Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-08-18
NORTHWEST TERRITORIES.
THE PLAINS AND BUFFALO "WALLOWS'
Outing With the Badger Press Voyageurs
Covering $500 Miles in Seventeen
Days-WarmIy Received by the
Canadians Along the Route.
Continued from Issue of Aug. III

THE Stars and Stripes and Union Jack
| Waved side by side along the track,
America and God Save the Queen
| Were sung by all where e'eT we've BEEN
Readers who have followed this sreport
of ride through western Canada with
the Wisconsin Press were left last week
muSing over the editors song to Can
ada, Our Friend" " and joining With the
excursionists in the spirit Of a hearty
yell for the good old Badger state. For,
although the Wisconsin quill drivers
lately covered many thousand miles of
| Canadian and American territory in a
omparatiyely short period, the time
was not altogether occupied in gazing at
natures wonderful display Of scenery
along the Canadian Pacific Rv. or in
acceptance of the bountiful hospitality
of their Canadian hosts. There were
hours during travel when they turned
for diversion to the company within the
cars, which constituted a temporary
| home, and needless to say thev always
found it. The party was rich in resources
for its own amusement, consequently it
left not dull hour during the whole
| trip. Sabbath services were conducted
in the tourist car, morning and evening,
when that day came. Evening concerts,
! literary and musical, were regular
affairs in the same meeting place The
familiar tramp, tramp Of a lot of mid
night serenaders marching through
every sleeping coach was always heard
whenever weary sleepyhead attempted
to steal wink. Music beguiled any
possible tedium of the iaunt and it was
indeed a jolly, patriotic family, that
trainlOad of newspaper men and women.
| At GrisWold, thriving village 157
miles west of Winnipeg, a short recep-
ton was rendered the Press. The
school children of the place, dressed in
capes and caps made Of newspapers,
gathered at the depot and sang "The
Red, White and Blue, "Star Spangled
| Banner" and other American songs,
then presented each member of our
party with boquet of wild flowers
The mayor of the town made short
| speech, talking AnglO-SaXon alliance
with great earnestness from start to
finish. Here, gathered around the
| depot were seen the last remaining
Sioux Indians who took part in the
| Custer massacre.
| Leaving Griswold. E.a have fairly
reached the first Of the great prairie
| steppes, that rise one after another at
| long intervals to the Rocky mountains.
| Now it is the real prairie with it's broad
the Assiniboine valley left behind gives
place to one Of lighter color, everything
a porous clay, but it must be good soil
for here we were told is produced in
the greatest perfection that famous
variety Of wheat known as the Hard
FIVE Of Manitoba" Oats, barley, rye,
flax and potatoes flourish here.
TIE RIGHT HAND
the citizens of Virden who met us at
their station with band and escorted
US to a park where few international
cOurtesies were exchanged in speech
making. ViTden claims 200 popuIa-
ton. 1t has six elevators and a good
grist mill. In 1897 there were shipped
from this little center 307 900 bushels Of
wheat and 81 cars of cattle, sheep and
hogs. In late years many ofthe farmers
IN this section have gone to stock rails
ing as we'll as wheat growing. Cordwood
here costs s. per coid, native Ignite
coal 81 per ton. a handbook states
that municipal government is managed
economically. 1t says:
The average taxes on a quarter sec
ton Of land are about So. "a quarter
section of improved farm is worth
about 81 ,0O0.) Farmers from the United
States might hardly credit this, never
! theless it is a fact. They will also be
surprised to learn that improvements
such as buildings, etc, on farm lands
are not taxed, nor are there any taxes
levied on personal effects. Horses,
cattle and other animals, machinery and
agricultural implements are also ex-
empt."
A farmer in the Virden district gives
n IXan tn -,
a query as to what articles they should
bring with them, "Cash, because there
| is no freight on it."
DISTRICT OF AssINIBOIA.
Moosomin is the first town reached
as the train speeds out of Manitoba into
above district A fine supper was
secured here at the Hotel Queensland
it can be remarked that in no town.
large or small, all through Canada did
we fail to find Hotel Queens and a
Hotel Royal--for they've all got 'em.
4 light shower, first and only rain of
| the trip, greeted editors in Moosomin
Rains were plentiful in the provinces a
| little earlier IN the season. Resuming
| journey, a narrow section of wooded
country is crossed, but wheat fields soon
come again. Our ocean of land changes
| to a billOWy surface, /. e., becomes roll
ing, and thus in the darkness of night
we are rocked to sleep. Before morn
| ing the train passed through an 50 mile
stretch of alkali land and by Rush lake,
an extensive bed of TuShes said to he
filled with alkali water. Well TO the
western extremity OF ASsinibOia we
awake for break fast at Swift Current to
learn that We are now on what are
known as
1.-THE PLAINS"
From a point 10 miles east of Swift
Current TO Calgary, near the Rocky
mountains = about 400 miles = and
stretching away south to the boundary
Of the United States, and for some dis
tance north of the railway line, is the
ranching country of the great western
territory of Canada, not so many years
ago the roaming grounds for thousands
| of buffalo and the hunting grounds of
| the Cree and BlackfOOt Indians. The
| proud bison has vanished, but the
| prairies yemain marked in all directions
| by his trails, pitted and SCARED hv Iris
"walows'; SO that the courses taken by
| herds long ago can still easily be traced.
| The Indians, too, have been changed
| by civilizations progressive hand
! though thev have not vanished as a race.
! They are now found mostly on reserva-
/ tions near certain cities, although hlan-
! keteh and painted specimens of the
original warrior were frequently en-
countered at different stations Small