The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-03-12
A BIG RUSH LIKELY.
Prospective Opening of Lands of thu
Fort Totten Reservation.

Prospective Opening of Lands of thu
Fort Totten Reservation.
The people in North Dakota, and more
Especially those residing in that portion
ST the State known as the Devils Lake
region, are anxiously watching the eff
forts OF Senator Hansbrough, aided by
Senator MeCumber and Congressman
Spaldlng, to have that portion of the
Fort Totten Indian Reservation which
has not been taken by the Indians in
seVeralty thrown open to settlement
When the lands embraced in the res
ervatlon We're selected by the Indians
they chose the finest in the State, as the
land is mostly heavily timbered, and
that portion is among the finest agri-
cultural land in the West, and equally
as good as that of the Red River Valley.
THE reservation extends around Devils
Lake, beautiful sheet of water having
three hundred miles of shore line, and
peculiar in that the water is salt like
that Of Great Salt Lake in Utah,
III Senator Hansbrough is successful
in having large portion of the res
ervation thrown open to settlement,
there will be a rush to locate claims
greater than Oklahoma witnessed in its
l palmy days, as these claims are worth
from $1,000 to $4,000 and upward The
'old timers" will doubtless dislike to
see the passing of the reservation, which
will eventually mean the destruction of
the old agency buildings and the fort,
although the latter is now used by the
Government as ain Indian industrial
school for the children of this reserVa-
| tion as well as for number of Chippe-
wa reservations in this section of the
| Northwest
| The surrounding country is thiclSly
settled by prosperous and wealthy farm
ers and stockmen, and the Indians look
with jealous eyes on the eneroachment
Of the whites upon their lands and will
make q determined effort to retain pos
session of the lands they now hold. Poor
Lo, as he Is to-day on the reservation,
is picturesque character whose cole
aim in life is to rustic something to eat,
The Indians now on the reservation
are descendants of the Washpeton and
Sisseton bands of Sioux that once roam
ed through the region, from which were
carved the States of North and South
Dakota and Minnesota, They are
part of that self-eame Sioux nation that
struck terror to the hearts of the early
settlers of Minnesota, that murdered
many daring gold seeker on his jour
ney to the Black Hills of Dakota in the
early seventies, and many an old mem
Der of the tribe still lives on the Totten
Reservation and can tell to the assembl-
ed braves around the wlgwam fire of the
i1I. Fiat, t41
chance Of scenes at the Custer massacre,
and can point with eavage pride to
Chippewa scalps drying In the smoke
Of the ,wigwam fire-scalps lifted from
the heads of the hereditary enemies of
his tribe in the long ago, 1t was here
on this reservation that General Sully
fought his famous battles with the ST.
oux
Additional interest Is given to the
opening of this reservation to settle
ment as it is In the neighborhood OF
prosperous towns and cities and situat-
ed between two important lines of rail-
way-the Great Northern and the Nor
thern Pacifc-thus greatly enhancing
the value of the land. A large portion
of the land borders on the lake. The
lake is navigahle for miles in every di- !
rection, and has two steamers making
daily trlps between Fort Totten and
Devils Lake City.
Sufficient money has been raised to
bridge across that portion
of the lake known as the "Narrows,"
which will greatly facilitate trade be-
tween the inhabitants on the two sides.
j. ]. Hill, president Of the Great North
ern Railway Company, is Interested in
the bridge scheme. and has made a
handsome cash donation in aid of 1t. |
Upon the completion of the bridge 1t is
expected that the 500 Railway viii con-
struct a line from the town Of Courte-
nay on its Dakota branch, to Devils |
Lake, using this proposed bridge to |
cross the lake. This will give DEVILS |
Lake n competing line of railway and |
assist In the upbuiding of
The city.
Very few of the inhabitants of the
Eastern States have any idea Of the nat
lral wealth OF the Devils Lake region
The Chautauqua Assembly (modeled on
he plan of that Of New York; is held
zach summer on the shores of the lake
,ut few miles from this reservation.
md during the season of 1899 was visit
ID by hundreds of people from all por-
ions of the country.-Minneapo
Journal.