The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-06-05
MONTANA land GRANTS.
everal Thousand Acres In the Flat
head Country Selected by
the State.
wenty Townships In All are
TO Be Surveyed at
OnCo.
\ Jury Decides . Mineral Land Question
-AensmAn and Barnes Go to
Deer Lodge.

Deer Lodge.
Few psopas realize what . magnificent
gift Montana received whom admitted to
statehood IN the way Of land grants from
the general government for educational
md ether purposes. The state board Of
land commissioner are however, alive to
the situation, and under tho terms Of the
admission act have been looking after the
interests Of the state. Seventeen townships
in the Flathead country, in Nissoula
county, which were selected by the board
for survey have been approved by the gen.
oral land eommissionsr. Az soon 40 he il
notified the surveyor general Of Montana
will invite bids for the survey. Yesterday
the board rejected three more townships,
making twenty in all 30 far chosen in the
FlAthead country. After the surveys are
made the lands will be selected under the
prescribed regulations Of the land depart
ment. The tract selected yesterday begins
at or near the west end OF Pleasant Valley
tunnel, on the main line of the
Great Northern railway, thirty-sight miles
west of Demersville, and running west
three townships, including what is known
as Pleasant valley. Preference will be
given to the north side Of the valley 70 far
As the guide meridian will allow.
Hon. Granville Stuart, who il the state
land agent, has recently examined some Of
the land in western Montana and makes
some suggestions to the board. On his trip
no examined the country along Clark's
Fork, Or Pen d'Orsills river, and also that
part of the valley of the Kootenay river
from the falls to the Idaho line, He says:
The valley Of Clark's Fork is narrow and
mostly rocky bsnohss or terraces. It has
been we'll timbered, but the many sawmills
along il have cullsd cut the most valuable
timber to the base Of the mountains. There
il still some good timber ON the mountains
and trimming hack up the valleys Of the
streams coming in from each sids, but the
soil il not good, being stony. From Thomp-
sons Falls down to the Idaho line almost
all the valley has been burned over by dis
sstrous forest frss, which havs destroyed
millions Of dollars worth Of valuable tim
Der, and the heat has bsen 90 intense that ii
has also burned up all the leaf mould soil
down to the clay and gravel subsoil, adam
age to the land that il will take twenty i've
years, without hrss, to repair. In addition
TO this the course Of the river md valley 10
nearly northwest, making it impossible to
have townships follow each other along the
valley, because they must either run north
and south or east and west, and conse-
quently \ series of townships would have
the river running 6iagonally through them,
with q probability of much Of tho most val
liable land being loft out in the angles,
No doubt several sections of land valuable
for timber, and in some cases fol-. soil also,
could be selected in each township, and it
may yet be found desirable to have some
ing to keep the timber dsprsdator off of
land in that region, for they have been tax
ing it for so long that they would dislike
very muoh to quit now.
Mr.. Stuart next Q over to the Koote-
nay. Concerning it he says: There are two,
mouth of Dibby creek we'll timbsred inc Of
fair soil. The course of the river here il
but little north of west; the survey would
it the valley pretty closely, provided the
guide meridian to connect with other sur
veys happened to strike right. Then west
comes q narrow canyon at Kootenay falls
of perhaps one township, whore the valley
opens up into a series Of rocky terraces,
those on the east and northeast side of the
river being covered with 4 fine forest, most
ly of valuable yellow pine, which extends
down the river about three townships, or
three and a half, to the Idaho line. The
river is navigable both above and below
the::fatls, which in high water are little more
than rapids with one fall of six or eight
feet. But the trouble with these three and
perhaps four valuable timber townships is
that the soil is almost exclusively rock ter
races and broken ground; tho timber, how
ever. is fine. But the river running north
yunOf DYAoonfu tho unnnA F1if1Nn1fu ia
az is met With n Clari's
Fork, or even more so because the most of
the timber is on che northeast side of the
river below the falls.
Before having surveys contracted for on
the Clark's Fork or Aootenai rivers l think
it would be we'll for mo to examine the
branches of the Big Blackfoot river, as l
have reason to believe there ia in that vicin-
ity q number of townships of fine yellow
pine timber with some good soil. And l
think some considerable portions of town
soil may yet be located on the upper Bitter
Root river and its tributaries, and which
will soon DO valuable. examined the Mis-
soula river valley from Frenchtown down
to Iron Mountain. sixtv-four miles below
Missouls, and found it marrow, with all
good land squatted upon. The timber had
been good, but a number of sawmills wero
fast cutting it out, SO that it would not pay
to have surveys made here. l have been
much delayed by the difficulty of finding
grass for my horses in the forest region, so
early in the season. The dense forests and
lack of roads or trails have also rendered
my progress slow and difficult, and made it
Impossible to accurately estimate the
amount of desirable land in any given 10.
cality. but I think I have kept within a safe
limit. tx