Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1904-12-21
PRODUCTS OF
FERGUSCOUNTY
Showing for the Last Year in the Mat.
ter Of Wheat Growing and Cattle
Raising Excellent,
MUCH STOCK SHIPPED TO EAST
Ranehers of County in Prosperous
Condition and Prospects Bright
for the Future.

As the winter season is becoming
more and more evident To the resi-.
dents OF Lewistown IL might be well
10 take general review of what
Fergus county and the Judith BASIN
have done in the season just past.
Never before has the county had A
more prosperous year and this pros.
perity will undoubtedly be continued
indefinitely. The ranchers through.
out the county have raised large
amounts of produce of every kind and
have received good prices for every
thing they have sold. While the cat.
tie market has not been so good as
might be wished the good prices re.
ceived for other things have more
than made up for any loss that may
have been felt on the other score.
The summer, while II has been rath-
er dry, has been a perfect one in 9th.
er respects and the good weather has
been continued far into the winter.
The condition of the country is good
and the winter range is in such shape
that not great amount of feeding
will be necessary for stock. How.
ever. ranchers are becoming more
convinced every year that better stock
can be raised and better prices realiz-
ed by doing judicious winter feeding.
This was shown by the prices recent.
ly received by John Dover, whose
range cattle topped the market for
the state at Chicago. lie believes in
winter feeding and raises a smaller
number of cattle than most of the
large stockmen. In this way the
quality is raised and more attention
can be given than where there is
such large number. Conditions
have changed here in the basin and
the stockmen and ranchers must also
change 10 meet them.
Last fall marked ;hS inauguration
OF wool market at Lewistown and
despite the gloomy representations
OF many ii was pronounced success.
Much wool was brought here TO be
sold and the best prices in the state
were realized right here. The larg
est wool houses in the country were
represented here by experienced ag
ents and both the buyers and the
growers were entirely satisfied with
the local market. On leaving, the
wool men all expressed their conf
dence in the great future before the
Lewistown wool market. There were
close TO two and one-half million
pounds of wool sold right here in
i.ewistown, but this does not by any
means tell the story of the wool pro
duction of the county, for many of the
large outfits shipped their wool to 9th.
er markets in the belief that this one
was too new a venture to get the
buyers here and bring them good
prices for their product. II Is esti'
mated that in all five million pounds
of wool were raised In Fergus county
this year, and this means that the
ranchers of the county are some sew
en- or eight hundred thousand dollars
richer now than they were before.
Many of the wool growers. who last
season contracted with buyers for
their wool before the markets opened
and many who took their product 10
other markets, have expressed their
intentions Of coming TO Lewistown
next summer, as they realize that the
prices given here could not be beat
en- at other points. One man who has
been in the wool business for many
years, and who keeps a close watch
of the market, says that next year S
wool could be sold by contract now
at 90 cents a pound.
The crowning glory Of Fergus coun-
ty Is its wheat. This announcement
will come as a surprise TO those who
have not been keeping pace with de-
velopments here in the last year. I'm
Ill this year only enough grain has
been raised in the basin for home con.
sumption, owing TO the absence OF any
shipping facilities. but with the ad'
vent of the railroad has come the dis
covery that the Judith Basin Is with
out a peer as a wheat country and
ranchers are breaking all the land
they can spare from other things to
sow in wheat. These bench and bot
tom lands in the basin cannot be
equalled anywhere as producers of
the worlds greatest cereal. and the
prices paid are an induceInent 10 any
man to raise large crops.
This Is the first year that anything
has been done along this line and the
success which has attended the efforts
OF the farmers has been revelation
to all. While there was a conpara'
lively small amount uf wheat raised III
the basin this year the returns have
been large in proportion Inc yleiu
has averaged 80 bushels to the acre
in the Judith basin as against Inc
average for the United STATES as
whole. OF 1872 bushels an acre. some
ranchers in the basin raised wheal
which went more than 30 bushels to
tho acre and some as high as bO
bushels There are more than mil
lion acres Of land right mere IN 'he
Judith basin. which, If 7own TO wheat,
would produce an average oil 80 10 80
bushels an acre II all This land was
sown in wheat II would produce more
than the states OF Iowa Missouri OF
California. This seems ike Dig
statement but II Is borne out oy wnat
has airaady heen done along that line
this year. Winter wheat natures by
July and thus even II dry season
-. 1, ,rnmll not be anected.