The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1901-07-16
THEY SELL RAILROAD LAND
Dealers in the Real Estate Of the Road
Are Doing a Land Office
BUSINESS

Karl Simmon, of Helena. state land
agent of the Northern Pacific and
Robert j. Perry, of Manhattan, second
in command Of the great empire under
the control of the railroad, are in the
city today, looking up business along
their line. They have just returned
from very successful trip to eastern
Montana, and are headed for the west,
where they have other deals pending.
1--WE are selling close to $4,000 acres
OF land a month"; said Mr.. Simmon.
1T Is scattered all along the Northern
Pacific, from Dakota to Idaho. Only
last week we sold A square miles. of
little over $4,000 acres, to Hon. William
Lindsay, 80 miles north Of Glendive.
MIR. Lindsay is the fortunate owner of
the finest spring of living water in east
ern Montana-it would provide water
for 100000 head Of cattle-and he wanted
some land to go with it. We have an
other deal on hand for the sale of IS
sections, in a solid body adjoining Lind
says, and there are many other sales
that run up into the thousands of acres.
ITO understand how it is possible to
buy such large tracts Of land, one must
know something of the land which is
| sold. Eastern Montana is distinctly
arid; no more arid country in the United
States. perhaps, than IN Montana. The
| land is beautiful to the eye and the soil
| is all that could be desired but there is
| no water for irrigation the rainfall is
not sufficient in more than one out OF
| five years to insure any kind OF crop,
4 1t will take a generation to restore the
native grasses if the soil is once broken
up, and the country Is perforce good for
| little else than grazing. 1t seems too
bad that in place where you could pillow
| furrow ten miles long without striking
| bit of brush, stone, or hill large
or small, and the soil is fairly oozing
| with richness. there should not be water
for agriculture. But such is the case
! and the limitations Of nature will not be
overruled.
Our land sales are spread all over the
state in a most remarkable way. We &c
| across the state almost every week, tc
look up prospective buyers. Wherever
| We get word of buy, we go and look
him up; instead of waiting for him te
come to us and make up his mind. Mos
of the sales are made directly on the
ground in question, local conditions gov.
erring the price. In some of the valleys
where irrigation is possible though the
land is not yet put under water, prices
go as high as S. to 81 per acre. The gen.
eral run of prices, however, for grazing
lands is from 81 to $1.25 an acre.
1.-THE lands of the company are being
surveyed as rapidly as possible, so as te
get them in the market. Twenty sec
tons have just been surveyed north o.
Glendive, and the same near Miles City
In some of the districts, as the one nortf
Of Billings, every foot of the railroad
land has already been sold to the stock
men.
"If the government would sell or leas'
it's holdings in Eastern Montana, TIN
sections which alternate with the rail
road land within the land grant limits
and all the territory north and south O
the grants, it would facilitate the open
ing up of the country, and give grea
impetus to stock growing, as we'll al
bring considerable revenue into the pub
lie Golfers. AS is now is, the purchaser
of railroad land, the alternate sections
fence in both their own land and tn
government land, zigzagging their fenc
so as to have it all on the railroad land
and get double value for nothing. 1
the land were sold, it could bring larg
sum into the treasury, or If leased,
would give the stock men legttlmat
} title to their range, while bringing some
thing to the people, the real owners, Il
the shape of taxes. The land Is value
: less, that is, land in the distinctivel
arid belt-for anything save grazing, an
!. conditions can never change so as t
, bring water into country where-t
is not water to bring in. The govern
:. ment retards the development of tn
J state in holding this land for the settler
: who can never possibly use it for home:
because of the lack of water. But 1t
fine grazing-none better in the Who'll
world"