The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-10-21

| and still when these good Dunkers came
lots of people said they were no good be-
| cause they did not come to town often
enough for a drink Of whisky. Considine.
from $4,000 to $4,000; Bisbee. from SIT. 900
| to 100000; Perth, from $4,000 to $685.,
900; Rolla, from $4,000 to $146,OOO. Now
will get back to Rugby. $4,000 to $751;
900; Barton from $4,000 to .$37, 900; VIII
low City, from sSs,0o0 to s147.0O0; One
NEE. from 900 to $12S,000. Now on the
main line where the total revenue last
year was $4,000 it was this year $135, 600
that is at Granville. Minot, from s124,O0
to. 1881 900. Now take Souris. a little sta
ton northwest of Bottineau, the first year
the revenue was $175,00O and the second
year $2S9,000.
Railroads and the People.
/ These figures are encouraging to me,
and they ought to be to YOU They mark
growth that you cannot find anywhere
else in any state&in the union. And IT did
not come from any f1uke or boom, or from
any other source than the good old mother
earth. The people are we'll to-do. / think
they will do themselves and their farms
justice and all will be well with them If
| they got their farms for s1.25 per acre or
! homeSteaded or pre-empted it am glad
OF their prosperity, for their land is worth
s2o to $2S per acre to-day, and they won it
1alfly. With all this growth the company
gets just the same return on our money
| just as we did before. II we wanted to
raise 100000 it would be a simple thing
to estimate a profit of 81 per ton on what
you save us to carry, if you provided 100,
700 tons Of freight, but if you will give us
Gloo,OO tons upon which to raise that $780,
O0O the rate would be so cents per ton, and
II You should raise 400, 900 tons in crop it
would be a rate Of rs cents per ton 1t
is as simple as that, We have been able
to reduce your freight rate in thirty one
years to less than third of what it was,
a saving to you-to the people-on our
lines in one year Of $50, ,000-nearly
$4,000, O00-and this reduction in freiEht
rates has been brought about by increas-
ing the volume of traffic. -.~.. =:
Take. the big lines running out Of Chi
cago. I don't care which one you take,
the Chicago &, North Western, for in
stance and, you will find that altho
an older line than we are, it Is paying q
higher rate of interest than we are or
than the Northern Pacific as we'll. I
speak OF that to show you that we mean
what we say when we say that your in
terest is our interest, your prosperity Is
our prosperity and our injury your injury.
The prosperity of the railway companies
and the prosperity of the people of North
Dakota must go up together and go down
together. When you injure us you in
jure yourselves. ....
Irrigation.
Now I have been running away from
lrrigat ion On an investigation of the
entire question it was found to be abso-
| lutely folly to bring forward any measure
| In Washington. Nobody would listen to
it. To look toward the government pro-
tectlng the public domain for the settlers
and for future generations was considered
absurd by many people in the east. Il
| And l was satisfied that it would take
long period and campaign of thoro edu-
| cation. So five railway companies got to-
gether. They, had no land. I had no land
and was not looking for any, but we put
our hands in our pockets and subscribed
| $4,000 year among the five companies
| to pay for campaign of education on
the subject Of irrigation and started in
| all over the country.
| 1t went slowly at first and congressman
would not listen to it. But after q time
| went on and they found that their people
at home were interested. After a while
| the question reached out and got into
congress and into the White House, and
everybody felt that it was something to
take notice Of. And last year for the first
| time we were able to get it successfully
| on the floor of congress. Now there are
iots OF men, who are original Jacob men
VINO did 1t themselves lots Of them. But
l know how it was done. I know that
the $l25,OO0 Of good money was scattered
| thru the country in lectures, in meetings,
ing the question before the people
And they were brought to understand
now absolutely necessary it is to save
what Is left Of the public domain, to save
to the people Of our country the farming
lands, SO that their children shall not be
orl'en TO eXpatrlate themselves and go to
foreign lands to find farm. -,
What 1t VIII Do.
Now will give you the figures of what
Nf hn f,t1
can be irrigated. The number of acres
suitable for agricultural purposes under
any condition without irrigation or arti-
hclal aid is estimated as follows: North
Dakota, 100000 acres; South Dakota,
1000, 900; Montana, 5,o00OOO; Idaho,
3,ooo.0oO, and Washington, 10000, OOO In
| North Dakota you have substantially one
third of the area of the state that can be
cultivated without artificial moisture In
North Dakota the water supply thru wells
and others reservoirs can be made to jr-
rlgate about 100000 acres; in Montana,
io'o0O'OOO; in Idaho. 5000, 600; in Wash
| 1ngton, 100000 The land not snscen.
tible to agricultural pursuits, but which
would be valuable if irrigated, is esti-
mated as follows: North Dakota, 1O. 900
ooo acres; South Dakota, 5000. 900: Mon
tana' 100000; Idaho, 10, 900 900: Wash
lngton 100000. ~,
You can add 100000 farmers to the DON
ioii VI Ihls state With Intelligent irri-
gation and provide them each with a farm
Of 200 acres. Now, 200 acres with a steadv
supply OF water, the farmer having the
raln1all under his own control, is wortl,
at least 800 acres of the ordinary land.
1pere are many ways Of fertilizing the
soil in order to increase and maintai n its
fertility, and one of the greatest fertil
n l1ers , Known is water: 1t is this aspect
OF irrigation which should have the
closest consideration by the people NJ
North Dakota. Turnout a large Dor
ton of the state crops can be grown with-
out irrigation and we are unwilling +,
adopt the idea that North Dakota is an
stato ee 49,, II IS not necessary that the
state should be arid in order that irriea
tlon be Of importauce 70 har