The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-09-25

determined to go on, even if night should
oyertake him, to the head of the falls. At
the distance of two and one-half miles he
arrived at another cataract of twenty-sixi
feet. Just above this is "a cascade Of five
feet, beyond which, as far as could be "disg.
cerned, the velocity of the water seemed
to abate Captain Lewis now assembled the
hill which was behind him, and saw from
the top delightful plain, extending from
the south and southwest. The Missouri
itself stretches to the south 49,
bearing on its bosom vast flocks of geese,
while numerous herds of buffalo are feed
ing on the plains which surround it. Cap
tain Lewis then descended the hill and
directed his course towards the river. He
soon met a herd of at least a thousand
buffalo and shot one of them, The animal
Immediately began to bleed, and Captain
Lewis, who had forgotten to load his gun,
was intently watching to see him fall
when he beheld large brown bear which
was stealing on him unperceived, and was
already within twenty steps, Captain
Lewis waded out into the river and the
bear turned and ran off.
The conditions which Captain Lewis
found at the falls, continued practically
unchanged for seventy-fve years. A lew
white trappers had passed them and
spread more or less glowing accounts Of
the beauty of the Giant Springs and the
grandeur of the Falls; few adventurous
COW men looking for new ranges had pros
pected the surrounding country and few
sheep men had sized up the great springs
as q possible winter camp, without
thought of the tremendous power running
to waste But the transition stage had
come and with it the man whose expert
ence as a pioneer in the development of
the water power and manufacturing in
dustry of Minneapolis enabled him to at
! once appreciate the possibilities that lay
in the Development of the power at least
| ten times as great. ..-- ,-.s~ II
| United States Senator Paris Gibson was
| thoroughly acquainted with the varied re-
sources Of every part of Montana when
| in 1882 he first saw the falls Of the Mis-
souri, and he Immediately realized that
at this point could be centered the in
dustrial activity of state whose domain
is greater in extent than all of New
England with Ohio and Indiana added.
He at once began to acquire title to the
present site of Great Falls and, going to
st. Paul, secured the cooperation Of the
greatest developer the northwest has ever
had. J. Hill. Five years later the
Great Northern railroad was extended to
Great Falls, and the history of the town
really begins with that year.
Only a few bare facts and statistics car
be given here regarding the growth of the
city and the development of its Industrial
and commercial activity, but these will be
startling to the average reader.
In 1890 the census gave Great Falls {
population of 5000, in 1900, it was 1890
and in December, 1901, a directory censu.
placed the population at 1852, sn esti:
mate which was verified by the schoo
census The present population is not IA
from 10000.
The available horse power of the fall
aggregates over 325, 900, as compared witt
total Of 105,345 horse power in the tota
combined powers of Minneapolis, Holyoke
!! Manchester, Lewistown. Lowell. Law