The Press., 1898-01-06
NORTH DAKOTA LETTER.

# Operon, N. b., Dec. z, lS87.
 Minot is on the Great Northern, where the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste Marie crosses 1t. There has been great land swindle there, the victims of which are largely eastern people of small means. A tract of land, known as the Brooklyn addition, comprising about one hundred and sixty acres, was plated by an east ern concern, and the lots were sold to eastern people, there being good many ready to invest. The tract laid out was mostly hills and gullies. The investment has turned out 10 be a loosing one. When those who invested saw they were getting nothing for their investments, it appears theyunited and sent agents out there to investigate. They found that ''sone of their lots were standing on end, and oth- CTS lying on their sides on account of the steep hills" The lots proved to be ut terl1sworthless, and so the taxes were not &ld- Now the county is put to the expense of advertising and selling this land which win be more expensive than the value If the land. Those who pla ted and sold these lots are thought to have cleared hundred thousand dollars.
 have given this incident, which has just fallen under my notice, for the pur- pose of remarking that, whereas, in 8 going on throughout the state, and many people suffered thereby the total loss of investments, there is no need now that this should be continued. The lands of the state are better known, their value is more accurately ascertained, the soils are better understood and what can be best grown on them, they are brought under better conditions of examination, and the amount of taxation they can comfortably sustain is better understood; so that from every point of view the chances that investors will be cheated are greatly les sened. Moreover, investors are them selves largely to blame for their i'll luck because they have been too fast to place their money here, lured by the prospect of lftger percentages. They have seemed to see that they could get so much larger rates of interest here than in the eastern banks, that they have withdrawn their deposits and placed them here. without first tudiciously inquiring into the char acter of the men, and theii enterprises, who have solicited from them. They should have moved more cautiously. Sometimes the eastern investor has failed to get returns from his investment, and has sent come one out here to look up the matter. and he has come and has re- ported to the detriment of the Investor. l To illustrate A party in Boston Invest ed some ten thousand dollars in small loans on farm lands in the Red River valHy< He was secured by mortgages lIr;k st sell behind. He became alarmed, sent { man out to see the character oi the security. He reported after investi- gating. The investor concluded to dis pose of his entire interest. A man who knew the value of the lands, and that the investment could be had for nine thou sand dollars, raised the money and took 1t. In three or four years he sold it for twenty thousand. So much for knowing the value of the land. The state has thousands of acres of very rich land, and then, again, 1t has thousands of very poor lands. Good soil and poor soil lie side by side here, as elsewhere. We are sorry when we hear of these people of small means being swindled out of all they have; but let them be more cautious. There have been losses where there was no intention to be unfair or dishonest Soils were thought to be good which turned out to be poor. Men have learned something by experience. Lands yield we'll in wet seasons that fail in dry time. It is so in other places.
 The state is receiving good many set tiers this year, and the prospect is good for a larger increase next year. We have had, on the whole, a very good crop sea- opportunity to ripen, which one time bio fair to be destroyed by early frosts. We have never known grain to ripen so slow ly. There was so much moisture in the ground the straw grew and grew, but there was not a corresponding yield o grain. Still the crop throughout the state is very good. The price-almost and sometimes, double that of year age has made up for the shortage.
 We are past Thanksgiving, and there is but little snow on the ground. w, have had but very little thus far. Las year, at this time, we had immense snov drifts end g number of severe storms with one blizzard, SIX weeks more of req winter than we can have now, unless i should be extended into the spring. Tn, indications are for good weather up tt Christmas time at least. This is of i'm mense benefit to the farmer who has thu care of much stock. This was grea wild fowl season. Geese and ducks wer' in immense numbers. Everybody coult have wild fowl, and did. Prairie chick ems, however, were less numerous. Tn long and severe winter. 8 year ago, wa too much for them.
 | As one travels about the state he note improvement everywhere. The town are growing, the country is settling up and the farms improving in buildings ant in cultivation. The future of the stat
 has bright promise. O. P. CHAMPLIN. 
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