The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1904-03-12
NORTH DAK0TA'S
ADVANTAGES!
How the State is Growing.
The Industrious Get a
Good Start Quick.

A steady progress towards coDtln-
ual prosperity following upon some
of the lean years which did SO much
to put the Northwest in the doubt
full column, has done much to give
North Dakota the status it should
have and to give it's prairies and
products a charm which is contin-
ually attracting the investors and
building the state into one of the
most prosperous communities in
the country.
The state gained in population
between 1890 and 1900, 1876, ,427, or
7-10ths per cent, and it is gener-
ally believed that it has gained in
the past three years more than
100000 in population.
The last census awards it the
honor of being the wealthiest state
in the union. and the largest in
come according to population.
It has been said that the cost Of
opening up a farm IN North Dakota
is greater than it is in some states
farther east. In the early develop
ment of North Dakota, when it was
exclusively devoted to wheat rails
ing, for the farmer to open up l6O
acres and be able to maintain a
family until he could get returns
from the land necessitated quite an
outlay of money. Under the old
plan of opening up a wheat farm,
the settler had to be on it in the
spring. He would break his land
and back-set it, that is, plow it the
second time, but could raise no
crop until the next year, and would
not get returns from that until in
the fall; therefore, it would be a
year and a half from the time that
he established himself in Dakota
before he could get any returns
from the land. So, to break up 160
acres, plow it twice, maintain a
family and stock for year and a
half, get the machinery to seed and
harvest 100 acres, required some
capital. s%
EASY TO GET A. START.
Many settlers with small means
make the mistake of undertaking
too much and get into debt, SO that
if the crop proved to be an unproit-
able one. they became involved.
But now that they are raising fax,
they can break the land the first
spring, SOW the fax the same sea-
son and get a pretty fair crop, the
income of. which enables the settler
to go for seedingthe next spring to
other grain. This practice of seed
ing fax on newly broken land has
been quite an attractive feature to
new settlers in the northwest for
the last few years.
Settlers in North Dakota should
60 into stock a. early as possible.
They should go into mixed farm
ing and not depend entirely upon
grain, aid therefore not break up
all Of the farm, even if they can do
so, but retain a part of it for past
urage and stock purposes. I feel
confident that on a plan similar to
this, good, thrifty, enterprising
economical young farmer can, un-
der ordinary circumstances, succeed
in establishing a comfortable home
in North Dakota.
The atmosphere is dry and de-
void of any humidity during the
winter months, and, therefore, it
never penetrates and chills as does
the damp atmosphere Of the Attain
tic states. It is a fact, borne out
by the assertions of all the resi-
dents Of the state, hailing, as they
do from all.sections Of the United
Ststes, that the winters Of North
Dakota are no more severe and
cause less suffering and inconven-
ience than the winters Of New Eng