Connecticut western news., 1892-08-11
OUR MONTANA LETTER.

"A Montana ranchman who was once a Maine farmer says that if the New England farmer chose to live as the ranchmRn Is obliged to- the farmer could make just as much money on the same capital as the other But this man thinks that one year of ranch life-living in shacks, with no furniture to speak of and the coarsest of food, no sum- days no boiled shirts, no top carriages, no pianos or other articles ofluxury-wo ould cure the New England farmer of grumbling about his lot in life"
 Editor of Ne,1s:
 The foregoing clipping took from the NEWS of July 2lst, which reached me today, and I want to say few words about the "Montana ranchmau.' When have said them you can judge for yourself whether or not he has such a hard time.
 To begin with, here for farming we have to depend upon artificial irriga- tion, except in few favored spots nat urally irrigated. When ones ranch lies under good canal and he can get all the water he needs, and when he needs it, which is always the case if he has properly built his ditch, he is far better off than his Eastern brother agricnltur- ist for he has no droughts; his crops have all the water they need and at just the critical period when they ueed it most. The growing crop has plenty of warm sunshine, and best of all there is dry weather for harvesting, consequent ly no mildew and no wheat sprouting in the shock from excessive moisture, both of which causes are SO often the reason for loss of crop or at least con- siderable depreciation of selling value to the eastern farmer.
 I nave seen here many a field of wheat running from thirty to sixty bushels to the acre; oats from eighty to hundred and twenty bushels; turnips seventeen inches in diameter and weighing twen- ty -four pounds each; and potatoes eight cen of which will fill bushel basket heaping full Best of all, the Montana farmer is in the midst of community a large proportion of whose inhabitants are non producers, comprising miners and smelters, operatives, etc. Conse. quently he has home market, large de. mand, and good prices. One thing that this town needs is more truck farmers to raise garden stuff and small fruits The cheapest that berries of any kind have been this year, or last year either has been twenty cepts basket, and mol very big baskets either. One man iron Missouri told me he had made ovel S1 GOO an acre on strawberries.
 Now as to the stock ranches. As have said in previous letter, stock il very seldom ever fed in winter any nor, than in summer, and never housed Some of my acquaintauces were former ly in the sheep business, and when the, began it did not manage right and los 60 per cent of their sheep the first year There are occasional hard winters here and ranchmen are finding out that the. must at least put up hay to feed durinl deep snows or hard crusts that sheel cannot break through. These peopl were in the business about ten years lost 50 per cent the first year, and thei |, profit for the ten years, including thei first year of great loss, was 42 per cen per annum. When a Montana rsnct
 man makes as good thing as that an lives in shack with no furniture an eats the coarsest of food, then I ca him miser or a fool.
 Montana cattle bring the highes prices of any sold in the Chicago mal ket, and 1t costs no more to raise theI than it does elsewhere. It costs jus about five dollar gold piece to raise horse or steer here, and no more for Clyde or a Durham than for Cayus or Texan. Look at the record ( Marcus Daly's Montana horses on tn race track this year and tell me the don't speak well for Montana There is yet plenty of governmer land and lots of water. The easter slope of the Rocky Mts. in Montana the best watered portion of the ari , , region.
 Q shall always be glad to answer an
 inquiries about this country. But WI :, say that lazy man will go broke . Montana about as quick as in New Eng land.
 Yours truly,
 s. B. ROBBINS,