The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-09-22
WANT I0TRADEHERE.
Roseau Merchants Regretfully View
the Prospective Necessity Of Send
ing Trade to Chicago.
Israel sjoberg Confirms the Report
That the Canadian Northern
" Is Surveying a Line.


Confederation of the report that Min
neapolis runs a risk of losing important
trade from Roseau and other northwest
ern counties of the state was furnished
this morning by Israel Sjoberg of Sjoberg
Brothers, prominent merchants at ROS-
eau and Badger, MINI.
YES said Mr.. Sjoberg, II know it's a
fact that surveying party, sent out by
the Canadian Northern road, has just fin
ished a, survey from Warroad on Lake Of
the Woods, thirty seven miles southwest
to Badger, by way Of the town of Ros-
eau. Besides that, I don't know any
thing positive But it isn't likely that
the company will pass up good thing,
and If they put their line into Badger
they'll be sure to get all the business Of
the Roseau county business men and
farmers. It would be so much cheaper
and easier for us to ship out by rail from
Badger and Roseau to Warroad and Port
Arthur, and then sby boat to Chicago,
than it would be to take grain overland
for seventy five miles by wagon road to
the Red River line of the Great North
ern In Marshall county. OF course, the
Thief River extension of the same road
is a little nearer-about sixty miles south
of Roseau, but our regular outlet has
been through Marshall county.
And If the Canadian Northern does
build that extension, we shall find 1t
much cheaper to get all our goods Of the
Chicago jobbers. They could ship to us
direct.
'Still, we'd be sorry to have to give up
our Minneapolis connection. Your job
bers here supply most of our trade and
our relations have been very friendly.
1t wouldn't be pleasant to have to do
all our dealings with Canadian rail-
road, and with Illinois jobbers.
we would be very glad, if the Great
Sh 10 ~, 1i,o
and tap our county, There's a report
that they think Of doing it. They could
either build northeast from their line in
| Marshall county north from their Thief
River extension.
"Our trade is already pretty heavy,
| population within a few years. We've
got upwards of 10000 people there now,
| and that's four times what we had five
years ago. 1t isn't timber country, as
| some people seem to imagine. Neither is
it all prairie, like North Dakota. It's
mostly prairie with a great many natural
groves. We've got a splendid black loan
up there, with clay subsoil, and you can
see how rich it is from the fact that be-
| fore I left home our farmers had t11reshed
out an average Of twenty-five bushels
| of wheat to the acre, and sixty bushels of
| oats.
| But if Minnesota is going to hold the
Roseau county trade, it'll be necessary
| to act promptly before the Canadian
| Northern puts down its extension. This
| road runs from Winnipeg southeast by
| way of Warroad and Lake of the Woods
to Fort William and Port Arthur on
the north shore of Lake Superior. The
proposed branch would have to be built
only twenty-five miles southwest from
tWarrOad to reach Roseau, and only thirty
| seven miles, as I said, to get into Badger.
The extension would divert trade not
only from Roseau county, but from the
east side of Marshall county and from
the north end Of Beltrami county along
the Rainy Lake river. '''If