The Press., 1894-11-01
(CorreSpondence.)

Oberon, N. D., oct. 24, 1894.
 Again we have moved on, not much farther north, but some eighty or ninety miles west. We had to move or be thrown out of the line of march by the men of our vocation in this vast region. We are on the borders of an Indian reservation, and but twelve miles from Ft. Totten- twenty miles from Devils Lake City. The Indians come into our little town every day. They bring in good deal of wood, some hay, and, in their season, berries. Their farm products are few and small in quantity. They have few cattle and other domestic animals. They have log houses and wigwams. They are very quiet and uninteresting. They drive horses and cattle and ride their ponies. They are in both denominational and government schools. Fit. Totten is a school of industry and learning, rather than military encampment. We hope to speak of it before long.
 We are also on the borders of Antelope Valley. This is one of the richest val leys in the state. It has produced fine wheat crop this year. It never fails to yield something. Over two hundred car out of this market this year, part of the present crop. Shipments are made from elevators and from the wagon. The law is such that farmer can load his own -hor hn T11n Half, or more, of the wheat sent out of here is shipped in this way. There is an advantage in it to the farmer, if he wants to put his grain at once on the market, and has time to load the car.
 His wheat goes to the same market as that from the elevator. The price is the same. The grade may be the same, tho here he takes his chances, and may be in luck. He sells through commission. He saves the margin which the elevator takes, which may be three cts. or more a bush el. This margin pays the expenses of keeping up the elevator and the interest on the investment. The saving to the farmer may be fifty dollars or more on a car, or it may be less.
 Those who live near the town have the advantage over those at a distance. Cars must be filled as rapidly as possible. All over the state the different roads run out spurs where wheat may be loaded without putting the farmer to the necessity of making long hauls to his town. This helps both the roads and the farmers. We have here on the town site splendid water. A well may be sunk fifteen and twenty feet, and plenty of water will flow. Taking off a rich loam you strike into a gravel which leads down into a sandy deposit where the water is. This sand is good for mortar. In digging a cellar the sand you take out of it is used in clustering. This question of good wa- ter is vital one in this state, and with many people their stay in the state or in place depends upon it. Right here the water is all one could desire. Out in the valley, however, it is not so. You go deeper and find poor water.
 This is a beautiful location for a town. A range of hills on the east extending in a north and south direction and the val | ley on the west. The country is new. There is very little timber outside of Devils Lake. Along the rivers there is none. There is but little timber culture, enough, however, to demonstrate the fact that it can be grown successfully. The soil is the finest for vegetables. They yield we'll. and are of the best quality. Among the hills are many depressions, called by various names, which yield a good supply of grass and hay. The set tiers in here are in many particulars far ahead of the frontiers people of an earlier day. They start in with better advan- tages. Their facilities for farming are better, and their markets are nearer and better. Schools and churches are more abundant and better manned
 Just now hunters are coming in from near and far. Such numbers of wild geese as go back and forth from lake to stubble-field we have never seen before. The wonder is to know where they all come from. How far north have they been nesting this summ CT? They fly high, and are on the alert when feeding, so 1t is difficult to get many of them.
 o. P. CHAMPLIN. | -