The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-09-15

fathers were once carried on their roll
licking English coaches from London 10
Liverpool. In. fact, if things went wei
there was to be a railway built That
meant the opening up of a new North
west, Tor had it not been known for many
a year that wheat could be grown 1000
miles north of the Saskatchewan? Ed
monitor was to become a second Chicago
There were millions in it, Where one
could nave bought land for 81 an acre
within an hours canter of the town. own
ers We're suddenly asking fabulous prices
I and corner lots on the muddy little main
street of the little mushroom metronolis
still We're being disposed of for $50oO
Ihen the tide began to turn. The first
lew Struggling, defeated parties drifted
down again from the Overland Route -
linen still more of them came, all broken
and heartsick. The stories they had to
tell never made pleasant reading The
Edmonton trail was white with bones
Horses and men had fallen sick or mad
starved to ceath. Boats were swert away
IN the unknown but turbulent raeids of
the Northern. country Camps Were found
III mIdWtnter With two ard three stiff
poofes frozen about a pitiahle little heap
Oh ashes. Two or three, it is true, actual
~ pushed their way to the Yukon but
me vast majority were gla1 enough to
drift back TO the little outpost town of
Edmonton, and there they seem to have
stranded in Edmonton mud and snow
And there YOU may find them TODAY
wrecks in body and fortune a ratbetic
remnant OF that once vast army of adj
Nenturers who were to return at least
HiLhoha1reS. Many of them are still
washing gold. but never in a wav thar
WIN prlng them more than their bread
ana tobacco. The sand bars of the Sas
katcheWan all have a major sprin king
OF gold dust. AMI both below and above
the town of Edmonton these broken down
miners are today working away with
tneir srizziles' washing out a dollar
OF TWO In dust each daY. But the cream
OF the rivers precious deposits has long
since been gathered This god is "fako'
ana very light. and what with 1fes and
MOSQUITOES and freshets and frosts their
!ot Is ABOUT as unhappy as that of the
Northsrn Indians cayuse. that nature has
taught to paw through the snow in win
Ter lor It's puny dinner of parched prairie
grass. NiN0 "a an
But IN the meantime Edmonton is do
ing her best to forget the DAYS of the
overland Route The little town on the
saskatchewan. is trying to shake off her
frontier ways and is edging down more
socially toward the rest of the world.
AS mas already been said. the Calgary
q Edmonton railways now links the CITY
OF Broken Hearts with the town of Cal
loot
mis- OF the Rockies like a gray kitten.
The Edmonton country, too, is proving
an excellent wheat raising territory, and
each season new settlers are pouring IN.
Inc length and severity of the winter,
however, make it impossible to grow
any of those small fruits which are
source of considerable revenue to the
eastern farmer. In fact, Edmonton is a
fruitless town, the bitter little Siberian
crab being the only fruit the Eastern
slope can boast of, But four years ago
there was a hardy little apple tree
planted in back yard garden of the,
town should not like to say just
now many hundred miles that momen-
tous little apple tree had been carried.
1t survived the early frosts and even
the hailstorms of midsummer and thirty
ed. Last year blossom appeared on
one of its topmost boughs, The entire
town turned out to see the wonder. and
day by day the blossom was watched