemed to be the chief industry. The
water power was then the only reason
the development of the latent qualities
of hard wheat, however, Minneapolis
began to grow. The wonderful growth
of the Northwest followed. The wide
and lonesome prairies blossomed thick
with farms, and land that was brown
and gray in the early spring became
yellow with ripened grain in the
autumn. Towns sprang up here and
there, and when the railroads crept
across the great prairies to reach them
and bring in the grain, the young city
of Minneapolis began to throb and
glow with a new life. Very quickly the
output of flour became greater than Min
neapoIis and St. Paul combined could
take care of, and then the products of
the mills went out to all parts OF the
United States. That was only dozen
paltry years ago, and yet to-day Mime
apolis is claimed to be the greatest
wheat and milling center in the world:
Buda-Pesth, in Hungary, is said to be
second, and st. Louis, Mo-, third. For
the work of dozen years this is little
short of phenomenal, yet it is only
fair indication Of the future greatness
of the Northwest, the resources OF
which have been hardly explored, much
less made use of. When the millions
OF acres of good land now lying Just as
they lay thousand years ago shall
come under the domination of the pillow
and harrow. the milling outputs, the
wheat sales and the trade statistics of
the present day will be things to
smile at.
I'm making this prediction [ am TAX
ing the rather broad ground that the
productive capacity of the soil will-nOt
be diminished 10y constant cultivation.
Wheat is so exacting- crop that it re-
quires all the native strength and fresh
ness of land to produce the best results,
and when its nature and peculiarities
are dlsregarded, failure is inevitable.
Judging solely by trustworthy statistics,
| am of opinion that the average North
western farmer has much to learn about
successful farming. So long as his land
was new and strong he was good
enough farmer, but when his land be-
gan to wear out through stress of con-
slant work and no recuperation, he be-
came very poor farmer indeed-so
poor, in fact, that the commonest of
graduates could surpass him in the re-
suits of a seasons harvest. His Sltua-
ton is somewhat similar to that of the
carpenter who lent a file to neighbor.
Here" said the neighbor, after a
half-hour's unsuccessful attempt at
using the file, ''this thing is no good; it
won't bite into anything"
mo good" demanded the indignant
carpenter. "That's as good a file as you
ever saw. Why, Pve used that file
steady for thirty years come next Christ
mas day, and know it's good!"
So 1t is with the average unscientific
Northwestern farmer. He has grown
wheat on the same piece Of ground for
| fen wears, and he knows that he is doing
| rjght. do not mean to say that the
| Northwestern farmers can become sci
entists. or even agriculturists, all in one
season: but they can make good be-
| ginning toward successful farming by
putting into practice the principle of
| the rotation of crops.
ssThe lively and enterprising citizen
of Minneapolis will perhaps wish to
know what all this has to do with the
city of Minneapolis, and in reply
| hasten to say that it has everything to
do with Minneapolis. Should the wheat
fields cease to yield crops in paying
quantities, Minneapolis could only fall
back upon its slowly declining lumber
| interests, and so lose its Importance as
a leader of Western cities. If Minneap-
oils is to be kept at its present high
to the condition of its wheat fields; and
| if it is to continue its wonderful growth
it must take into consideration the edu-
cation of its farmers. l believe that
| Minneapolis will do this eventually as
a matter of self preservation.
| "When the people of Minneapolis be-
come convinced that there must be a
| change for the better in the method of
| farming, they will take the matter in
hand with all the energy and intelli-
| gence that have characterized the build
ing of their city. They will not be
| alone in this movement. nor will their
| supremacy as grinders of grain remain
uncontested. Duluth will one day
enter the field as maker of -four. AS
a shipper of wheat, Duluth has already
caused grave fears and misgivings
among Chicago business men; and, as a
maker of -four, what may she not do to
Minneapolis? Duluth ought to be able
to grind wheat at less cost than Mime
apolis can, because the coal for griRd-
ing power comes there as return car
| goes in grain vessels, and therefore is
cheaper than at Minneapolis. This
| article has nothing to do with the rosy
prospects. yet l mention them as a
means of showing that Minneapolis will
be able to hold her leadership and in
crease her population only by earnest
efforts in the face of active competition.
| Duluth may grow great, yet that need
not prevent Minneapolis from solidly
maintaining her position. for the en-
pire of the Northwest is capable of
| supporting cities twice as large as the
st. Paul. Duluth and Minneapolis of
to-day. -.
"Should the overland grain route
from Manitoba to Montreal ever come
in open competition with the buying
| capacity of the Minneapolis mills or the
shipping facilities of Duluth, the result
would not long be in doubt. Canadians
| are patriotic enough in theory. but in
reality few of them would care to sell
| their wheat at 80 cents a bushel in Mon
treal when they might get dollar for
it in Minneapolis. All possibilities of a
nature with this should have due con
sideration in making up an estimate OF
the resources and future condition OF
Minneapolis, for it is not beyond the
range of reason that the people all
along the Canadian border SHAH some
day make a concerted effort to bring
| about commercial union between the
| two countries. | fancy that one of the
strongest forces to advocate this plan
will be the ST. Paul, Minneapolis &
| Manitoba railway which I0nkc RI Mani